Whether you have a 5,000 square foot home or you have 500 square foot home doesn’t it seem like your home is too small? Kids represent the joy of our lives, but also the clutter of our home! If you live in a larger home it is easier to keep the kids stuff in a contained area.  While if you live in a small home the task of keeping the kids items separate isn’t as simple.  Here are 5 tips for sharing a small home with your children and helping all parties keep their identity.

1.) Purge and remove clutter from every room: This rule applies to every room in your house, all the time.  You first will have to weed through yours, kids, kitchen, bathroom, living areas, etc… of belongings.  Kids grow before you know it and often times their belongings stay behind as they keep growing! If you have smaller children go through their ‘must-haves’ and ‘forgotten-about’ items.  Donate, sell or give away items that are tucked in the back of the closet, under the bed, etc… For older children have them help you with the purge so they understand what you’re doing and why it is important. Once you have done this your home will automatically feel larger and more manageable to deal with.

2.) Personalize: Everyone likes the concept of having a personalized space to call their own.  This is also true for your small home.  For parents, explain to your children that the kitchen area is only for you, while the kid’s rooms are only for them. This obviously doesn’t mean other family members aren’t welcome.  It helps provide a sense of ownership to what spaces everyone is ‘responsible’ for keeping tidy and will help parents not feel like they are the police in every room of the home. For kid’s rooms, labeling toy bins, crates, and cubbies will reiterate this concept.

3.) Designate specific areas for belongings: In larger homes toys and belongings can be located in different rooms, but in small homes it helps for belongings to stay in one space. In kid’s rooms designate an area for toys, books, clothes, and memorabilia/collectibles and help your kids keep items in these places after using them.  If  they love to play in the living room with their toys, teach them to put them back in the ‘toy’ space in their room every time.  This will help you not trip on toys, and will help your living room remain looking like a livable space.

4.) Have a day/time when kids can let loose: Kids need to remain kids as long as they can, which means letting them enjoy themselves without having to worry about cleaning for a set time.  Kids will look forward to this time on a regular basis, and when it is time to clean they will appreciate the clean… and the messy! For parents, you can let loose too.  Give yourself a break at the same designated time so you aren’t trying to clean up one portion of the home, while they are going wild with freedom.

4.) Have a day/time when kids can let loose: Kids need to remain kids as long as they can, which means letting them enjoy themselves without having to worry about cleaning for a set time.  Kids will look forward to this time on a regular basis, and when it is time to clean they will appreciate the clean… and the messy! For parents, you can let loose too.  Give yourself a break at the same designated time so you aren’t trying to clean up one portion of the home, while they are going wild with freedom.

5.) Learn to live with less: In our “more is better” society it is often hard to say ‘no’ to the kids and ourselves when buying more stuff. Take an inventory of what you have and what you need.  The reality is, if you never had it, you and the children won’t miss it, right?  Being realistic with your home space is crucial in keeping it clutter free and stress free.  If you are constantly buying new things, the home will always feel too small and cramped.  Learn to love your small home for its coziness and character rather than as a negative.

Sharing a small home with an adult is challenging, but sharing one with your kids can feel like a test that you’re failing at! Let’s face it; we all want more room than we have, so the best thing is to make the most of what you have.  Your home will be a joy to live in with your kids once everyone is on the same page. Explain to your kids the value of having a small home to call your own and how you all can love and enjoy it at the same time.

Freshome reader’s what are some tricks that you have for sharing a small home with your kids? Have some organization or space saving tips? Let us know

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This exotic looking residence comes from SPG Architects and is located in Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. Just a few steps away from the sea, this home also features a breathtaking infinity pool, a good reason for the inhabitants to relax and enjoy the views. The architects didn’t build this structure form scratch, but decided to salvage an existing steel framework that was situated on the Costa Rican coastal hillside. The results?- you are looking at them: a fabulous home with amazing interiors, contemporary furniture and a beautiful, modern interior design. Large terraces are present at each floor, complemented by stylish outdoor furniture. It is as every corner belonging to this home inspires opulence, but in the same time a large amount of good taste.-via My Modern Met

ground floor plan

second floor plan

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If you remember, we presented a strange device on Freshome a while back. It was a wooden electrical ruler and we featured it because we considered it was something new that would interest architects out there reading our site. Today we would like to show you something similar. “Constrained Ball” was created by Korean designer Giha Woo and helps its user draw straight lines and measure their length at the same time, by displaying it on a tiny screen. The device is small, practical and has a great, appealing design. However, for those architects who crave for traditional measuring methods, this multifunctional pencil will probably be looked at with a doubtful eye, as this design means that the old ruler is no longer a necessity.

