It’s easier than it seems – these useful ideas and tweaks from small condominiums and HDB flats will show you how to live big in a small home.
If there’s one thing that tiny homes prove, it’s that restrictions do indeed breed creativity – from swivel TV consoles to nifty handbag hiding spots (guess where?) there’s no shortage of clever inspiration tucked away in these under-60 sqm apartments. So keep scrolling, and who knows, you might just discover some small but mighty ideas for your next renovation.
1. Rotating TV consoles, pull-out tables as space-savers
It isn’t hard to see why modular fixtures are welcome in compact studio apartments and smaller HDB flats. Other than providing essential functionality, these flexible additions also ensure that you’ll get all the space you need, when you need it.
For instance, in this cozy, contemporary condominium apartment at Parc Rosewood, a rotatable TV console serves as both space-saver and shared entertainment station between the living room, dining area and bedroom. Meanwhile, a ‘shrinkable’ dining table makes it possible to have meals comfortably even in a small setup.
2. A foyer… dining area?
Mixed-use spaces aren’t exactly a new ‘small home’ idea, you’ve probably seen study rooms that double as guest bedrooms as well as bed-and-bath combos, but what about a foyer-kitchen?
When walls (or other barriers) are removed to create open, light-filled spaces, it’s almost inevitable that the lines between once-separate zones are blurred. To solve this, contrasting flooring were used to once again delineate the thresholds between the different spaces of this chic bachelor’s pad.
3. Create long stretches of space
It doesn’t take an expert to tell you that long stretches of space are effective in creating the illusion of a larger home.
If you have a lengthy, but narrow home (like this one), maximise it by arranging your furniture, appliances and fixtures in single file, tucked against the nearest wall behind them. This way, you get to open up an entire corridor, giving your home a more spacious feel.
Having a secret platform bed niche for your handbag and belongings helps too!
4. Shelves aren’t the only in-wall storage option
No, the highlight of this handsome condominium home isn’t its loft corner. Instead, you’ll want to put your attention on the variety of creative in-wall storage solutions that Escapade Studio came up with.
Take for instance, the dining area which can be neatly ‘packed’ away into the TV console. Equally impressive is the master bedroom’s feature wall that conceals a handbag storage nook behind its timber façade.
5. Build combined structures
Like mixed-use spaces, combining your fixtures and build-ins into a single structure is one way that you can try to save space in a small home.
How this deep-hued 33 sqm abode does it is by integrating wine shelves and display cases into the base of a loft bed’s staircase, which also incorporates a bay window seat as a landing.
6. Replace your walls with see-through doors…
See-through doors are great for small homes because they provide the best of both worlds. If you wish to keep a room shut off, but would still like to have light flowing into your home, these transparent barriers are just what you need.
In some cases, like for this bohemian chic apartment, replacing your walls with sliding doors also comes with the extra perk of creating extra corridor space (enough to fit a dining area).
7. … Or do away with barriers completely
As proven by many a home, embracing open-concept spaces is often the answer to cramped areas. After all, there’s nothing quite like removing a few walls if you wish to transform a closed-off room into a wide, open one.
View this project by Habit
That’s said, in some cases, this solution is entirely out of the question because there are simply no walls to begin with. Here, in this cosy condo apartment, an open bedroom erases the boundaries between night and day by taking the place of a living room.
8. Maximise both the inside and outside
Short on both living room and bedroom space? Here’s a neat trick that you can do with just a single wall.
By having your TV and dresser placed on opposite sides of the same structure, like in this modern-luxe condominium flat, you get to prevent precious space from being wasted while ensuring good flow (read: sufficient walkway space) in both zones.
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