Alaska Frontier Living

By Arash Allaei

We live in a small hand built log cabin off the grid in Alaska so I have to use some space saving solutions to make the most of what I have. There are a few techniques I have found that have saved me space and helped me to keep my living space be someplace I can be proud of.

In wall storage is an awesome option. I have converted many spaces into storage. I put shelving in all of my closets to increase their usefulness and I actually use an old in-wall ironing board space as a spice rack. I just installed some small pieces of wood as shelves it worked perfectly. Those little bottles fit just right into the space right alongside my bottles of hotsauce.

Bunk beds are a great option for increasing sleeping space in a small home. If you don’t have a guest room, I sure don’t, you need someplace comfortable for your friends to spend the night. Pullout couches are the common solution but I hate them. I always wake up with a stiff back. Even If you have guest room, bunk beds are a great option since they increase sleeping space without taking up floor space.

Make sure that as much of your cabin furniture can double as storage space to best utilize the limited spaces. Coffee tables need to also have drawers or they don’t make it in my door. The drawers help reduce clutter that seems to get attracted to coffee tables. I use a lot of standalone shelving units in my house, from the closets to the living room and everything in between. Buy bed frames with headboards that have shelving and drawers built into them for those items like an alarm clock and your phone. There are even some bunk beds with drawers built into them that act as dressers.

Page 2, Alaska Vacations