10 Small Apartment Decorating Ideas For Men

If you're using your flat as an actual living space rather than a place to crash between work and parties, then you'll want to know these 10 small apartment decorating ideas for men. You might be a bachelor looking to impress your potential girlfriend or wife, using your home as a meeting place for clients, or you might just like having a place you can actually call home instead of just a "dig." In any case, there are many cheap and easy ideas for sprucing up your apartment and turning it into a respectable place to call home.

1. Turn the couch and chairs to face the television. Few things are more annoying than having friends over when someone has to be stuck watching the television from an odd angle. Consider this the bachelor apartment version of Feng Shui.
2. Size isn't everything. Don't get a couch that's too large for a small apartment's living room. Don't get one that is undersized, either. Make sure the color matches the room. When decorating the living room, remember that black leather couches go with almost anything.
3. The carpet must complement the drapes. If your apartment came with puke green drapes to match your brown carpet or those stock white shutter drapes, part of your decorating plan should include replacing them. If your carpet is old, consider asking your landlord to replace that, too.
4. Upgrade the coffee table. If you have no coffee table in the living room, then consider getting one. If you have one and it's old or out of date, consider a newer one. Coffee tables are more important to decorating and sprucing up a small apartment than most people realize.
5. Become an art aficionado. At the very least, fake it a little. Buy a few cheerful pictures to decorate the walls. Something simple like scenic photography will work just fine. Putting a mirror behind your couch will make a small apartment actually look bigger.
   
6. Go clean up your room(s). Your parents told you this for a reason. For instance, as an adult you'll find that your girlfriend appreciates a well-kept apartment. Plus, you'll also finally know where everything is, including one or two things you may have given up for lost. Most importantly, keep your bathroom clean, and keep an air freshener around.
   
7. Get matching bed sheet sets. The fastest and cheapest way to decorate your bedroom is to buy whole sheet sets for your bed. The bed is the first thing people see when they come into the room.
   
8. Ask for a new paint job. If your landlord is offering any specials on re-painting apartments, take advantage of it. Or, ask them if you can do it yourself. Brighter colors are more cheerful and make a small apartment look larger.
9. Lighten up a little. Open the drapes during the day if you're home. Decorate your home by putting lamps in the corners to light up the rooms at night. Gloomy apartments are fun for Halloween parties or seances, but for visitors good lighting adds a cheerful element.
10. Go vegetarian. Put a plant or two in the living room and one in your bedroom or office to add some life to your small apartment. Even artificial plants will work in a pinch.