How To Use Space

By Lev Novak

In an apartment, sometimes you’ll have to make sacrifices. And one of the most common things to sacrifice is space.

I currently live in New York, and I understand the problem dramatically. I have friends with bedrooms smaller than your bed. I have kitchens that are corners, tight with stoves and cabinets. I have seen square feet conserved like water in a desert, saved and exploited inch by inch.

And those lessons can be used everywhere. Knowing how to make the most out of an apartments space can save you lots of money and many headaches. You can’t change your neighborhood, but you can often change your apartment.

1. Add Doors

Sometimes, you’ll get an apartment that clearly used to be meant for fewer people. If your apartment has one large bedroom and two small bedrooms right by each other, congratulations- that used to be a two-bedroom apartment until it was split into three.

While this can be an annoying thing during your search, it’s cheaper to do it yourself.

If you are handy, or close with your apartment-hunting friends, you can create an extra bedroom out of space and a door. The door is crucial- the difference between someone living on a couch and a room-mate is an enormous psychological difference for all involved parties. The bedroom created needs privacy and elegance of feeling like a room. It needs a door, or at absolute minimum, big ol’ curtains.

If you can pull that off, though, you just saved 1/3 of your rent. High fives all around.

2. Elegance

If you don’t have much space, don’t do much.

That may sound paradoxical, but it makes a certain sense. Rather than mess around with decorations, just focus on not making a mess. Having your house too busy in color schemes etc can confuse the eye and make the apartment feel crowded. If you really don’t have much space, empty clean space here and there might be better than putting up posters and collages on every wall.

3. Angles

Sometimes, knowing your boundaries can make them feel more constraining. People say “think outside the box” all the time, so if you feel cooped up in your apartment, consider changing the shape.

It might not affect the size, but taking away the harsh corners and of your apartment can make the shape feel more round and friendly; a sideways bedside table rather than one crammed exactly into the corner, for example, can make the room feel cozier and friendlier, even if it subtracts two inches from your usable space. Little touches like that add up to make the small house feel more like a small home.

4. Go Out

If you have a small apartment, ultimately, go out more.

Go for walks just to clear your head. Work at a coffee shop. Have your other friends host. A small apartment isn’t a big deal, but it can feel less constraining if you don’t spend too much time there.

A cabin can be cozy when you visit, after all. You only get cabin fever when you’re snowed in.

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