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Upcycled furniture conjures images of simple structures, old-fashioned elements recast in new-but-similar roles. These salvage-born cabinets, shelves and other quirky furniture pieces turn those expectations upside down, sideways and then leave them at a dizzying angle.

Instead of using them in expected ways, the parts of these puzzles are intentionally rearranged to catch the viewer off guard – a door tilted at an angle and wrapped around the side of a cabinet rather than just covering its front, for example.

Front doors, glass windows, scrap trim, paint-speckled ladders and more – everything is fair game for Dutch furniture designer Chris Ruhe, who turns these unsightly antiques into fabulous uniques. Chipped paint, sunken glass and the occasional splintered wood or outstanding nail add character to the works – nothing significant is added or subtracted from the found remnants reclaimed in their making.

That is not to say there is no rhyme or reason to his craft – strategically-placed voids play critical roles in each composition, and antique window frames allow views into warped display shelves.  Still, there is definitely more art than science in the way he makes each piece, and the results range from surprising to stunning each time.

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Reclaimed Wood Furniture Cut Out of Old Bowling Lanes

Bowling lanes are built to last - but their creators probably never have this kind of creative reuse in mind. Demolition on the way, someone clever thought to recycle these rather stylish sport floors into home furniture objects that may be right up your alley. Beams and other wooden structural supports are also fair game. Created of a thick boards stacked vertically and packed closely,... Click Here to Read More »»

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Modern living can be described as minimal, clean lined, artistic and intellectual. The few pieces that you do find in these homes are typically the result of superior art and design. There is almost always a dashing focal point and the furniture is sleek and glossy and not so children friendly. Methods and materials are usually mixed and contrasted texturally to add interest and make up for the lack of color and clutter in a space. The living rooms below are all examples of interesting modern spaces that were designed by creative virtual artists of the sort. And HD has hand picked a few great spaces for you to see for yourself the sure fire elements of a successful living room.

by Kim Stapleton

by Fernando di Gasperi

by zigshot82

by 4Dragon84

by sedatdurucan

by pressenter

by eja87

by Alexandre Guilbeault

via Houzz

by modelight

by Zulu Cal

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  Living Room Styles 2010 by Natuzzi

This is a multi-part series documenting the Tendence 2010 show in Frankfurt, Germany. Read all Tendence 2010 posts here.

While at Tendence 2010 at Messe Frankfurt in Germany, I didn’t really have a “plan of attack” or strategy when it came to navigating the aisles and aisles of gifts, furniture and home goods. I spent most of my time in a section called Loft, which included modern home furnishings ranging from well-known names like Umbra and Chilewich to design school graduates showing their prototypes.

Sompex lighting’s booth had these bean bag lamps that were really fun to poke at, and a cute little fan that resembled an alien spaceship:

Did you know the company Esprit is still in business and has a home line? Me neither! I love this lamp that has a simple white shade, but the inside is hot pink.

Unseen Products had these amazing felt cushions from designer Ronél Jordaan. I love the pea pods and the succulents best. Unseen is a company whose desire it so help the economic development of small producers in developing countries and bring new and unique products from developing countries into the mainstream market.

I loved the colorful arrangement of candlesticks in the Freemover booth.

Cardiva was showing this amazing fruit bowl designed by Michael Geertsen that was inspired by a cornucopia, sized perfectly for about 10 pieces of fruit.

Mmmmm…Design Letters.

Studio Macura launched BOCA, a porcelain watering vessel for plants with two spouts — one for small streams and one for pouring. The green piece of felt collects droplets of water left behind.

Uppercase is a Hamburg-based company that makes scarves and blankets in merino wool and cashmere. Their new collection features some great modern black and gray patterns as well as a blanket homage to modern chairs.

The Olala booth was like walking into The Container Store — organizational eyecandy was everywhere!

