Glen Forsyth
10 May 2020
For many of us, it’s more practical to live in a small apartment than a large home. However, it’s not always easy to manage. There’s a lot of limitations in the furniture you can have and the things you can do, however this should not prevent you from creating a cozy and fun space that you can be proud to call your home.
Our favourite design tips for small apartments
Placing mirrors in different parts of the house is an age-old trick proven to make a space look bigger however you have to do it strategically place them across windows so that they reflect light a large mirror across a furniture set or an open space also creates the illusion that the apartment extends that way.
One of the most effective things you can do, is paint your ceiling or cover it with wallpaper. This creates the illusion that the ceiling is higher, making your space feel bigger. Anything that draws your eyes upwards makes any space look and feel more spacious.
Choose light colours for the paint or wallpaper, and make sure that it goes well with the design of the entire room.
Darker colours tend to absorb light which has two effects it makes the room feel cosier, however it also makes the space feel smaller. If you want to make your apartment look more spacious, change the colour of your floors and walls to lighter shades. They will reflect more light and make your space feel airy.
Another of our design tips for small apartments, is consider putting up dramatic art pieces on your walls choose artworks that are large and bold to make your apartment look more spacious and also more expensive choosing large and bold art pieces is a similar concept to choosing fewer and larger decors instead of smaller ones smaller pieces always make a room feel more crowded.
Maybe it’s time to replace some of your furniture? Consider using coffee tables simplest and chairs that open up to reveal secret storage spaces you can even build some of these on your own store your magazine collection books toys and other items inside your furniture to clear up more space.
Drawing the eyes upwards creates the illusion of space so try to hang shelves near the ceiling this will not only give you more storage space for your books it will also make your ceiling appear taller and your apartment look a lot bigger.
This tip may seem counterintuitive however experts say it works wonders instead of putting many small decors around your apartment try choosing fewer however bigger ones ideally your decor should not be smaller than a regular size cantaloupe if you have a small space smaller decor is tend to make a room look crowded.
Aside from hidden storage spaces with furniture another design tips for small apartments you can do is to choose statement furniture that fills the entire room for example instead of placing smaller chairs in your living area consider going for a big couch this reduces the clutter and makes the room feel bigger.
This idea follows the same concept in fashions the same way that a striped shirt can make a short person look taller a stripe drug can elongate a living space just make sure to orient the stripes to the direction of the room that is longest to achieve optimal effects.
Instead of a huge cabinet occupying a large space on your floor mount a smaller one on the wall to create a floating effect this reduces the feel of clutter in your apartment and makes the space feel wider.
Colour coding your shelves creates a more structured look making your apartment look more organised and also makes it look bigger group items of the same size and colour in your shelves to make it look streamlined this can work on books shoes and almost any other items that you put in your shelves.
Just as darker walls make a room feel smaller so what a coloured curtain make your bathroom feel cramped consider changing your coloured shower curtain into a clear one a clear shower curtain will reflect light and make your bathroom look more spacious.
When thinking about design tips for small apartments, also consider removing drapes or curtains from your windows leaving windows uncovered creates the illusion of depth in a room this is because more light would be able to come in and more light means more space step you can still have some privacy by using blinds instead of drapes just try to keep them open up during the day.
You already know that more light creates more space consider adding or changing some of your furniture to glass or transparent ones glass pieces take up less visual space and reflect light making your space look more spacious they are also very classy so your apartment also look more elegant.
You only have a limited space so if you’re going to add two cores it’s better to choose functional ones think of mirrors that open up to reveal a secret storage space same goes with wall hangings.
Instead of overhead lights use a few smaller lamps to create more space in your apartment. This helps save money from lighting fixtures, and top-down lighting focuses too much light in one space spreading smaller amounts of light draws the eye around the room making it feel bigger.
Since you can’t always have natural light to widen your space all day you also need to use some artificial lights a trick is to add small spotlights in the ceiling to illuminate corners it will make your ceiling look higher and create more space in the room.
You can also use rugs to separate one area of the room from another this works great especially in studio apartments doing this helps create the illusion that there is more than just one space.
Instead of splashing all sorts of different colours around your apartment unify your interior design and use different shades of just one colour per room this will create a visual coherence that will make any space feel more open do this on your walls rugs and furniture.
Choose furniture with visible legs instead of those hidden underneath avoid sofas with skirts exposed Lakes create space between your floor and the furniture allowing more light to fill the room this is perfect for small apartments.
Stay away from contrasting colours when decorating your walls instead go for light shadows and as always try to draw attention up into the ceiling this is a great trick to make any small room feel more spacious.
Having different flooring styles makes a space look smaller if you have the same type of flooring all over the apartment it creates an uninterrupted flow effect making your space look larger of course this excludes your bathroom and maybe your kitchen space.
Similar to the effect of striped rugs you can add vertical accents with decors to enlarge your space this is all about tricking the eyes add two cores that strengthen the vertical elements in the room such as vertical wood paneling to emphasise height.
This is especially important for sofas never place an overstuffed sofa in a small apartment the lower it is the less crowded your living area will appear so stick to low-profile sofas and do the same to other pieces of furniture in the area.
We hope you enjoyed our design tips for small apartments, and these inspire you.
