Small home designs are becoming popular not only in the United States but also in the Middle East.
While smaller houses are relatively new in the MENA region, they are gaining traction because of their affordability and cost-effectiveness. They are used more as an investment than a place for settling down for now, with market analysis indicating tourism as a key driver in their prevalence in Middle Eastern countries, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Still, as cost-effective alternatives to townhouses and apartments, small houses have reached a point where they are considered a primary housing option rather than just a backup plan. And while living in a place with such a limited space may restrict your design options, the availability of custom-made furniture in the UAE and clever design ideas can make it virtually as luxurious as a full-sized home.
Ready to elevate your small home? We’ve compiled small house design ideas to inspire your next home improvement project.
Compact and Custom-Made Furniture
In interior design, decorating a room around the largest piece of furniture is ideal. But with a small living room or bedroom space, you may have to downsize even your sofas and bed frames.
For a small living area, consider two-seater sofas , corner sofas , or lounge chairs. For storage, you can switch to built-in dressers and hanging cupboards. Look for awkward corners and unused vertical space to turn into additional storage.
For a small bedroom design, opt for multifunctional beds, like sofa beds and single-sized bed frames with built-in storage like the one below:
Of course, you can always get bespoke furniture to ensure that it is the right size and shape and fits right into your small home’s interior design.
Types of Accent Chairs & Placement
Accent chairs come in various shapes and sizes and have different features, including swivel, recliner, and wide (broader back and seat).
Here are a few accent chair styles you can choose from and how you can incorporate them into your living room design:
Light Colors and Less Visual Clutter
Color affects visual perception . Depending on the brightness of the hue you choose, it can create an illusion of a larger or smaller space.
If you want to know how to decorate a small living room in a way that makes it look bigger, pick lighter and cooler colors for walls and ceilings. Unlike dark and warm hues that make the space feel small, light and cool tones like soft blues and greens make it feel open and airy. Warm colors are recommended if you’re going for a cozy ambiance.
You can also pick a more neutral color palette, such as beiges, whites, and off-whites. This allows you to personalize your space with soft furnishings and artwork to add personality to your home.
Another way to make the space look bigger is to reduce visual clutter. To do this, limit the number of hues in the room. Aim for a maximum of four to five and use them across various elements in the room for a cohesive color scheme.
Pro Tip: It also helps to choose solid-colored upholstery for your furniture instead of plaids, prints, and stripes. Here’s a good example:
Open Floor Plan
Walls take up precious space. If you want to maximize the limited area, consider an open floor plan. With this layout, there is very little chance you’d run out of small living room ideas or bathroom and kitchen design options for your home improvement project.
If you’re hesitating because you still want division across the areas of the house, you can always use carpets and rugs to define where the living room ends and dining space begins and vice versa.
Want to connect seating spaces instead? Add a daybed to the mix.
High-Rise Ceilings
Tall ceilings, especially raked ones (also known as high-rise ceilings), can also benefit small houses. They compensate for limited horizontal space by providing additional negative space vertically.
Plus, high-rise ceilings are recommended because they provide better air circulation and ventilation. Since hot air rises naturally, this can be an energy-efficient choice in air-conditioned small homes in the UAE.
Where possible, go for three-meter-high ceilings. This small bedroom ceiling design will also allow you to have high doors and large windows that let natural light in to make the space feel bigger instantly.
Max Light and Reflection
Besides color, light is another critical factor that affects one’s perception of a room’s size. The darker it is, the smaller the space feels.
That said, you can get as much natural light inside with big windows and skylights. Adding artificial lights and incorporating high-gloss surfaces that reflect light into your interior design, like glossy floor tiles and wall mirrors also help.
The bottom line is to approach your small house interior design with the intention of maximizing light distribution.
Sliding Doors
Looking for small bathroom ideas to make the most of your space? Change your bathroom door.
When closed, bathroom doors don’t look like they take up much space. However, they will eventually swing open – and when that time comes, you’ll realize that arranging furniture close to them won’t be feasible.
To remedy this, consider switching to sliding doors. This particular type of door saves space since it doesn’t swing out. As a bonus, they also inject a farmhouse-inspired vibe into your small house.
Big Style, Small Spaces
Small house design ideas truly flourish when you embrace innovative and creative interior solutions. Use this guide to transform your small home into a stylish, functional haven that maximizes every square inch without compromising on comfort or elegance.
Looking for sophisticated furniture for your small house? Browse our products at Al Huzaifa or order bespoke furnishings to suit your specific needs.
