Just because you don’t have a huge home doesn’t mean you can’t flaunt your style. Decorating a small space, just like decorating a large one, simply requires ingenuity in design and a good eye for what works and what doesn’t. And while the focus is naturally going to be a little bit different when you’re working with less square footage, the general rules of design are pretty much the same.
follow the 8 tips below for decorating a small space and making your home shine.
Make your kitchen go on a diet
Replace bulky fridges and stoves with trimmer models. Many companies sell slim appliance models specifically designed for people who live in small spaces. Limit the number of appliances you have to those you use, or find appliances that serve a multitude of functions, like a toaster oven as opposed to a toaster.
Keep your sightlines clean
One of the biggest principles of efficient home design is preserving the illusion of space. When buying accent pieces or functional furniture, choose a material that won’t obstruct sight lines. In other words, look for mesh chairs, stools without backs, acrylic lamps, and other less intrusive designs. Additionally, look for textured items instead of plain ones. For example, go for rough glass instead of smooth, clear glass.
Reflections everywhere
Speaking of double duty, mirrors add both additional light and the feeling of additional space into rooms by reflecting natural and non-natural lighting and giving an illusion of more square footage. They’re also practical on their own. Use one large mirror or arrange a few smaller ones throughout a room. You can even create a gallery wall of mirrors like you might do with art.
Take advantage of vertical space
Don’t neglect your walls. Making the most use of vertical space means both playing around with taller items and affixing your walls with things like shelving and art that add vertical depth in addition to the spaciousness you’ve worked to create on the floor. If you have a piece you love but can’t find a place for—a beloved vase, for instance—hang up a secure shelf and put it there instead. And when you’re hanging drapes, install the rod only about 2 inches below the ceiling or crown molding, which adds an illusion of extra height.
Color for space
Decorating experts will advise you to paint your walls a soft, light color to pull your focus to things that are more interesting, like a view outside of your window if you happen to have one, or a particularly interesting piece of furniture. Darker colors tend to close in spaces and minimize space. If your spaces are naturally interesting, featuring exposed brick or hardwood, keep as much of it unobstructed as possible and use complementary colors.
Less is more
With a small house, quality is much more important than quantity.
Don’t force things to fit when it causes them to feel subpar, squashed, or unloved. Instead, it recommends making some hard choices and only including things that can be given the space that they deserve.
The overall feeling of your home comes from the sum of all its parts, so if every room is a joy to use then your whole house will be a pleasure to live in.
Store things out of sight, or make storage look good
There are so many great storage options out there that also serve as beautiful pieces of décor. Choose furniture items that provide you with additional storage solutions, like ottomans that can store linens and under-the-bed storage that looks like cool cabinetry. Try to find ways to store your items without just shoving everything into a closet.
Look for multi-purpose furniture
Furniture that can do double duty will save you both space and money. And thanks to the tiny house/tiny apartment trend, there is no shortage of ingenious furniture items that either serve multi-purpose uses or fold up to make space in your home when they’re not in use. Desks, dining tables, and even king-sized beds come in styles that can easily be put away to make more room to move around. Likewise, you can find furniture that serves a variety of purposes, such as beds that can convert into couches and side tables that can convert into desks.
A small house is not a problem, it’s an opportunity to get creative.
