Making the Most of Small Spaces

Although this book is small, it delivers a lot of punch! It's a great starting point when determining what is possible when you have major space restrictions. I appreciated the variety of styles and situations represented.

Lately, I've been reading books on the topic of MAKING THE MOST OF SMALL SPACES, and Anoop Parikh's book is the best book on this topic I've seen so far. Different books will appeal to different people, but if you're female, with a studio apartment or small condo as your primary residence--or--own a vacation condo or keep an apartment in the city as a second residence, I think this book will give you many good ideas. Those who own condos and can make architectural changes will probably benefit the most. The exquisite examples Parikh provides take advantage of color, light and texture, the three most important elements to consider when creating your home in a small space. Color can be used to brighten dark spaces and produce the illusion of depth or openness or warmth. Properly placed lighting ensures that arrangements that involve stacking (plenty of examples in this book) and/or low ceilings do produce black holes. Texture can be used to move the eye around what could be a dull room if it is painted a light or white color. Parikh says before you begin to decorate, you should consider what you will be doing in your home. Do you eat out more than you eat in? If so, it makes no sense to have regular sized appliances that take up needed space. Maybe what you need is a closet kitchen with a small refrigerator, sink, microwave and hot plate. Parikh suggests one think about 1) whether or not you want your room open or cozy; 2) what you might use as a focal point (a piece of furniture, a screen?); 3) using the walls for storage and/or display; 4) hiding the bed; 5) keeping the cooking and eating areas close together to avoid accidents. This is a great book with an excellent price.

I live in New York City and was lucky enough to purchase a studio. Problem is, I'm a junk collector and well, affordable New York City studios are exceedingly small. 'Making the Most of Small Spaces' to the rescue. Who knew I could fit the stairs leading to the sleeping alcove with inconspicous drawers. I have borrowed many other little ideas from this book. Believe me, it's marvelous.

An excellent book with practical ideas, its many color photos and streamlined writing style makes it most enjoyable.

The book contains alot of doable ideas for making a small apartment or studio into "real" living. It gives a simple breakdown of the basic elements to utilizing whatever size space you have. There are also other books in the "Making the Most of..." series. They all seem well thought out.