A Look at Our Teen’s Tiny Bedroom Filled With Super Smart Storage

One of the best features of our North Carolina home was that it technically had four bedrooms: three upstairs and one more (very) small room (with its own bathroom) on the main level. Faced with the option of sharing with his two younger brothers, our teen happily claimed this space as his own. But its exceptionally tight size meant we had to get pretty creative with layout and storage. We ultimately relied on some simple but super effective strategies to fit him (and his stuff!) into the small space. Let me show you!

Tiny Teen Bedroom | Before & After

This small bedroom sat right off the kitchen, down a small hallway. Only measuring 11′ x 7.5′, many families use this space as an office, workout room, homework room, or playroom. But since it has its own bathroom and closet, we immediately saw it as the perfect spot for our teen.

However, with even the most basic furniture (e.g., bed, dresser, nightstand), this room was constantly a mess. In my son’s defense, we really hadn’t given him anywhere to put anything…so it all landed, where else, but on the floor!

After a lot of trial-and-error, we were ultimately able to create a space that he loved to be in but also fit his clothes, electronics, school stuff, and more.

Here are the strategies we implemented to pull it off!

4 Ways to Add Storage to Small Kids’ Bedrooms

1 – Take the Bed Up

In general, when floor space is limited (in any room), your best option is to go up with anything you can. By getting as much furniture, lighting, decor, and storage up off the floor, you’ll create more space to move about and less pockets for clutter to build up.

One of the easiest things to take higher in a bedroom is…the bed! Loft beds are available in various layouts, sizes, and heights. And not only does a loft provide a major fun factor (very important for kids and teens!), but it also allows you add function in the space left under the bed.

Since our time in this family home was to be quite short (2 years), we didn’t want to invest in a fancy loft bed just for this house. When we found this (handmade) half loft on Facebook Marketplace for $50, we jumped at the opportunity to add that fun factor but with some significant added storage space too.

2 – Add Function Under the Bed

There are lots of different options for adding function under a lifted bed. What you pick will depend on what your child needs, as well as how high you ultimately take the bed.

Under the vertical space of full lofts, you can easily fit a desk, gaming space, dresser(s), couch, daybed, play zone, bookcases, built-in drawers, or storage shelves.

If you’re lifting a standard bed just a few feet using bed lifts, try to use rolling drawers, a flat rolling play table, or under-bed storage organizers to hold books, clothes, crafts, or items they don’t need regular access to.

The “half loft” we chose for our son was just tall enough to fit one of our spare IKEA Kallax shelves. We then used a combination of open cubbies with some DRONA bins and baskets to hold his electronics, chargers, Scout items, band accessories, toys, Pokemon cards, etc. While I originally was hoping to fill the under-bed space with dressers, the open floor turned out to be (just enough) space for him and his friends to hang.

3 – Mount Anything (& Everything) On the Walls

Another way to “go up” is to use the walls as much as you possibly can. Add shelves, hooks, and other wall-mounted solutions in order to keep the floor as free and clear as possible. Here are a few examples in this room…

Instruments & Hobby Items

Until this home, our son’s guitar sat on a stand, in a corner. But with a simple hook, we were able to store the stand (in the attic) and put the guitar up on the wall instead. Beyond just clearing floor space, the guitar then served double-duty as charming wall decor too!

Lighting

Lighting is another easy item to mount to a wall, instead of relying on the floor or a side table. Plus, a wall-mounted light means the kiddo doesn’t have to climb in/out of a loft just to turn it on/off!

Bulletin Board or Pegboard

Paper clutter can be a real problem for kids. Although we admittedly mounted the bulletin board primarily to complete the Nintendo Switch wall display, it also served as a place to put pesky papers or sentimental memorabilia he didn’t want to lose!

Pegboards are another great way to keep gaming items, electronics, tools, and craft supplies visible and accessible without eating up space with a floor-based bookshelf or storage system.

Hooks (Lots of Them!)

Finally, hooks really are your teen’s best friend. Instead of book bags, hoodies, jackets, and hats constantly falling to the floor (which will just attract more clutter), a set of hooks are really easy for kids to use and totally effective too.

Quite honestly: this series of basic hooks arranged low on his wall was the #1 thing that kept this room (mostly) clear and under control!

4 – Outfit the Closet

Last but not least, give the bedroom closet a really hard look. Whether your child has a lot of hanging items or not, what can you can you add (above the rod, on the floor) that will provide even more storage or functionality?

As you can already tell, one of our main priorities in this tiny bedroom was to create as much floor space as possible. So in addition to moving items up, we also chose to move his dresser into the closet (one of my favorite space-saving solutions ever).

Not only did removing this bulky item from the main room create more visual AND physical space, but it also significantly enhanced the overall usability of his closet (the floor of the closet would have likely become a “pit of despair!”)

There’s a few things to know about putting a dresser inside a closet, so be sure to check out my complete guide here: Putting a Dresser Inside a Closet | Why & How.

More Kid-Friendly Storage Solutions

Looking for even more ways to help your kid be more organized? Below are some solutions that work great in our family!

• How to Help Kids Be More Organized | Practical Tips That Really Work
• How to REALLY Store Outgrown Kid & Baby Clothes
• How to Assemble a School Memory Box (With Printable Labels)
• Tour Our Distance Learning Setup
• Setting Up a DIY Dress Up Station for Kids
• The Best Toy Storage Solutions for Every Item In the Playroom
• DIY Custom Drawstring Backpacks for Kids Sports & Activities
• Storing Kids’ Sports Equipment | Our Real Life Solutions
• How to Set Up a Kids Art Station | 10 Essentials to Include
• The BEST Way to Store Board Games

I certainly can’t claim that this room is one of the “prettiest” I’ve ever pulled together (more on working with your kids on their room design another time!)

But considering how hard we worked to troubleshoot this tiny bedroom over and over, I think we ended up with a pretty functional space that 1) he genuinely loved, and 2) allowed him to store and do all the things he wanted.

If you’re struggling with a small kids’ bedroom, I hope our ideas spark some solutions for you too!