All owners of one-room apartments face one problem - lack of space. If it is not yet possible to increase the living space, you need to wisely use what you have and install functional furniture. The ideal solution for any one-room apartment is to install a wardrobe. But here it is important to choose the right model and find the optimal place for it. If everything is done correctly, your apartment will have a very spacious closet that will take up a minimum of space.
Options for placing a closet in a one-room apartment
When choosing where to put a wardrobe in a one-room apartment, you need to understand that everything depends on the area of the room and its layout. There are not many options for installation in a one-room apartment:
- hallway;
- room;
- balcony;
- pantry or niche.
If there is a niche in the hallway or room, place the closet there. This is the most rational option for placing a compartment. In a one-room apartment, you should not turn the recess into an art object: for example, make neon lighting and place vases. It is better to use every square meter of space rationally.
If you live in a Khrushchev-era building, it is not necessary to still use furniture that is the same age as your home. Here you can make a good renovation and create a modern interior, and instead of a polished wall and sideboard (if you haven’t gotten rid of them yet), put a corner wardrobe in the room. It will, of course, take up space, but it can also accommodate a lot of things.
In a one-room apartment, many decide to place such a locker on the loggia. This is also convenient, but in order for a piece of furniture to look good here, you need to make suitable repairs. If the loggia is used to store unnecessary and broken things, a compartment should not be installed here.
Posting rules
Like any important task, choosing and arranging furniture does not tolerate fuss. You can’t follow your desires and buy “that wonderful bed” or “amazing closet” just because you like them. Furniture is an important part of the interior; you need to choose it based on the technical capabilities of the room. Otherwise, all this beauty will turn into an absurd heap. But do you need a comfortable place to live, not a warehouse? Therefore, before furnishing a one-room apartment with furniture, try to evaluate the capabilities of the room and how to redevelop it if necessary:
- Do not rush to bring in household items and decor if the room is empty, or take them out if you are thinking about reorganizing the space;
- Take measurements of the room, hallway, kitchen, make an apartment plan on paper or using a graphic computer program in which interior designers work;
- Create several furniture options by hand in a prepared plan or on the computer;
- Analyze photographs of the furnishings of an apartment similar to yours. This will help you navigate the organization of space and choose suitable interior solutions;
- Design tips on space zoning will be useful. In this case, in the middle of each zone, the main pieces of furniture are placed in a one-room apartment, and additional pieces are placed around them;
- Opt for compact furniture that does not clutter up the space;
- If you need a lot of furniture, then it is better to place it closer to each other so that it is convenient to move around the apartment;
- Reflect all your preferences and ways of moving around your housing in the plan.
If you are not the only occupant of the apartment, coordinate with other family members several options for plans and jointly approve the most successful one.
Hall
A one-room apartment is a living room, a bedroom and an office at once, so we only bring in furniture that is necessary and not bulky, which has maximum functionality. If you have an apartment built during the reign of Khrushchev, the first step towards the furnishings of the hall will be to refuse to place furniture along the walls. This likens a narrow rectangular room to a corridor or a carriage, which cannot be called a cozy nest.
Modern design solutions are based on the square shape, since it is most convenient when creating an interior. What kind of furniture is needed and how should it be arranged in a one-room Khrushchev house?
Closet
We give preference to the coupe (one of the doors or all can be mirrored):
- Firstly, it is roomy;
- Secondly, it can serve to highlight two zones if it is placed with the end part facing the wall. In this case, it ceases to be visually perceived as a traditional cabinet standing along the wall;
- Thirdly, it is tall; the upper shelves will replace the mezzanine.
Chest of drawers, bedside tables
We choose tall and narrow ones to make the space as light as possible.
Bed
For proper rest you need a comfortable sleeping place. But you won’t be able to afford a royal bed. The options for one-room apartments are as follows:
- A folding sofa, an important detail of which is the presence of storage drawers;
- You can do without this item if you make a bedroom on the windowsill. It will be necessary to remake the window sill into a wide, long one, but this option will save space;
- Another option is to create a bed by the window on the podium, inside of which there are many compartments for storing things;
- A practical solution - a bed on the upper tier, a wardrobe, a work area, a computer desk, a chest of drawers, shelves, a pull-out bed on the lower tier - in one. This mega-functional invention is real! It is ideal for small spaces, even when a baby appears and the question arises of how to arrange furniture in a one-room apartment with a child and create a children's area.
Tables and shelves
Books, documents, needles, threads, all kinds of household items should always be in order, at hand, in a certain place, so that they can be conveniently obtained without spending a lot of time searching (you can use dividers, label drawers, boxes if they are opaque ). It is optimal to use:
- Open wall shelves of different lengths, where you can put decorative items and place photos;
- Open shelving that also serves as a partition;
- Closed shelves, interior boxes and baskets;
- Built-in sets, which, when opened, serve as a table for work, niches and shelves for storing various items.
