15 great things for small spaces you can get from Wayfair
I got 99 problems and having no space is about 96 of them
Credit:
Wayfair
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When my family moved into its first house, my siblings and I had to divvy up the rooms. Two were sized for normal humans, while the third looked like a closet that had been repurposed into a bedroom. I scoffed at the tiny room until my dad said, “Well that’s too bad, because whoever gets this room will have bunk beds…”
And that is how my 8-year-old self was conned into her first tiny bedroom.
From dorms to apartments and tiny houses that followed, I became accustomed to working with the limited space I’d been given. I ditched the bunk beds once I hit high school, but kept the ability to make small spaces feel cozy, not claustrophobic. Decorating for a small space can feel intimidating—should I get light furniture or dark? What colors should the wall be? Are two Lego Death Stars excessive or do they make the space look bigger?
If you live in a small space, you’re probably looking for furniture that won’t break your budget, but also won’t wear down after the first year of use. Wayfair is a great place to find steals for under $100, plus they have an expansive selection of storage solutions ideally suited to people who need to make the most of the space they have. Since the sheer number of options can be a little overwhelming, we picked our favorite pieces from Wayfair’s collection that can help you make the most of your small living space.
1. This trunk that doubles as living room storage
This trunk serves as a seat, a coffee table, and extra storage for your home.
If you’ve got a small living room, you need to find furniture that pulls double duty, whether that’s a couch that can be a guest bed, a bookcase that’s a TV stand, or a coffee table that provides ample storage space. In my living room, we have a massive trunk similar to this one from Wayfair that serves as our coffee table and houses all my knitting supplies—meaning dozens of skeins of yarn, needles, and three years’ worth of Vogue Knitting.
Before I moved in, my husband used this chest for large blankets, which is a fantastic way to maximize the space if you don’t have any closets at home. This trunk is also well suited for photo albums, linens, toys, and holiday decorations. Plus, it is sturdy enough to serve as extra seating, which is a godsend in a tiny home.
Get the Laurel Foundry Modern Farmhouse Glenns Storage Trunk from Wayfair for $376.99
2. A pantry cart to store your kitchen gadgets
Forget that full-sized pantry—get a cart instead.
My current kitchen does not have a pantry, which means our food spills out of cabinets and lives on the island. We’re always looking for ways to get more space out of our small kitchen, so we picked up a small cart that holds my favorite cookbooks (the rest live on our bookcase) and any dry goods we pick up for the week. This cart from Wayfair comes with a solid wooden top, ideal for cookbooks anchored with bookends or using as extra counterspace, as well as a pull-out shelf and accessory hooks. You can hang utensils or pots from the hooks, while the shelves are well-suited for any additional kitchen storage your current space doesn’t already provide.
Get the Project Tidy Ty 34” Kitchen Pantry from Wayfair for $89.99
3. A closet system ideal for expanding small closets
Store your clothes, shoes, and purses in this closet system.
In my first apartment, my roommate didn’t have a closet, so she picked up a cheap closet system that was essentially a bar attached to wheels—it wasn’t great, and while it held her shirts, it didn’t do much for the aesthetics of her room (or hold anything else you’d find in a closet, like shoes and purses). This closet system from Wayfair honestly looks like an adult jungle gym, with several rungs and shelves ideal for almost anything you can find in a closet. It’s best suited for one person—unless you and your partner have very small wardrobes, you will be hard-pressed to fit more than a single person’s clothing collection in this system.
Get the Rebrilliant Reardon 45.4”W Closet System from Wayfair for $46.99
4. This cube bookcase that can be used for about 150 different things
So many cubes, so many options.
I absolutely love the cube bookcase we’ve got in our guest bedroom (which also doubles as our gaming room and home office). This room doesn’t have much storage outside of a small closet, so open shelves on our cube bookcase hold our Blu-Ray collection, while those that have cloth drawers hold our winter socks, placemats, scarves, and linens. Ironically, the only things we don’t really keep in it are books.
This cube bookcase from Wayfair actually has three more cubes than the one we’ve got, meaning more room for you to store your stuff. The fabric cubes can go in whichever configuration is best for you, so you can use six or two or none at all—we find them best suited for items that would be unruly without walls, like socks and sheets. You can also flip this one vertically or horizontally, depending on which is best suited for your space.
