Approach the furnishing of a 600-square-foot Makiki apartment like a spacious Nu'uanu Valley home and you'll run out of space in no time.

Urban life in small apartments requires careful furnishing choices. But this doesn't have to mean giving up comfort by watching television on the floor or dining on a folding table.

"With all the new high-rise condos, people are looking for smaller scale furniture," said Jennifer Johnson, co-owner of Pacific Home on Ward Avenue. People also want furniture that is "stylish, yet functional," she said.

But compact, well-designed items aren't easy to find in a town where furniture stores are crammed with bulky, overstuffed couches. A few venues are rethinking their merchandise.

One way to save space is with pieces that double as storage or have other uses. Ottomans with compartments or trunks that serve as coffee tables can be found at stores alongside traditional sofa sleepers. "We purposely went out to find smaller furniture because we know people don't have a whole lot of space," said Bryan Dean Kitashima, owner of Mesh by Shari Saiki in Dole Cannery.

And you can always go modular. The big '70s trend is back. Almost all furniture studios offer pieces that can be customized for size. At Pacific Home, look for Dr. Pitt couches sold in separate pieces. INspiration carries a line of couches and wall units that can be customized.

We've ferreted out other furnishings for the cinder-block lifestyle.

Reach Loren Moreno at lmoreno@honoluluadvertiser.com.