Studio Apartment Hacks: How to Trick Your Studio Into Being More Livable
Living Pretty Ep28 // Studio Apartment Hacks: How to Trick Your Studio Into Being More Livable
Looking for studio apartment hacks to make your studio apartment more livable? I feel you! Figuring out your studio apartment decor, getting studio apartment layout ideas, and learning how to make your studio cohesive are all important to consider when decorating a studio apartment, but what about the small apartment hacks that make your studio apartment life more enjoyable on a daily basis?
In this video, I give you some studio apartment tips that will help you make your studio easier to live in! So if you’re needing some studio apartment inspiration and small apartment decor tips, look no further!
Watch the video now!
↓ Wanna read the episode? ↓
I’ve made some slight edits in the transcript below so that everything makes more sense in text form. But overall, this is almost a word-for-word dictation of what I say in the video. I’m a much better writer than this, I swear, haha.
Do you ever feel like your studio apartment is trying to kill you?
Okay, maybe not kill you, per se. Not in strictly a murdery kinda way, but more in a… trying to kill your spirit kinda way?
I say this as someone who is absolutely head over heels in love with her studio. Seriously, this place is the love of my life.
But like all amorous relationships, my studio and I have our moments. As I’m sure you and your studio do as well. Studios are complicated and temperamental.
So let’s make sure your relationship with your studio is a healthy one, and not a toxic one!
In this video, I’m going to share some studio apartment hacks that will trick your studio into being more… loving. Livable. You are not talking about a person, Steffi.
I’m going to put a little pin in the fact that I am currently discovering that I have a tendency to project past relationship issues onto my studio apartment, and start sharing these hacks with you.
And if you’re to this channel, my name is Steffi and I’m the creator of the style blog Moda Misfit, and this is my kitty, Helo! And you’re watching Living Pretty, the place for apartment styling tips and small space decor inspiration. And lots of cat stuff. So if you’re into that kind of thing, then be sure to subscribe and hit the bell to be notified when a new episode goes up every week!
So let’s dive into these studio apartment hacks that will help you and your studio get along better!
Studio Apartment Hack #1: Flexible Seating
So my first hack is to incorporate flexible seating.
And what I mean by this is to have a couple chairs that can double as decor AND as functional seating.
And the key here is for them to be easy to move around. They should be somewhat small and lightweight so you can easily move them from one function in your space to another.
For example, these chairs that I keep in my entryway most of the time are also seating for guests when hanging out in the living room area.
Back in the before times - pre-Covid - when I would have friends over, my cramped living room was actually a very comfy hangout space, believe it or not.
I mean, sure, we were all crammed together, but ultimately we’d be so content in my little space that we wouldn’t even leave to go to the bar we had planned to go to. Remember bars?
Well, my friends and I were perfecting our hermit-like party habits long before Covid-19 would eventually require it of us. We were more than happy staying inside, even in my tiny space.
And a big part of that was having these easy-to-move chairs to create extra seating with. And when I’m done with them, I simply move them back out of the way.
Studio Apartment Hack #2: Flexible Dining
My next hack is to incorporate flexible dining in your studio.
Similar to my last hack, flexible dining means having a small table - a bistro table like I have works well - that acts as an accent table and a dining table.
My table here acts as an accent table the majority of the time. But when I want a dining table, I simply move it out in the open, grab those easy-to-move chairs from my entryway, and create a dining space.
Now, I’ll be honest, I’ve only done this a total of two times: once when my mom came over for lunch, and once when my boyfriend made me breakfast when we first started dating and I didn’t want him to think I was a barbarian who only ate at her desk or on her couch.
Speaking of which, since I am a barbarian who happily only eats at her desk and on her couch, I’m going to suggest that as a totally acceptable form of flexible dining.
I love eating at my desk while watching a show on my computer. It’s what I’ve done since my dorm room days at NYU, and I’ve loved doing it ever since.
But if you really want to create more of a traditional dining experience in your studio, but you don’t have the space for a true dining room area, I suggest the accent table by day, dining table by night hack.
Studio Apartment Hack #3: Use Big Furniture (Huh??)
Another hack I have for you is to use big furniture in your studio.
Huh? Wait a minute Steffi, my studio is small, why would I want big furniture taking up space?
Hear me out. Having a few larger pieces of furniture in a small space is more pleasing to the eye than having a bunch of small pieces everywhere.
I swear, one of the reasons why my studio apartment decor looks good is because I didn’t back away from using substantial furniture, even though initially I thought I was going to just have a loveseat and a full bed in this space. But my couch is a full 84-inch couch and my bed is a queen sized bed.
Of course, big furniture is in the eye of the apartment. Meaning, what’s small in one apartment may actually be big in another.
My studio is 500 sq ft. That’s a pretty standard size for a studio, and it can take these bigger furniture pieces.
Now, could I have had a queen sized bed and a full couch in my tiny East Village apartment in New York? Hell no. My bedroom was the size of a walk-in closet and my roommate and I didn’t even have a living room to put a couch in.
So take this hack with a grain of salt. When I say use big furniture in your small space, that’s, of course, relative to just how small your space is. My twin bed in my New York bedroom was definitely big for that space.
Just meticulously measure things out, and it’s possible you’ll find that your studio can fit much bigger furniture than you think. That’s how it went down for me.
Studio Apartment Hack #4: Eyeballs up!
Another studio apartment hack I suggest is to find ways to lure your eyeballs upward.
Since you’re working with a limited amount of lateral space in a studio, you want to take things vertical to give the illusion of more space.
I do this in my workspace with these wall panels stretching all the way up to the ceiling. This is where you can really have fun with dramatic statements that stretch to the ceiling. A large wall tapestry or wallpaper can give this effect.
Just remember: find ways to draw your eye upward in your studio. Bookshelves, any shelving units that have height to them, wallpaper, tapestries… These are just a few ways to create a sense of vertical space in your studio.
Studio Apartment Hack #5: Clever Bed Storage
And finally, I want to share a little storage hack that I’ve never used myself, but I think it’s brilliant and could be a great solution for you if you need more storage in your studio.
This hack actually comes from a member of the Living Pretty Facebook group I host, Logan. She shared this awesome bed she has in the group recently, and it looks like such a great way to create some hidden storage space.
Logan is a fellow interior style blogger by the way, and I highly recommend you check her out! Check out her interior style website, Wicker and Brass, and her Instagram @loganhomemaker!
And we’d love for you to join us in the Living Pretty Facebook group! It’s just a lovely corner of the internet filled with interior decor lovers, so if you want a space to get inspired and geek out over decor, definitely check out the Living Pretty Facebook group.
Anyway, creative bed storage like what Logan shared in the group is a game changer when it comes to small space living.
There are also these really cute little rolling containers (affiliate link) I found on Amazon you can put under your bed if you want something more flexible than storage built into the bed, which I’ll link to below. Looks like they’re marketing these for kids, but I think they’re super stylish for adults.
So those were a few of my studio apartment hacks! I hope you found some of them useful and that they will help you and your studio be nicer to each other.
I don’t think I will be able to stop personifying my studio apartment.
For daily glimpses into my studio apartment life, follow me on Instagram @moda.misfit. And if you want regular doses of apartment styling tips and small space decor inspiration, then subscribe to this channel and hit the bell to be notified when a new episode goes up every week!