Get the ClosetMaid Cubeicals Cube Bookcase from Wayfair for $97.99
5. A game-changing organizer to live over your toilet
Improve your bathroom storage situation with an over-the-toilet organizer.
Once you’ve lived in a place with a small bathroom, you quickly learn how to maximize the space—especially if you’re sharing it with two other girls (can you tell I’m speaking from personal experience?). There’s no surviving in a small bathroom without shelving, and if there isn’t room to install a vanity or medicine cabinet, opt for shelving that sits right on top of the toilet, like this organizer from Wayfair. It optimizes your vertical space—which is essential when living in a tiny home—and adds five shelves to your bathroom, giving you spots for toiletry essentials, toilet paper, and even towels.
6. Floating shelves to hold frames, decor, or books
Floating shelves are great for adding practical solutions to dead space.
Bless the person who invented floating shelves. We’ve got three sets in our home: one in our kitchen, which holds plants and spices; one in our bathroom, which holds toothbrushes, lotions, and soaps; and one in our living room, which holds photo frames. Floating shelves allow us to add storage (which we don’t have) to dead wall space (which we had too much of). It’s another great way to take advantage of vertical space in a small home.
These floating shelves from Wayfair have nearly 4,000 5-star reviews, and they come in three finishes to match your home decor: dark walnut, walnut (pictured here), and white.
Get the Gracie Oaks Evonne 2 Piece Wall Shelf Set from Wayfair for $39.99
7. So many mirrors you begin to think you’re in a Disney fairy tale
Mirror mirror on the wall—please make my living room look bigger than it actually is.
Mirrors are great for making small spaces appear much larger than they actually are. Their reflective surfaces capture light and trick the eye into thinking the space is roomier, even if it’s not much larger than a college dorm room. Don’t be shy about loading your walls with mirrors, whether you choose a large rectangular one or a series of small round ones. Reviewers love this 35” round mirror from Wayfair—it has nearly 2,000 5-star reviews. Unlike other large mirrors, it’s hung from a metal anchor on top of the frame, meaning installation is much easier than mirrors that have wires or hidden anchors.
Get the Langley Street Minerva Modern & Contemporary Beveled Accent Mirror from Wayfair for $149.99
8. Light curtains to make the space feel bigger
Light curtains can make rooms look much larger than they are.
It’s no secret that dark colors can make small spaces seem much smaller. It took me years to forgive my mother for painting my tiny room white after I insisted that I wanted to paint it dark plum—unsurprisingly, mom was right. Light colors make a big difference, so opt for light curtains that enhance natural sunlight and make the room seem larger.
If you’re a fan of thermal curtains, opt for a pair that comes in light colors, like this set from Wayfair with more than 6,500 5-star reviews. They can block out light and keep cool temperatures from breaking into your home, but they’ll cost a little more than your standard curtains. Note—lighter shades of blackout curtains may not be as effective as darker shades at keeping light out, but darker colors will make the space look smaller. If you’re more concerned with cost-cutting, or you don’t need the features blackout curtains provide, opt for a sheer pair of light curtains, like this set from Wayfair that have almost 8,000 5-star reviews and cost less than $7.
- Get the Rosdorf Park Brockham Blackout Thermal Grommet Curtain Panels from Wayfair for $60.02
- Get the Wayfair Basics Solid Sheer Rod Pocket Curtain Panels from Wayfair for $6.57
9. An area rug that ties the room together
Large rugs can make a big impact on small rooms.
One key to decorating a small space is picking one large (or mid-sized) piece instead of several smaller ones. This is true of wall decor, furniture, and even rugs. Wayfair has an amazing collection of rugs well-suited for compact living spaces. This area rug has almost 24,000 5-star reviews and comes in six different styles, with reviewers noting they enjoy its softness and thickness.
Get the Mistana Clair Gray Area Rug from Wayfair starting at $30.99
10. Moveable arm lamps that direct light where you need
These moveable lights allow you to illuminate small spaces easily.
