**This is a collaborative post

While having a family is wonderful, it can also present its challenges, including the never-ending struggle to find more space. When you find that you’re really cramped, what are your options?

You could extend your home or consider selling with an online estate agent like Hatched.co.uk. If extending isn’t an option and you just can’t bear to part with your home – after all, it’s filled with precious family memories – then here are 5 ways to help maximise space in your family home.

Choose Multi-functional Furniture

In a family home where you’re struggling for space, it’s super important that your furniture is practical, and this means more than just hard wearing. When buying new furniture, choose pieces that are multi-functional and provide extra storage. This could include a lift-up bed for storing clothes, a sofa with built-in storage (such as drawers and shelves), or using a trunk as a coffee table. We really need a new bed (the old one creaks constantly!) and an ottoman bed is top of my list.

Adopt Minimalism

Minimalism has been a huge trend in recent years and it can be a great space saver. Minimalism is about owning less, making better buying choices and caring for possessions, with the aim of decluttering and achieving a more tranquil living space. In addition to saving space, adopting minimalism can help you save money, as the average British household has almost £1500 worth of unused tech. We’ve been trying to clear stuff out for the last few months now, and have made quite a bit of money selling things we don’t need any more – it’s definitely easier to sell things than to try and find somewhere to put them!

Make Use of Walls

When you think of finding additional storage, your immediate thought may be to extra furniture. While this would offer more storage, it would also take up a lot of floor space, which can make your home feel smaller. To maximise space, make use of the walls. Most homes have a lot of unused vertical space, which can be filled with shelves for books, rails for hanging pots and pans, or even a bike rack.

Add Under-Stairs Storage

Most under-stair storage areas are massively underutilised, containing a vacuum cleaner and odd bits of junk, but the good news is that adapting this area can help to maximise space. You could install pull-out cupboards for shoe storage, create a pantry with floor-to-ceiling shelving, or add an extra room to your house with a hideaway home office.

Decorate Carefully

Finally, an old trick that interior designers have been using for years – light and colour. Dark colours and bad lighting can make a home feel smaller. Opt for lighter colours to open up a room, choose window dressings that don’t block natural light, and use lamps to open up alcoves and corners. We’ve just decorated our hall and stairs – it’s all very pale grey and the whole space looks so much brighter. Keep yours eyes peeled for a before and after post that is coming soon!

Now you can make your home feel more spacious with a few clever tricks!