As much as many of us would like to, it’s not that likely that you’re going to end up living in a huge mansion. Now, that’s not even necessarily a bad thing. After all, a huge mansion is often a lot of extra rooms to clean and a seriously expensive proposition overall. For those of us with slightly more limited budgets, everything from the classic studio apartment to a cosy family home are much more suitable. However, one thing that does often cause problems for a lot of people living in those kinds of situations is a matter of space. The vast majority of people bemoan the fact that they simply don’t have enough space in their homes. However, despite how common this complaint is, it’s one that’s often much easier to solve than a lot of people suspect. While you might feel like the only way to increase the amount of space that you have is to move to somewhere completely new, the reality is that you can make room for yourself and even a whole family within the smallest of spaces. Here are just a few things that you can try in order to really make the most of whatever limited space you may have in your home.

Choose your room layout carefully

It’s incredibly common that a lot of people tend to only ever think about the layout of the rooms in their home once when they first move in, and never again. Not only that but people often tend to stick with whatever seems most obvious, or whatever layout previous owners or tenants had used. However, just because something is the most obvious use of a space doesn’t mean that it’s the most effective. There are a few simple things to keep an eye out for when you’re trying to change up the layout of a room to maximize space. One thing is to focus on sight lines. If it feels like your line of sight is constantly being interrupted, then that’s a sign that you’re not using the space in a room properly. Similarly, it’s a good idea to think about the flow of a room. If you can’t feel the way in which different rooms flow into each other, then there might be something wrong with the layout. That might sound like something of a strange and nebulous concept, but it’s the kind of thing that you can just feel when you walk into a room, as long as you’re paying close enough attention.

[Photo courtesy of Max Vakhtbovych/pexels.com]

Maximize your storage

Storage is often a serious issue for a lot of people. Whether you live in a three bedroom house or a studio apartment, you’re almost certainly going to end up feeling like you don’t have as much storage space as you would like. However, the reality is that, far from not having enough storage space, it’s actually much more likely that you’re just not using the space properly. And cupboards or closets in your home could probably contain many more things than they do if you just made an effort to organise them a little more. The issue that a lot of people tend to make is that they treat these kinds of storage solutions like some kind of dumping ground, simply throwing things into them at random without really considering how the space is being used. It might be tempted to take something of an “out of sight, out of mind” approach to your storage, but if you think about it carefully and avoid just dumping things into cupboards, then you’re going to get a lot more out of it.

Embrace minimalism

Even if you’re not what some people would call a “hoarder”, there’s a still a pretty good chance that you just have too much stuff. Now, this might not be spilling out of wardrobes and covering up the floor, but it’s likely that you don’t need nearly as many of your possessions as you think. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. After all, humans are naturally a very sentimental species, and it’s in our nature to hold onto things that have meaning and importance to us. However, there comes a time when things spill over from being sentimental to being downright ridiculous. After all, you might want to hold onto a gift that your partner gave you for your anniversary, but do you really need a drawer full of every ticket stub and receipt from every date you’ve ever been on? It’s great to carry memories of trips you’ve taken, but if you’re filling up all of your shelves with knick knacks and souvenirs, then things are going to start looking pretty cluttered. Try embracing some more minimalist design ideas, and you’re almost certain to find that even the smallest space feels a whole lot bigger.

Use light

Making a space feeling bigger is actually one of best things that you can do. After all, you can’t exactly knock through a wall and add an extension to a third-floor apartment. One of the very best ways to make a room feel bigger than it is is to use light as much as possible. If you’ve ever walked into someone’s home and felt as though the place was incredibly cramped, despite how large it actually was, there’s a pretty good chance it was because of a lack of decent lighting. Bringing more light into a room can make even the tiniest space feel cavernous. Natural light is, of course, the very best option and you should make sure that you can get as much natural light into every room as possible. But when that’s not possible make sure that you’re keeping each room well illuminated while also tailoring the kind of light to each room. Colder, bright lights are better for kitchens and bathrooms, while slightly softer and warmer lights are much better for the bedroom where you want to create the most relaxing atmosphere possible.

Get creative

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If you look up any notable examples of people living in incredibly small spaces, then the one thing that is immediately striking is just how creative they are forced to get with things like storage. After all, if you’ve only got a footprint of a few square feet, large bookcases aren’t exactly something you can accommodate. So why not use things like floating bookshelves to not only use space in a more interesting and vertical way but also to use them as decorations. Or perhaps you can use an entire wall of a room as a place to stack things like books. That way it because something of a feature of the room, rather than a problem brought about by a lack of space. It’s also a good idea to think in multiple directions. A lot of the time people only ever tend to think horizontally in the homes, so why not try thinking vertically instead? Rather than trying to spread things out in your home, use all of that space going up to the ceiling that is otherwise just going to completely to waste!

Unify your style

One of the toughest things about living in a small space is that it can often feel incredibly chaotic. This means that it can be difficult to relax, even in your own home, and you end up feeling tense a lot of the time. One of the very best ways to avoid this feeling is to create a unified style throughout your home. Rather than thinking of each room as an entity, completely distinct from all of the others, think of them as parts of the same whole. Not only will this allow you to create a much more cohesive sense of style and design, but it will make each room feel as though they flow into the next in ways that you may well not have been able to before. This not only makes the place feel larger but creates a much more calm, relaxing environment than feeling as though you’re constantly juggling a bunch of different styles all mashed into one incredibly small space.

