From box rooms and guest rooms in houses to the one and only bedroom of a compact city flat, many of us find ourselves with a sleeping space that is on the smaller side. Once you’ve managed to accommodate a single or – if you’re lucky – a double bed, you might find yourself looking round the room and wondering where on earth you’re going to put anything, be it clothes, bedding or even your stash of books. It’s all too easy to conclude that the only possible option is to store things in plastic boxes under the bed, which of course can work very well for certain things, but is by no means a substitute for a wardrobe, shelving or drawers.
At House & Garden, we are privy to all sorts of clever space-saving ideas from savvy interior designers and homeowners, and small bedrooms are no exception. We have looked through our archives to find three of the best ways to incorporate storage into these spaces. The only downside? You now have no excuse for that rickety old clothes rail or that cluttered spare room. It’s time to get things sorted.
Build it around the bed
When a room is small, you can’t afford to waste any space. While a large bedroom can accommodate distinct storage zones and multiple freestanding pieces of furniture, small rooms require a more economic floor plan. The bed has to be there in some shape or form, so why not maximise the area around it? Built-in storage is usually the best way to do this as it can be tailored to fit whatever space you have available.
Interior designer Jane Taylor’s Chelsea mansion flat is a lesson in small-space design. The main bedroom, though not the tiniest of rooms, still required careful consideration when it came to storage. The solution is clever yet classic: panelling by Sympatico Joinery lines the walls, concealing cupboards and forming a neat central alcove for the bed with integrated cubbyholes in lieu of bedside tables. By painting the panelling in a shade of off-white, Jane has made the room feel lighter, airier and bigger than it is, while retaining a timeless aesthetic.
For rooms with single beds, the most effective designs are box beds or bed nooks, which have the added benefit of being wonderfully cosy and cocooning. ‘We positioned the bed underneath the sash window to maximise floor space,’ explains Lonika Chande of this spare room of a 19th-century Chelsea townhouse (at top). ‘We also created a shelf behind the headboard which actually lifts up to reveal storage for clutter or extra books.’ The wardrobe, meanwhile, ‘appears to be freestanding, but has decent drawers and the depth of something built-in’. If even more storage is required, you could consider a purpose-built bed base with drawers or more shelves on the walls at the head or foot of the bed.
Pieces of furniture with more than one purpose are always a good idea in small spaces – just look at Daniel Slowik and Benedict Foley’s Hackney flat, which features a convertible coffee and dining table. Equally innovative pieces can be created for a bedroom. Take, for instance, the guest room of this London house designed by Veere Greeney, where a built-in cupboard next to the bed comprises hanging space, drawers and a pull-out bedside table for a genius three-in-one solution.
Children’s rooms present a unique conundrum as they often require space for a desk for homework as well as storage for toys and other paraphernalia. An all-in-one set-up is just the ticket, as shown by this bedroom in a Victorian townhouse reconfigured by Todhunter Earle. The custom-built desk in the window culminates in a sweet little banquette-type seat that opens up to reveal space for toys below. Thanks to a smart, streamlined design, it is also grown-up enough to stand the test of time.
Wardrobes or cupboards with standard hinged doors need a certain amount of floor space around them to allow proper access. As such, sliding doors and curtains can be a sensible alternative. The former can be made bespoke for a distinctive, high-quality finish, like in this blue bedroom of Villa Isabelle on Cap Ferret, near Bordeaux. The sliding wardrobe doors feature grooved detailing that echoes the wall panelling, and a scalloped trim that extends round the room. Alternatively, various high-street suppliers – including IKEA, Dunelm, Habitat and John Lewis – have ready-built or flat-pack wardrobes with sliding doors for a quick and fairly affordable solution.
Curtains, meanwhile, can be a real help when space is very tight or the room is awkwardly shaped. One such example can be found in another holiday property, this time a chalet transformed by designer Kate Earle – half of the duo behind the child’s bedroom above – in collaboration with the owner. In the converted attic space, low sloping ceilings have made it impossible to fit in a full wardrobe, so instead a clothes rail has been installed in a small alcove and concealed behind a curtain in the same earthy linen as the valance. Like all three of these clever solutions, it is both practical and super stylish – a win-win situation.