This Frog Stool was designed by Lian Zhiming and Wang Ke. It was inspired by the illustrations of a Dutch painter and can be used by kids or adults — they call that “kidult.” Now, that’s a new word for my vocabulary!

The Erbgut booth was really beautifully executed. It included porcelain designs from students from the Berlin University of the Arts design program in a collaboration with Kahla Porcelain.

Part 2 coming soon!

Here is minimalist but extremely elegant apartment design from HofmanDujardin Architects, a studio with an impressive portfolio from the Netherlands. According to the designers, the apartment has been fully renovated and features a kitchen integrated in the living room, an inviting bedroom and a terrace.  You are looking at a modern crib with light colors and natural materials which create a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Painted entirely in white, the 120 square meter apartment inspires freshness and gives away the illusion of more living space. Order and harmony seem to reign over this beautiful loft and it is hard to imagine something could be in a different place. Take a look over the photographs and the home plans and let us know if there is anything that caught your attention.

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Hydrology, located on LaSalle Street in Chicago’s interior design district, partners with some of the world’s most renown and respected designers such as Marcel Wanders, Jaime Hayon, Ross Lovegrove and Claudio Silvestrin, to create extraordinary high-fashion luxury bath designs.

The Loop collection introduces sculptural silhouettes and thin lines of movement. The deep sink and sculptural tub allow extra comfort and luxury. Plus, how many tubs have you seen that have an attached chaise lounge?

The sides of the tub and vanity fronts can also have graphics or left white for simplicity. The pieces are designed in LG Hi-MACS, which is a solid surface made from a nonporous and stain-resistant natural acrylic stone.

The Ebb collection is inspired by the concept of “what if?” Another exclusive collection to Hydrology, the continuous line of Ebb features a flowing minimalistic line joining all functions of the bath experience — bathing, showering and cleansing.

Also designed in LG Hi-MACS, Ebb comes in a variety of connected options including sink-sink, sink-shower-bath, shower-sink, bath-sink and other custom layouts. Furniture is also available as a stand-alone piece without connections.

Which collection is your favorite?

Live, work, and art – all in one place. Built for an art collector in New York City, this top-floor condo is filled with sweeping curves and subtle illumination – but these artistic moves are tempered with strategically flat wall surfaces for hanging artworks as well.

UNstudio, like any museum designer, faced the challenge of optimizing the design for artwork without letting pieces become overwhelmed by the architecture and interior design strategies – particularly tricky with the added element of inhabitants.

Track-lighting lines in the ceiling draw the eye through each area of the main (open floor plan) space, while back-lit panels in between provide even lighting for works of sculpture set on the floor and other art hanging from the walls. The light-bleached wood flooring is intentionally inconspicuous.

The flush-set lights are adjustable LEDs that shift from bright daylight-simulating luminosity to ambient darkness depending on the needs of the resident and surrounding art pieces. The moving track lights are likewise mobile in order to accommodate a variety of living and display conditions. Controlled daylighting is mostly limited to more private rooms, such as the bedroom and office.

Within the undulating folds of the gypsum-panel walls hide HVAC and other active systems, all carefully concealed to give the home a clean, clutter-free and gallery-like appearance.

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Lights, City, Condo! Colorful Cinema-Style Interior Design

When you can afford to turn two existing condos into a single-floor-spanning unit, the cost of city living is unlikely to slow down your incredible ideas for interior decoration. Somewhere between an ultra-minimal modernist dream home and the set of some timeless abstract firm, this cinematic condo combines stark white rooms with an expansive array of colorful lighting elements. Flexibl... Click Here to Read More »»

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American artist Boris Bally has created these fun Transit Chairs and Tables available at Outdoorz Gallery.Bally uses recycled street signs as a celebration of a raw American street-aesthetic. Bally uses his skills as a jeweler, combining them with sculpting and industrial design to create a chair that is crafted for functional use that also considers the original street sign. Each piece is individually created based on signage stock and therefore one of a kind. Each comes with recycled champagne corks on the feet to protect your floors.

Your bedroom is the one room in the house that should feel like no other.  Relaxation and unwinding from a stressful day should be a regular occurrence in your bedroom What if you feel like your bedroom is too small to feel relaxed in?  The size of your bedroom has you puzzled as to decorating, organizing and maximizing its small nature.  Your bedroom can be all you dream of with some simple ideas and tips.  If you are a small bedroom owner let’s look at t 10 tips to bring relaxing, big space ideas back into your small sanctuary.

