Anyone who lives in a small space will appreciate today’s article by guest blogger, Sarita Peresada, Senior Designer at Vastu Home Furnishings & Design Services.   She shares the top three things you should consider when selecting furniture for your small home so that it doesn’t look cluttered and cramped.

Furnishing a tiny apartment or house is no easy task.  You need to think about how you want to live in the space and what your needs are for the different types of furniture, including seating, tables, storage pieces, etc.  There are three essential rules to consider when choosing furniture for small spaces:

1.  The first essential rule is FUNCTION. In a small space, there is literally no room for furniture that doesn’t serve a specific function. It is best to choose pieces that are functional for how you want to live and, if possible, serve more than one purpose.

For instance, in a studio apartment, your space would best be used if you choose a sofa that converts into a bed instead of trying to fit both a sofa and a bed in the space. There are plenty of cleverly designed, multi-functional pieces of furniture available on the market today.

Another example of a great multi-functional piece is a bedside or living room side table with a single file drawer for hanging files. I love that people without the space for a home office can stylishly incorporate a place to keep their important documents without sacrificing style.

2.  Second on the list is SCALE. This one is pretty simple and the easiest to follow, I believe. It’s a simple rule of keeping the size of furniture appropriate for the space; and small spaces need smaller furniture. Too often I see that people have tried to make a giant, over-stuffed sectional sofa fit into a small apartment living room and have no space for anything else.  Sure, a great big sofa that can seat all ten of your closest friends is ideal, but it just isn’t practical in a small space. In fact, too big furniture only makes a small room feel even smaller.

3.  The third and final rule to keep in mind is VISUAL WEIGHT. This is another simple rule, and is closely related to scale. Basically, large or dark colored pieces of furniture are visually “heavy” and make a space feel smaller than it actually is.

One good way to take up less visual space in a small living room is to use a clear glass coffee table rather than a wood table.  The eye can see right through the glass coffee table to the floor, and the more floor space that is visible in a room, the bigger the room feels.

Have you implemented any of the three essential rules?  Leave a comment to tell us how things worked out and post your pics!

About the Author

Sarita Peresada is the Senior Designer at DC furniture retailer and design firm, Vastu.  She began her professional career at a government contracting company, and it was in this job that Sarita realized her desire to express her creativity.  She enrolled in an interior design program and landed a position as the Design Assistant at a remodeling firm.  

After experiencing both the structural and furnishings side of interior design, Sarita knew that her passion was in furnishings and decorating.   Her search for the ideal position led her to Vastu, where she was taken under the wings of owners/designers, Eric Kole & Jason Claire.  Today, Sarita is a successful interior designer who has designed numerous spaces for clients in the greater Washington, DC metropolitan area.

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