When choosing built-in furniture, pay attention to the following details:
- Its color should not contrast with the color of the walls, so as not to visually reduce the area of the room;
- Try to place such transforming headsets not above the sleeping place, because these are still attributes of the work area.
Armchairs and poufs
We will have to give up massive armchairs, replacing them with mobile folding chairs.
Lighting
In one-room apartments, a sufficient level of lighting plays an important role. It is preferable not to use large floor lamps and other massive light sources. It is best to make spot ceiling lighting, purchase wall sconces, and table lamps in a minimalist style.
Kitchen
Refrigerator, stove, sink, cutting table, cabinets for dishes, food, spices, dryer, microwave, food processor - this is not a complete list of kitchen attributes. All of them should fit on a minimum of 6-8 square meters, without complicating your movement around the room and ease of use: when opening the oven, you should not think about how not to hit the refrigerator.
Kitchen furniture should be ergonomic and functional. The dimensions of the kitchen set are minimal. It is better to make an individual project that allows you to rationally use the corner space of the kitchen.
Combining a kitchen and a room is one of the common solutions to the problem of lack of space if a family of three lives in an apartment. At the same time, the broken wall between the two rooms is partially restored by installing kitchen floor cabinets, which are a continuation of the unit, with a countertop that can easily serve as both a place for eating and a bar counter. A small kitchen is often associated with a lack of space for a dining table where the whole family can gather. Therefore, the dining area becomes necessary, and the studio apartment becomes popular.
Hallway and corridor
The hallway in the apartment is a business card. The overall perception of the interior depends on its design. The layout of hallways in different apartments is different, so ideas that work for decorating a square hallway will be completely inappropriate in a narrow and long one. Assess the size of the hallway, lighting, ceiling height.
If the hallway is small (represents a corridor), proceed in two ways:
- It is designed according to accepted design rules;
- They combine the hallway with an adjacent room - a kitchen or living room.
In the first case (especially if we are talking about Khrushchev), you will have to abandon the large cabinet and use instead:
- A sliding wardrobe with mirrored doors will not only increase the visual space, but will also solve the problem with the mirror in the hallway. In such a closet there is only enough space for seasonal outerwear (middle tier), shoes (lower tier), accessories (upper tier), everything irrelevant is put away for storage in the room. If possible, it is worth placing an ottoman for ease of putting on/taking off shoes, and place a shelf or hook for a shoehorn nearby;
- Modular furniture is an excellent solution for any, especially small hallways. No bulky cabinets, only interesting design proposals. This kit is assembled to order and will certainly meet all your requirements.
In the second case, the wall between the hallway and the room or kitchen is eliminated and replaced with an arch or other architectural solution. The hallway becomes part of another space and must stylistically match it.
Large corner wardrobe
This model will become an analogue of the walls and sideboards that occupy half the room. It is placed in the far corner opposite the window. It can be square with sharp corners or semicircular. The second option looks more elegant.
The corner model will take up a lot of space, but it can replace the wall and other non-functional storage systems.
If clothes, bedding and boxes of things will be stored in such a closet, then it must be completely closed with doors. If you're forgoing a wall but want to display vases or photographs, choose a cabinet that has open shelves on the left or right. You can put books, figurines and other small items here.
You can make a custom built-in wardrobe for your studio apartment. To make the room seem larger, choose a light wood model with mirrored or matte doors. Such surfaces reflect light, due to which the space visually expands.
Wardrobe in the loggia
In a studio, you don’t want to take up space in the only room with furniture. Therefore, if there is a loggia, move the closet there. This is a great option to place the wardrobe of all family members in a separate room.
The smallest loggia can be turned into a cozy and functional dressing room. You just need to put a wardrobe here.
The correct placement of furniture in this case is to place it against a long wall. If the room is small, then in the corner. Consider the interior design of the cabinet. If clothes will be stored here, there must be shelves of different heights and hanging rods. It is advisable to insulate the loggia, install a heater here or remove the radiator, and put a high-pile carpet on the floor. Then the non-residential premises will become a cozy and functional room.
Transformable wardrobe
For some reason, this is not the most popular model among buyers. But installing a transformer will allow you to leave more free space in the room. The idea is simple: the closet is installed against a long wall and a folding bed or table is “hidden” behind the doors.
It will probably not be easy to unfold such a bed every evening and put it back in the morning. But installing a transforming wardrobe solves another problem - the lack of free space in the center of the room. You can place a closet along the wall where the front door is located. But here it is important that it completely occupies the space from one wall to another and from floor to ceiling. A smaller model does not always look appropriate.
A transforming wardrobe is a godsend for small rooms. Its installation allows for rational use of space.
Built-in wardrobe
Many people believe that niches are a serious design flaw. This is true if they are used incorrectly. To utilize all the square meters, designers advise building wardrobes into recesses.
