{"id":64249,"date":"2015-11-05T03:36:55","date_gmt":"2015-11-05T09:36:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=64249"},"modified":"2015-11-05T03:36:55","modified_gmt":"2015-11-05T09:36:55","slug":"ask-a-designer-from-furniture-placement-to-paint-colours-how-to-make-a-room-feel-bigger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2015\/11\/05\/ask-a-designer-from-furniture-placement-to-paint-colours-how-to-make-a-room-feel-bigger\/","title":{"rendered":"Ask a Designer: From furniture placement to paint colours, how to make a room feel bigger"},"content":{"rendered":"

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(Photo from Apartment Therapy website<\/a>)<\/p>\n

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As the weather gets colder and we come indoors, it’s easy to wish your indoor space had some of the open, airy feeling of the outdoors.<\/p>\n

It is possible to make a room feel larger than it really is: Choosing the right colours and finishes and arranging furniture properly can create the illusion of space.<\/p>\n

Here, three experts on designing small living spaces share their strategies for making rooms feel larger and more open, without the expense of construction or major redecorating.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

REFLECTIONS<\/p>\n

That classic advice is really true: Strategically placed mirrors will make a room feel larger.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey let your eye travel beyond the room,\u201d explains Maxwell Ryan, founder of ApartmentTherapy.com. In small dining rooms, Ryan suggests, place a large, horizontal mirror along one wall, so that while entertaining, you’ll see the reflection of guests at your table and flickering candles.<\/p>\n

But mirrors aren’t the only reflective option: New York-based designer Young Huh uses reflective, glossy paint finishes on ceilings to make her clients’ rooms feel taller and more open.<\/p>\n

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GO BIG<\/p>\n

Surprising as it sounds, Huh recommends adding one oversize piece of furniture to a small room. Playing with scale by adding something large amid more modest-size furniture, she says, tricks the brain into perceiving that the room must be fairly large if it can hold something oversize.<\/p>\n

Ryan says this works with art as well: Consider adding a large painting or other big piece of art.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt seems counterintuitive,\u201d he says, \u201cbut our eye likes contrast. We like variation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Long, dramatic curtains can trick your eye in the same way.<\/p>\n

\u201cHanging curtain rods all the way at the ceiling, using large art and big mirrors and vertical stripes with paint are great ways to make your eye go up visually,\u201d says Kyle Schuneman, co-author of \u201cThe First Apartment Book: Cool Design for Small Spaces\u201d (Potter). This has the effect of \u201clifting the ceiling and making it feel more spacious than it actually is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Huh agrees: \u201cWhere you have small or low ceilings, definitely have curtains go all the way up to the ceiling.\u201d<\/p>\n

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LOCATION, LOCATION<\/p>\n

\u201cDecluttering and cleaning up is always essential,\u201d Ryan says, but you don’t have to pare down your furniture. Instead, try rearranging it to let energy flow more easily.<\/p>\n

\u201cA room has good energy and good flow if you can vacuum it without moving any furniture, including the corners,\u201d Ryan says. \u201cIf you can’t get behind stuff, that’s a sign that the space is gonna feel a little crowded.\u201d<\/p>\n

Experiment with small changes in furniture placement and see whether the room feels different.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf your bed is pushed up against the wall on two sides,\u201d Ryan says, it may make the room feel tighter. Try moving the bed out so you can step out either side, he says. Losing a bit of actual space could make the room feel roomier.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

AREAS OF INTEREST<\/p>\n

“If you have just a studio or an open space, defining the areas makes it feel like there is more space,” Schuneman says, “because your eye is seeing multiple ideas.”<\/p>\n

Try using several small rugs to define different areas for sleeping, dining and relaxing. Or use different wall treatments, he says, like reclaimed wood or wallpaper, to further differentiate these areas.<\/p>\n

And in a studio apartment, \u201ctry creating a nook for your bed,\u201d Schuneman says, \u201cmaking it feel like a room within a room.\u201d<\/p>\n

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LIGHT OR DARK?<\/p>\n

This subject is open to debate. Huh has made clients’ rooms feel bigger with dark and bold colours.<\/p>\n

\u201cDark colours recede,\u201d she says, so if you paint a small room a rich chocolate brown or peacock blue, \u201cyou don’t notice how small the room is.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Ryan thinks light walls contrasted with a darker rug or dark-stained wood floor are also a strong choice. \u201cDarkness contracts,\u201d he says, while \u201clightness expands.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whether you choose light or dark colours, \u201cconsider painting the ceiling the same colour as the walls,\u201d Huh says. \u201cIt’s like that fashion tip … wearing the same colour all over\u201d makes you look taller.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

BRIGHTEN UP<\/p>\n

\u201cYour eye will only go where there’s light. It won’t go where there are shadows,\u201d says Ryan. \u201cSo lighting is the most important thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

It’s also easy to remedy, and \u201cdoesn’t require moving anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

The goal is to eliminate shadows. \u201cMake sure you have at least three points of light in every room,\u201d Ryan says, preferably floor and table lamps \u201cso the light is down where you’re living.\u201d<\/p>\n

The light from ceiling fixtures doesn’t count.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s very far away,\u201d he says, \u201cand makes you look bad.\u201d<\/p>\n

One exception to that rule: \u201cReally good track lighting … if it’s directed, pointed at your walls or cabinets.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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