How to Arrange and Manage a Bedsitter (at a low budget)

You just moved out of your parent's house. you are looking for accommodation and you decide to take up a bedsitter/studio apartment. You are excited about it.. but you wonder “how will I arrange this ‘karoom’. Not to worry these hacks will sort that problem out.

Bedsitters in Kenya are often tiny with spaces just enough for one person but this does not mean you have to live in cramped conditions or without style.

The fact that everything is in a single room can make arranging and decorating a bedsitter somewhat challenging. However, with some creativity, it is possible to create an aesthetically appealing, stylish, and comfortable living space.

Here’s how to make your bedsitter look good and spacious.

STICK TO ONE COLOUR PALETTE/ COLOUR THEME. 

 You want your house to have a certain color theme.. that's okay… but don't mix it up with so many colors. If you want black and orange.. stick to that all the way, that will make the space look calm and contained which is good for small spaced rooms. If you use too many colors it makes the room look complicated and cluttered. I always advise my clients to take 3 primary colors that they want to use in the house and when buying furniture to consider the same colors they chose.

ALLOW NATURAL LIGHT. 

We tend to make the mistake of buying those heavy opaque curtains to cover up our windows. But, that natural light changes the mood of a room and also changes the perceived size of the room. So go easy with the curtains. I know sometimes the curtains are needed to give the room some style but you are just blocking away great natural light that will lit up the mood of the room, you can get the sheer curtains that allow light and also match it with your color palette. 

ROOM DIVIDERS 

Gone are the days when we used curtains to divide our house living area. In this age and era be bold enough and use things like bookshelves and cabinets to divide your room. This will not only create storage space for your stuff but also it's very stylish. It works so well for bedsitters. You have a bunch of books not to worry.. you will have enough space to store that in your room divider bookshelf. You can even use a gallery wall as a room divider, just have a temporary wall built probably from cardboard then hang your favorite pictures on it.. works well too 

CREATE HIDDEN STORAGE UNITS. 

The worst thing you can do for a bedsitter is to clutter it, hence you need to create hidden storage. Example under bed drawers, shelves mounted on the wall, or buy dual-purpose furniture. This will be enough storage space and that will avoid cluttering your room.

ADD A PERSONAL TOUCH

I visited a friend who lives in a bedsitter and I asked her “why is your house so plain? Pimp it a bit with your style” and she said that the room is too small for that. That's the worst thing you can think. It may be small but it shouldn't lack style. You can have a gallery wall art using your favorite art pieces or just picture printouts., use more lighting, make use of wallpapers or just use pillows to add some personal touch. (I will have a blog out to tackle that)

USE MIRRORS TO MAKE YOUR BEDSITTER APPEAR MORE SPACIOUS 

Mirror if strategically placed where natural light will reflect that gives an illusion of more space. I always think sunburst mirrors work best for that. 

Go ahead and make that bedsitter stylish, it's your space.