interior
Beleaguered by tiny rooms? Just because your home is short on square footage, doesn’t mean it has to feel cramped. How to make the rooms in your home look bigger is something that most people would like to know more about. We have compiled 8 easy ways to make your rooms look bigger and more comfortable. Read on...
Mirror, mirror:
Mirrors are the quickest way to make a room appear larger. They create a wonderful impression of space, tricking the eye into thinking that the room is far more spacious than it actually is.
A twist on this idea is to choose architectural-style mirrors which create the illusion of an extra window or door.
Space it out:
Shoving furniture against the wall doesn’t guarantee a larger room. Try angling your bed or our favourite trick of floating the sofa in the living room with a skinny console behind it. Breathing room around your furniture lends the appearance of more space.
Paint with light hues:
While dark colours do make a room seem cozy, they often give the illusion of less space. The reason: light colours reflect and multiply light, while dark colours absorb it. Choose lighter colours like white, creams and dove greys when it comes to paintings your walls. Paint your walls, trim, and detailing in different shades of one colour, such as white, off-white, and beige to expand a room.
Double the fun:
Investing in furniture that serves many functions is a simple way to streamline a room. Just consider how much room you could free up by having a desk that doubles as a dining room table or even a bed that doubles as extra storage space. Try a vintage steamer trunk or an ottoman with built-in storage to tuck away blankets and towels for a clean look. Similarly a coffee table with multiple levels gives you more places to stash books and magazines.
Up up and away:
Low ceilings are notorious for making rooms of decent feel nonetheless cramped. Combat that effect by making the most of the vertical space. Decorate with accents like long curtains and pendent lights - anything to draw the eye upwards. In order to achieve the effect of a higher ceiling, simply tape off a portion of your ceiling about one foot away from where it meets each wall, and paint it the same color you have on your walls. The extra border will draw the eye up right from the wall to the ceiling, creating the illusion of a higher ceiling.
Optical illusions:
Never underestimate the power of optical illusion. A well-placed floor rug, for example, creates a room-within-a-room effect. Where possible - such as under a dining room table - lay down a rug so as to emphasize that borders the floor covering. Also, choose furniture with glass components: You get the functionality needed without contributing to the visual heft of the room. For instance, forgo a heavy wood coffee table in favour of a glass-topped piece.
Think big:
It’s easy to assume that you should decorate a small space with small furniture, right? But few prominent furniture piece such as a statement armchair will keep the space uncluttered and open.
Knickknacks quickly crowd a room. Clear out the clutter, selecting only a few statement pieces to add interest and can give a room a larger, more luxurious feel.
Stow accent pieces until you have guests:
Of course you’ll need more surfaces when you are hosting a get-together - but you needn’t clutter your everyday space with unneeded tables. Use small, foldaway pieces to convert a room for a party. Folding side tables are great for holding hors d’oeuvres trays.
