Home Decorating For Dummies
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The bedroom serves many functions — catching alone time, dressing, exercising, reading, sharing intimacy, watching TV, and more. Meeting all these functions within a room’s limited space — most bedrooms average a modest 10 by 12 feet — and making it dreamy can be a tough challenge.

Although storage space for clothing, shoes, accessories, and myriad other things is a necessity in any bedroom, space is usually at a premium given the limited space of most bedrooms and closets. The first step in tackling the storage issue is to analyze what you already have and compare it to what you need. Then you can figure out how to make the most of your bedroom space.

Before tackling the storage space in your bedroom, determine how much space you have and how much space you need. The following questions help you do just that:

  • How many of the following storage facilities do you need?

    • Armoire

    • Cabinets

    • Closets

    • Drawers

    • Media center

    • Shelves

    • Walk-in closets

  • How much hanging storage do you need for coats, dresses, pants, shirts/blouses, skirts, and suits? (Measure in linear feet.)

  • How much shelving space do you need? (Measure the height and width of folded garments.)

  • How many shallow drawers (2 inches deep) and deep drawers (4 or more inches deep) do you need?

  • How many pairs of boots, sandals, shoes, and sneakers do you need room for?

After you’ve determined your storage needs, you can start thinking about ways to get the most out of the space you have. Try these few suggestions for maximizing storage space:

  • You wear only about 20 percent of all the clothing and shoes you own. The other 80 percent takes up space. Periodically weed out the out-of-date items. Charities are happy to have the power suits you wore back in the ’90s.

  • Use wire-shelving systems, rods hung at various heights, hooks, and shoe racks in your closets to use the space efficiently.

  • Use an oversized armoire or glass-fronted bookcase as a media cabinet. The drawers and shelves allow you to store clothing and other things, and your TV is out of the way and at an optimum height for viewing.

  • Stack a smaller chest of drawers on top of a larger chest of drawers or two. Make them look spiffy by painting them the same color and adding decorative stenciling. (Fasten the units together in the back with simple hardware and secure to the wall or floor to prevent them from tipping over, especially if you have small children.) This technique allows you to store a large amount in a small space and it looks great, too!

  • A hope chest provides room for storing extra blankets and look great — if you have the floor space for one.

  • Choose nightstands with drawers or shelves to reduce clutter.

Inspired by the beds made for ships, captain’s beds feature a drawer beneath the mattress for storage — a plus when you need more storage. They’re often used in children’s and teenagers’ rooms because they hold tons of stuff. They’re available in a range of sizes and styles. The frame’s top edge should be lower than the mattress top to prevent banging your knees when you crawl into bed.

About This Article

This article is from the book:

About the book authors:

Katharine Kaye McMillan, former senior editor of a New York City-based national magazine, is a writer whose work appears regularly in magazines and newspapers. She is a contributing writer to internationally circulated Florida Design Magazine. She is the co-author of several books on decorating and design, including Sun Country Style, which is the basis for licensed signature collections of furniture and accessories by three leading American manufacturers and importers. A graduate of the University of Texas in Austin, she holds a masters degree in psychology and is a doctoral student in psychology at Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida.

Patricia Hart McMillan is a nationally known interior designer, whose interior design work for private clients, designer showcases, and corporations has appeared in publications worldwide, including the New York Times and USA Today. Known as a trend spotter and for clearly articulated views on design, she is quoted frequently and extensively in both trade and consumer publications. She a ppears on TV and talk radio. A prolific writer, she is coauthor and author of seven books on interior design and decoration, with Sun Country Style signature collections of furniture based on two books. She has taught decorating courses at several colleges and conducted numerous seminars across the U.S. She is decorating editor for Christian Woman Magazine and reports on design trends for The Sun-Sentinel, a Tribune newspaper based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She has been editor-in-chief of two publications and was head of a New York City-based public relations firm representing some of the most prestigious names in home furnishing and building products. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, with a minor in art history (with an emphasis in architecture), from the State University of New York (New Paltz). She was awarded a certificate from The New York School of Interior Design.

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