Space to live in a small home

When you live in a small home, you need to embrace the space and make the most of what you have. Love the home you live in!

 

Increase the height and length of curtains

 Mount curtain rods and rails higher than the window to create the illusion of a higher ceiling and bigger room, and let curtains fall to the floor. The eye is immediately drawn upwards and fooled into believing the space is larger than it is.

For made-to-measure curtains, blinds, rods and poles visit FinishingTouches. You will find plenty of advice and tips for dressing your windows in our Window Treatments section.

Perfect example of how curtains up to the ceiling make a small dining room appear much larger than it is.

 In this living room, the curtains are mounted higher than the actual window size to draw the eye upwards and deflect from the small proportions of the space.

Leave curtains open for natural light

Every room needs lots of natural light, and plenty of light works in your favour in a small room. Natural light creates a feeling of space, while dark rooms tend to feel claustrophobic. Try to arrange furniture so that it doesn't block off windows, and use light, airy fabrics to frame windows.

If privacy is your main concern and you don't want nosey neighbours looking into your home, look at installing honeycomb blinds or sheer curtains to give privacy.

Let mirrors shine

Mirrors and mirrored furniture bounce light around a room and go a long way towards making a small space appear larger. Using mirrors is a classic designer trick that has been used for hundreds of years. Visit our Art & Framing section for ideas to make your own framed mirrors.

BELOW: Make abundant use of mirrored furniture wherever possible. There are suppliers in South Africa that manufacture or design mirrored furniture.

 

 

Not everyone has the budget to afford mirrored furniture, but framing your own mirrors is definitely an affordable option. If you rent a home, lean mirrors against the wall to work their magic in a small room.

A cosy dining area takes on new dimensions with a wall of mirrors.

Fool the eye with stripes

You can use stripes in a variety of ways to fool the eye; vertical stripes give the illusion of a higher ceiling and horizontal stripes are perfect in a small room to give the illusion of a larger space. Find tips on painting horizontal stripes in our Decorating section.

You don't have to paint walls to add horizontal stripes - use fabric. Curtains or rugs with horizontal stripes will also fool the eye into thinking a room a bigger.

Horizontal stripes on a wall don't have to be in a single colour - tone-on-tone stripes can be used to introduce colour and interest to a plain room. Take colours from the room, tone these down, and paint onto a wall to instantly make a room feel larger.

Consider proportion

When furnishing a small room, consider the size and amount of furniture going into the space. A single, large sofa provides plenty of comfortable seating and won't take up as much space as multiple small pieces and the room will feel less cluttered and more open.

Arrange furniture to allow for easy movement and take out any pieces that block the flow - less furniture means more space.

BELOW: Rather than take up valuable floor space with bulky furniture, look at how you can use walls for display and storage. Get crafty and make your own floating shelves.