Bright ideas we gathered from your comments.

1. Ikea sofas have a lot of fans. As Ayse Says: “We’ve had an Ektorp sleeper sofa for about six years, with fairly frequent use. All reports on it are that the bed part is very comfortable, and I like the couch quite a bit. We got a couple of sets of slipcovers so we can change the look and give it a washing regularly (a requirement with lots of pets).

2. But for overnight guests, consider other alternatives: “No sofa bed is comfortable,” suggests Suz. “Get a plain Ikea sofa and an Aerobed. They are amazingly comfy for sleeping on.”

See on the merits of Ikea sofa beds here.

3. Shopping for a Klismos chair? Reader Reading Glasses tells us how to spot an orginal. He writes: “In a traditional klismos (i.e. the ones depicted on Greek vases as well as the reproductions by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings back in the 1930s), the legs are very like sabers, dramatically curved to the front and back.

See more about Klisomos chairs here.

4. Here’s a clever way to hang photos. Ellobie in Chicago explains her “picture dent,” a thin shelf “running all around the room (not a rail, just a groove with hooks you could snap in). We took two lonnnng loops of ribbon, hung each from a hook, then plopped a board covered in contact paper through the loops and perpendicular to the wall. It was a surprisingly strong and sturdy setup!

See Erica’s cute d.i.y. window shelf here.

5. Smaller can be better! We asked if you could imagine living in a teeny house, and as Meesha says: “Totally! That is, if it was just me. But I happen to be attached to a pack rat–there just wouldn’t be enough room for both of us AND all his stuff. We recently downsized from a house + garage to a smaller apartment, though, and frankly the move was really liberating. We now spend less time taking care of our stuff (shuttling it around to make more room, digging through it to find things) and more time doing things that make us happy. There’s still plenty of room for improvement, but we’re on our way.

See more about living in very smal houses here.

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