Copyright Š 2020 Tiffany Bui
Introduction
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All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information, address the publisher. Written, photographed, and designed by Tiffany Bui. Printed by Lulu Xpress, in the United States of America First Printing, 2020 tbui.work
SPECIAL THANKS Bella Nguyen Ian Lam Sarah Woodward
Introduction
Misa Skipper
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Living Room 4
TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction | 6
Kitchen | 22 Bedroom | 37 Bathroom | 50
5 TOB
Living Room | 8
INTRODUCTION
Introduction Living Room
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Are you living in a small home, condo, or apartment and struggling to find enough storage space? Are you looking for a way to better organize and use every inch of your place to its fullest potential? If you are, then this book is the perfect choice for you. “How To Maximize Your Living Space” will give you a lot of useful design ideas to help you increase the functionality of your home, and make it appear larger than it really is while still maintaining style. Just because your house is small doesn’t mean you can’t live large. Follow these tips and tricks to organize, declutter and open up your home for a more comfortable and delightful living.
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Introduction
LIVING ROOM
Living Room
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The living room is the most prominent room in the house when it comes to interior design and decoration since it’s a focal point of any home. The living room is where families gathers and bond, where you entertain guests and loved ones, and where you kick back after a long day to rest, relax and enjoy leisure activities like watching TV and reading. Therefore, if you have a small living room, it’s very important to make the furniture layout work in a way that can serve multiple purposes while still leaving a sense of spaciousness. Here’s some design tips you can take advantage of to maximize your living room space.
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Tip 1
Reduce Visual Clutter
While white, beige and soft grey may seem like obvious choices, they aren’t the only options. Muted shades of blush pink, pale blue, dusky lilac and a subtle green can evoke a fresh, warm and inviting ambiance, and won’t make the walls feel closed in.
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When it comes to color in small living room decorating, it’s best to stick with light shades and neutral tones as they keep everything visually streamlined. Too much color, texture and pattern will easily overwhelm the space.
Tip 2
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Use Decor to Add Visual Interest Don’t let a living room that’s limited in size stop you from making a big décor statement. An eye-catching artwork will bring a fresh twist to a tiny space while creating contrast and intrigue. It will also help draw attention away from the room’s size. The rest of the room can be kept relatively clutter free to balance scale.
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Tip 3
Use Light Materials
Glass or open shelving are great tips to make small spaces feel bigger. Reflective surfaces such as mirrors also help expand your space visually, as they keep the air flow moving and bring more light into the room.
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In a small living room layout, consider using lighter materials to lighten the sensation of furniture on your eye. If all your furniture is made of dark wood or black metal, you may start to feel closed in.
Tip 4
Choose Small-scale Furniture Living Room
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Any furnishing that consumes very little visual space will make an area seem more open. A lower couch with thin arms, slender side tables, or a loveseat instead of a sofa helps create a feeling of volume in the room. Moreover, look for furniture with exposed legs rather than pieces that are flush to the ground. Floating shelves have the same effect. This can help your room feel more spacious and balanced.
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Tip 5
Make Furniture Multi-functional
Look for ottomans with storage, and you can easily sock away blankets, books, and living room clutter. They can also be used as extra seats in place of a traditional sofa and coffee table. A slim side table with a second low rack underneath also offers more spots to keep things and expand the feeling of space.
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When you lack the luxury of space, hard-working, multifunctional furniture pieces are your best friends.
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Tip 6
Built in Storage
A floor-to-ceiling shelf will give you a place to display all your coveted collectibles, favorite books, and other beloved items. It can also be modified to fit your TV. This will help you use your small space living room to the fullest.
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Instead of letting lots of small pieces of furniture eat up space, you can make use of built-in shelves to increase storage space. Built-ins offer a plentiful amount of free space since it takes advantage of strange nooks and unused spaces, so that no part of your home is wasted.
KITCHEN
Kitchen Living Room
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The kitchen is the heart of the home, because it’s where we prepare and cook food to nurture our body, mind and soul. From rushing around in the mornings getting ready for work or school, preparing lunches to pack for a busy day, to making dinners to share with our beloved ones, a lot of memories and great stories are created in the kitchen. Therefore, it’s very important to have a functional and organized kitchen so we can take better care of our health and well-being. Designing a small kitchen may seem like a challenge, but it’s also a great opportunity for us to learn some useful tricks to maximize our kitchen function and increase its visual size.
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Kitchen
Tip 1
Kitchen
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Use Food Storage Container Set A good container system is another important tip that can help your kitchen live up to its full potential. Store your food in labeled containers and glass jars for a more polished and organized approach. Without the visual chaos of logos, you can easily find what you’re looking for and create uniformity in your kitchen.
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Tip 2
Get Some Hang Time
Most kitchen utensils have a notch on the handle. You can use it to hang up your cooking utensils and save your limited drawer space for something else. This also makes it more convenient when you cook since the needed utensils are right in reach. 25
Kitchen
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Tip 4
Store Pots in Drawers If you have a lot of mugs and glasses at home, trying to find enough space to store them can be a challenge. Securing a glassware rack to the wall can help you free up more space in the cabinet, and put the untouched corner in your kitchen in good use.
