Living in a small space can be challenging. Whether it’s a dorm room, a compact first-condo or a trendy container home, you need to use your space creatively while keeping in mind practicality. 

Portable appliances that can be stored away and brought out when needed are a great way of dealing with a tight space. Rethinking closet space is another. The general rule of thumb is stay practical. Everything should have a purpose in the space – no extra knickknacks required.

Appliance closets

Start by clearing out the clutter in your kitchen. Appliances that are not used regularly can be moved out of the kitchen into a small appliance closet or given away. Sometimes buying a multi-functional appliance that handles several tasks at once is a great way to claim back space in your kitchen. A cleaned out closet can be converted into the perfect compact laundry room.

A front-loading washing machine such as the LG 4.6 Cu. Ft. Front Load Washer  is not only energy efficiency but can also be stacked with the LG 7.3 Cu. Ft. Electric Dryer. LG uses TrueBalance System uses anti-vibration technology to keep the washer from banging around against any walls. The matching DRYER has five temperature settings and the Sensor Dry system automatically adjusts the drying time accordingly. Add the LG Stacking Kit to the mix and you can go vertical with your laundry room, which according to Peggy Pardo from Decorating Files is the only way to go with small spaces.

Read more about this LG dream team.

Downsizing

Chances if you are living in a tight space you have a small family. Reclaim more space by downsizing your appliances. Do you really need a full-sized refrigerator? Why not consider the sleek and trendy the Danby’s counter-high compact refrigerator.

At 45 cm x 83.1 cm x 47 cm (17.7 in x 32.7 in x18.5 in), it’s perfect for small spaces since it can be adjusted to fit underneath must standard countertops. It’s got a full width freezer section a patented Canstor beverage dispenser and moulded egg storage.

How often do you use your oven? One solution is to go urban and just have a compact cooktop such as the Sonya SYI-301 Induction Cooktop. It’s compact and portable while still being able to handle cast aluminum enamelled iron and steel, stainless steel with a magnetic bottom, or cast iron. Sensitive and responsive, it senses when cookware is removed and shuts off. With seven cooking power levels from 100F to 390F with 1300W max power consumption it can handle vegetables stir-fry, omelettes, pasta and other dishes easily. Use the space saved underneath to install your dishwasher.

The Bosch 23.2″ Built-In Dishwasher is just slightly smaller than others but still offers the usual features. At 50 dBA, this is a super-quiet machine with a stainless steel tub cavity with five wash cycles. An express wash option does a load in 30 minutes or less and overflow leak protection means no messy accidents in your small space. The sanitize option helps eliminate bacteria and germs while drying dishes so you can then use it to store oversized pots and pans, freeing up even more valuable storage.

The key is to stay practical, de-clutter and get creative. Everything in its place can help make your small space feel bigger.

 

More inspiration …

 

                  … here are some other articles on “living small” you might like:

 

5 Tricks to make the most of a small bedroom

 

Make the most of a small kitchen

Space saving home office
Shelagh McNally
I’ve been covering technology since 1992 and I’ve seen a lot of technology come and go. I enjoy following the trends, spotting the winners and losers and teaching consumers how to get the best products and services for their needs. My work has been published in the National Post, Reader's Digest.com, Yahoo, Miami Herald and other North American publications and websites.