Our modern millennial homes have many virtues, but one thing they lack is…space! Space constraint is a major issue in the cramped apartments most of us end up in today. Although smart storage solutions can be a lifesaver in such tricky and compact situations. But let’s be honest, no matter how many shelves or cabinets you add to your home, there’s just never ENOUGH space! So, how about furniture designs with storage? Whoever decided to add hidden storage spaces to everyday furniture pieces is a downright genius according to me. These clever designs function as your essential furniture pieces while providing unique storage solutions. And we’ve curated the most functional + aesthetically pleasing ones we could come across! From a smart bed that doubles up as a couch, WFH desk, while being fully amped multiple nooks and crannies for storage to a home office desk with hidden storage systems – these furniture designs with storage are the ultimate space-saving additions to your home!
You know we always have to get up to get stuff before we settle into relax mode? Well, this bed was designed to have everything you will need to relax within your bed frame. It has an integrated reclining massage chair with a remote, a built-in Bluetooth speaker, a bookshelf, a reading lamp, an air cleaning system, an area to plug in and charge your devices, a foot-stool that opens up for extra storage, and a pop-up desk for the ultimate WFH setup, Netflix marathon or cozy reading hours. The sound system also features an SD card slot, an auxiliary port, and a USB port. Another interesting detail about the Hariana bed is a password-protected safe box for you to store your most precious belongings – for me, it would be my passport and snacks!
When you have a bar chair at home, you’d want one that is more than a stagnant piece of furniture. The innovative design of the No.208 bar chair made that possible with its swappable design. The No.208 bar chair focuses on customization. The user can now replace the wooden seat or maybe change the color and material of the hanging leather basket under the seat. This leather basket doubled as storage and was the standout feature of this bar chair. With the same concept in mind, but to share the seating with more than one person – whether placed indoors or installed in the public space – the No.215 bench chair is born. The bench is slightly lower in height since it deviates from the No.208’s bar chair image and its design – that appears like a bathtub – allows more than one person to sit next to each other.
The designers behind Omni wanted to create a desk that could fit into any office space and provide enough storage options to keep the top of the desk free of mess. With rounded oak legs and additional wood accents, Omni is minimal and sophisticated by design, sporting an optic white desktop surface. The results of a social media survey given by Husarska Studio revealed that most desk users prefer desks with integrated storage that can open and close like a cabinet. Sure to weave lockable storage options into the desk, the makers behind Omni looked to hinged cabinets to store devices’ power supplies and wires, as well as users’ work-related material. Traced along the desk’s topmost side, a hinged cabinet opens up to reveal stored-away cords and power strips for workdays that call for a laptop. Box modules also fill out Omni so users can still keep their work material hidden from view, but the module’s lids can lift, and inside, users can store smaller items like stationery.
PaiPai Pets’ double basin cat kennel is a cat tower and console storage cabinet in one. Looking at the kennel head-on, two wide doors border a narrower middle door, which opens up to the kennel’s storage unit and jungle-gym interior. On the left and right sides of the kennel, there’s enough space to fit two large litter boxes, which are always accessible through the middle door’s open porthole. Behind the kennel’s center cabinet, storage shelves can be found where cat owners can stow away smaller items like cans of wet cat food and litter scoopers. Painted in bright white, with natural wood accents along the perimeter, the kennel can remain discreet even in busier home spaces like the living room or den. Along the sides of the kennel, smaller portholes allow for plenty of airflows as well as a fun way for you to play whack-a-mole with your cat.
In urban homes, one often has to compromise on the kind of furniture they would like because there isn’t enough space to have a separate piece for each function – in this case, Orte saves the space you would need for a full shelf and a mirror by blending them into one. Its limestone base supports a rotating wooden frame with the mirror on one side and six hidden shelves on the other. The pop of red brightens up the corner where the furniture will be and stretched oblong shape makes it easy to fit in any corner. It can be used as a dresser, a bookshelf, or the stuff you need to grab quickly without it being on display always.
Student designers Calvin and Bence recently created their own interpretation of entryway storage with Bügal, a piece of fusion furniture that’s one half coat rack and one half shelf system. When conceptualizing Bügal, the student designers relied on 3D printing to establish a mold for the unit’s body before grinding, smoothing, and painting it over to achieve its finished, semi-matte, silicone-style look. The hybrid unit of furniture hangs from a wooden peg in a similar fashion to the traditional clothes hanger, but it ditches the hook grip for a more secure peg and socket. Calvin and Bence designed Bügal for the sake of combining the dual functions from a coat rack and a shelving unit, to provide a unique storage system that could fit into any entryway, office space, or bedroom.
João Teixeira designed Loop Desk, a simple computer desk that’s built for the organizing nut in each of us. The two-tiered desktop has plenty of working space and a slim build that easily adapts to any room, making it a solid choice for future WFH renovations. In addition to its slim build, Loop Desk reflects a minimalist aesthetic that feels more sophisticated than stylish or trendy. With rounded edges and a monitor stand that hovers above the main working space, Loop Desk was named for the various loops that comprise its full frame. Computer monitors can be placed on Loop Desk’s tallest working tier, while a keyboard and any other working material can be organized on the desktop’s main working area.
Developed specifically for small to medium-sized apartments, Co-Living is a full-body mirror and cat tower combined to become a shared, interactive piece of interior furniture for cats and humans alike. When looking at Co-Living head-on, it appears as just another full-body mirror, but a closer look reveals its multi-functionality. With an arched top and bottom, the mirror stands on one wooden peg in front of Co-Living’s rear cat tower. Constructed vertically, Co-Living is designed to encourage cats’ natural climbing tendencies by incorporating multiple carpeted tiers from which they can hop on and off until reaching the top. Co-Living’s wide, circular base, allows enough room for both the cat tower and full-body mirror to remain separate so that cats can climb up and down the tower with ease.
Amidst the catalog of accessories is a basket storage system that doubles as a wood-and-crate step ladder, ideal for the kitchen space or bathroom to store toiletries and reach taller heights. Then, there’s a series of photo frames that can store paper goods like notes and business cards in an integrated slot that traces the perimeter of each frame. Using their own homes and colleagues’ homes as their main source of inspiration, the design students even made niche items like an insect house made from wire and hollow bamboo that could be hung outside an apartment window for hummingbirds and honeybees to drop by and visit.
Designed by Annabella Hevesi, there is something about the ODU Desk that instantly puts me at ease. It’s just so well-designed! Clean, minimal, and soft, it’s a desk that almost gives me Japandi feels. (Japandi is a growing design trend that merges Japanese and Scandinavian aesthetics.) It’s a warm wooden desk with a protective screen around it that ensures you have your privacy while working! It shuts off the outside world and helps you focus completely on your work. Not to mention, the wooden desk top has been integrated with little storage containers! These containers are perfect for storing your office stationery, souvenirs, and other knick-knacks you may want to place on your desk. An interesting feature is that you can actually remove and separate the containers from the desk. This is perfect for when you want to clean the nooks and crannies of the desk
