Clever Ways to Fit a Bed Into a Small Space
By looking high and low and in between, you can find room for a bed — and more — for yourself or a guest
Beds are big pieces of furniture, so fitting one into a small space can be a challenge. However, whether you need a sleeping area for guests or want to carve out a bedroom for yourself in a studio apartment, there are designs that can work miracles. Check out these ingenious solutions to see what could work in your home.
… a double bed, which folds down from the cabinet when needed.
The bifold doors tuck in neatly. The fact that they’re covered in cork means they act as a giant bulletin board for messages and display items; these can stay in place when the doors are opened, so there’s no need to spend time clearing up.
A set of shelves by the entrance provides additional storage, with baskets and boxes keeping everything in order.
Browse Murphy beds
The bifold doors tuck in neatly. The fact that they’re covered in cork means they act as a giant bulletin board for messages and display items; these can stay in place when the doors are opened, so there’s no need to spend time clearing up.
A set of shelves by the entrance provides additional storage, with baskets and boxes keeping everything in order.
Browse Murphy beds
No room for a double bed? This clever design …
… hides a comfy single bed. A unit like this could work if you’re really short on space for a spare bed — this one sits unobtrusively in a living room.
Find a carpenter for a custom project
Find a carpenter for a custom project
Slide It Out
We’re all familiar with the trundle, the bed beneath a bed. But what if you don’t have the bed in the first place? Why not take that idea and fit a mattress under something else?
The architect working on this space in Paris had the brilliant idea of raising the floor of the kitchen area to create a home for a mattress. Besides concealing the bed, the birch plywood platform delineates the kitchen and contains a roomy storage compartment on the right-hand side.
We’re all familiar with the trundle, the bed beneath a bed. But what if you don’t have the bed in the first place? Why not take that idea and fit a mattress under something else?
The architect working on this space in Paris had the brilliant idea of raising the floor of the kitchen area to create a home for a mattress. Besides concealing the bed, the birch plywood platform delineates the kitchen and contains a roomy storage compartment on the right-hand side.
By collapsing the table and pulling out the mattress beneath it, the owner has an instant bedroom, complete with bedside table. Brilliantly, she can also use the bed as a sofa by pulling it out only halfway.
The slatted board that serves as a support for the dining table, which can seat six, provides a headboard for the bed or a back for the sofa.
See more photos of this project
The slatted board that serves as a support for the dining table, which can seat six, provides a headboard for the bed or a back for the sofa.
See more photos of this project
Here’s the same idea, but with the bed sliding out from under a wall of storage.
Raise It Up
Fold-down and slide-out beds make great use of space, but for something more permanent, check out this ingenious design.
The couple who live in this small apartment in France wanted it to remain as open as possible. The solution was this multipurpose box, which incorporates a bed, storage cabinets and even a cellar of sorts.
The MDF-covered structure is about 8 by 5¼ by 6½ feet. The staircase is almost 20 inches wide.
The bed can be accessed via a small door at the top of the staircase. The doors at the front can be opened up for an airy feel or left closed so that the magazine shelves can be used for bedside odds and ends.
Fold-down and slide-out beds make great use of space, but for something more permanent, check out this ingenious design.
The couple who live in this small apartment in France wanted it to remain as open as possible. The solution was this multipurpose box, which incorporates a bed, storage cabinets and even a cellar of sorts.
The MDF-covered structure is about 8 by 5¼ by 6½ feet. The staircase is almost 20 inches wide.
The bed can be accessed via a small door at the top of the staircase. The doors at the front can be opened up for an airy feel or left closed so that the magazine shelves can be used for bedside odds and ends.
The height of the “bedroom” is about 4 feet, which is just enough room to sit up. That left space below for storage cabinets.
There are five cabinets in total, three of which hold clothes. They pull out on telescopic rails designed to hold computer servers, so they can handle plenty of weight.
A door (not seen) allows access under the stairs to a space behind the pullouts that the homeowners use as a kind of cellar; they even store a bike in there.
There are five cabinets in total, three of which hold clothes. They pull out on telescopic rails designed to hold computer servers, so they can handle plenty of weight.
A door (not seen) allows access under the stairs to a space behind the pullouts that the homeowners use as a kind of cellar; they even store a bike in there.
Screen It Off
The architect who designed this 280-square-foot studio apartment also wanted a more permanent solution. The bedroom doesn’t waste an inch, with the mattress virtually filling the space and loads of storage worked in too.
This matte-varnished panel of birch plywood can slide across to conceal the bed and expose a TV and shelving unit in the living area …
The architect who designed this 280-square-foot studio apartment also wanted a more permanent solution. The bedroom doesn’t waste an inch, with the mattress virtually filling the space and loads of storage worked in too.
This matte-varnished panel of birch plywood can slide across to conceal the bed and expose a TV and shelving unit in the living area …
… or be left open to allow access to the sleeping area behind.
The openwork doors conceal a washing machine and a water heater, and behind these is wardrobe space accessed from the bedroom.
The openwork doors conceal a washing machine and a water heater, and behind these is wardrobe space accessed from the bedroom.
The whole mattress lifts up from the 20-inch-high platform to reveal storage space that can accommodate larger items, such as a suitcase.
The bookcase is cleverly designed so that it’s only 7¾ inches wide at the top but steals space from the sleeping platform at the bottom to create deeper cabinets to house the router and games console. The holes provide ventilation and mean that TV channels can be changed without needing to open the drawer.
The top of the bookcase is open so that it can be used in the bedroom too.
As if that weren’t enough, there’s also a “home office” — a built-in desk along the window wall.
Read more about this project
The bookcase is cleverly designed so that it’s only 7¾ inches wide at the top but steals space from the sleeping platform at the bottom to create deeper cabinets to house the router and games console. The holes provide ventilation and mean that TV channels can be changed without needing to open the drawer.
The top of the bookcase is open so that it can be used in the bedroom too.
As if that weren’t enough, there’s also a “home office” — a built-in desk along the window wall.
Read more about this project
Make a Room for It
If you want to fit a spare room into an existing living space, this idea may appeal to you.
The architect squeezed a small bedroom into the studio apartment, stealing space from the bathroom behind (where a tub was swapped for a shower) as well as from the living area.
If you want to fit a spare room into an existing living space, this idea may appeal to you.
The architect squeezed a small bedroom into the studio apartment, stealing space from the bathroom behind (where a tub was swapped for a shower) as well as from the living area.
The steel-framed window and door allow the bedroom to borrow light from the bright living area. Choosing dark frames defines the boundary between the rooms.
The architect managed to fit in not only a double bed, but also shelving and, seen at right, storage cabinets. The structure also created the opportunity to fit more cabinet space into the living room.
Read more about this space
Tell us: Have you managed to fit a bed into an unlikely spot in your home? Share your thoughts and photos in the Comments.
More
5 Ways to Fake a Bedroom in a Studio Apartment
How to Turn Almost Any Space Into a Guest Room
How to Add a Murphy Bed
The architect managed to fit in not only a double bed, but also shelving and, seen at right, storage cabinets. The structure also created the opportunity to fit more cabinet space into the living room.
Read more about this space
Tell us: Have you managed to fit a bed into an unlikely spot in your home? Share your thoughts and photos in the Comments.
More
5 Ways to Fake a Bedroom in a Studio Apartment
How to Turn Almost Any Space Into a Guest Room
How to Add a Murphy Bed
The owners of this two-bedroom apartment in east London needed both a study space and a guest room — a common desire among those in small homes.
The answer was to create a permanent study space, complete with plenty of storage and …