The tag on the dresser read thirty-two wide by sixteen deep by thirty tall. But the gap between my bed frame and the wall was eighteen inches minus half an inch for the tossing-and-turning_buffer_zone*. When faced with a situation like this, most rational people would think, Hmm, beds frames come in different sizes.
Perhaps I should measure mine. *I may or may not measure how far I kick my covers in the middle of the night. After measuring. Twice.
I stared at my dresser like it offended me. HOW DARE YOU NOT FIT IN MY SHOEBOX OF A BEDROOM, I mentally screamed at it.
The thing is, I had been looking for months for the right dresser.
Months of seriously lookingonline and in stores. Every other Saturday I would drag Ethan out with me while he slept because some giftmare required physique measurements and eye consultations. My winter coat lived under my bed.
My “everyday” clothes were draped over a chair that should have been used for sitting. My “nice” clothes were hanging in my living room closet because that was the only place they would fit. See what hoarding your clothes because you can’t find a dresser that fits your life (literal measurements aside) lands you?
Hot trendy bohemian chaos. At this point, I should clarify. It wasn’t that I couldn’t find a dresser.
You can find cute, tiny bedroom furniture just about anywhere now. My search was for a dresser that was small enough to fit my room but big enough to be functional, not block my heating vent (recently learned that lesson with a bookshelf), and fit my budget because those cute mini things are often more pricey than your average dresser because they’re trendy and come from puppies. I checked the thrift store.
Walmart. Macy’s. Target.
JCP. Online closets. Facebook marketplace.
I got the skinny version that tipped forward every time I pulled out one of the top three drawers. The almost-fit-that-I-killed-with-scissors vintage dresser from Facebook that smelled like old perfume. (Does anyone know how to get that smell out of vintage furniture?) The Ikea-blamed-for-all-my-relationship-problems dresser that took me six hours to build and then drooped in the middle. And then I found THE ONE at a consignment shop I had literally walked past a hundred times.
Okay, probably exaggerating. But it was a place I never went into because it looked really intimidating and junky. But it was pouring rain that day, and I was stuck inside killing time before meeting a friend, so I figured why the heck not?
The dresser was literally buried behind a lamp and a crate of misfit picture frames. If it could’ve awkwardly slid further back into the storage room, I think it would’ve. Granted, it’s what you’d call mid-century-style moderne if you were being generous.
Walnut veneer, three plain drawers. It slid open so smooth you’d think I spent half my thrift store budget on drawer rollers and slides. But what I loved most wasn’t the lines.
It was the dimensions. Thirty-two inches wide by sixteen inches deep by thirty inches tall. Yes!
That would fit! Take note, bold text above: IT FIT! And get this…the measurements included the hardware that stuck out just slightly.
I almost dropped when I saw the price. Forty-five dollars. Yup. $45.
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I literally laughed out loud which probably didn’t help my bargaining powers, but the owner said no one wanted it because it was too small. Too small?!? It holds more than my collection of baskets and scarves as “storage” previously did, and here’s how: I swear, if you want to squeeze every possible clothing item into a tiny dresser you’re gonna love my set up.
Why? Cause the drawers are deep. Like.
Deep. Okay, I know what you’re wondering. How do you fit all your clothes in there if the drawers are deep?
Organization, my friends, organization! Here’s the breakdown:Bottom drawer = heavy clothes. Jeans, sweaters, bulky itemsMiddle drawer = every day clothes.
T-shirts, workout clothes, pj’s Top drawer = delicates and accessoriesOh, and I slide in this super handy wooden tray I found at Target for fifteen bucks that keeps all my jewelry from turning into a knot.When I first started using the dresser, I realized what really made the space work wasn’t the dresser itself. Well, yes. But also not quite.
See, the height of the dresser allows me to put stuff on top of it and actually have surface space instead of creating clutter. My lamp went here first (cue the party because I actually have bedside lighting that isn’t fluorescent sadness), then a small ceramic dish I found at a pottery sale that I’ve been using to corral earrings I tend to take off before bed. Oh, and a plant!
Even though it’s tiny, there’s still good lighting by my window and this bad boy thrives.So yes, the width of this dresser allows me surface space without overwhelming the tiny dimensions of my room. And since it’s not too deep, it doesn’t sit far out into my walkway like most dressers I tried. What I didn’t expect was how streamlined my room would look when I wasn’t tripping over piles of clothes that had nowhere to go.
It also dramatically cuts down on my morning routine since I can see everything at a glance instead of digging through piles to find a shirt that doesn’t have last week’s dinner mug still drying inside. Another thing that surprised me was how easy (well, sort of easy) it was to style. I had originally planned to hang a mirror above the dresser like a “normal” bedroom.
Only it didn’t look right. Proportions were off and also I kinda already have a full-length mirror in my room so why clutter my wall with two? Instead, I hung a small piece of art I had been using as a lean against for months.
It’s this adorable little botanical illustration that fills the empty space but still keeps the focus on the dresser itself. I picked up this adorable little table lamp with a linen shade that emits a warm glow in the evening. Holy moly.
Game changer for someone who got ready for bed under the bright glow of an overhead light. Last but not least, the little touches! The ceramic dish was an impulse buy at a local pottery sale but I’m so glad it was there because jewelry always seemed to vanish into mine.How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Small Bedroom Storage Moral of the story?
When it comes to storing clothes and other junk in a small bedroom,Size DOES matter. Choose pieces that fit the LENGTH and width of your room but also think about the DEPTH. Will it jut out far into your walkway or bump into furniture?
Like I mentioned before,organization is KEY.
If you label your drawers or section them off with bins, you’ll be amazed at how much you can fit into the smallest spaces! Consider how you’ll USE the dresser before you buy it.
Sure, you could shove your bed up against the wall and cram all your clothes under it. Or you could be awesome and get creative with your storage like me! Total spent on my storage solution = $45 on dresser + $15 tray + $35 lamp + $12 plant = $107 and yes!
I DID JUST BUY A PLANT. YAY ME! dresser: $45. Tray: $15.
Lamp: $35. Plant: $12. Total: $107.Not every space-saving solution will be cheap.
But it’s worth investigating before you buy that $300 dresser because you can’t find anything small enough to fit your cute lil bedroom.
