Studio Apartment Layout Tips: How to Divide Your Studio In Style
Living Pretty Ep39 // Studio Apartment Layout Tips: Sectioning Off Your Studio Apartment In Style
Need some studio apartment layout tips? I can understand why! Figuring out your layout and sectioning off your studio apartment, all while thinking about how to make your studio cohesive, is probably the trickiest part of studio apartment life.
After Apartment Therapy featured my studio (yay!) and titled the article, “A 500 Sq Ft Studio Does a Great Job Sectioning Off a Small Space”, it got me thinking about how many messages I get from people asking for studio apartment layout ideas and for advice on how to create those separate sections without studio apartment dividers.
So in this video, I’m giving you my 4 main tips on sectioning out your studio!
Video Transcript ↓
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.
So, a few weeks ago, my studio apartment was featured on Apartment Therapy! I knew the old girl had it in her.
And the title Apartment Therapy gave the article was “A 500-Square-Foot Studio Apartment Does a Great Job Sectioning Off a Small Space”. First of all, thank you AT. Can I call you AT?
But it got me thinking about how often I get messages from people asking me for advice on how to lay out their studio apartment and section out the different spaces.
So in this video, I’m going to tell you my approach to sectioning off my studio apartment in a way that creates separation, but also still flows well.
I touched on this in my video on how to make your studio apartment cohesive, but in this video I want to dive deeper into the idea of creating that sense of separation in your studio that most of us studio dwellers are trying to achieve.
And if you’re new to my channel, I’m Steffi and I’m the creator of the interior style blog Moda Misfit, and you’re watching Living Pretty, the place for apartment styling tips and small space decor inspiration.
Also, if you live in a studio apartment and you want a free resource that will help you jumpstart your styling, I highly recommend you download my free Studio Styling 101 workbook!
Now let’s dive into my top tips on how to create that sense of separation in your studio apartment!
1. Where are your “rooms”?
So my first tip is to determine which parts of your studio will be the separate “rooms” in the space. Where will your “bedroom” be? Where will your “living room” be? Where will your “home office” be?
I recommend figuring this out before you move in with your furniture if possible, but if you’re already moved in, I suggest taking a look at where your furniture currently is and ask yourself “am I creating separate rooms using my furniture?”
If you haven’t moved in and you’re working with a clean canvas, do your best to envision an arrangement that would work best for your specific needs and preferences. I know this is really hard to do, but just give it a try!
Instead of thinking about it as “planning” what you’re going to do with your space, try thinking of it as “daydreaming” about what you’re going to do. Allow yourself to fantasize about the potential of your studio, rather than focusing on its limitations.
2. Invisible Walls
My second tip is to imagine that there are invisible walls that separate those rooms.
This is another thing I mentioned in my video about making your studio cohesive, but it definitely bears repeating here.
By imagining invisible walls in your space that cannot - under any circumstances - be crossed by any object (like a real wall), you’re going to give yourself a sense of separation that will naturally occur without the use of physical dividers.
I like to use the example of hanging artwork as a way to reinforce the invisible walls that separate your studio, which I explained in this video:
“Pretend the zones of your studio are divided by invisible walls that would prevent you from hanging art in between zones. Say, in between your living room and your bedroom.
Let me show you. See how my living room artwork doesn’t overlap into my bedroom area? And then same thing with my bedroom area artwork - it doesn’t overlap into the living room area, which is distinguished by my couch. My couch is basically my invisible wall that makes is so that art cannot overlap on either side.
This makes it so the eye doesn’t get confused. Even if your studio is laid out perfectly into separate zones, if your artwork straddles two of those zones simultaneously, it instantly destroys the illusion of separation.”
3. Area Rugs
My third tip for sectioning off your studio is to use area rugs to help convey a sense of separation in the space.
Area rugs can act as anchors that really ground your sections in your studio and help your eye identify which space is what. They just make the sectioning of your studio super clear.
Another thing about area rugs, is they can not only act as separators, but they can also act as unifiers in your studio.
The fact that I have two of the same rug - just in different sizes - creates a sense of cohesiveness in my space while also reinforcing the separation of my living room area and my bedroom area.
They act as unifiers that bring the whole space together. And you don't have to use duplicate rugs like I have, but it's a really good tool to make your apartment cohesive while also sectioning it off.
4. Go Your Own Way
And finally, my fourth tip is to forget what other people say about studio apartment decor, unless it’s actually helpful to you. Think about how you naturally move through your space and what your individual needs are.
For example, somewhere along the line, it was decided by who knows who that you need to have physical dividers in your studio. And that was just adopted by the masses, and as a result, so many people seem to think that a studio MUST have dividers.
Now, if you’re a devoted viewer of my videos, you’ve heard this rant before, but I would be remiss if I didn’t include it in a video about sectioning off your studio.
Basically, unless physical dividers genuinely appeal to you and make sense for your studio and your needs, dividers in a studio are just not a requirement.
One of the biggest criticisms I get in my space is people telling me that my studio would look better with a divider between my couch and my bed. And I just don’t agree!
I want to live in an open concept space, and I don't want to live in a closed-off cave. And that’s how dividers would feel in my particular studio with my particular furniture.
So, when something seems to be adopted as a “rule” by a ton of people, let this be your permission slip to ignore them.
If the rule is helpful for you, great. But don’t feel pressured into subscribing to something that isn’t actually helpful to you and your unique studio.
Think about what feels natural and intuitive when it comes to your studio apartment layout, and just go with that. You can always move your furniture around and experiment until it feels good.
So there you have it! Those are my tips for creating a sense of separation in your studio apartment.
At the end of the day, just remember - every studio is different, every person is different. There's really no right or wrong way to do things, especially when it comes to living in a studio.
Tips like the ones that I shared in this video definitely can come in handy for giving you some ideas, but at the end of the day, no rules here. You’re living in a studio. You get to do whatever the eff you want!
If you want daily glimpses into my studio apartment life, then follow me on Instagram @moda.misfit.
And if you want regular doses of apartment styling tips and small space decor inspiration, then subscribe to my YouTube channel and hit the bell to be notified when a new episode goes up every week!