Lighting is a critical part of making your small space feel cozy. Large windows and light curtains help, but when it comes to lighting, opt for overhead lights that don’t obstruct the space or lamps that are anchored to the walls, not placed on surfaces or standing on their own. This arm lamp from Wayfair can be secured to the wall and moved depending on where you need the light to shine at that moment. Its classic design makes it an appealing option for bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, doorways—wherever you need a moveable light option in the house.
Get the Trent Austin Design Waucoba Swing Arm Lamp from Wayfair for $133.99
11. Fake plants to add character to the space
Plants don’t need to be real to enhance your space.
If you’re trying to minimize your decor to avoid cluttering your small home, don’t skimp on plants. Plants add to the homeiness of any space, and fake plants are wonderful for those of us who really struggle to keep real ones alive. All my plants are fake and live on beautiful floating shelves—floating shelves I can’t reach because they’re high up on the walls, the only places I can decorate.
If you’ve got the floor space, look for a tall plant that can occupy an otherwise barren corner. This fake tree has more than 1,000 5-star reviews and stands anywhere from 4 to 7 feet tall—a good addition to small homes with tall ceilings. But if you don’t quite have the floor space, opt for smaller plants that can be placed on tables or bookshelves to liven up the room, like these potted succulents that are less than $30 and come in packs of two.
- Get the Mistana Leaf Floor Foliage Tree in Pot from Wayfair for $142.99
- Get the Willa Arlo Interiors 2 Piece Succulent Plant in Pot Set from Wayfair for $26.99
12. A glass table to reflect more light in the room
Glass tables allow more light to reflect in your living space.
Much like mirrors, glass furniture can give your room the illusion of being much larger than it actually is. The reflective surface allows light to bounce around more freely, making your home feel brighter and more spacious. You can get a glass coffee table or dining table, like this one from Wayfair. It’s got nearly 300 5-star reviews and seats four, which may be your limit if you’ve got a truly small space.
Get the Wade Logan Dever Dining Table from Wayfair for $266.99
13. Our favorite dutch oven that can replace just about everything else in your kitchen
Our favorite dutch oven doubles as every cooking utensil you could ever need and a beautiful piece of kitchen decor.
My dutch oven is my absolute favorite kitchen item I own. I use it multiple times each week for a variety of dishes, from pastas to stews to stir frys. Dutch ovens can be used to prepare just about any dish, and that kind of multipurpose tool is essential when you’ve got minimal storage space in your kitchen. Ditch the old pots and pans and pick up our favorite dutch oven, the Staub cast iron dutch oven. Bonus points: It’s gorgeous, meaning if you don’t have any storage in your kitchen, you can arrange your dutch oven on the counter and call it rustic home decor.
Get the Staub Cast Iron 5.5 Qt. Shallow Wide Round Dutch Oven with Lid from Wayfair for $299.95
14. A shoe organizer that can live on a door or a wall
This shoe organizer can hold up to 36 pairs of shoes, saving that precious closet real estate.
Having little to no closet space can be daunting—what are you supposed to do if you physically can’t fit your shoes in your own home? Picking up a simple shoe organizer may be the solution. This overdoor organizer from Wayfair can fit up to 36 pairs of shoes, ideal for couples who need more space or shoe enthusiasts who don’t want to get rid of their favorite pairs. This product can fit over doors or attach to the wall, depending on which space in your home is best suited for it. Reviewers note that it’s easy to put together, but if you have larger feet, it may hold fewer than 36 pairs.
Get the Lynk 36 Pair Overdoor Shoe Organizer from Wayfair for $66.99
15. Underbed storage to help you organize what’s left
Keep what you can’t store in style under your bed in an organizer.
You’ve got shelves on the walls, furniture that doubles as storage, and closets filled to the brim—so what do you do when you still have more to store? Pick up bags or containers that will fit under your bed. We tested the best underbed storage containers of 2019, and while we didn’t test this particular set, soft-sided storage can be better suited for smaller spaces. These zippable containers are made to be stored under your bed, and the flexible material makes them ideal for stuffing. They’re made for comforters, linens, and clothes—ideal for storing your summer or winter wardrobe when they’re out of season.
Get the Whitmor, Inc. Jumbo Underbed Storage from Wayfair for $9.99