<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"  Christopher Tack To my thinking, one of the most rewarding experiences a DIYer with limited space and/or budget can have is doing more with less than you (and everyone else) thought possible. You gain the use and enjoyment of a better-than-expected finished space, and\u2014as an added bonus\u2014you get serious bragging rights for being a visionary genius. One thing all we visionary geniuses have in common, though, is that we know where to go to find inspiration (and get ideas). I recently came across the Tiny Tack House at inhabitat.com. This home is not only made entirely by hand but also boasts some remarkable space-saving ideas. If you&amp;#039;ve got an upcoming project that requires fitting a ton of function into a very small space, then look no further than this build for inspiration. 1. Use the Full Height of the Space When you want your space to really work for you, start by looking up. If the ceilings are high enough, you can quickly increase usable floor space by building a loft bed.  If ceilings are at least 8 feet tall, you can fit a sitting area beneath the sleeping area. If you&amp;#039;ve got 9 feet or more, then there is probably enough height for stand-up space beneath the bed. Ikea sells thin foam mattresses and wooden slats that can save valuable inches in the sleeping area. Even if you don&amp;#039;t have enough height for a sleeping loft, you may have room for storage high on the walls. Adding a second row of upper cabinets in a kitchen is an old design trick for gaining storage. Apply the same thinking in your small space and you&amp;#039;ll see storage opportunities everywhere.  Christopher Tack 2. Use Double-Duty Fixtures The Tiny Tack House has one sink that serves double-duty for cleaning both dishes . . . and teeth. This eliminates the need for a separate lavatory sink, but also introduces a need for more immediate and thorough cleaning. One thing I don&amp;#039;t see in any of the pictures is a mirror near the sink, which is something I couldn&amp;#039;t live without. I gotta check my look before rolling out to work or a night on the town! Some things we do not skimp on. 3. Downsize Who says you need at least 24 inches for an oven? Where is it written that a refrigerator must be of sufficient bulk to hold two weeks&amp;#039; worth of food? As you can see in the pictures, the Tack House makes do with just a couple of burners and a small but fully functional refrigerator/freezer. Ask yourself: What appliances can I live with in a more compact size? 4. Get Creative With Storage A common mistake is to line your small space with standard storage fixtures, such as cabinets or bulky furniture. Open storage makes better use of small spaces, even though that means you can&amp;#039;t just throw things in the cupboard to hide them away. One way to get open storage that&amp;#039;s also visually appealing is by using unusual and creative items as storage containers. Things such as baskets mounted on the wall are like functional works of art\u2014and they&amp;#039;re cheap to boot. 5. Eliminate Clutter You can pull off the eclectic hoarder look if you&amp;#039;ve got thousands of square feet to spare, but don&amp;#039;t even think about it in a tiny space. You&amp;#039;ll never see cluttered small spaces on a design website or in a glossy magazine. The old adage, &amp;quot;A place for everything, and everything in its place,&amp;quot; applies here. If you don&amp;#039;t use a thing almost every single day, you probably ought to think about tossing it. Tiny spaces are not for those who like to collect things. Imagine living on a sailboat and you&amp;#039;ll get the idea.  Christopher Tack 6. Barrell Shower Now here is an original idea! Use the bottom of a watertight container, such as a barrel, as your shower pan. Add a cool vintage-looking circular shower curtain ring and a fixed showerhead directly above, and you&amp;#039;ve got a cool tiny shower. Can&amp;#039;t find a suitable curtain ring? Take a closer look at the picture. I&amp;#039;m thinking that&amp;#039;s a custom on-site creation made from some standard copper pipe. 7. Drop-Down Dining Table One of the most common (and most effective) ways to save space is by using furniture that gets out of the way when not in use. Murphy beds are a perfect example, and so is the drop-down dining table mounted under the flat-screen TV seen here. It seats up to three people, then simply folds up into a nice, clean section of wall when it&amp;#039;s not needed.  Christopher Tack 8. Lighten the Load All the space-saving ideas in the world won&amp;#039;t change the laws of physics. The simple fact is that stuff takes up space. The most effective way to fit into a small space is to get rid of a whole lot of stuff. And I speak from experience\u2014I moved my family of four from a 3000-square-foot home to one a third that size. Having a small space as a home office is one thing. Having it as a weekend cottage in the woods is another. But trying to live full-time in a tiny house (the Tiny Tack House has only 140 square feet!) is a completely different ball game. Most of your stuff has to go. If it&amp;#039;s just too much to part with your things all at once, you can rent storage units and part with it in stages, which is what I did. My first storage unit was about 600 square feet, then 200, and now only about 100. 9. Brighten the Lightin&amp;#039; The secret to being comfortable in a small space is keeping it well lit. Windows, where possible, are the best source of daytime natural light, but they also take up valuable wall space. By using an abundance of small (and inexpensive) light fixtures equipped with white bulbs that resemble natural light, you can design a space that feels surprisingly open, airy, and bright. 10. Lose 10 pounds! Or, in my case, a few more than 10. Small spaces often have narrow passageways and very little wiggle room. I know for sure that I would have a tough time getting the job done in the Tiny Tack House&amp;#039;s minute shower, and I&amp;#039;d probably scrape the walls of the kitchen as I walked through it. But, hey, I gotta ask myself\u2014am I dedicated to this small space thing or not? No pain, no gain. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/interior-projects/a9129/10-space-saving-ideas-from-an-itty-bitty-home-15627737/>