Here are several decorating tricks that you can use to make small rooms look and feel more spacious.

Paint walls light or bright colors, which are more reflective than darker shades. Light colors help to maximize the effect created by natural light.

Paint your trims and moldings in either the same hue as the walls, or in a lighter color. Light objects appear closer while darker objects appear further away. Thus, lighter colored moldings will make your walls appear further back, making your room appear larger.

Stark white is the best choice for ceilings, to further increase brightness.

Use large mirrors in a room to reflect both natural and artificial light, making a room brighter during the day and at night. Mirrors bounce light back into the room, making it feel and look larger. Mirrors near a window are particularly effective, as the outdoors can be reflected, giving a feeling of spaciousness. Glass-front or mirrored cabinet doors make spaces feel larger and less cluttered. Mirrored closet doors or a wall of mirrors give an open, expansive feeling to a space.

Arrange larger pieces of furniture at angles. Furniture at an angle works to make the room seem larger because the longest straight line in any room is it’s diagonal, thus it leads the eye along the longer distance, rather than the shorter wall.

In small rooms, use scaled-down furniture, such as slim rockers, open-back chairs or a simple sofa or love seat. Overstuffed furnishings can overpower a small space. Tall furnishings should be placed at the end of the room opposite its main entry to keep the eye-level view unobstructed.

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