Do you ever feel that your home is cluttered and cramped? Do you love your home, but hate the feeling of living in a shoebox? Smaller homes and apartments are cozy and easier to clean, but if you find yourself striving to use every spare bit of space, then you may need some help.
Here are six clever ways to create the illusion of more space in your home. Try them out and discover unused space you never knew you had.
Use Wardrobe Shelving Systems
Most wardrobes have just one clothing rail that hangs across the width of the closet which are not the most effective wardrobe storage ideas. While this is great for hanging clothes, it doesn’t do much for your other possessions and accessories such as shoes, scarves and jewellery. If you remove this clothing rail and install wardrobe shelves and multi leveled clothing rails, then you can store more and keep your closet better organised.
Install wire wardrobe shelving across the bottom of your closet for easy shoe storage and use shelves up above to store out of season clothing. To break up your clothing rails, install a barrier to cut your closet in half. Now install sets of shorter clothing rails on each side and organise your clothing how best suits you.
Choose Monochrome Colours For Small Rooms
When a room is done all in one colour scheme (different shades of white, for example), it creates a peaceful atmosphere. The eye isn’t startled by new colours, and it makes the room feel larger as a whole.
Use soft colours for monochromatic rooms to keep that feeling of peace. Blue is a calming, peaceful colour while green is natural and earthy. A white room will also open up the space and make it feel fuller.
Mirror, Mirror On The Wall
Small apartments tend to feel cramped once all the furniture is moved in and set up. To make your living space in your flat feel more open and spacious, hang a large mirror on the wall. A nicely-sized mirror will reflect the space you currently have and double the feeling of spaciousness in your room.
Small mirrors will work just fine, but try to opt for something large, whether it’s oval shaped or rectangular. Larger mirrors reflect more light so the room appears not only larger but also brighter.
You can also use clear glass furniture, such as end tables and desks to make the furniture look as if it’s not there at all. This will also help the room feel more open because the furniture will seem to blend in nicely and take in the colours from the walls and furniture. Just be careful you don’t run into your furniture.
Choose Your Furniture Carefully
Sofa sectionals are comfy and warm, but they also take up a lot of space. Big recliners might be great for watching rugby or football matches, but they’re bulky and make small rooms feel even smaller.
When choosing and arranging furniture for your small room, avoid clunky pieces with large arms and sofas with a skirt. These pieces feel bigger and look as if they’re sucking up all the room in your home. Instead, go for pieces that are lighter or raised on legs.Raised sofas create space underneath, which can be great for storage or just for an easier cleaning time.
Make Your Windows Appear Bigger
Your curtains don’t have to hang directly over the very top of the window itself. If you have some space above your windows, hang your curtains just a few centimeters above the window itself to create the illusion of higher windows.
Windows will appear larger if you hang curtain rods beyond the width and height of the window. Your ceilings will also look as if they’re just a bit higher than what they really are. If you have several windows close together, don’t try to hang individual curtains. Create one long curtain so it doesn’t look choppy.
Paint More Space
The colour of the walls and baseboard can make any room look larger if the colour is within the same colour family as the floor colour. For example, if you have light brown hardwood floors, choose two shares of a beige or taupe.
Blending these three colours together will make it harder to see where the wall ends and the flour begins. Continue using the wall colour paint on the ceiling to make the ceilings appear taller.
Even if your home is small and cozy, you can make it look as if you have space to spare. Try out some of these tips and watch your home expand.
Author Bio
Fiona Wilson helps people all over Australia to better organise their homes and lives with her business Wardrobe World. Working closely with Wardrobe World and GarageSmart, she is passionate about finding practical lifestyle solutions for her clients.
