interior design for small spaces

When it comes to styling our homes we all want to style like a pro! I believe with some self confidence and a few tips everyone can style a beautiful, unique home that suits them to a tea.

When styling your home think individuality, the homes that always look the best are those that reflect an individual sense of style, no two people are the same and no two homes should be either. Style for yourself, style for the people that live in your home, never style to please people who don’t live in your home, because the truth is you will never please everyone and you will end up disappointed in the end result. Always embrace your uniqueness!

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If you missed my posts over the past 3 weeks I have been discussing how to style your living room space. We’ve gone over tips about colour choice, flooring, lighting and most importantly making the space suit your personality and your needs. I will pop some links at the bottom of this post for you to check out if you are after more tips on styling. If you are completely unsure where to start when it comes to styling or your taste head back through my design posts and get some ideas on where to start.

Small Spaces:

Over the years houses have gotten bigger and bigger often becoming a status symbol. We often hear older people talk about how growing up they had one lounge area and usually siblings shared bedrooms. These days most houses have many more rooms including dedicated theatre rooms, games rooms and even music rooms. It is rare that siblings share in fact some children even get a private ensuite. Backyards used to be large, but now we prioritise a larger home on a smaller parcel of land. The question is, is it really necessary to have such large homes? If space is something you can afford and you like a large home then that is lovely, but many of us put ourselves into large amounts of debt just to keep up with the neighbours (so to speak). 

A well designed and styled home whether large or small can be beautiful. My last home wasn’t huge, but it was large. I particularly loved my large kitchen. The other day I saw my new kitchen for the first time (as my new home is still being built), I was actually taken back by the size of it. It was tiny. To make it sound fancy my new home is my petite jolie maison, (a pretty little home). I text messaged a friend and she replied “anything would look small compared to your last kitchen lol“. My sister-in-law assured me it will all be worth it when we will be living 3 minutes from the school rather than spending 2 hours travelling a day to and from school, (sometimes more when a parent evening is on, or my child is involved in the school play.) The thing is though I used to look around my old home and ask myself ‘do we really need all this space?’ And honestly I used to answer ‘no’. When we questioned whether to sell it we looked at what mattered most, and what stood out to us was as long as we are together as a family and we are happy and healthy then that is all that truly matters. It might sound cliche, but it is actually how I feel. Being closer not only to my children’s school, but more importantly closer to our friends is what matters most to us. 

A smaller home also means a smaller footprint on our earth. Not only does it use less materials to build, but also it means less electricity to heat or cool and I like the idea of that. So maybe we need to look at whether it is a bigger home we need, or just to make better use of space in a smaller home?

The first step is de-clutter something I have done lots of when making the move, (see my post here). It is not always easy emotionally, but do it on a day where you feel like you can mange to be ruthless! Get rid of everything and I mean everything you don’t use or need. Don’t save those clothes that are the ‘just in case clothes’. You know the ones, ‘just in case I put on weight again’, or “I may fit into these again one day’, or ‘even though I have only worn it once and hated it, it cost a lot of money so I should keep it’! NO! You shouldn’t keep these things. 

Don’t keep items just because they were an engagement present from your great aunt, if you never use them then give them to someone who will, or sell them. Don’t keep every toy your children have grown out of because one day you may have Grandchildren. Don’t keep loads of photo albums you haven’t looked at for 20 years. Pick out a few favourite photos and that’s it! Be ruthless and de-clutter, it cleanses the soul and makes room for new life and happiness to enter your home.

Great storage!

A small space means you need great storage or your house will be a mountain of ‘stuff‘! Firstly declutter as much as you can! Only keep the things you must and the things that evoke joy within!  If you have kids toys everywhere create some smart shelves or a beautiful wicker box, or a coffee table that has storage. Even some modern couch designs and beds have lift up hidden storage. Store shoes in a basket, hang scarfs up on beautiful hooks. Frame your kids artwork if you have wall space. A kids art gallery styled with gorgeous frames looks stunning in their room and shows them you are proud of their efforts!

These items are from Target.

These storage boxes are from KikiK.

Smart and pretty storage make the world of difference in a small space, but make sure you are not storing more than you need to. Hang onto really sentimental items, be ruthless.