Make the most of your furniture

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Furniture can be a tricky proposition for a lot of people living in very small homes because it tends to take up a lot of room. Beds and couches are often so large that they completely dominate any room that they’re in. However, instead of seeing this as an inherently bad thing, why not embrace it? Make your couch into a statement piece in the centre of your living room? That way, rather than overpowering a room, it becomes a focal point that the room revolves around. This not only creates a much greater sense of visual interest to your home but also makes the areas around it seem much more distinct as well. Of course, you don’t want to go too far with this. The key is to keep things to a minimum. A large couch can be a great statement piece, but you really don’t want to end up with a room filled with chairs and couches when you’re already struggling for space. Bigger and better furniture is great, but you should try and use less of it wherever you can.

If you love your home, but it’s starting to feel a bit cramped, what do you do? Moving seems like the obvious option, but there are lots of reasons why that might not be possible. Maybe time or money restrictions prevent you from doing so, or perhaps you’re near good schools, your work or loved ones and don’t want to be too far away. Maybe you just don’t want to move as you adore your home? Either way, there are other solutions to the problem that don’t involve upping sticks and moving to pastures new. Making the most of all of the available room is one way to go about it, and chances are you have a ton of unused space that you can work with. Here are a few options.

Bedroom Cupboard

Having a large cupboard in the bedroom is always handy. To keep it simple you could keep it as a storage cupboard. Add plenty of shelves and drawers to make the most of every inch, that way your wardrobe isn’t bursting at the seams, and it’s easier to stay organized. If you have a lot of books, you could turn it into your own little mini library! Another option is you could turn it into a walk-in wardrobe if it’s large enough add hanging rails at the sides and a large mirror so you can get dressed. Finally, you could consider an ensuite bathroom. Speak to a plumber such as http://www.plumberstives.com.au to find out if having the correct pipes installed would be within your budget. If you’re bored of fighting for the bathroom every morning, this is ideal. Your own space to get ready in and shower in peace without kids banging on the door- bliss!

[Photo courtesy of ParentRap/pixabay.com]

Attic Space

Attics in most homes are absolutely huge, and when you’re struggling for space in the rest of the home, it’s a shame to waste this. A full loft conversion with a proper staircase to turn it into a functioning bedroom is pricey, but worth the cost if you need the space and have the budget. Otherwise, having a basic loft conversion could give you a whole lot of extra storage space. You wouldn’t need to worry about having windows installed up there or a proper set of stairs, a folding loft ladder would do the trick. Have a company come and secure the floor, and an electrician fit a light, and you can turn it into the storage space of dreams. Instead of miscellaneous boxes everywhere, buy some drawers and shelving units and set everything up neatly. No more rummaging around in the dark or walking on beams every time you need something from the attic. All of your decorations for celebrations in the year can be put away neatly ready for use. You could have decor in the home for autumn/ winter and another lot for spring/ summer, and keep the off season stuff in the attic. You could even store your out of season clothes and footwear up there giving you far more space in your wardrobe and bedroom in general.

Cupboard Under The Stairs

The cupboard under the stairs is a great little storage area but often gets wasted. If yours is full of junk, clear everything out and repurpose it. It’s a handy place to keep things like your vacuum cleaner, mop, iron, ironing board and cleaning essentials. Install a couple of shelves to maximize the room. Alternatively, you could turn it into a cupboard for coats and shoes. It gives you somewhere to take them off when you come home without them cluttering up the hall. Again on shelves, you could have baskets of hats, scarves, and gloves. Have a light fitted in there making it easy to access. Depending on the size you’re working with, you could even have a downstairs bathroom installed. Most families will be looking for two bathrooms in the home when buying, so if you come to sell later down the line, you’ll add value to the property too.

[Photo courtesy of ErikaWittlieb/pixabay.com]

Kitchen Corner

If you have a corner of your kitchen that’s empty space, why not consider creating a pantry? You could have some stud walls put up, or even find a suitable shelving unit and attach doors. A pantry is so handy in the home, it allows you to neatly store all of your dry ingredients and makes it easy to stockpile. Digging through kitchen cabinets can be a pain, with everything neatly laid out it makes it far easier to find what you need. You’ll probably find yourself cooking more, and will save yourself some money too. Having some handy store cupboard recipes on hand using dry ingredients and flavored with herbs and spices is handy between grocery shops or during leaner times.

Unused Garden Space

If you have a large garden, you’re incredibly lucky, although most of us only use them for a few months of the year. To make the most of it, having a conservatory or garden room built means you utilize the space all year round. Since they’re fully insulated, they’re just like any other room in the house and are handy if you’re running out of space. You could create a dining room in the conservatory, freeing up space in the dining room or living room. These could then be used for something else. You could turn a garden room into a home office or a guest suite. Either way, stealing a bit of space from the garden to use as an additional room is a good move in many cases.

Basement

Another potentially huge space that’s being wasted in your home is the cellar or basement area. They often end up as dank and dingy storage areas full of spiders and miscellaneous boxes. But a basement could be transformed into another living area, a teenager’s hangout, a games room or even a wine cellar. As with a loft conversion, you could go all out to transform it into a proper, usable room. Or just do a simple conversion but turn it into a storage space you will actually use. Get a proper light fitting installed down there, kill off the pests and spiders and put up some storage shelves, cupboards, and units.