14 Tips for Decorating an Attic — Awkward Spots and All

Carving out extra living space in the attic can be a wonderful way to make the most of your home's square footage. But to get the most out of your newfound space, you will need to address a few challenges particular to attics — from steeply sloped ceilings and awkward layouts to low light and hard-to-dress windows. Here you'll find help for some of the most common attic decorating dilemmas.

1. Assess your space. Measure every available nook and cranny in your attic space — really, don't leave anything out. Especially if your attic is smaller than the space shown here, you'll want to know about every inch; there are many ways to work with low eaves, small nooks and narrow passages.

Take your measurements downstairs to your main living space, and compare some of the numbers to the furniture there to give you a clue as to what might fit. Is there room for a queen bed or just a twin? Will that low shelf fit beneath the window, or will you be looking for a custom solution? Doing a bit of legwork early on can get your creative juices flowing.


2. Embrace the romance of an attic bedroom. What could be cozier than a child's bed tucked under an eave in an attic bedroom? Kids tend to love small spaces, so converting an attic into a child's room is a natural choice. White paneled walls ramp up the cute cottage feel here.


3. Increase storage with a built-in bed. A comfy little bed nook becomes even more functional when you add slim bedside shelving plus storage at the foot and under the bed.

Bonus tip: Beds for bigger kids and grown-ups are best positioned under the highest part of the ceiling (as shown here), rather than under the eaves, as in the previous photo.


4. Go semi-built-in with a desk under the eaves. If you have basic carpentry skills and a DIY bent, you could feasibly construct something similar to the desk shown here using cut-to-order lumber and floating shelving, for a feature that makes use of every inch of space.


5. Maximize space and light with white. Even if you would ordinarily shy away from using pure white on the ceiling, walls and floors, in an attic it can be just the thing to open up the space. Upstairs rooms get less foot traffic and less dirt tracked in, thanks to their being located farther from the home's entrance, so it's not as difficult to keep white attic floors clean as you might think. And being surrounded by white is like being inside a big, puffy cloud ... a far cry from the stereotypical cramped, dark attic.


6. Paint the floor. Whether you choose white or another light hue, painted floors can be a smart choice in the attic: They reflect more light than plain wood, and paint is a great finish for less-expensive wood flooring — a great help for staying on budget.


7. Use those low walls to the max. Low shelving units, cubbies and desks can be put together in just the right way to create the storage solution that fits your needs. Big stores like Ikea can be great resources for finding almost-custom modular pieces that fit your space and your budget.


8. Look into customized storage. A full wall of customized closets and other storage is worth its weight in gold, as far as I am concerned. If you plan to use your attic as a master bedroom or as another frequently used space, consider saving up for custom closets or cabinetry — they'll be worth the splurge.


9. Consider other built-ins. Perhaps a standard closet is not what you need at all — but what about a built-in desk, set of drawers or storage trunk? A good pro will have lots of creative ideas for making the most of your space.


10. Find the proper window treatments. Windows positioned on a slanted wall are especially tricky to cover, and depending on what you are using the room for, you may choose to leave them bare. But if you are using the space as a bedroom, you will want to cover those windows. Motorized shades like the ones shown here can be opened from the top or bottom, allowing you to easily control the light even on high, slanted windows.


11. Try that bohemian bed-on-the-floor thing. Whether you have room for a queen-size mattress, or you have just a tiny nook that can fit only a twin-size bed or a crib, there is bound to be a spot ideally suited to a cushy floor bed. To create a lounge area, top a small mattress with tons of pillows.


12. Use low furnishings. Surround a low coffee table with floor cushions to create a comfy lounge area — sitting on the floor will make the ceilings seem higher. Likewise, platform beds and low sofas will work better in an attic than full-height beds and bulky couches.


13. Hang a statement-making chandelier or pendant light. Make the most of the vertical space at the height of your attic ceiling with a hanging light fixture. Supplement it with table lamps — floor lamps tend to look awkward in attics.


14. Try pint-size furniture. Children's play tables, chairs and shelving can be tucked into tight spaces where full-size furniture would never work. Finish off an attic playroom with a daybed beneath the window, where grown-ups can hang out while the little ones play. Hanging a chair from the center beam is a fun touch that also makes the most of the highest point in the room, drawing the eye up.

Tell us: What is the biggest challenge you're facing in converting your attic to living space?

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