When trying to decorate small living spaces it may begin to feel crowded and cluttered, causing you to avoid incorporating decorative pieces altogether. Not to worry, at Spotlight, we offer an exceptional range of decorative options to open up your space while making the most of a small room design. With a stunning collection of home decor pieces, you'll uncover how to elevate your interior styling and make your space appear larger.
For those wanting to learn how to make a small room look bigger, in this blog we have compiled a range of options to help you understand how to make a room look bigger.
Quick Links
- Style Your Walls To Elongate Your Space
- Use Rugs To Make Your Space Feel Bigger
- How To Make A Room Look Bigger With Curtains
- Open Your Space With Mirrors
- Use Lighting In A Small Room To Make It Look Larger
- Home Storage To Store Belongings
Styling Your Walls To Elongate Your Space
For smaller spaces, it may be harder to consider styling your space. In this scenario, it's important to consider all points of the room in making it appear to be larger. Elevating the walls of your space with the right colours, home decor and artwork can make all the difference.
What Colours Make A Room Look Bigger?
Selecting darker colours is a great idea for those wishing to establish a homely ambience, however it can make the wall feel closer, causing a room to appear to be smaller.
Understanding what colours make a room look bigger may seem to be difficult, however it is surprisingly easy to learn how to make a room look bigger with paint. Choosing light colours opens up a space making any room feel larger. Ultimately, darker tones make the walls feel closer to the centre of the space, while lighter colour tones such as whites, creams and beiges evoke a spacious ambience and easily illuminate when lightened by sunlight or lighting fixtures.
This is not to say that dark colours can't be incorporated. Dark colours can be utilised against lighter colours to highlight larger spaces, drawing attention to the larger length of the space. Using darker paint on the ceiling and painting the furthest wall as a feature wall in this same colour tone will help to elongate the room, making the space feel longer and therefore bigger!
Using Wallpaper To Make A Room Look Bigger
Commonly used as feature walls and for bringing an artistic accent into living spaces, wallpaper can help breathe new life into any room. Wallpaper is a low-maintenance approach to using your walls to maximise your space. Selecting striped wallpaper creates the illusion of your space seeming larger than it is. For a small room design, add horizontal striped wallpaper to make the room appear to be wider than it is. For rooms with lower ceilings, opt for wallpaper with vertical stripes to make the room appear to be taller!
Incorporating Wall Art to Open Your Space
For those wanting to avoid the handiwork of painting or applying wallpaper, installing wall art is a great and low-maintenance option for making a room seem to be larger. Selecting artwork at just the right size has all the impact. Selecting smaller pieces can have the opposite effect and may seem out of place while larger pieces may feel overwhelming.
Installing medium-sized artworks will even out your walls and create a balance in your space. Install horizontal artworks to make the space appear to be longer and wider. Alternatively, you may opt for a vertical work of art to make the ceilings appear taller.
For artworks complete with frames, go for timeless and minimalist types of frames. These are most commonly sleek in their design and shouldn't take up as much space compared to a more vintage approach to artwork framing.
When shopping around for wall art, landscape inspired designs of nature promote an openness and create a window-like affect to the outside world. Artwork highlighting oceanic and forest like sceneries are always a great choice for elevating your decor with their refreshing aesthetic.
Use Rugs To Highlight and Make Your Space Feel Bigger
Available in both plain and patterned designs, rugs combine decorative style and functionality to elevate your space. Rugs offer an additional layer for your space, all while making your living area feel slightly larger. It's common to think that larger rugs may swallow the space up, overpowering the surface area, however incorporating larger rugs can almost make the area feel larger as it seamlessly fits inside.
Displaying rugs under raised furniture allows the design to remain visible underneath your armchair, coffee table or sofa and opens up your space. It also creates a sense of your furniture being elevated rather than squashed into the floor.
The timeless design of plain rugs ensures they may be effortlessly incorporated into your decorative theme. Layering rugs on top of floorboards and carpet creates a separation in your floorspace, making it appear to be larger than it is.
There's no need to shy away from patterned rugs, thinking they'd make your space feel closed in. Striped rugs have a similar effect to striped wallpaper, creating the illusion of more floor space. Patterned rugs also work to introduce an artistic accent into your living room, bedroom or lounge room for an instant sense of elegance in your home styling.
Incorporating hall runners into narrow or short hallways will make the space feel longer while elevating the aesthetic appeal of your entranceway, welcoming guests with a sophisticated charm.
How To Make A Room Look Bigger With Curtains and Window Furnishings
Allowing natural light to seep through to your room is integral when styling smaller spaces. Ensuring windows aren't blocked by furniture and are completely covered is important to brighten your space. When choosing curtains to complete your window furnishings, shop for curtains that allow natural light to seep through. Start by exploring sheer curtains, a great option for those wanting to learn how to make a room look bigger.
