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While light and breezy colours are renowned for making rooms look brighter and, as a result, larger, don’t immediately dismiss darker shades when decorating small spaces.
Unless you intend to reconfigure the layout or undertake building works, the small room’s proportions will remain exactly that. But rather than searching for ways to disguise this, why not make the small room’s very size a statement instead?
Painting walls in rich plum, steel grey or midnight navy tones are immediately evocative, lending an interesting intensity to the room’s interior. Opting for darker, richly toned wall coverings works particularly well when decorating small spaces such as bathrooms and cloakrooms.
Equally, when decorating small spaces home owners would do well to consider having a dramatic floor laid – large granite tiles will bring a luxurious glamour to any bathroom, which is contemporary in style yet timeless in material. Doing so will introduce a sense of indulgence, in stark contrast to the room’s limited size. As the rooms in question are intended only for short periods of use, the dark colour schemes will not become oppressive. The loss of light will be to the benefit of the interior, rather than an expense.
Attracting the eye to one statement feature is another useful tool when decorating small spaces. By fixing the attention on this feature, the room’s cosier proportions are not allowed to dominate, and so the room develops an identity beyond its measurements.
Introduce a large painting in a smaller home office. Commission a mosaic feature wall for the bathroom. Hang a large tapestry in prime position above a log burning stove or fireplace, framed by two inviting arm chairs, in the snug. Adding a feature to these spaces can be achieved in very little time, with immediate rewards for you to enjoy.
It all begins with choosing furniture with proportions that are in keeping with the room. You wouldn’t position a large antique armoire in a tiny spare bedroom, for example, but there’s more to sympathetic furnishing than that.
Challenge your interior choices further and you’ll discover results that are as attractive as they are practical. Curved edges on the corner units of a small kitchen or pantry will make the room feel larger, while also allowing easier access and use. In rooms you use daily, small decisions like these will enhance your experience of the space enormously.
Another favoured technique is to use wall-mounted mirrors when decorating a smaller space. For optimum results, position mirrors opposite windows where possible. Doing so will allow them to reflect additional light and make your space feel larger thanks to the reflection of the outdoors, which creates the impression of greater depth. We particularly love the way the mirror from Newtons Furniture(picture below) warps the reflection of the mirror as a result of its convex shape.
For more advice when decorating with dark colours, click here.
If you’re still searching for the perfect feature for your space, discover how to create chic style with mirrors here and how to create a feature fireplace here.