Setting the right mood in a small space:

Depending what the room is used for you may want a different mood. If you are after a moody warmer feel then don’t be afraid to use a moody colour scheme. Paint walls a rich warm colour and add candles and lamps, lots of throw pillows and blankets, make it a cosy space to snuggle.

If you want a small space to feel larger then stick with a warm white tone or a selection of cream materials and wall colours. Bring in as much natural light as possible when trying to create a larger feel. My new kitchen may be petite, but with my dark wooden floors, white walls and a white kitchen it still feels light and fresh. I will use some pastel hues to add a softness and green fresh foliage or plants to add some life and draw the outside into the room.

As tempting as it may be when it is seen on so many reno shows, try to avoid painting the feature wall. If you want colour then add an amazing art work. The bigger the better! A large artwork works really well in a small space. A beautiful painting or a professional photographic print will become a focal point for any room. If you can not afford this then go for a poster print, don’t go small it will be lost in the room, make an impact with art. Never waste money on a piece you don’t totally love. You need to fall completely in love with the art you choose.

This amazing art work is GRÅHØÅ BY EVA FRENGSTAD, 160CM X 120CM available through fenton and fenton, but it does come with a price tag of $3900

Or maybe this beautiful Brent Rosenberg ‘Miss NoHo’ is more your style? It is priced at $680. Image from and print available from Click on Furniture.

If you can not afford one large print, try putting  a few smaller art works together. Art work grouped together has s stylish affect.

Photographic prints taken with old school film cameras are back in Vogue and add a unique yet classic style to your room. Art work is really a personal choice whether you prefer abstract, scenery shots, portraits, colour or black and white prints, it doesn’t matter, what matters is you love it.

 Remember for a smaller space light will be your best friend. If you can afford to make structural changes then turn small windows into larger ones, or add skylights. Changing and old window into a doorway out to the garden will make the space seem larger as it will bring the outside in. Using colour tones such as green and blues also reflects light to add to a more spacious feel. Mirrors are also a must in a small space and again will bounce light around the room making it appear more spacious.

What to do about noise: 

Sometimes we live in smaller spaces because we are living inner city and this can mean a lot of outside noise due to traffic. Living on a noisy road or close to a highway can get frustrating. Noisy neighbours or noisy barking dogs can also be annoying. But although you can’t redirect traffic or stop all the dogs in your neighbourhood from barking there are someways to help filter out some neighbourhood noise.

One of the best ways to create a garden. Planting block out trees along your fence line is ideal, have chat to your local plant nursery owners and take in the dimensions of your garden. Make note of where the sun travels during the day, what areas of your garden get a lot of sun and what areas are shady. This way the garden experts can help you make the best choice for your garden. Think layers. Start with row of trees which are thick in foliage, in front of these plant some lower growing shrubs, and finish off with ground cover plants. Grass is also a great way to soften noise.

Think windows. If you can change your windows to double glazing this will block out a lot of noise. If not at least try to make sure all windows and doors are sealed well, any gaps will allow excess noise in. Also add drapes to windows to help block out noise at night.

A lot of newly built homes can also be noisy inside, they can often be quite echoey. If you have tiled flooring add rugs to stop noise bouncing of hard surfaces. By adding soft furnishings like rugs, pillows, cushions and curtains you will help absorb noise. Even choosing a soft material sofa or covered dining chairs can make a difference when it comes to making you home quieter. Adding some greenery into your home can help filter noise as well as pollutants in the air, just by adding some foliage from outside can help! Think about adding vases of foliage, be as creative as you want. Indoor plants are also perfect for filtering sound and making the air fresher too!

Add soft furnishings to bring some ace and quiet to your home. Image credits Country Road 

 I hope you have found some tips here helpful. Please share any tips you have with me in the comment section. I am always open to hearing your options and taking on your advice.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this post, it means so much. I would love you to subscribe to my website and receive my emails straight to your inbox, it is free and you can pick and choose which posts you want to read. My posts vary through the week from personal, inspirational and on Wednesdays I am featuring a design post each week.

Thanks again for sharing you day with me, love Mac xx

As promised here are links to my 3 previous design posts.

The room that should never be overlooked.

Improve the quality of your life through designing your living space.

Let your personality shine through your interior design.