Home Decoration

Using space effectively is an important art, especially when you are living in small apartments. Know the difference between not having enough space to store your things and not making the best use of your space. Here are some ideas that you can use to keep your home organized and make the best use of available space:

• A sliding drawer or a shelf can be added underneath a cabinet, furniture pieces or a dresser for greater hidden storage area.
• Desk full of papers and files make your work seem overwhelming. So keep it clear with the help of a full-suspension filing cabinet strong enough to hold all your files away from your view.
• For kitchen cabinets, you may use plastic multiple-level shelves that can be readjusted easily.
• Furniture pieces with hidden space and storage are an asset for those living in small apartments such as coffee tables and ottomans with storage area underneath or under bed boxes, which are great for keeping your quilts and linens.
• If some of your shelves have too much of space, while others are too full, you may want to readjust them according to the space required. Move them a little or add another shelf in between to make more use of the space.
• If you do not have enough space to display all your collectibles at once, rotate them. Put some of your things on display, while you store others safely, and then bring them out once a month and replace the things you have displayed already. This will make your home seem new every time someone visits you.
• It is very important that you get rid of all the things that you don’t like or are not of your use anymore.
• Make best us of your wall space by adding shelves, pegboards and corner shelves that can be used to hand up your utensils and tools or display your prizes and collectibles.
• Make use of corner shelves for keeping picture frames or small things in the living room or soap, shampoos, toothbrush and other accessories in the bathroom. They acquire less space and look great.
• Storage units are great when it comes to saving space and being organized. Spices on a spice rack, canned goods in racks, earrings and other small items in cheap ice trays, pens and pencils in a pen stand not only avoids clutter but are also easier to find when you need them.
• To make more space in the closets, add one rod to hang longer clothing on one wall and two or more rods on the other wall to hang shorter clothing.
• Use your common sense and keep things where they are needed most. Your china, utensils and spices belong to kitchen, toilet paper, napkins and towels to bathroom, lines and quilts to bathroom, videos and CDs in your entertainment area and scissors and glue stick to your work area. Make space for the things needed in the area there itself, so you don’t have to ransack or run over the entire house to search for a thing you need frequently.
• You can also use portable file boxes to hang the file folders, on-the-desk trays and caddies to keep your papers and storage accessories to keep your diskettes and CDs.
• You may also want to rearrange the rooms and customize them according to your needs. If you are used to read or work in your living room, with your TV on, you don’t need a separate office or study that can be used for other purposes while your living room needs to be rearranged to serve both as an entertainment area and work area.

Space in home and apartment décor is not just about physical dimensions. It is about the visual impression too. So, use these wonderful tips to transform your small apartment or home into a luxurious, lavish, airy and spacious home:

• Arrange the largest piece of furniture on the longest wall of the room and keep the focal point easily visible from the place.
• Buy small pieces of furniture that have open designs and can be rearranged easily such as a love seat with exposed legs instead of big bulky sofa sets, two small side chairs and a small glass top coffee table.
• Ceiling lightings should be avoided as it cuts off the height of the room.
• Ceilings lighter than the walls and furniture of the room make room look brighter.
• Mark out a conversation area in the living room by placing the loveseat on the longest wall, coffee table in front of it and the side chairs facing the table on both its sides.
• Place your furniture in the room in such a manner that people don’t stumble into it while coming in or going out of the room or to reach cabinets and closets.
• Soft incandescent lights placed evenly throughout the room that eliminate shadows make room look larger.
• Soft monochromatic color schemes make rooms look bigger.
• Stick to simplistic minimalist lifestyle and keep your home clean and well organized.
• Use accessories sparingly and use mirrors and shiny reflective surfaces abundantly so that it reflects more light and makes the room look bigger and more spacious.
• Use smaller patterns on walls and big pieces of furniture. If you do use large patterns, stick to small accessories, pillows and small areas.