Tip 3
Use Cutlery Trays Unable to find the right utensils while preparing meals can be very frustrating. Moreover, cutlery items and other utensils can be sharp, so when you put them unarranged, you’re putting yourself at risk each time you put your hand in the drawer. Using a cutlery tray will help you keep all the utensils in place and organize, which will save you from searching around and keep the kitchen clutter free.
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Tip 5
Kitchen
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Opt for a Mug Rack
If you have a lot of mugs and glasses at home, trying to find enough space to store them can be a challenge. Securing a glassware rack to the wall can help you free up more space in the cabinet, and put the untouched corner in your kitchen in good use.
Tip 6
A shelf-riser will allow you to take advantage of the vertical space in your cabinets. You can stack things without making them harder to retrieve, and store more than one type of item in a cabinet, like plates underneath the shelf and mugs on top of it!
Kitchen
Use Risers
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Tip 7 Kitchen
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Tea Bag Organizer If you’re a tea lover, then you probably have a drawer full of tea boxes. A compact tea organizer can help you keep your tea collection in tip-top shape and reduce clutter in your kitchen.
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Tip 8
Utilize the Side of the Fridge or Cabinet
The side of the fridge or cabinet often goes unused. If you have a small kitchen, you can utilize this space for extra storage, such as adding mounting shelves or racks or hooks to keep your kitchen items organized. This will help you save space in a perfect manner.
Kitchen
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Tip 9
Add Pull-Out Kitchen Pantry and Rolling Shelves
By installing pull-out pantry shelves, you’ll make the task of pantry organization simpler and more convenient. You can always pull the shelf forward to pick whatever you need from the back, and make the rear areas of the cabinet more accessible.
Tip 10
Store Similar Items
Kitchen
Instead of having things stashed all over the place, pairing similar items together will help you increase the functionality in your kitchen. Store all plastic wraps, tin foil and ziploc bags in one drawer. Keep everyday dishes, cups, glasses and cutlery near each other, so when it’s time to set the dinner table everything is within reach.
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Tip 11
Bring in Baskets and Bins Kitchen
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Kitchen
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By keeping fruits or loose stuff in the baskets or containers, you can keep your counter uncluttered and maintain order in the kitchen. This will also help you find like-items more easily.
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Tip 12
Install a Wall-Mounted Microwave
If your microwave is currently taking up kitchen counter space, you’re losing a lot of potential space. Getting your microwave off the counter, whether placing it above the stove, in a custom-built alcove, or on a cart, is a space-saving solution that will extend your countertop and create more room to work.
BEDROOM
Bedroom Living Room
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Bedroom is where we relax and recharge after a long day full of activities. A cramped, tiny and unorganized bedroom will hinder you from being well-rested, which can cause negative impacts on your physical and mental health. Therefore, it’s very important to have a well decorated bedroom that provides you with the best comfort so you can start each and every morning strong and have a good sleep at night. If you’re having a small bedroom and not sure how to fit more storage without making it too cramped, here’s some useful tips you can take advantage of to expand your bedroom space.
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Bedroom
Tip 1
Use Double Duty Furniture Bedroom
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If you have a small bedroom, it’s important to use furniture that can serve multiple purposes to save space. In stead of having a separate bookshelf and a working desk, investing in a stack bookshelf with a connected desk will help you make better use of vertical space. A window seat with storage space underneath also gives you extra seating and storage in your bedroom.
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Tip 2
Under Bed Storage Drawers
Bedroom
A bed that has drawers below is another great storage option, since the empty space underneath your mattress is now put to good use. Storage bed can give you as many drawers as a dresser, and you can easily tuck your items away when needed.
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Tip 3
Go for Nightstands with Shelves or Drawers Bedroom
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In a small bedroom, it’s important to make the most of every single pieces of furniture we have in our room. A nightstand will provide a surface to place necessary items like a lamp, a book, a glass of water, or whatever else you may want to keep close by the bed. Choosing the one with multiple drawers or shelves will give you extra rooms for bedside necessities, and help you keep all your items uncluttered.
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Tip 4
Opt For Floating Desk 45 Bedroom
In a small bedroom, floating desk will help you save a significant amount of space. Having the top layer of the floating desk attached to your wall minimizes the amount of floor space being utilized and cluttered up. You can either use it as a traditional working desk, or a dressing table, or both. Floating desk also makes the floor cleaning job much easier.
Tip 5
Bedroom
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Use the Back of the Door The back of the door is another space you can take advantage of for storage. You can use it to hang your coats and jackets, bags, or any extra items you have. It’s pretty much invisible most of the time you leave the door open, so you don’t have to worry about visual clutter.
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Tip 6
Closet Organizing
Storage closets should be organized to utilize all vertical space efficiently. By adding shelfs with different heights, you can create more rooms to store different items, from clothes, shoes, to bags and other accessories. This will help you free up a lot of space in your bedroom.
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The more you can store in your closets, the less that has to be stored in the main bedroom area.
