Make your small space larger

If you live in a small apartment or home, there are things you can do to make a small room feel more spacious, and less cramped. With color, furniture arranging, and interesting lighting, your space won't feel so cramped. Try some tips here see if it works for you.

Clear Out the Clutter-- Work out ways to get collections out of view, organized behind doors, table skirts, or on shelves. With things neatly arranged and out of sight, the space that is in view will feel orderly and open.

Open the Way—Don’t let furniture and accessories blocking the view of a room. Moving furniture out and away from walkways, you'll open up the space and make it feel larger. You can also choose short pieces of furniture like an ottoman, an armless, open chair, or a low table, and place large, tall pieces along a wall rather than out in the open space. If you can see the floor, the room will look larger.

Chooser Soft, Light Hues-- Whereas dark, warm colors make a space feel cozy and intimate, light, cool colors make a space feel open and airy. For optimum effect, select soft tones of blues and greens.

Use single Color Scheme-- Choose colors that are in the same color family. Cool colors and delicate warm colors on most surfaces give the room a more open look.

Coordinate Wall and Furniture Colors-- Pieces of furniture are less interrupting and tend to blend with the space if they're colored to match the wall color. Contrasting colors tend to break up a space.

Let in the Light-- Any room will look larger if it's well-lit, either by natural light or artificial lighting. Get rid of heavy draperies and open up the windows to let the light of the outdoors into the space.

By using soft, snuggly upholstered pieces, dark, warm tones, and dramatic lighting, your tiny corner can become a wonderful private space.

Small is beautiful!