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To be watching the 2012 American Idol Premiere was an inspiration. Not because of the besutiful voices. Not because of the witty judges. Not because of the sacrifices the contestants made to get to the auditions. No, it was because of the girl who lives in a tent.

Yes, in a tent. One of the contestants lives in a tent. And that is much smaller than an Edmonton apartment.

Many people struggle to fit all their stuff into a small apartment, but there are strategies to make everything fit without having to stumble over the stuff all over the floor. And some of these would even work in a tent.

ONE: Get rid of stuff. Yes, stuff is stuff. How much of it do you really need? Chances are you could get rid of a lot of stuff without really missing it at all. Books? There are libraries and the Internet. Nick knacks? Seriously? Kitchen tools. Keep the ones you use every week, but if you pull out the waffle iron once a year and use the wok once every six months, how badly do you want to store it the rest of the time. I mean, in a tiny apartment, do you really want to use your little space as a warehouse?

TWO: Go compact. Get plates and bowls and containers that fit inside each other. Measure boxes so that they fit nicely inside cupboards and drawers and make the best use of space. Buy the smaller size, when items come in more than one size.

THREE: Go vertical. Put things up on wall hook. Use the backside of doors to hang spices, brooms, etc. You can place shelves on the walls near the ceiling to store clothes in the off-season, photos, and other things you might not need on a regular basis. Choose narrow shelving that goes high, rather than deep shelves that use up limited floor space (even better, make sure the shelving is closed, so that the wall looks less cluttered and the space feels larger). Pots and pans and ladles can most likely be hung on the wall.

FOUR: Go foldable. There are beds available that spring up against the wall. There are tables that can easily fold. You don’t need a dining room table open all the time if you usually eat by yourself in front of the television. Foldable chairs can also come in handy. “Foldable” even works with food; you might also want to choose powdered food in some cases. Why store water in cans, when the water is already in the pipes?

FIVE: Go for hiding places. Yes, there is plenty of place to store things under the bed, even in Edmonton. The dust bunnies will just have to move out. Behind the couch? Why not? Under the couch? Ok…maybe. Do you have a coffee table or a coffee table chest? Yes, you can store things inside the coffee table. And end tables. And bedside tables. Get tables that are also storage.

There are so many clever ways to make a little space big. Or at least a little less little. Pick the ones that fit your lifestyle.