Mar
12
2009
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Back Up Your Furniture“Floating” furniture makes for a great floor plan, but it leaves a wide expanse of boring sofa-back in the open. Use that dead space to your advantage:– Slip a slim glass-top console behind the sofa for a small home office area.– Search thrift stores or flea markets for a chair that slides easily beneath the table (hint: paint it a vibrant color).– When entertaining, stash the chair against the wall and use the desk as a food buffet. |
| Smart Home Office Living room? Yes. Large home office? Yes. Is this really an apartment? Yes, and you can steal these great ideas to make your own rooms pull double duty:Mount open shelving the length of the room all the way to ceiling.Rest a glass top or melamine sheet over short file cabinets, then cover with fabric and hook-and-loop tape to create a long desktop.Coordinate boxes, binders, and files with your overall color scheme.Hide printers, faxers, and other electronics beneath the desk. |
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Curtained BookshelvesOne thing apartments often have going for them is open wall space. Rework a pair of sturdy bookshelves into an attractive storage wall: Cover them with curtains that match or complement your window treatments (for an extra touch, try pinning a wire sunburst or other lightweight art to the fabric, like we did here).– Place the shelves side by side, or use a floor-length mirror to separate them and give the illusion that the room expands past the shelves.– To make your ceilings seem taller, hang the curtains from the ceiling, rather than from the top of the bookshelf. |
| Original Bookshelf UseCo-opt small spots of empty wall for attractive storage. Find (or build) a bookcase that fits the wall space.– Fill with matching baskets or containers. We used canvas bins and dropped in numbered labels (a coordinating “key” tucks into the first basket). |
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Under Sink Know-HowThink above and below for finding extra storage: above bookcases, cabinets, and shelves, and below sinks, countertops, and tables. Keep all the stuff organized with these tips:– Slip discount store plastic shelves where they fit to separate dish towels, washcloths, and cleaning supplies.– Find a diminutive file cabinet and use it to store house records or take out the folders and use the cabinet as extra kitchen drawers.– Put numbered labels on everything and write a coordinating list. Example: “1: Washcloths, 2: Extra utensils.” This way, if you ever switch out drawer contents, you don’t need to relabel, just rewrite. |
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