In this case, you do not need to order the whole product. It is enough to install shelves inside and close them with sliding doors. The functionality of such a cabinet depends on the size of the niche. If it is located in the hallway, adapt it as a place to store outerwear and shoes. You can attach a rod for coats and jackets and make several shelves for boxes of things. If the niche is long, divide it into several compartments. In one you can store clothes, and in the other, dishes that you don’t use every day, bed linen - anything. The main thing is that the doors are opaque, then the “treasures” hidden behind them will not be visible.
You can also rationally use a niche in the room. It can be closed with solid wooden or mirror doors. But you need to understand that such a design will not always look good here. Look at photos of modern interiors and choose the appropriate niche design option.
Where to place it?
Before purchasing a wardrobe, think about what you want to use it for. If the closet is to serve as a wardrobe, then it should be located close to the bed. You can use a second closet and place it in the hallway. It is suitable for storing household appliances, dishes, construction tools, as well as outerwear that is not suitable for the season.
If you want to make the most of the space of a one-room apartment, then install one large closet in the hallway. It will become for you both a storage place for household items that are not often used, and a dressing room.
If you choose this option, be sure to consider the number and purpose of the shelves. It is better to place all clothes on one side of the closet, and equipment, tools and bedding on the other.
Wardrobe partition
One of the popular options for zoning space is installing a partition cabinet. This solution is suitable for studios and one-room apartments. Designers insist that the space needs to be divided by shelving that has no back walls. This way there will be no obstacles to the passage of sunlight, and the room will seem spacious.
But if parents and a child or two adults live in the room, each of whom needs personal space, it can be divided using a closet. It will take up space, but there will be an additional storage system in the room. A good option for long narrow rooms is to share them with a wardrobe with a transformable bed.
If the area allows, divide the space with a wide plasterboard structure and install sliding niches into it. Before placing such a cabinet in the interior, think carefully: this solution is not suitable for all apartments.
Zoning
How to arrange furniture in an apartment whose living area is no more than 18 square meters? The answer is obvious - to zone the space. Depending on the composition of the family, the room requires areas such as:
- Guest room;
- Working;
- Bedroom;
- Children's room (the arrangement of this area depends on the age of the child and should change over time: a newborn and preschooler have one organization of a children's corner, and schoolchildren and students have a full-fledged workplace).
For the children's area you need to choose the warmest and most illuminated place! A loft bed with a workplace will be an excellent alternative to a children's room.
If parents get a non-isolated space, they should think about the arrangement in the passage room so as to preserve personal space.
The selection of functional zones can be done using:
- Shelving;
- Screen;
- Canopies;
- Sliding partitions;
- Suspended partitions;
- False wall;
- Podiums;
- Partition-shelves made of plasterboard;
- Inclusion of a balcony into the space of the room;
- Bed arrangements above the guest area;
- Setting up a sleeping/working/children's space on the “second floor” if you have high ceilings.
Non-standard solutions
To rationally use the hallway space, you can install two semicircular cabinets to the left and right of the door. This option is suitable for rooms of non-standard shape.
If the apartment has a storage room, it is also better to close it with compartment doors. A regular swing door takes up space, and opening it in a small room is not always convenient.
There is also a place for a compartment in the kitchen, although it is rarely installed here. If there is a niche in the wall, close it with sliding doors. But they should not be wooden, but, for example, frosted glass. Inside the niche you can add lighting and place identical jars of spices and cereals on the shelves. This cabinet will definitely decorate your kitchen.
Visual increase in space
It is especially difficult to correctly arrange furniture in a small one-room apartment. It is important to use techniques to visually enlarge the room. There are a few simple rules:
- All furniture should be compact.
- Objects and walls should be decorated mainly in light colors.
- You should get rid of unnecessary things, small things, items on the shelves.
- It is necessary to use lighting wisely: spotlights, directional light sources.
- Reflective surfaces are appropriate: glossy furniture, mirrors.
- It is recommended to replace right angles with curved partitions.
- Sliding doors should be used instead of swing doors. This rule applies not only to cabinets, but also to interior doors.
It is recommended to decorate the room in the same style: items that go well with each other do not visually clutter the space.
Design of a wardrobe in a one-room apartment
A closet should not only be functional, but also stylish. Try to move away from stereotypes and order yourself an original piece of furniture. We recommend paying attention to models that have open shelves made of wood and glass - they look stylish.
Buyers today are offered cabinets whose doors are covered with colored film depicting flowers, landscapes, abstractions, and ornaments. This only looks appropriate if the design fits into the concept of the entire interior. Closets with strict geometric shapes are still in fashion, but compartments with smooth lines are also becoming in demand. This model will fit perfectly into a hallway with a crystal chandelier. Cabinets with doors made of frosted glass or mirrors decorated with a pattern look beautiful. They are suitable for classic interiors and always become their decoration.
A wardrobe will help you rationally use space in a small apartment, divide the room into zones and make the smallest and most inconvenient niche functional. With its help, you can solve a number of interior problems, but the main thing is to get rid of excess furniture and free up space. Today there are hundreds of models of different designs on the market - among them there is sure to be an ideal option for your interior.
