Furnishing and Decorating a Small Studio Apartment for function and fashion

At that time of year when college students are moving back to school, I thought I'd share how my daughter and I transformed an 18" x 12" rectangle into an attractive respite for studying, sleeping, dining, and entertaining. A place for everything and everything in its place.

Before: A clean slate.

After: A cozy space with all the essentials and more. It is possible to transform a space without breaking the bank! Our finds were from Facebook Marketplace, Ikea, HomeGoods, Home Depot, Amazon and more.

Come on in: In the entryway, a narrow cabinet perfectly stores shoes. A Facebook marketplace bureau, that we painted, provides more drawer storage and has a pull out tray that coms in handy for entertaining. Later a TV was added behind the bureau. We were really lucky to have a walk in closet, even if it wasn't tricked out with built ins. for organization. More on that in another post.

Stay a while: Across from the closet door we set up the "living room". Vintage swivel chairs were the perfect size and allowed for TV watching or conversation. The custom sofa unfolded to a twin bed, for friends or when mom was in town! More on the sofa in a future post.

The apartment didn't have any natural light and it wasn't equip with the best light fixtures, so we found some funky color change lighting and took advantage of the vertical space the room divider provided us. The room divider doubled as storage for grocery bags, tools, and purses, while allowing what eager light came in from the windows.

The kitchen: Peel and stick wall paper added character and the bar doubled as a dining table and serving area when entertaining.

What are we really here for: Beyond the room dividers, we created a study area, with plenty of storage and a "bedroom".