As a former New Yorker and current owner of a wee Cape Cod cottage, I am quite familiar with both the charm and challenges of small spaces. When done well, they can feel like cozy, Zen-like retreats. But often when you have to cram all your worldly possessions into one tiny space, the results can feel cramped, claustrophobic, and anything but restful. Achieving the former instead of the latter takes some conscious effort.
The good news is that the key to successful small-space living might be easier than you think. It all boils down to tricking the eye into perceiving more space by employing three simple concepts: scale, light, and movement.
1. Scale it down.

Above: At Harbor Cottage in Maine, all the furniture, even the woodstove, has been downsized to fit the small living area. Photograph by Justine Hand from A Cottage Reborn in Coastal Maine. Furniture for the small space is all about proportions. Simply put, if a piece brushes up against the boundaries of the room, either up and down or sideways, it’s too large. To create a sense of roominess, always leave a little air in between the sides of your furniture and the walls. (The one exception is a bed; a queen placed between two walls, for instance, creates a cozy sleeping cave.)
Also avoid heavy, weighty pieces that eat up too much of the usable space in the room. For example, a sleek sofa or chair will give you as much sitting room as its overstuffed cousin but will take up much less of your room. If you long f...