Avoid using bulky storage boxes when you purchase a storage bed.

For apartments with limited space and maximum potential, consider purchasing multipurpose furniture pieces. These items double as something else (often storage) and pack a one-two punch when it comes to decorating your space.

For loft or studio apartments in particular, these attractive furniture pieces make the most of your space, providing a combination of places to sit, sleep, eat, study and store items. Furniture companies such as Space San Diego and Colico Design make furniture with small apartments in mind, or look into the multifunctional pieces suggested below, based on your needs. The addition of just a couple of these can greatly increase the storage and floor space of your home.

Store your clothes and accessories neatly under your bed with this solid pine Manhattan Wood Storage Bed ($1,166) in espresso or black. Four roomy drawers are on each side and another four are at the end, leaving you with nothing sticking out from under the bed and plenty of room for your clothes.

If you already have a bed or need additional storage in your bedroom, consider this combination Secretary Desk/Dresser ($217), which has a fold-down working area, shelves for books and office supplies and three drawers for storing clothes or blankets.

Convert your coffee table into a dining room table with Ozzio Design’s transformable tables in a variety of modern styles. The Kubo adjusts in height from 9 inches to 31.5 inches and features a slide-out top that doubles its surface space. Fully expanded, it seats six people.

Alternately, add a storage bench and two storage ottomans ($84) in lieu of a coffee table and end tables. The bench serves as a comfortable seat but also includes a removable lid with built-in tray for supporting drinks, magazines, the remote control or food.

Ideal for living rooms, the Doc XL sofa bunk bed transforms from a comfy sofa to a bunk bed for two people, complete with ladder for climbing up to the top bunk.  All covers are fully removable and washable.

For when unexpected guests come over, utilize PBTeen’s Tufted Ottoman Bed ($229) in neutral beige. The sturdy metal frame and Velcro straps keep the mattress in place while it serves as an ottoman, but lift off the slipcover and it becomes a twin-sized cot.

This Counter Height Storage Dining Table with Lazy Susan ($646) hides glasses and wine bottles neatly out of sight in its base and features a built-in 24-inch Lazy Susan on top to help with serving dishes. The table appears small because it’s higher rather than wider, but it seats eight comfortably.

Photo Credit: iStockphoto/atlasphoto

Select a small bedside table with a drawer to store items in your small apartment.

You’ve read how to decorate for small spaces, so you’re already familiar with the smoke-and-mirrors acts of hanging curtains from the ceiling to make the room look taller, purchasing multi-purpose furniture and painting the walls a light color. But when it’s time to pick out furniture for your small space, you should also opt for pieces with thin frames, faux headboards, glass tops and armless chairs and sofas. Room by room, here’s a suggested list of small furniture for your apartment.

Bedroom

For your bed, you could always use a double bed with a low-profile mattress and box springs and no headboard. Instead, paint a headboard on your wall, using Good Housekeeping’s headboard grid and stencil PDFs to trace and fill in a faux headboard. Or, purchase this Bekkestua headboard ($250) in light gray from IKEA, or cover it in your own favorite light-colored fabric. Place this Leick narrow end table ($139) beside your bed, and pair it with the Hawthorne seven-drawer chest ($269), which takes advantage of the height of your room versus taking up width.

Home Office

Depending on how wide your home office space is, select either the 34-inch long Logan Writing Desk ($229) in cream, light green or aqua, or the shorter Emily Desk ($239) in antique grey, yellow or cream, which has one drawer for storage. Stash your printer and printer paper in this Sauder Harbor View Lateral File ($229), and store files in the drawer underneath.

Living Room
Macy’s  and Crate & Barrel’s “apartment” furniture lines feature scaled-back, square, low-profile sofas, loveseats and chairs with slim arms that still seat plenty of people. Purchase the Vaughn Apartment Sofa ($1,399) in cream, cork or pebble from Crate & Barrel or the Corona Love Seat ($549) in stone from Macy’s for light-colored, thin-legged and –armed furniture that still leaves you with plenty of seating, style and space.

For end tables, add a touch of contemporary to your modern living room with a couple of eclectic Bone Side Tables ($199) from West Elm. With its natural bone tile top and slender iron base, you can stash your book or magazine and hold a candlestick lamp on top. Round out your room with a sturdy, black television stand like this Laiva piece ($20) from IKEA and a flat-screen television.

Dining Room

In your dining room, opt for a table and chairs with height over width. The Acme 7550 Martha five-piece counter-height dining table and chair collection ($242) is taller than the typical dining room table but doesn’t appear to be. Or, choose the Halo Cognag 36” High Dining Table, whose glass top creates an illusion of fluid space. Pair it with armless or thin, wrought-iron chairs. Complete the look with dish and glassware storage in this tall but thin Home Styles Small Buffet ($320) that has a stainless steel countertop to reflect light in the room.

Storage

These days, clutter can be cleverly hidden in well-designed multi-purpose pieces. If you have the space, add these Sheridan Storage Bench and Ottomans ($89) to your living room, which serves as a bench, coffee table, living room storage and two footrests in attractively upholstered espresso-finished faux leather. The underside of the bench’s lid has a built-in tray for supporting drinks and plates, should you opt for this piece over a dining room table.

In your bedroom or living room, place a television on top of this French Country TV Armoire ($349) and store DVDs, CDs or even clothing inside.

Photo Credit: iStockphoto/Marje