With real estate prices in the GTA and other major cities continuing to skyrocket, more and more people are living in smaller, more compact spaces. From empty nesters who have downsized to people living in high-rises to students in dorm rooms, many will relate to the feeling of living in a cozy space and wanting to make the most of it.
That’s where today’s furniture trend comes in: multifunctional furniture! Furniture that serves more than one purpose is a great choice for small spaces. Read on to learn more.
Multifunctional furniture is a smart trend that makes sense.
Furniture that serves multiple purposes or functions has so many benefits. First, it allows you to make the most of your living space, especially if it’s on the cozier side. Second, it saves you money because you don’t need to buy as many pieces. Plus, your space will just be so much more functional and user-friendly.
If you’re working with a smaller living room, kitchen, bedroom or bathroom, here are some options to consider:
✨ Loft beds with work or play spaces below
Super small space? Combine work and sleep to save a lot of space. Loft beds are cute and cozy – just climb up into your little nook and you’ll free up all the floor space underneath. Add a desk for a work station or a bench and table for a kids’ play area.
✨ Daybeds, futons and sleeper sofas
These are great options whether you want your own bed to do double duty (providing extra seating for when you have guests over) or whether you would like to have an extra bed for overnight guests without having it take up space in your non-existent guest bedroom. All of these options let you seamlessly and stylishly combine seating and sleeping areas into one.
Storage beds (regular beds with storage space underneath) are another great option, as are Murphy beds (wall beds that fold upwards, allowing you to completely hide your bed).
✨ Nightstand desks
Let your nightstand serve multiple purposes by having it also be a desk or storage space. If there’s space to slide a chair underneath, boom – you’ve got yourself a cozy little bedroom writing desk.
✨ Storage ottomans
Ottomans with built-in storage come in all shapes, sizes and colours, and are a great way to add some functionality to your living room or bedroom. Ottomans are versatile pieces to begin with. They’re great for providing extra seating, can be used as a coffee table, or can be turned into a surface for playing board games or card games on. Add in some storage and you’ve got the perfect place to stash living room or bedroom essentials such as blankets, board games, extra pillows and more.
✨ Console tables with storage
Console tables in entryways generally hold aesthetically-pleasing objects such as pieces of art, lamps, family photos and books, and they serve as a great drop point for car keys, sunglasses, mail and more. Choose a console with storage and you’ve got some added functionality. The console table works best when it serves the purposes of both style and functionality.
✨ Lift-top coffee tables
Like the storage ottomans, lift-top coffee tables give you more storage in a smart, discreet format. Some types also lift up to create a desk at the perfect height for working at, and then lower back down to coffee table height when you’re finished working.
✨ Nesting tables
Not only are nesting tables trendy and stylish, they’re great space savers that allow you to customize the configuration to suit your needs. Whether as side tables or coffee tables, these stackable tables let you place them side by side to create a larger table, to stack them on top of each other to minimize how much space they take up, or to separate them and use them as additional surfaces in different areas of a room.
✨ Drop leaf tables
These are great options if you’d like your dining room or kitchen table to be compact but you’d also like the option to expand it for when you have a lot of guests over. Just add or subtract table space whenever you need it – so handy!
✨ Multi-purpose shelving
Shelving that’s flexible and multi-purpose can be very useful in small spaces. From a shoe rack to closet storage to a room divider, shelving that’s customizable or that has different lengths and heights of shelving gives you more options to work with.
Looking for even more fun, funky multifunctional furniture options? Check out this compilation!
