Get organized and enjoy a smaller living space

April 11, 2011

By Yanic Simard

We often complain that we never have enough space. Every inch of space counts when the floor space is limited. With a little ingenuity, some practical solutions and yes, maybe selling or trading in a few items, your small dwelling can become your home. Enough of feeling cramped and cluttered! Now is the time of year to finally get organized and make the most of every inch of space with these helpful room-by-room ideas.

But before you start organizing, you have to start editing.

Editing

Clean out your belongings before you think about organizing. Don’t do it the other way around. You can only know what space you have when you’ve cleaned up. If you don’t take a hard look at what you’re stuffing in your spaces, you’ll waste time and money organizing stuff you don’t need anyway.

Organized spaces are simple to use. They have enough room for the items there and make sense. Every item in your home has a location. Organized spaces also feel calm, open, and welcoming.

Living room

The living room is generally a communal gathering place for family and friends and the hub of the home’s activities. Get organized by doing the following:

•  Get a coffee table that has a bottom shelf and store items such as magazines, books and children’s toys in baskets;
•  Buy furniture with built-in, hidden storage compartments, such as lift-up seat tops on ottomans;
•  Hang light-weight brackets and use shelves on the wall to store DVDs, CDs, books, pictures frames and even small stereo systems;
•  Mount your flat panel television above a fireplace or on the largest wall;
•  Purchase furniture that offers hidden built-in storage compartments;
•  Buy small furniture or trading in overstuffed chairs and couches for sleek, minimalist designs;
•  A rolling cart with various sized baskets is a great solution for items that may move from room to room.

For example, keep art supplies, sewing materials, laptop and organized financial paperwork and daily mail on this rack. It easily rolls from the living room to the kitchen table and hides away in a bedroom when company visits.

Kitchen

The kitchen is the heart of the home, where all those wonderful goodies are baked and served. It takes a little more creativity but a small kitchen is not a lost cause.

•  Use all the space you can find for storage and preparation areas;
•  Hanging pots and pans on the wall or from the ceiling;
•  Purchase cabinet organizers that allow for double stacking of dishes and canned goods in the cabinets;
•  Get rid of appliances that are rarely used or are not multi-purpose;
•  Get a dining table that has collapsible leaves, allowing it to shrink when the family is not using it;
•  Use a small kitchen island on wheels for more storage and food preparation area;
•  If you renovate your kitchen use the vertical space and install extra tall cabinets;
•  Keep your kitchen clean and accessorize with a mirror and a small lamp on the countertop for visual impact.

Bathroom

Most bathrooms are tight on space, but that doesn’t mean function (or fashion) has to suffer. If you are able to keep the room tidy, open-concept shelving and displays help get items off the counter, but still close at hand.

•  Increase the sink space by getting a small shelf that sits on the back of the counter, going over the faucet and make sure your vanity has underneath closed up storage;
•  Make the most of a small shower in the bathroom by using a basket that hangs over the showerhead for storing shampoo, body wash and washcloths;
•  Use a small stainless steal cart to display fragrance bottles and extra bath towels;
•  If you renovate create wall niches in the shower/tub area.

Bedrooms

Closet space is often a challenge but with a good closet organizing system you will be amazed at how much you can store in an organized standard double closet. Switch out seasonal clothing, storing it in vacuum-seal bags below the bed. Use ways to organize clothing that maximizes space, such as hanging shoe racks, stackable drawers and hanging cubbies for T-shirts and socks.

• Consider bunk beds for children or even loft beds that allow room for a desk underneath;
• Purchase bedroom furniture that has drawer storage built into the bed;
• Headboards can be purchased with shelves and lights built in;
• Use risers to lift the bed off the floor high enough to store plastic bins underneath.

Yanic Simard is the principal designer of the Toronto Interior Design Group.Specializing in residential and commercial projects, Simard often applies his signature high/ low and old/new combination design techniques in developing unique designs. Simard has created designs for clients in North America and is a recurring design expert on the Citytv national show CityLine. tidg.ca

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