Designing a small space has its challenges. It can also be very rewarding once you get it right. When we talk with clients, its about looking at how they can live with less but gain more. The following five tips will help you achieve just that.
1. RESEARCH
You are probably already going down this route if you are reading this. Research is your biggest aid in providing you with inspiration and core solutions. Now some of the solutions that you may have come across might not be available in New Zealand yet, but we can find ways around most of them. Also do research into your suppliers of big ticket items. This could be for a Murphy bed, a tiny house trailer or a joiner that you are about to invest in for custom storage. The more you know about the product and the manufacturer, the happier you will be with your expectations met at implementation stage.
2. PRODUCT
Product selection is a huge proportion of successful interior design. And this isn't just with new products that you may need; but also looking at your existing furniture with a critical mind and analysing whether you are gaining from having that piece, or would another product have a better solution. When selecting products, try and look out for ‘dual purpose’ pieces. This could be a coffee table that lifts and extends into a dining room table, an ottoman that is an additional seat as well as storage or a guest bed that has a storage solution inbuilt.
ABOVE: BoConcept, Rubi Table
3. INVEST
Investing in three core pieces in your home, will make working with a small space a breeze. Sometimes with small spaces it is just best not to cut corners for the sake of saving a few dollars. Think about how is this piece, or this upgrade, going to impact the overall use or lifestyle gain? There is no point in buying the cheapest solution on the market if the quality is low and it is hard to use. Having a small space is hard enough so don’t make everyday functions a battle also.
4. MAXIMISE
This is the key to making a small space larger. Maximise the ceiling space, the stairs, the columns, the door frames, the light. The list goes on. Look for potential anchor points to increase storage, in turn this will maximise your overall storage function. Maximise the natural light you have by increasing it with additional lighting. Maximise the visual look by working with a light palette, vertical curtain drops and some bold punches of colour or dark palettes into areas that you want to focus on.
ABOVE: Mr & Mrs Ward Bespoke Storage
5. PROFESSIONAL HELP
Whilst you can do most of the selection by yourself, it is important to acknowledge when to get help in. The fact of the matter is that you will need to go down the ‘custom made’ route at some stage. Don’t be afraid of this, embrace it. Get a professional in to measure, quote and install a solution that you can gain from. This will save time, piece of mind, and costly mistakes.
Editors Note: This is a guest post written by Laura Lochhead from Pocketspace Interiors