1.) Remove clutter: The more items you have in your bedroom the more cramped it will feel.  Look around the room; can you see the floor baseboard? If you scan your entire bedroom and never see the floor baseboard, you have too much furniture and personal belongings.  Consider using furniture in another room of your house or selling it. Remove large collections of personal belongings from dressers, night tables, and entertainment centers.  When you enter the room, you want your eye to gracefully scan the room.  This will create the illusion of space, instantly.

2.) Buy furniture that maximizes wall space: Shopping for furniture can be a challenge when you don’t know exactly what you’re looking for.  In small bedrooms measure out the amount of wall space you have, and how much room the furniture can project from the walls.  Opt for rectilinear furniture as opposed to curved. Curved furniture tends to take up more space and will swallow up your walking area to get past your furniture.  Wall hung night stands are a great option to maximize the floor footprint in your bedroom as well.

3.) Scale your décor by the size of your bed: Depending on the size of your bedroom, your bed will most likely be the focal point.  If you have a large bed in a small room, you will instantly feel cramped and uncomfortable.  Consider having a smaller bed, and size your table lamps and decorations in the same proportions.  If you are going through the effort and scaling down the bed, so should the accessories that surround the room.

4.) Add visual interest to your ceiling: In recent years, tray ceilings in bedrooms have become more popular.  They add a fifth dimension to the room that is often overlooked.  If you have the option of adding this into your bedroom, go ahead and see how much volume you will open up.  If you will remain with a standard ceiling, consider using a lighter color to fool the eye into the illusion of space.  The darker the ceiling, the more closed in the room will feel, and vice versa.

5.) A reading ‘nook’ will make your room relaxing: A misconception about having a small bedroom is that you can only sleep, change clothes and leave out the room. This is not true.  Put a small chair and lamp in your bedroom, and you instantly have a reading nook.  When you can have multifunctional areas in your small bedroom you will want to spend more time in the space. Add a sconce to either side of the bed to make reading in bed more enjoyable and relaxing.

6.) Choose dressers and armoires that are appropriate for your room size: One of the quickest ways to make your room feel small is to have furniture pieces that are too large for the space.  Choose 2 or 3 mandatory pieces of furniture and scale appropriately to the room. Think of using a armoire to hold clothes and a television to eliminate a large dresser and entertainment center. The more functions you can condense, the larger your room will feel.

7.) Find creative uses for storage: To help keep your bedroom clutter free, use decorative baskets in a bookshelf or wall unit to keep house small items that don’t need to be seen.  Do your children leave small toys around your room? Stash them in roll out under bed storage bins that are easily accessible for them and you! Use your imagination when it comes to storage.  A small bedroom could benefit from multifunction pieces.  If you have room for a furniture bench at the foot of your bed, opt for one with a flip open seat that can hold magazines, and books.

8.) To have or not to have a television? Having a TV in your bedroom is based on personal preference.  If you decide to have a TV consider a flat screen type that can be mounted on the wall, or will take up minimal space on a dresser.  For those that choose not to have a TV – a stereo can also take up considerable space.  Opt for using MP3 stereos that connect to your MP3 and eliminates large, clunky stereo units.

9.) Choose your colors wisely: Dark colors in an already small room can make your bedroom feel like a cave.  If you like dark colors, use them in accessories like throw pillows, area rugs, and accents in drapery and bed linen. Consider using lighter colors on the walls, and ceiling to open up the space visually.  Bring in natural light as much as possible to illuminate the space and your mood.

10.) Create a focal point: If you have a fantastic piece of artwork place it above the bed and draw the eye away from the rest of the room.  If you aren’t too pleased with your bed but have an antique dresser that looks great, add a colorful vase to adorn the top.  Use your imagination to accentuate the positive about your room and remove emphasis from the small nature of your bedroom.

A small bedroom can be a challenge but it can also feel cozy and unique once you decorate it.  Use these 10 tips to make your bedroom feel larger and to make the most of the space you do have.  Incorporate these ideas in other bedrooms in your home and see how your rooms will instantly feel more lived in, as opposed to feeling cold and unlivable.

Freshome reader’s do you have a home with small bedrooms? What is your trick for making the most of the small space?

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