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Tiny House Furniture #22: Staircase Storage, Beds & Desks


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One of the most important parts of tiny houses and living in small spaces is furniture.

With the right or wrong furniture, you can either make your tiny house awesome and comfy or crowded and stuffy.

Tiny House Space Saving Furniture #22

So every week I’m going to show you several space saving furniture ideas that might work perfectly with your current or future tiny home.

This week we’ll be zoning in on space saving beds, desks, and staircases so you can add more functionality to your current space.

Staircase Storage Solutions for Small Spaces

loft staircase storage

Even More Staircase Storage Ideas for Small Homes

under staircase drawer storage

office under staircase genius staircase storage

Space Saving Beds for Small & Tiny Houses

murphy bed for-tiny house

 

rockler folding murphy bed-for small spaces custom homemade murphy bed for tiny cabin super bunk beds hammock

Space Saving Desks for Tiny Houses

walnut folding wall desk wall desk tiny wall desk

Using these Ideas to Create your own DIY Space Saving Furniture

Which is your favorite of today’s space-saving furniture pieces/ideas?

Can you see yourself designing and building any of these yourself instead of buying new?

How could you use repurposed materials to build some of these space-saving furniture pieces for yourself?

Quick Question for you…

What was your favorite furniture idea this week? Do you have any ideas from the Internet that you’d like to share? Please do so in the comments because I’d love to see/read what you have to share.

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Alex

Alex is a contributor and editor for TinyHouseTalk.com and the always free Tiny House Newsletter. He has a passion for exploring and sharing tiny homes (from yurts and RVs to tiny cabins and cottages) and inspiring simple living stories. We invite you to send in your story and tiny home photos too so we can re-share and inspire others towards a simple life too. Thank you!
{ 31 comments… add one }
  • LaMar
    April 27, 2013, 8:46 am

    Nice! I have designed a few folding tables that go right into the wall flush and that is great for a tiny home. Also boxes on casters with a foam cushion are great for seating, storage and can be used as a coffee table. Built-ins really save space and keep down the clutter.

    • Linda
      June 30, 2014, 9:10 am

      Yes, I like the idea of EVERYTHING in the tiny house having 2 or more uses. And built into the wall is a great space-saving idea. It should be an unwritten rule that everything you have in your tiny house should have more than one use. You could cut down on the number of items you need in this way. I’m especially fond of drop-down desks and storage in the stairs. What great ideas!

  • jerryd
    April 27, 2013, 10:07 am

    Some really great ideas here Alex but in the future how about only 1 subject so each can be well explored without so many posts to work through.

    Great staircases, especially the alternating step one. In my case I’ll never need more than 3 steps though.

    Couch/beds need a separate article.

    The Murphy bed/folding couch is about the best version of that I’ve seen. Though when I first saw it I didn’t know the couch folded. I’d just leave the couch where it is and fold the bed down on it eliminating a lot of hinges.

    Or have just the top of the murphy bed fold down on arms so the couch becomes part of the bed. And you could leave the couch back where it is.

    Nice folding desks.

  • sunshineandrain
    April 27, 2013, 2:17 pm

    The stair ideas are great. I have incorporated many of those ideas into my alternating step staircase that provides storage space for house and kitchen.

    I appreciate the foldaway bed ideas. I’ve been trying to figure out how to design my bed, given the available dimensions, to fold away so I can use the full floor area for projects. I’m closer now.

    I do like the Murphy bed with the folding bench. It provides support for the bed and a seating area and when folded, floor space for whatever purpose. I just don’t need a bench in my bedroom.

    I love the last folding desk. It gives me ideas for how I can design my fireplace mantle/chimney (to surround a marine wood stove) to include a table, a desk, and area to display art when folded to the wall. It also allows me the largest amount of floor area in the living area. I like to be able to stretch, do yoga, etc.

