My husband has been saying this since we bought a tiny house by the ocean, “small is the new big”. Frankly it’s a joke between us because we can’t afford a larger house in our area. It’s wonderful to have a big home but large spaces aren’t always so comforting are they? There’s something to be said for small reading nooks, intimate dining rooms and petit gardens.  A friend of mine that has an enormous house says that his two daughters love it when they go on vacation and the whole family is in one hotel room. The girls feel safe and secure. A colleague of mine, David Masello, wrote an interesting article for Hamptons Magazine this month entitled “Small is the New Big”. Buyers, builders and designers are rethiking the scale of their homes and also their furniture. I took a few photos around my own home showing you a few small end tables I’ve recently purchased which are working so well in our small space. Pictured above in a small hallway I’ve put two 31″ Jasper chaises, from Room & Board end to end along a wall of windows to create a reading nook. Their Slim C-Table, $199, can slip over the chaise so you can relax and have a drink and book right at your lap. A Cozy Cable-Knit Throw, $99, from Pottery Barn is great to snuggle up in on cold winter days. Pillows are from ABC Carpet & Home combined with my shop’s linen pillows. Pictured below is a new table I bought from One Kings Lane. I bought two “Byron” side tables. Similar styles are on Worlds-Away.com. These are even smaller in scale than the C-Table and fit perfectly on either side of my Reese 63″ armless sofa in velvet from Room & Board. In the foreground I have a small scale armless chair from Safavieh in striped linen. Armless sofas and chairs keep the space open in small areas. As a coffee table in this small room I’m currently using a blue vintage trunk, similar to this gray one I found on ABC Carpet & Home’s site. The scale is what’s most important, the vintage trunk is just a matter of my personal taste mixing different styles together. The leather and chrome floor lamp is from Ralph Lauren. (keep reading…scroll down for more)

The movie “The Holiday” comes to mind when I think of small spaces. Kate Winslet’s character owns a charming small English cottage (pictured below). If you haven’t seen this 2006 movie also starring Cameron Diaz, rent it! The LA home Cameron Diaz’s character owns is beautiful as well.