Living in a small apartment advice?
January 18th, 2010 | 
Author: okay guys, so I live in the same state of my college campus so I decided not to dorm there and save a few thousands dollars but I went from a pretty good size home to a 750 square foot apartment.
can you give me some advice of things to buy that are decently cheap that would help make my place seem bigger?
my kitchen is about the size of a walk in closet with minimal counter space, no pantry and limited cabinets.
where could I put pantry items, pots/pants, dinnerware? (I have a decent collection because I’m into cooking
also for the bedroom and living room, any clever storage advice? (racks, bins, etc)
thank you so much 
maximum amount of points for best answers<3
Try not to overcrowd the place, just buy simple, minimalist stuff. Light colors can really help make a place seem bigger, and also mirrors. You can hang pans and stuff on the walls in your kitchen, they could make a nice contrast with a really bold color ( like this: http://www.allaboutyou.com/?module=images&func=display&fileId=67917 ). About the bedroom, I really like those beds with storage space underneath the mattress. You can’t imagine how much stuff can go in there.
You can try looking in the 2010 Ikea catalog, or to make it fun, go through interior design photos on the internet, find something you really like and try to replicate it as much as possible.
Posted in Home Storage Cabinet
Try not to overcrowd the place, just buy simple, minimalist stuff. Light colors can really help make a place seem bigger, and also mirrors. You can hang pans and stuff on the walls in your kitchen, they could make a nice contrast with a really bold color ( like this: http://www.allaboutyou.com/?module=images&func=display&fileId=67917 ). About the bedroom, I really like those beds with storage space underneath the mattress. You can’t imagine how much stuff can go in there.
You can try looking in the 2010 Ikea catalog, or to make it fun, go through interior design photos on the internet, find something you really like and try to replicate it as much as possible.
References :
I joust bought a house and I can’t wait to start decorating it.
Furniture that offers additional storage space would help. Storage ottmans that double as cocktail tables and extra seating, captains beds with storage drawers underneath are a good start. An entertainment unit with doors and drawers is another good idea. Kitchens are typically small in these size apartments and though it looks challenging, start looking at best use of the space you have and load the space accordingly. Obviously some of the cabinet space has to be devoted to pantry type items. You can buy plenty of inexpensive space saver shelving options at places like Target or Bed Bath & Beyond. Dinnerware isn’t going to take up much space as you surely don’t need a service for 12 in a small apartment. Look at 6. Buy an under cabinet coffee maker and can opener to help clear the counter space for other items. If you have some space in your dining area, put in an inexpensive small hutch or buffet for extra storage. Small kitchens take clever planning. Bed Bath & Beyond has a vast array of space saving devices for just about any room in your home including closets. They are not expensive plus they offer 20% off coupons all the time and you often can print them off online.
References :
Buy a large, tall rack from somewhere like Target to put things that need to be grabbed quickly, such as pantry food: http://www.target.com/Chrome-Baker%E2%80%99s-Rack/dp/B000BCD58G/ref=br_1_2?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=1&searchView=grid5&searchNodeID=12959391&node=12959391&searchRank=pmrank&searchPage=1&searchSize=30&id=Chrome%20Baker%E2%80%99s%20Rack
A pot hanger is ideal, something like this: http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodid=11469185&whse=BC&Ne=4000000&eCat=BC|114|3327|74746&N=4018972&Mo=13&pos=5&No=3&Nr=P_CatalogName:BC&cat=74746&Ns=P_Price|1||P_SignDesc1&lang=en-US&Sp=C&ec=BC-EC10598-Cat56625&topnav=
This Dorm website on Target.com is great for ideas!
http://www.target.com/Furniture-Dorm-Essentials-Back-College/b/ref=nav_t_spc_10_6/182-2440809-0370129?ie=UTF8&node=360124011&forceIncat=icn_furniture
and http://www.target.com/b/ref=sc_iw_l_0_1/?node=13035431
Tapestries are a great way to give a lot of decoration with minimal effort. I saw this tapestry on eBay that I thought was pretty cool. It is a little "out there" haha but a similar tapestry would be interesting too! Just do a search on eBay for whatever kind of tapestry you like.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180416423021&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT
Hope this helps!
References :
My own dorm and apartment
I had a similar problem to that when I was going to college. My apartment was so small my roommate and I couldn’t fit all of our stuff. We had bought those plastic storage bins, but they actually kept getting in our way and made our apartment smaller. We ended up renting a storage unit from http://www.storagedeluxe.com/ and it worked out really well. I highly recommend using one, it adds so much more room.
References :
http://www.storagedeluxe.com/