Studio apartments often seem like a great idea initially — so quaint and adorable and unique.
It has so much potential! you think to yourself as you tour the tiny apartment and eventually sign a short-term lease. But as you begin to rent furniture and place it in your new tiny place, you quickly realize that using your space efficiently is going to be more important than making it adorable.
Efficiency is key in a studio apartment. The kind of furniture you rent and where you choose to put it plays a huge role in that. Let us help with some fairly simple do’s and don’ts.
Don’t…
Rent furniture that’s too big.
When you’re living in a small space, this is easy to do. However, it’s also easy to avoid. You don’t have to buy miniature furniture or anything. Just make sure you say no to that oversized sectional that seats 17 full-grown adults at once.
Rent furniture that’s too small.
You may think that in a small studio apartment, the smaller the furniture is, the better. Think again. If you end up renting a collection of small to undersized furniture items, then your studio apartment is going to look cluttered and potentially smaller than it would with a few more substantially sized furniture items.
Stick with average-size rental furniture, and you’ll be on the right track.
Treat your studio apartment as one space.
Even though a studio apartment is technically one room, you must make it your mission to create zones.
How do you create zones in a studio apartment? Rugs, book cases, room dividers, and other strategically placed furniture items can effectively break up a room into identifiable and workable sections.
Put furniture too close together.
The temptation in a studio apartment is to push furniture extremely close together in order to create more open space. This might seem like it makes sense on the surface, but it’s not the most efficient way to use space as it often creates narrow walkways.
The rule is: Allow for three feet of walking space between furniture items. If you have the space to follow the three-feet rule, you might as well use it.
Do…
Hang curtains as high as they will go.
This is a great trick for making rooms look larger. Regardless of how high a window is on a wall, hang your curtains as close to the ceiling as you can get them. It gives the illusion of taller windows, higher ceilings, and an overall larger room.
Incorporate patterns and colors.
Yes, less is usually more, but don’t shy away from a few patterns here and there. Used sparingly, patterns can make your studio apartment come to life. A completely neutral or solid apartment not only looks boring, but it will also feel confining.
Create a nook for your bed.
You don’t have to scroll Pinterest for very long to realize there are countless ways to either hide or minimize your bed in a studio apartment. Taking the time to do this will be worthwhile for two reasons:
- Your apartment will look cleaner and more purposeful.
- It might help you sleep better. Giving yourself a separate space that’s meant for sleeping — not eating, reading, watching tv, and sometimes sleeping — will give you the freedom to relax and turn your brain off when you go to bed.
Hang mirrors and oblong artwork.
Similar to the curtain trick, hanging taller pieces of artwork in your apartment will make the walls look taller and your ceilings higher. The oldest trick in the book though is putting mirrors on the walls because they cast light around the room, and their reflections give the illusion of having more space.
Rent furniture that offers storage.
It’s important to choose furniture that isn’t just filling space, but that also provides places to store your belongings. For example, select coffee tables and end tables that either have drawers or offer space underneath to slide a basket of blankets or dog toys.
When looking at larger furniture items such as a bedroom dresser, consider how you might use that piece to serve as a divide between rooms.
You can do a lot with rental furniture — so much, in fact, that sometimes the options may seem overwhelming. Your first step is to get connected with a good furniture rental company that has the products and services to meet your needs. Corporate Connection would love to be that for you. Contact our relocation specialists today and let us help you furnish your studio apartment!
