Get a snazzy studio apartment in 5 simple steps

You finally took the plunge and moved out of your parent's home. You have your own pad – a studio apartment and it's not exactly your dream home. We show you how to spruce it up and make it your own cosy space.

Opt for multi-purpose furniture

Furniture that doubles up as more than one thing is extremely useful in a studio apartment especially because you are fitting a living room, bedroom, dining room and even a kitchen into one room. Here are a couple of pieces of furniture you can try.

• A divan is a great option in a studio apartment. You can use it as a bed as well as a sofa. Equip it with bolsters that serve as a comfy backrest. You can use the storage beneath the divan for all your linen, towels etc.
• If a divan is not how you want to go, try a Murphy bed. It can be folded upward towards the wall and completely hidden during the day.
• A partially foldable table is another neat piece of furniture. You can get a rectangular table whose top can be folded downwards when you don't need a very large tabletop. It can double up as a workstation and a dining table too. You could also have a table that completely folds up against the wall.
• You can store various items like books, magazines, CDs, mail and even laundry (until the weekend that is) in box stools.
• Cloth chairs, which can be folded are really handy when you have guests over. You could opt for ones with colourful printed fabric.
• You can have a multipurpose cupboard placed against one wall of the apartment. You can use it to store all kinds of stuff. From clothes to books and electronic items, anything can be put in this kind of cupboard.

Big ideas: Beds that make you room bigger

Photograph: Square Foot

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