  • alice h
    April 27, 2013, 4:05 pm

    The only problem with the staircase cupboards and pullouts is that you need to leave the space next to them open for access. Won’t work in all cases. The kind where the drawers pull out from the front under each step would work better if you needed to use the wall space beside the stairs for other stuff. My favourite Murphy bed is the one with the bench but my favourite sleeping space is more like a built-in bed cupboard across a narrow wall. It could work as a seating/lounging/reading area during the day and have lots of storage built in. You can make one that expands to a double if needed or just use as is. A built-in or freestanding computer armoire works well for office/hobby space and looks tidy when closed up no matter how chaotic the contents. My freestanding armoire has two 16″x26″ work surfaces that pull out of the front, one in front of the other, for tons of flat space to spread stuff out on and the whole cabinet is only 16″ deep, 60″ high, 44″ wide when closed. It even has two drawers and an upper cabinet space that you can access without opening the folding door to the main space. It’s amazing what you can cram in there. I’m using it as inspiration for my kitchen too. I’d also like to see some stuff on kitchens and how to pack a lot of function in a smaller space by using pullout or flip up work surfaces and pullout pantries, with full functionality at all stages of deployment. If you search for images of pullout pantry you get a lot of ideas. You can substitute tuck away work surfaces for open-top cabinet pullouts and some of the pantries would work well to house a MW, toaster oven, coffee maker, etc. If you rig it up for power you can use them sitting where they are rather than having to drag them out and take up counter space, then tuck it all back away afterwards.

    • alice h
      April 27, 2013, 7:14 pm

      Oops, meant to put in that some of the kitchen and/or armoire functions are things that could be worked in under the stairs.

  • Joyce
    April 27, 2013, 11:43 pm

    I REALLY like that computer desk with the white drawers under the white stairs! My computer is my “lifeline” to my Church and brethren, so I always look first to see where I can put it (I’m moving a lot currently). A bed can always be an Aero inflatable, so can fit almost anywhere, but the computer–that and my books have to be properly accommodated, and that desk would do it.

  • Valerie
    April 28, 2013, 1:51 pm

    Love the closet under the stairs with lift up treads. I can see: longest section – hanging shirts, pants, dresses; one section linens; one section shoes; under the stairs – tools! Curious what the first photo stairs are made of. And yeah – links to plans, builders would be awesome!!
    I wonder what Japanese-inspired design might have to offer? If for instance, the loft floor was made of tatami, which has give (heavier than our flooring?) could we use thinner mattresses, and fold them away as the Japanese do? Or…what else?

  • Mike Love
    April 28, 2013, 6:31 pm

    Something not shown, but useful re: stairs for storage comes from sailboats where they hinge the top of a single stair tread to tilt up accessing the areas below, or, with multiple stairs being used to access larger compartments like the engine room either by hinges with a gas assist like your cars hatchback may use or by simply pulling up a set of 2-4 stair treads as one unit resting atop the stringer boards ( ie zig zag framing portion ) along the sides

  • TomLeeM
    April 28, 2013, 9:30 pm

    I think those are excellent ideas for recovering lost storage space under the stairs. The other ideas for space saving furniture are very clever and cool; IMO.

  • jesse
    June 27, 2014, 3:08 pm

    Hey Alex,
    I really like this idea for stairs in a tiny house cause when not in use as stairs its not very in the way. Enjoy:
    http://www.homedesignfind.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/stairs_drawers1.jpg

  • Anthony McCarthy
    June 28, 2014, 6:11 am

    I love the two simple fold down desks. And storage under the stairs, with a barrier to prevent dirt from falling into them, is a great idea. A hammock is a great idea if your back is really good. With mine, I sleep on a roll up mat, on the floor, something I first did when I was in college and couldn’t afford furniture. You get used to it and can’t sleep on a mattress.

  • Yvonne
    April 9, 2015, 11:56 pm

    Looking for cube seating shown on Tiny House Nation where it it turns in to five stools with each side of cube used as seat and storage holds metal frames for each.

  • crystal
    May 3, 2015, 3:17 pm

    Looks awesome! Do you have instructions on how to build the staircase with the cabinets?

  • Tyson
    September 30, 2015, 9:11 am

    Looking For prices and tiny home floor plans

  • Bernardo Rancho
    December 7, 2016, 9:43 am

    The bench is not only functional but beautiful as well and blends in perfectly. What a brilliant solution for this space! Great job!

  • Austin
    November 30, 2017, 2:41 pm

    Wow I can’t believe I just came across this! I love the desk under the stairs idea. We have this huge empty space under our stairs that has basically just acted as a junk pile for years. Now the ideas are brewing…

  • Kial
    November 12, 2018, 4:09 am

    I love that pullout storage under the stairs! Some these space saving ideas are making me a little embarrassed about how inefficiently I’ve used the space in my home. Gotta get cracking on implementing some of these.

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