1. Reduce your need for space.
■ Cut back on how much you own.
■ Install small appliances.
■ Put space where you need it, not where you don’t (who needs a big room if it’s just for sleep?).
2. Design storage for your needs.
■ Use vertical space (for example, book-shelves above windows or high on walls, and floor-to-ceiling storage).
■ Waste no space (for example, put storage under stairs, drawers in stair risers and shelves in stud space).
3. Expand space via design.
■ Keep spaces neither too open nor too chopped up.
■ Let in plenty of natural light.
■ Align furniture along a diagonal. Draw a line between opposite corners of a room and orient seating so people often look from corner to corner—long views makes rooms feel bigger.
■ Use light colors, and use various colors or shades of paint to differentiate spaces (variety helps expand space, as long as it’s not too broken up).
■ Incorporate many outdoor living spaces and let the home open to them naturally.
■ Let in light with ceiling-height windows.
■ Build in furniture (for example, a dining booth requires less space than a table and chairs does).
4. Make things and spaces multifunctional.
■ A dining table can convert into an office desk or crafts table with proper storage nearby.
■ Consider foldaway furniture (for example, a Murphy guest bed, or a fold-up or sunken dining table).
■ Let furniture such as bookcases or headboards double as room dividers.
adapted from Natural Home Magazine, November/December 2010
digital zen alarm clocks for small spaces
Now & Zen – The Zen Alarm Clock Store
1638 Pearl Street
Boulder, CO 80302
(800) 779-6383
