I'm serious about that five square feet thing. My apartment is about as large as a conference table, complete with ugly mahogany furniture built into the walls. They have left almost no wiggle room to make it more appealing... key word: almost.
First of all, check out Apartment Therapy, my decor bible. This is where I learned I like ruffles. Step two: go nuts.
I like the Rosette Bedding from Anthropologie in ivory. Light colors will open up the room more than a navy or brown bedspread. Besides, sleeping in dark colors causes nightmares. Seriously.
You're starting to see a theme here, right? Ruffles. Lots of them. It's important to have a unifying theme in such a small space. I'm into these curtains from Urban for that obvious reason, and also because they're decently-priced. If only I had that adorable old-fashioned window, too.
Storage cubes from West Elm could save you a lot of space by serving as an ottoman as well as a cupboard.
Handmade garlands and knick-knacks from Etsy.com are affordable, and add a personal touch to your apartment without taking up space-- just make sure to buy cute wall-to-wall decor only, nothing that'll add to the clutter.
If you don't like ruffles, screw them. Pick a different theme-- orange, the Elizabethan Era, the Rolling Stone, whatever you want to live in-- and make it happen.
