You’ve got your rental house or apartment to live in while you attend college, whether it’s Ohio University, Ohio State University or some other college in Ohio or wherever. You drew lots for the available bedrooms with your house or apartment mates, and you’re finally sitting in that room trying to figure out what to put in it. Here’s where we hope we can provide some guidance.
Most of us carry a vision in our head of what we feel would be the ideal bedroom. It’s common for that ideal to include a king-sized bed (though a queen would be acceptable), a sizable walk-in closet, and a bathroom connected directly to the bedroom (en suite).
While those desires are understandable (we also all wish we were millionaires living on a fabulous beach somewhere), they’re rarely reality. In most cases, shoe-horning a king-sized bed into a bedroom is luxury enough in a room that’s a bit small for extra amenities. For renters, this is especially the case, as apartments and rental houses rarely boast master bedrooms. This can make it hard for renters to create the idealized bedroom.
It’s not time to despair, however. There are ways to change a small bedroom into a personal oasis and make the most of available space. It just takes some hard work and trickery to pull it off.
Aspects of Creating the Best Bedroom
Shelves: Shelves can help any bedroom seem larger, and shelving units typically don’t take up much space. Mementos from fondly recalled vacations, photos of family and friends, books, trophies, and even a vintage alarm clock can be placed on shelving units, eliminating the need for various small tables and bulky bookcases placed around the bedroom, hogging limited space. If you’re renting, make sure you don’t damage the walls when mounting shelving. If it’s going to be a permanent amenity in your Columbus or Athens apartment or rental houses, it’s probably best to check with your landlord.
Bedding – Three Parts
Bedding 1: Another effective way to save space in your bedroom is to invest in a storage bed. In these beds, drawers are built into the bed frame. While these frames are typically large, for tenants with sufficient closet space to store their clothing (whether in or out of the bedroom), the storage space in a storage bed can eliminate the need for a dresser, saving ample space in the process.
Bedding 2: Purchasing a platform bed is another way to create space with bedding. These beds are typically smaller and sit low to the ground, which makes the bedroom appear larger as a consequence. Of course, the bed will be smaller and will not actually increase space in the room, but making the most of a small bedroom is all about appearances. If the room seems bigger, then it effectively is bigger.
Bedding 3: Conventional beds that sit higher from the ground also can save space. The area underneath can be used to store items such as luggage, crates and boxes, shoes, or anything else that you don’t need on a regular basis and that can be easily slid under the bed.
Mirrors: Mirrors also can be used to make a small bedroom seem larger. As with some of the bedding options, the mirrors will not increase the actual space in the room, but when strategically placed about the bedroom, they can create an effect that makes the room appear larger. As with mounting shelves in rental units, take care not to mar a wall if you’re hanging the mirror.
Furniture: While it may not seem that adding furniture to a small room can make it appear larger, small items of furniture arranged just so – often at angles meant to pull attention away from walls – can make a small bedroom seem larger. Also, if you like to read or work in your bedroom, adding small items of furniture – desk, chairs, filing cabinet, etc. – might be necessary, and not just something on your wish list. Make sure you arrange the furniture so it doesn’t make the room feel or appear cluttered or cramped.
Wallpaper: Wallpaper also can affect the perception of size in a bedroom. Horizontal patterns, for example, tend to make a room seem larger. If wallpaper isn’t an option, consider putting up smaller pictures or artwork that make the room appear larger. The larger the picture or artwork, the smaller the wall will seem, making the room seem more confined in the process. (As with shelving and wall mirrors, don’t hang wallpaper without checking with the property manager or landlord.)
Take Into Account Your Own Lifestyle
Your Own Lifestyle: There’s nothing that makes a room feel small more than clutter. If you’re the type of person who leaves dirty clothes, papers, food wrappers, bottles and cans lying around your room, there’s not much you can do to otherwise make the room feel smaller. Quit being such a slob and clean up once in a while.