Sides recently designed the interior of a 1,200-square-foot beach house in the planned resort community of Rosemary Beach, Florida. The house was designed as a second home for Winky and Bobby Weil and their two children. Throughout the house, Sides designed space-saving features like a hinged breakfast table that can be folded up against a wall of cabinets to leave the room more open.

Joe Nye, managing director of Suzanne Rheinstein Associates in Los Angeles, California, also suggests incorporating objects with multiple functions to make the most of limited space. "Buy pieces that don't have a static function," Nye says. "A desk could also function as a dining room table." Nye emphasizes that having less space does not mean having less style. "Pick smaller and fewer fabulous pieces," he says. "Rooms should have proper scale and translate the owner's taste."

Proper scale is the design mantra used by both Nye and Sides in dealing with small spaces. Nye, the self-described right-hand man for decorator Suzanne Rheinstein, illustrates this concept using the example of a guesthouse recently decorated by Rheinstein. "The rooms are not filled with bulky pieces. The furniture is scaled for the room," Nye says.

In the Rosemary Beach house, Sides designed the rooms with furniture that stands on thin legs. A small table on wheels fits the small kitchen, and it's light enough to be easily rolled into a corner for more open space. Furniture on legs keeps the floor area clear of solid, bulky furniture that can overwhelm a small room.