O.K.... does anyone know how to decorate a VERY small home containing three people -one of whom is a one year old?

We are so tight in this little house. I'm thankful to have it and everything; please don't misunderstand. But honestly, my living room can't accommodate a sofa. So, we just have a love seat and a TV basically. My husband's recliner sits in front of the fireplace.

I'm selling and donating to charity all of my extra stuff (some of which has sentimental value).

The title to this post was sincere. I really am claustrophobic, and I really do need some tips on what to do with this home (less than 1,000 sq. ft.).

Here is what it looks like: On the outside, a shoe box. On the inside, the floor plan is from the 80's...meaning it isn't an "open floor plan" like most homes today; so, each room is a box, connected off of a long narrow hallway. The kitchen does have a breakfast area, but no dining room. Any ideas?

S.O.S. HELP! (I've googled this topic nonstop). I thought I'd ask here too.
Thanks to anyone who responds.

-Julie

Mirrors, light colors, not too many pics on the wall all come to mind. Maybe even knock down a wall or two if possible (depending on the floor plan and if you own or rent).

Hi Julie

Do you own your home? If you do, my thoughts are to knock down a wall to open it up a little bit.

I don't know if you have the means, or the money, to do that but it does make a huge difference in a older home like that that cuts the living space up with all the walls.


Other than that smaller scale furnishings are probably the best solution, and space planning- arranging the furniture in such a way that it makes the most of the space.

I watch a lot of HGTV , they give a lot of ides for decorating in small spaces- you might want to check out their website to see if they have any suggestions.

Mirrors are an excellent suggestion, if you place them in the right areas they will reflect light and give the illusion of the space looking larger.

I'd also consider getting rid of the loveseat and recliner, and consider alternate furniture options. Anything like that takes up more space than you need. We *do* have an open floor plan, and our living room upstairs has floor seating. (Well, we have some exercise balls and two small ottomans to sit on, and one Poang chair from Ikea (that's our comfy, takes-up-space chair).)

Minimalist furniture (bench seating - maybe a backrest on the bench, but armrests take up extra space - would be the most) gives you more room. Double purpose anything and everything you can - a coffee table should have storage space under it for games, for instance (if you have games!).

Hey Julie

We are buying this home. DH and I were talking today about knocking down the wall between the living room and kitchen (assuming it's not load-bearing). But we quickly realized the refridgerator and oven prevent us from doing this.

I LOVE a lot of the programs on HGTV. I have really learned so much from them. Just a little background info., we moved from a home that is about 2,300-2,500 sq. ft. It had an open floor plan and 12 ft. ceilings. We have filled this little house up, and we still have a house full of furniture in the garage. I just need to sort, release what I don't have to keep, move past the sentimental, and focus on what's best for this little house. It sure is easier said than done!

I'll keep all tips in mind! Take Care. -Julie

PT,
We're hanging a mirror at the end of the hallway hoping it will reflect back the length of the hallway and deceive us into thinking the house is bigger. I am trying not to use too many pics on the walls. Actually, I am more or less a person who is not big on clutter. I don't decorate "modern," or "country," I suppose I'm slightly eclectic. My friends have traveled the world and brought back beautiful things for me. I love displaying them throughout the house. (seeing as how I've rarely left Georgia).
Your suggestions are really appreciated.

Hey Tiffany,

I was on the phone with a friend from NY about the same time you posted, she suggested the duel purpose furniture too. I was thinking we could have maybe one oversized chair (smaller than a loveseat) with an ottoman that has hiddent storage. As luck would have it, we recently purchased a narrow coffee table with storage baskets underneath.

Do we have games? Hee hee. I have a one year old son...yes, I have games. Recently, he has been playing "The pot and spoon game." Directions: Beat pot with spoon and dance. I could store my pot and spoon under the coffee table! (never thought I'd make that statement).

Everyone is such a great help. I'm open for all suggestions. Thanks a million! -Julie

www.ApartmentTherapy.com will give you some good tips as well as some tours of really tiny yet well decorated spaces.

There's a yahoogroup called the Small House Society (or something like that). They have a lot of suggestions!

I suppose what I never liked about a lot of couches, loveseats, recliners, and "oversized" anythings, is that they just plain ol' waste a lot of space. I mean, most of those big chairs are kinda comfy (though, if you're short like me, you can't sit in them properly, the seat is far too long), and then there's gobs of wasted room around you (to the sides) before you get to the eight inch wide arm rests (which you can't reach and don't need that much space for), not to mention the eight inches of cushion behind you before you get to the six inches of chair back behind you! Then you've got this extravagant looking, semi-comfortable 'chair' that seats all of one person while taking up 12 square feet of space!

Ok, I rant... It's a pet peeve.

I have the same challenges living in a small apt. I cannot put a couch in livingroom which is wider than 85 inches. My kitchen table cannot be larger than 48" and must be round and I cannot use one with a round base as it'd be too heavy to move it around the kitchen if I need to move the table at times. Everything I see is either large or oversized for the new mc mansion homes....I prefer couch seating in living rm in case someone sleeps over or if either of us need to sleep on couch at night (like the times I have insomina and I go out to living rm to watch TV & fall asleep out there....).

The thing that changed my life? Underfloor heating! I didn't realise how restricted I was in how I could use the space in my home until I got rid of the existing radiators and replaced them with under floor heating.
Might be a drag to remove whatever existing heating you've got, it's worth it once the old radiators etc are gone. If you've got the option - if you've moved into a place with fixed radiators, think about it...

Okay, so continuing the heating theme, a way to combine heating and seating could be this bench radiator, but personally... I say underfloor heating! It's the future...