The Idea Factory

10 innovative furniture designs that brilliantly save you space

Furniture designers are marrying simplicity, art, and engineering to clear the clutter out of your home

1. The Squeezebox Ottoman Bed

The Squeezebox Ottoman Bed is perfect for couch-surfing friends, toddler naptime, or just to gussy up the loft of your favorite ultra-hip minimalist. Pull off the covering and unfold three squares of high resilience foam that can be shaped into a chair with backrest, or a durable, comfortable sleeping mat.

2. Cowboy Kitchen

Space-saving designs are often created with a bias toward the sleek and modern. The Cowboy Kitchen functions as an armoire with four shelves and six drawers and a foldout table and bench combo. The design and aesthetic are perfect for a more rustic setting, like country cabins.

3. Hidden Helpers Ironing Board

Any appliance manufacturer can give you a vertical washer and dryer combo to save space. The Swedish designers of Asko offer you side by sides that still make more useful space than they take up. The appliances are built under spacious pull out drawers, which in turn sit under a countertop. Then to complete the close assembly of all your laundry needs, a tidy little ironing board can be installed within one of the drawers.

4. Plumm — 3-Piece Modular Sectional

When I finally purchased the sectional sofa I'd been waiting my whole life to get, I learned some unpleasant truths about the paradigms of luxury and comfort. Sectionals are unwieldy, made to lock in certain positions, and not all the pieces will go together. Not so with the Plumm. These seats and 30 degree angle wedges can be placed in any configuration to fit any space or taste.

5. Aqua Vim Table Aquariums

It's about time somebody thought of a way to make those precarious, giant glass aquariums earn the space they take up! Aqua Vim takes into consideration that most people use their couches for lying down as much as sitting, lining up a lovely view with the side of their coffee-table/fish playground. They offer table aquariums in almost any configuration you can imagine, including reception desks and board room tables.

6. Tavolo Balcony Folding Table

In hindsight it seems so obvious, so simple! A way to maximize that tiny bit of sunshine and fresh air most of us are allowed access to as we navigate the different apartment buildings of our 20s. The table is lightweight and pre-assembled, and will mount to just about any railing except glass.

7. Flexiblelove Earth 16 Seater

FlexibleLove seats are brilliant feats of structural engineering. They're made of recycled fibers, cardboard, and wood that can accordion out to seat as many as 16 people, depending on the model you buy. Folded, this bench has a width of 23 centimeters. Extended, it is 720 centimeters. To really appreciate how fun and ingenious the FlexibleLove is, watch the demonstration video here.

8. Resource Furniture Stealth Kitchen

Now we're getting into some serious space saving. If you're short on space but long on money and style, consider the Stealth Kitchen. This modular, customizable domestic secret can be built to contain almost anything your personal kitchen needs. From the standard refrigerator, freezer, dishwasher, microwave, oven, cooktop, and sink to the more individual: pantries, double ovens, island units, washer/dryer laundry centers, and dry/wet bars. Price for installation? Ha, they don't even say. If you have to ask, you probably can't afford it.

9. Tyrone Stoddart's BOXED

This charming, fully functional office space, designed by Tyrone Stoddart, is minimalist and space saving just as it is. What makes it a true innovation in design, however, is that it all came out of a small suitcase. And of course, the parts are interchangeable, allowing you to make two stools and a coffee table where there was once a work desk. It's easier to watch than describe.

10. The Umberto Folding Library

Being short on space shouldn't stop you from keeping a whole bunch of books around. And now, you can keep both your books and yourself in the comfort of a tiny Dali-esque magician's box. The Umberto Folding Library is a reference to libraries of old manors; whole rooms devoted to knowledge and adventure. The Umberto just wraps all that bounty into an easily storable, delightfully skewed package.

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