For large dinner parties, expand the table into the family room. Home magazine editor Gale Steves said people should ask themselves whether they really need a dining room that's only used two or three times a year. Many small houses, Steves said, have more usable space than larger houses. While wide-open spaces like the eating area have their place in a small house, so do small private spots. Adults in particular should have a get-away spot other than their bedroom.
Window seats are a perfect example of a small area that draws people.
In an office area of the house, Susanka dropped the ceiling even lower to create a kind of cocoon. She said that Japanese architecture has recognized that lower ceilings make people sit down. The feeling has nothing to do with the size of the rooms. But small does not have to mean claustrophic. In fact, Susanka said a key is to have long, diagonal views to make the house seem larger.