I am a big fan of small spaces. Partly because of how instantly cosy and intimate they feel, partly because they minimise the amount of unnecessary crap one can physically store. Bye-bye hoarding tendencies! (Because do I really need the ticket stub from that concert that one time?) But largely, I love them because they satisfy my creative need to build efficiencies around the home to make it work as best as it possibly can. Good things really do come in small packages.

After recently helping a few clients make better use of the limited space in their tiny homes, I thought I'd outline some of the key space-saving hacks we always look at. Practical and organisational hacks first (obviously) with some cheeky trick-of-the-eye design hacks as a tasty wee bonus at the end- The sprinkles to your sundae.

As much as possible, understanding that we live in a constant flow-state with many people renting or not in a position to make permanent home additions, I have tried to outline practical solutions that do not involve power tools or structural changes! In fact, if 3M would like to sponsor me, I’m here for it.

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1: Get high

Where possible, use the full height of your room to add storage. Empty wall space = lost storage space! Introduce tall shelving / bookcases or try hanging things from the ceiling. In the bedroom, one simple switch might be to swap out for a tallboy where you currently have a lowboy… If you’re able to add built-in storage, build wardrobes and kitchen cabinets right up to the ceiling to make the most of otherwise dust-gathering space on top.

Add shelves! Shelves need not be permanent / don’t always need to be screwed into the wall… Over-shelves above a benchtop microwave or shelf risers inside your kitchen cupboards utilise the dead space above and increase the loadable surfaces within. Lightweight under-shelf baskets slide on and off existing shelving and offer additional storage space for smaller items - perfect in the laundry for hand towels or a wardrobe for belts & accessories. Tension shelving can help to make the most of the height in a tall and narrow enclosed space, again without the need for drilling- perfect above a top-loader washing machine!

2: Look down

Nope- not contradicting myself here! This one goes for your TV unit especially- or anywhere else with high cable-management required for that matter. By making sure your unit either has high feet (so the cables can sit underneath) or an opening at the back of the unit (to hide the cables inside), you save on space otherwise lost by needing to sit the unit forward from the powerpoint and all its protruding plugs. Using a power multibox to minimise the bulk-size of the plugs coming out of the same port will allow for even more wiggle room.

3: Double up

Utilise furniture items that double up on their purpose. For example, a storage ottoman = extra seating, or add a tray to instantly create a stylish and functional flat coffee-table surface. Or stacker tables; taking up a single space when tucked away, or a double surface when out! Chur.

Speaking of surfaces… get crafty! My Nana used to have this awesome pull-out bench in her kitchen that looked like a regular drawer until you pulled it open to create an extended surface area… (I don’t understand why these aren’t more of a thing nowadays! Maybe I should start a petition.) Some furniture manufacturers have this sussed, with dining tables & desks available that swing out to provide an additional surface or tuck away to sit over the main unit, or chairs and stools that fold down to nothing. Genius!

4: Back it up

A pretty standard hack; use the backs of suitable doors for hanging shelves, hooks, and mirrors to save on floor and rail space. If you’re not a fan of everything facing out, then dear yogi, I ask you to look within… for the inside of doors are just as useful and have the added bonus of ninja-stealth concealment.

Use the inside of your wardrobe doors to hang bags and belts… the inside of your bathroom cabinet to hang jewellery… In your kitchen pantry, mount racks to store pan lids so their partnering pans can stack inside each other in the cupboard. Hang shelves inside your laundry door for cleaning products and other useful but boring stuff.

5: If you can, contain

It’s pretty obvious, but visual clutter adds to the feeling of ‘cramped’. Plus a clean and clear space = a stylish space.

Ladies and gents, it’s time to get as excited about larger-scale containers as we do about our darling Tupperware. There are so many beautiful storage box and basket options out there at the moment suited to storing all the little bits and pieces we seem to accumulate so easily... from your more boho woven rattan and flax styles to perspex and plastics… bonus if they have lids that make them stackable! Lego for adults.

In the laundry cupboard, keep bedding stored in sets and contained within one of the pillowcases for that set… Not blessed with a whole cupboard to dedicate solely to bed linen? No worries. One super-nifty student hack is to store these little laundered bundles under your mattress, ‘Princess and the Pea’ styles. Tucked just under the foot of the mattress, you’ll barely feel them. True story! Or of course you could opt for an actual storage bed. Drawer options have been around for a while now and gas-lift are gradually becoming more readily available.

6: Streamline your wardrobe

After Marie Kondo-ing the crap outta your clothes, next up hang everything on the same slimline hangers. Nothing fancy here- just your bog standard plastic / wire hangers. As beautiful as wooden hangers are, they take up way more space and variations on your hanger type will do the same- a luxury us small-spacians can’t afford.

Hang pants on multi-racks and store several slimline camis on the same hanger. If you only have one long wardrobe rail, by ordering your clothes so longer items hang on one side, and short on the other, you can create a void below in which to add extra storage for shoes and accessories etc. That’s a bingo!

And now for the icing on the cake!

~ Design hacks 101

Now your home is super-streamlined and clear of clutter, you can make your spaces feel practically palatial in scale with these nifty design tricks of the trade that help to give the illusion of even more room!

Streamline your colour palette. Whether bold or neutral, limiting the number of colours used in a room helps it to instantly feel more calm and controlled. Goodbye colour clutter!
Add mirrors. Yup- this age-old trick actually works! Mirrors help to bounce light around a room, which in turn makes it feel more airy and spacious. Strategically placed, they can also reflect in such a way that it tricks your eye into feeling like you have double the room. Shifty.
Raise your curtain rails... We’re going up again! Lifting your curtain rails higher above the window line, creates the illusion of higher ceilings for instant penthouse vibes.
Get stripy! Stripes placed to run across the width of a room (by way of a rug, for example) help to widen the look of a space. Vertical stripes by contrast, lengthen and slim.
Use full-size furniture. This may seem like an odd tip, but don’t be fooled into thinking that purchasing miniature-scale furniture will make your space feel bigger… our brains are smarter than that! While yes, it may free up a little extra floor space, visually it forces a ‘dollhouse’ effect - essentially the opposite to your intentions.
When we see too-small furniture in a space, it makes us feel like the room itself is smaller too / that it isn’t big enough to hold ‘real’ furniture…Full size furniture, in correct proportions to fit the space, looks and feels more natural and spacious. A good designer can help you nail this.
Oh yeah, we can be practical and stylish at the same time… Harking back to point 5 again now; contain! Introduce purposeful styling by using trays on surfaces and baskets under consoles to hide away shoes / brollies etc. Trays limit your styling area which reduces the feeling of clutter. Bonus, they’re practical too! Perfect on vanities, coffee tables, consoles… you name it, we could probably stick a tray on it.
Introduce glass or lucite furniture to your space... and then make sure to keep it clean! Help your see-through furniture do what it should do best by looking invisible… Remember, a squeaky clean home is a stylish home!

6 Small Space Hacks - How to get the most bang for your tiny home buck!