A slatwall is a great space-spaver in a small home. Photos by Collin Richie.

How to make the most of your low-square-footage apartment or home

“It’s the 21st century peg board,” says Gardner, designer for Ultimate Storage Systems on Airline Highway. Slatwall is a durable, heavy, metal panel that is fastened to a wall inside of the home. It can be cut to custom fit any space and uses hooks, shelves, baskets and all sorts of organizational goodies. Gardner uses it in pantries to organize spices, snacks and coffee; in garages to hang gardening equipment, bikes, seasonal decorations and pool floats, in laundry rooms to dry clothes; and in offices to hang shelves.

“It is the best thing for small spaces,” she says. “And once you get slatwall, it’s a party.”

10 ways to organize small spaces inside your home:

1. Invest in a Murphy bed. It comes in multiple mattress sizes and can easily fold into a wall or storage unit to create more space in a room functioning as a guest room/office. If space is limited in a master bedroom that doesn’t have a closet, install a Murphy bed in that space and use shelves and drawers around the unit for storage and closet space, Gardner says.

2. Buy hanging baskets and drawers to fit inside cluttered small areas such as children’s closets or playrooms. Install shelves inside small closets and utilize tall ceiling space to build higher storage.

3. Install a sliding wardrobe mirror inside a closet.