Sheer curtains are a stunning addition to any living space as the breezy fabric effortlessly flows and lets natural light seep through to your living space. They offer a subtle sense of privacy while brightening your space. White sheer curtains in particular have a brightening effect that make any space appear to be larger. Avoid darker toned block-out curtains as these have a minimising effect on your space, making the room feel cosier and intimate.
When installing curtains for a small room design, consider hanging them from a higher advantage point, above your window furnishings. This allows the curtains to drape effortlessly down and assists in making the window appear to be larger with the curtains covering more surface area of your walls.
Complete your window furnishings update by pairing your sheer curtains with a sheer roller blind for a peaceful update that promotes sunlight opening up your space.
Open Your Space With Mirrors and Reflective Surfaces
Perfect for touching up your appearance or for adding an artistic accent to your living areas, mirrors are a great option for elevating your home styling. Mirrors allow light to bounce off the surface creating a showcase of the reflection of your room.
Install Wall Mirrors as a Focal Point
Wall mirrors are available in a great range of shapes and sizes, bringing dimension to any room they are placed in. When rounded mirrors are installed, it creates a soft display of shape while square mirrors offer a more rigid and structured approach. Arched wall mirrors combine the elements of these two types for a delightful display of shape. Arrange wall mirrors in clusters to create a layered reflective display.
When displayed on their own, wall mirrors contribute a minimalist yet luxurious style of decorating that breathes new life, expanding any space.
Incorporate Standing Mirrors
You may decide to open your space even further by incorporating standing mirrors into your home styling. These larger mirrors stand on their own for a low-maintenance installation process and offer an ample reflective surface that reflects more of your room, making it appear to be larger than it is.
Use Lighting In A Small Room To Make It Look Larger
Brightening your space with the illuminating glow of downlights has an expanding effect on smaller spaces. Lamps help to create shadows and highlight open spaces, making them the perfect finishing touch to any room.
Luxurious Table Lamps to Add Soft Ambience
Placing table lamps in corners of smaller rooms brightens up a space that may not receive as much illumination from down lights. With compact, smaller sizes to choose from, they are easy to incorporate amongst a wide range of decorative themes. Most table lamps emit a glow from both the top and bottom of the lamp shade, creating a dimensional display of light that offers a generous lighting source.
Elegant Floor Lamps For a Sleek Look
For some smaller room designs, it may be easier to incorporate floor lamps into your home styling. Floor lamps usually feature a slimmer design and stand tall, bringing an accent that adds height to your living area. Providing a wider glow than table lamps, floor lamps are not as harsh as downlights and allow you to set the mood while illuminating otherwise darker corners of your space.
Whimsical Fairy Lights And Pendant Lights
Alternatively in rooms where there is not as much surface area to incorporate floor and table lamps, you may opt for decorative fairy lights or pendant lamps. These are displayed from the ceiling or mounted against walls, making any space feel well-lit. In rectangular-shaped rooms, display fairy lights along the length of the longer wall, drawing attention to the longest part of the room. This causes the room to feel longer than it is.
For shorter rooms, display pendant lamps from the ceiling, drawing attention to the height of the room rather than the length. This way an additional lighting source is added, brightening your room, without taking up any floor space allowing you to position necessary furniture underneath.
Home Storage To Store Belongings and Free Up Space
Decluttering your space and maximising storage will have you uncovering a world of possibilities in learning how to make a small room look bigger. Ensuring pathways and surfaces are clear of belongings will breathe new life into your space, making it feel larger than expected.
Storage Boxes And Baskets
Stylish storage boxes and storage baskets elevate your home styling while organising your space. They are an exceptional approach to storing away unused items, helping to clear walkways with ease. Once items are placed away, it instantly makes any room feel bigger as your space is now organised.
Convenient Storage Furniture
Many furnishings options are available with built-in storage additions for you to organise your space. Store away blankets and cushions in hollow storage ottomans, utilise coffee tables with drawers to stow away smaller belongings and maximise the limited space you have in smaller rooms. Storage ottomans are a stylish and functional option for keeping your home organised.
Maximise Cupboard Space
Cupboard space is usually hard to come by in smaller rooms. It is important to maximise as much of this space as possible. Installing additional shelves into these cupboards in some cases can double the storage capacity of cupboards. In bedrooms, store away larger clothing options, like coats and gowns, to minimise your items from overwhelming your space. In the kitchen, utilise cupboard space to store away larger cooking essentials such as pots and pans which can usually make the space feel cluttered.
Find Everything You Need To Make A Small Room Look Bigger At Spotlight
Looking to expand your space and elevate your home styling? Look no further than Spotlight's selection of home decor to maximise your space while enhancing your decorating experience. Shop online, pay your way and we'll deliver your order straight to your front door, or visit your nearest Spotlight store and our team will help you find everything you need to update your window furnishings with curtains.
For more information on other products you can use to decorate your home, check out our buying guides including Home Decor Cushions Buying Guide, Home Fragrances Buying Guide and Rugs and Mats Buying Guide to establish a homely space.
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