BATHROOM Bathroom Living Room
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Last but not least, the bathroom is another important room that we need to pay close attention to, since it serves a fundamental hygienic function and it’s where we begin and finish each day. If you have a tiny bathroom, it’s important to make it feel as spacious as possible. Here’s some useful tips you can use to keep your bathroom organized and use it to its fullest potential.
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Bathroom
Tip 1
Bathroom
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Tackle the Toilet Area The area above the toilet often goes unused. You can take advantage of this space by installing a cabinet unit or open shelves over the tank. It will give you more rooms to store your bathroom essentials, such as toilet paper or towels.
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Tip 2
Add More Mirrors
Bathroom
Using mirrors is a great way to open up a tight space, since reflective surfaces help increase a sense of spaciousness. Having a mirror stretch across the wall instead of just the vanity will make the bathroom seem bigger than it actually is.
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Tip 3
Bathroom
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Maximize Your Medicine Cabinet A medicine cabinet is another space you can utilize for storage. You can use it to store you makeup and skincare products, or any bathroom essentials if you have a narrow sink countertop. By choosing a cabinet that has shelves of varying heights, you can fit all of your toiletries and keep clutter away from your sink.
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Tip 4
Install a GlassEnclosed Shower 59 Bathroom
Instead of using shower curtain, a glass enclosure will give you a greater sense of spaciousness, since it does not cut a small bathroom in half visually as an opaque shower curtain and tub can. Glass shower helps open up the shower area, allows more lights in, and provides a clear line of vision through the room. Another important benefit of choosing glass shower enclosures over other materials is that they are durable and very easy to clean.
Tip 5
Organize the Shower Bathroom
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Keeping shampoos and conditioners in the shower helps free up storage space in other areas. You can opt for a shower caddy or a shower organizer to keep all the toiletry products organized. Choose a caddy with at least two shelfs for your shampoo, conditioner and body wash bottles. A second, smaller shelf above or below the first can accommodate bar soap, razors, and other flat objects that might fit in the balm of your hand.
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Tip 6
Use Your Sink Space Wisely 63 Bathroom
A sink with countertops will give you additional space to store often-used items. Under-sink cabinet is another storage space you can take advantage of to keep bathroom cleaning supplies and other essentials at the ready. You can sort them into baskets/ containers to keep all the similar items in one place for a more streamlined, easy-to-access bathroom storage.
64 Sources
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You’ve reached the end of this book! I hope you found a lot of useful tips that can help you maximize your living space and use every square footage to its fullest potential!
SOURCES Mirabello Interiors. “Small Living Room Ideas to Maximize Your Space.” Mirabello Interiors, 17 Sept. 2019, www.mirabellointeriors.com/smallliving-room-ideas-to-maximize-yourspace/. Sims, Amanda. “How to Make the Most of Your Small Living Room.” Architectural Digest, Architectural Digest, 11 Oct. 2017, www. architecturaldigest.com/story/livingroom-furniture-layout-maximizessmall-space.
Stamp, Elizabeth, and Kristi Kellogg. “20 Kitchen Organization Ideas To Maximize Storage Space.” Architectural Digest, Architectural Digest, 19 May 2020, www. architecturaldigest.com/story/ kitchen-organization-ideas-tomaximize-storage-space. Piro, Lauren. “Genius Storage Hacks for Small Kitchens.” Good Housekeeping, Good Housekeeping, 28 Oct. 2019, www. goodhousekeeping.com/home/ organizing/tips/g1397/small-
Richards, Laura, et al. “10 Simple Ways to Organize Your Kitchen.” FamilyEducation, 15 May 2017, www.familyeducation.com/familylife/how-organize-kitchen-10-simpleways. “10 Ways to Maximize Space in a Small Bedroom.” MYMOVE, 30 Sept. 2020, www.mymove.com/ home-inspiration/bedroom/waysto-maximize-space-in-a-smallbedroom/. Gillies, Melina. “10 Tips to Get More Kitchen Counter Space.” The Family Handyman, The Family Handyman, 19 Apr. 2019, www.familyhandyman. com/list/10-tips-to-get-morekitchen-counter-space/. Jessica Bennett and Hannah Bruneman Update, et al. “14 Small-Space Hacks to Make the Most of Your Tiny Bathroom.” Better Homes & Gardens, www.bhg.com/bathroom/storage/ storage-solutions/hacks-to-makethe-most-of-your-tiny-bathroom/. “20 Ways to Get the Best Use of Space in Your Bathroom.” MYMOVE, 18 Aug. 2020, www.mymove.com/ home-inspiration/bathroom/waysto-get-the-best-use-of-space-in-yourbathroom/.
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Mendelsohn, Hadley. “17 Styling Tricks That Will Make Your Living Room Feel Way Bigger Than It Is.” House Beautiful, House Beautiful, 22 June 2020, www.housebeautiful.com/ room-decorating/living-familyrooms/g2310/small-living-roomdecorating-ideas/.
kitchen-storage/?slide=4.
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Copyright Š 2020 Tiffany Bui All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information, address the publisher. Written, photographed, and designed by Tiffany Bui. Printed by Lulu Xpress, in the United States of America First Printing, 2020 tbui.work
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