Ideas for Creating Multi-Purpose Rooms

Short on space at home? Wanting to expand your house but lacks the square footage to do so? It would be better if you transform your rooms into multi-functional areas. Nowadays, houses are becoming more expensive and increasing the size may not always be the right option. The best and most cost-effective solution for the lack of space would be making your rooms more flexible and easily converted without extending or increasing the size of your home. Here are some tips and ideas to help you rethink how you can maximize your space while keeping it functional and welcoming.

1. Create a “cloffice.”

Make a helpful workspace out of a closet in your guest room by turning it into a cloffice, or a closet office. A few shelves, table hooks, and a chair can transform unused storage as a new area that you can tuck behind a curtain when not in use. Guests will be fine with a few hooks and a dresser, anyway. Now you have a guest room/home office combo in a closet. This is practical now that a lot of jobs in the workforce are allowed to work from home at least half of the time.

2. Think vertical with your bedrooms.

Sometimes you wish for extra bedrooms so all of your kids can have their own room, but oftentimes, it’s not possible. You can actually make use of the vertical space by using bunk beds. Traditional bunk beds can seem creepy and claustrophobic, but modern bunk beds nowadays offer different designs and a variety of layouts. Try a bunk bed set that stacks perpendicularly to give both sleeping areas more breathing room. This way, you can also be more creative in placing study, dressing and storage areas.

Or why not get Murphy beds and transforming bunk beds? Wall bunk bed systems offer a work area or a couch to sit on and relax while being easy to transform into bunk beds during bedtime.

3. Get craftier with storage.

Some people wish for an extra room just to store away their many kinds of stuff, but the truth is, the more rooms you’ve got, the more reason you have to dump things. The way to beat the lack of space is by a clever organization. Maximize the space above kitchen cabinets and under the beds, add wall shelving, and use labeled boxes and boxes and keep them in one area. There are a lot of ways to keep everything organized while still making your rooms attractive. Just remember to stick with a single theme or a color scheme of one to two hues to create a cohesive look. Also, don’t forget to add some décor to bring a nice aesthetic look, like for instance, storing your cotton balls or make-up brushes into cute glass mason jars, or by storing kitchen tools in wooden containers next to potted plants. Storage can become something you feature in your home, rather than something you hide.

4. Use fold-away beds.

Any bedroom can be transformed into a multifunctional area if you use fold-away beds, especially guest rooms. Guest rooms are not occupied all the time, so it would be best to install here a fold-away wall bed so space can be used for other purposes when guests are not around. A room with a fold-away bed can turn into a fitness center or a home gym. A Murphy bed tucked in a custom cabinet can have bookshelves visible during the day, then if the bed will be used, the side panels will be slid open to hide the bookshelves and reveal the bed. It can be turned into an office, where a desk can be set up when the bed is folded up. It can also be transformed into a lounge area or a home theater. Once the bed is folded up, lightweight lush chairs can be added for extra seating. Place a giant flat screen opposite it, as well as surround sound speakers and blinds, for a movie marathon center.

5. Use dividers.

Folding room dividers and screens are great for separating areas within a room. If you have an office desk in your bedroom, a divider can separate your personal space from your professional space. If your guest room can accommodate a number of guests, put up a screen for dressing up so they can feel comfortable changing even if there are a lot of people in the room. If you live in open floor space, furniture or installed dividers are important for defining the living room area, the dining area, and the kitchen.

It would be best to use multi-purpose and flexible dividers. Large pieces of furniture do not only work as storage, but it can also serve as a divider in a big room. In an open space small apartment may not have a separate room for the bedroom, so dividers would be of help in defining the bed area. A small, unframed modular unit facing the couches may contain the TV, while it also semi-screens the bedroom behind it. In this way, the TV can be turned easily to face the bed rather than the living area. Consider the scale of the furniture you will use as a divider. Only use smaller furniture for small spaces, and it needs to be semi-transparent to be effective in a small room.

6. Make laundry room work also as a craft room.

The unused spaces in your laundry room can serve as a workspace for your home workshop, where you can make crafts and DIY projects that are too messy to do in your living room or bedroom. Put up your washer and dryer side by side (a stacking washer and drier or a washer-and-drier-in-one would be better) and a work desk with plenty of storage on the other side. Add storage for craft supplies away from your washing and drying machines so the laundry space is kept separate. Consider adding wall cabinets above your machines for storing cleaning supplies like detergents and bleach. You may also add a broom closet and storage for lesser-used small appliances in this area.

7. Play on colors in kids’ bedrooms.

If your kids share a bedroom, define their area by color coding their sides of the room. Paint the walls within their bed area with the color they prefer, or with a differing color scheme, to make each child feel like they have their own space so they can live in harmony. Keep other design items like beds and dressers similar to make the room look cohesive.

8. Make use of corners.

A corner space is often overlooked and underused, but if you need more space, maximize it. You can set up a corner desk on a corner cabinet to give you enough room for storing files, paying bills, checking emails or doing a bit of work at home. It uses space more efficiently than a regular tabletop, plus, you can close it up in the evening or when guests are coming to easily hide the clutter. Or, you can make it a corner shelving unit so you can spare more space in other areas of your home. It also makes a great spot for storing books or displaying plants and other decorative items.

9. Design a dining area that doubles as office space and living room.

When you are very short on space, make your rooms as multi-functional as possible. With an expandable folding table, you can go from working on your laptop computer to dining. Place a daybed and put a TV opposite it so you can watch while you dine. Store folding chairs in a corner so you can accommodate more diners when you have guests. Plus, the daybed can also serve as a bed where a guest can stay overnight.

10. Use transforming and multi-functional tables.

Make use of transforming tables for a multi-purpose room. A smart folding table may look like a slim shelf which can serve as a mini divider, but it can be transformed into a dinner table. An expandable table is a must-have for an eager hostess with a small space. Side tables that work as seating will also be very useful. Also, prefer to use coffee tables with storage underneath to maximize your floor area.

11. Create mezzanine space.

If your rooms have the height, why not create a function for the elevated space? A mini loft can be installed for an elevated bed that can be accessed through a ladder. In kids’ rooms, a loft can be utilized for the bed so the space below would create plenty of room for playing. Then, when they grow up, the space above can be transformed, for instance, to a loft library or study area. Just don’t forget the fan in the mezzanine space because it can be a heat trap during the summer.

12. Maximize the space under staircases.

For most of us, the space under the staircases serves as a dumping ground for random household items, vacuum cleaner and cleaning items, or shoes. But designers are trying to make the most of this area by creating additional functional areas like study nooks. They integrate the design of the desk and the cabinetry with the design of the staircase so it won’t look like it’s just tacked on underneath. The space underneath the stairs also makes a pretty decent and awesome bookcase.