It goes without saying that those of us without a massively huge budget know the importance of working with small spaces. Most of us live in apartments that many of our relatives think would be impossible to reside in. “You live in that tiny space and pay how much?” I have encountered this baffled statement so many times that I now have a series of ready-made responses. The overall gist is this, “It works perfectly well for me, I know how to work and live in smaller spaces.” This of course is a process learned over many struggles from the “how to fit that vacuum in my room sans closet,” to the “how to store anything and somehow make it accessible without needing to undo the entire intricately laid puzzle of things you have so achingly placed in their not-so perfect place.” “A process of give and take,” I say, “You give things away in order to take new things.”

Evergreen's 500 Ideas for Small Spaces is a brilliant collection of design principles, ideas, and photographs to help you attempt the creation of your perfect small space. Separated into a series of different categories, each with fifty or more tips, it is clear that today’s budding architects have not left the question of size behind. As the introduction states, “the big issue today is how to take the maximum advantage of space.”  This book achieves this through two different forms; either the use of commercial design ideas transplanted into the domestic setting or, if “altering the form of a home are limited, it is necessary to draw on a wide range of tactics derived from the art of decoration.” The startling and ingenious photographs showcase the transformation of the tiniest of spaces into marvelous sitting rooms or bedrooms, offices and kitchens.

The chapter headings lead insight into all that this book has to offer: wall coverings and ceilings, floors, dividing and unifying elements, lightening, colors, furniture (from corridors and shelves to mirrors and electrical equipment). In essence, everything is here, laid out in principles that can be applied to many a home. Here are a quick few for the New Yorker who may not have the expendable income to, for example, add a polished or marble floor to their apartment in order to increase the overall light:

332 A large mirror with a thick wooden frame standing on the floor in a spotlight is sufficient to make an entrance look bigger.

420 Shoe holders are narrow and therefore perfectly suited to storing papers without taking up much space.

304 Spaces entirely painted in warm colors tend to look small, so its important to leave one surface white.

290 Yellow or soft orange ceilings make spaces covered in wood appear larger.