Casa Kids: Space-saving children’s furniture for small-space living
The November 2012 issue of Dwell magazine (content not yet online) introduced me to Casa Kids, a Brooklyn-based children’s bedroom furniture company led by designer Roberto Gil. What amazes me about the furniture is how it is perfectly designed for small-space living. In addition to being very well made, almost all of the furniture also increases the function of a room — something that is so important in tight living quarters.
A few of my favorite space-saving pieces:
The Dumbo Loft Bed with Closet, which includes a desk and a closet in the first level and even has a hamper drawer for dirty clothes:
The Dumbo Storage Bed, which would significantly increase the amount of storage in any room. (Note, those are shelves on the front of the unit. There is a ladder that goes on the front left like in the picture above but that isn’t in this image.):
The Dumbo Folding Bunk Bed, which would be terrific in a room that serves as both an office and a guest room.:
You can check out the furniture online or in person at their showroom at 106 Ferris Street in the Red Hook neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. Most of the large pieces of installed furniture hover in the $4,000 price range, but smaller items are significantly less expensive.
19 comments posted
Posted by Shalin - 10/23/2012
hmmm…I love this stuff, but the price makes me want to look on instructables.com for an alternative. I would be very interested in buying plans for clever, simple furniture like this similar to how Tumbleweed houses do for their tiny house designs.
Posted by Helen - 10/23/2012
Actually, those are the steps and they are also drawers. No ladder.
Posted by Dennis - 10/23/2012
Holy cow, the price! I have a small space because I can’t afford more. How does paying $3500 for a bed help that?!
Posted by Dusty @ Wine Logic - 10/23/2012
That first piece is so cute that if I need to save sapce or not when I have a child, I will be looking for something like that.
Posted by Erin Doland - 10/23/2012
@Dennis — Imagine what it would cost to build a new closet in a room (easily $1,500), buy a desk ($500), storage dressers ($1,000), a bed frame ($1,200), and a mattress ($350) … it’s comparable in price to outfit all the pieces separately.
@Helen — In one of the other pictures there is a ladder. Maybe they can serve as stairs, too?
Posted by Rebecca - 10/23/2012
Cute, but anyone who can use a circular saw and buy high grade plywood could build one of these, esp the top 2, for a couple hundred dollars. Basic math, starting with the size of the mattress and how high you want the overall structure are all you need to get started.
Posted by Helen - 10/23/2012
It’s two different beds you have pictured – the loft bed has a ladder and the storage bed has stairs/drawers. Both are cool, but the price is just ridiculous!
Posted by Dustbunny - 10/23/2012
We invested in furniture similar to this from Flexa for our two children, and it was a big mistake. Thankfully, it wasn’t as expensive.
It really doesn’t unclutter: For kids, it just holds a lot more stuff that they didn’t need in the first place. As our kids grew, they didn’t like sleeping up high (it’s hard to snuggle with mom and dad when you’re up in the air) and we ended up taking the beds apart and using the components separately–at least the system allowed us to do that.
Regarding the comment @Dennis, the prices are ridiculous no matter how you choose to add them up. I don’t know any parents who would choose to (or could afford) remodel and pay thousands of dollars in furniture for their child’s room. $1,200 for a bed frame? $500 for a child’s desk? How about $20 at a yard sale? I think it’s better to “unclutter” the earth by recycling furniture that’s still safe and stable for children’s use.
Posted by Susan in FL - 10/23/2012
Save me from the folding bunk bed in a guest room!! DH and I sleep in a king size bed and neither one of us would be comfortable sleeping high above the floor. We both get up frequently during the night. Save me!
Posted by Erin Doland - 10/23/2012
The reason we post products on this site is to inspire our readership to think outside the box — to see solutions for problems in ways they might not have imagined before. Just because something is more expensive than you might spend doesn’t keep you from conceptualizing an alternative. What can you take from a post like this and implement in your space? How can you rearrange or design or create something that works for you and your needs? Be inspired.
Posted by Amanda - 10/23/2012
Thank you Erin for featuring this. Speaking as someone who lives in NYC, where this company is based, I have to note that this solution could allow a family to remain in a small apartment and $3500 is orders of magnitude cheaper than buying or renting a larger apartment. I also have to state that in this situation, one generally does not have the room to store tools like band saws nor the ability to use them.
Posted by STL Mom - 10/23/2012
Think of it this way: some people will pay $3500. Then their kids will move out, and these pieces will show up on Craigslist for significantly less. If it is well-built furniture, it will travel around for years and years, a little cheaper each time it is sold.
I think we could be more encouraging towards those who pay retail so we don’t have to!
Also, I would have loved that storage bed when I was a kid.
Posted by Jane - 10/23/2012
People who are interested in making similar things might find some inspiration (and free plans) here: http://ana-white.com/plancatal.....;style=All
Posted by Ottawa Storage Expert - 10/23/2012
Very nice designs! This is a must especially for those living in the condos and want to maximize space. What with all the toys and clutter of a toddler, right? Though it does come with a steep price.
Posted by grace - 10/23/2012
i would have loved this as a child. especially ths desk.
Posted by Molly - 10/24/2012
Back in college I lived in a dorm with 12′ ceilings. Most of us had adult sized versions of this set up in our rooms. Ours were made with plywood and assorted lumber and the standard dorm furniture. It was a great way to save space and leave room for entertaining and studying below.
Posted by Henave - 10/24/2012
My kids have small rooms and we bought a bed with drawers under it and on the end of it, plus a bookcase headboard from Roomstogo. It’s not heirloom quality, but it’s nice and sturdy, reasonably priced and they set it up for me. One of my boys also would have had issues with a bed that involved climbing to get into.
Posted by clothespin - 10/27/2012
My issue with the furniture, beyond the price… not made in the USA! For that price point, it would be nice to support local crafts people.
I’m also a big fan of the Ana White website. We made a bed for my 4 year old daughter from the site and it is lovely. She also has lots of inspiring storage and space saving designs. Plus – have you seen the play house loft beds there? Or the one that looks like a tractor? OMG – too cute!
We also used an Ana plan and modified it for our own bed. A queen platform bed that is high enough to put storage totes under that we hid with a bed skirt (very limited in storage in this house despite an extreme declutter recently).
Posted by Emmers - 11/03/2012
My bed setup in college (nice 12′ ceilings!) was a loft bed for 2 years, then bed-risers (with plastic storage tubs on wheels) for 2 years. Both ways increased storage space (and the room’s footprint) tremendously.
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