How to make the best of a small house

[SandysMam]

We have finally saved enough to buy our first house and found one that ticks so many boxes...but it is SMALL. It’s a three bed cottage (there are 4 of us) with a living room and a kitchen that sort of flow into one but a funny shape so not much room for a dining table. Even at that size it is top end of our budget. Can you give me your best small house living tips including small house furniture. Extending may be an option in the far away future but not for a long time!
Thank you!

Bump for the teeny house!

Don't try and fit your current furniture in. When we moved we tried every whichbway to cram our "normal house" stuff into our little cottage (which incidentally sounds identical to yours!)
After a monumental cull where I got rid of everything that stuck out too much or only filled 2/3 of an alcove, we went to Ikea and bought clever, useful items that actually made best use of the space we had.
Light reflecting paint has also been a godsend, despite the price tag

Declutter as much as you can. Most of us don’t need half the stuff we have.

Board out the loft if not already done so for out of season storage.

Multi purpose furniture or collapsing furniture so bed with storage underneath, stacking chairs and tables, that sort of thing.

I have always had small homes and always think of the time saved in cleaning it!

Have you got a floor plan?

Fold down dining table you can get out for meals/homework etc and then put away, will take up much less space. Ikea is good for this stuff.

You probably don’t need a coffee table. Get some side tables for drinks and leave the rest open, it’ll look and feel bigger.

Shelves built on to walls so not taking up floor space. Put the TV on the wall as well.
Storage under beds.

You’ll be fine!

We also used light reflecting paint on the north side of the house. Folding dining table is handy - you can spread it out to take more space if you have anyone over - maybe just use one side in the everyday life (and if you can be bothered, fold it all down in between meals).

Declutter before you move . Look at small dining tables that extend and look at beds with storage built in. I am sure your new home will be lovely.

Ikea bjursta is one we have used successfully- despite not really liking the generic ikea look they admittedly do have ingenious space saving solutions that work

small furniture! Sounds silly but my mum scales her furniture, so smaller sofas, and things with open space underneath so you see more of the floor

No hoarding stuff you don't need

Good storage

multipurpose furniture

Is their room for a drop leaf table that you can pull out when needed?

3 bedrooms sounds normal for 4 people. Is it the downstairs that is small.

De-clutter!

I have a 20 year old shoebox where the downstairs rooms lead into one another (living room with French doors into dining cupboard with patio doors to garden and arch into kitchen). I've kept the same colour scheme throughout so's to not break it up into small spaces and keep a visual 'flow'. The accessories/fittings have quite a varied colour pallete so it all blends rather than feeling same-y. (IMHO.)

When I had the 6ft square bathroom re-done, I took out the bath and had the largest corner shower I could find (appreciate that won't suit everyone) and chose a frameless cubicle, again to not interrupt the eye. I got a vanity unit & basin meant for a downstairs loo or en suite (ie slightly smaller than full bathroom size). And chose a loo that was just that bit narrower and shorter.

Storage! Anywhere you can fit in extra storage to keep the clutter away.

genius under stair storage example

beds with loads of storage

I’ve never managed it, but be ruthless about clutter and multipurpose furniture, so benches and fold up chairs.

Dragon love that understair storage! We are moving house soon and I plan on getting something very similar.

Oo I took ages to post and everyone else has come up with the same ideas but with more detail.
Ikea is very good.

We had a tiny London flat with very high ceilings, and found our key was folding/stacking furniture, standing furniture (eg sofa) that sat on visible legs/feet rather than in the ground, and built-in shelves painted the same colour as the walls everywhere, using the full height.

We are moving into a small house soon (from a small rental but with big house stuff in storage).
Plan is to mega declutter. And try to put a plumbed garden annexe in for guests. Looking at greenrooms.co.uk but whatever we can afford and are allowed.
Good luck with the move.

Oh also and signing up for an allotment and trying to put kids' beds up high so that they can have more fun stuff underneath.
Projector instead of TV (which we will also put in annexe if we can) . And Murphy bed (fold up) in the annexe.

Storage that works hard

Same colour scheme throughout

Look at the Ikea display set ups carefully and think which ones might work for you

Yy to ikea they have some great room displays for one room/small room living. Pop in just for ideas

Xpost with olenna there!

I think storage with doors so it looks cleaner and less cluttered also

As pp said - board out loft and have a ladder in the hatch for easy access.
We keep loads in our loft - I have a wardrobe up there which houses all my out of season and rarely used clothes and shoes.
Declutter constantly. I have a one in one out policy for clothes and books.

Drop leaf table as above or even one that folds down from the wall.

Does it have a garden? A shed/ summer house could be useful.

We like our drop leaf dining table - we mostly use it half open with us and 2 small kids around it, but folds flat against the wall for play dates or opens up for dinner parties. Ours is from Dwell.

High shelves for things that aren't in use all the time - it doesn't feel oppressive like a whole wall of shelving. Make sure your kitchen cupboards go all the way to the ceiling.

Get beds that have space under and use boxes for storage. If DC are old enough, get them high/loft beds and then a double futon underneath so you can bunk in with them and give your room to guests. Or a desk so they can work.

De clutter!

ive got excited for you being able to get your first home, and all this storage ideas!

Light reflecting paint!! I have never heard of such a thing, this is exactly why I posted! Will sit down and make a list of everything suggested, thank you so much. Let’s hope our offer gets accepted now
Thanks everyone, some bloody good suggestions! Might ask for this to be moved to property so they stay put as reckon this is quite a frequently thought of topic (especially in London and SE).

Also...a plumber garden annexe?? Yes please!! Will look into that!