How to Make a Small Space Look Bigger: 7 Interior Design Tips

1. Empty spaces

Leave empty spaces on your tables and shelves. Surfaces packed with items make a space feel small, closed in, and heavy. Intentional spaces between pieces make a space feel larger because there’s an illusion of more depth.

2. Curtains

Kristen chooses curtains the same color as the wall and hangs them higher above the window and wider than the actual window to make a space feel expansive.

3. Doors

Doors take up space when they swing. Install pocket doors to save space because they slide out of the way. Barn doors have the same effect because they slide against the wall without taking up space.

4. Furniture

Wood can weigh down space and make it look cluttered. Transparent acrylic or glass furniture tricks the eye into thinking a space is larger. The pieces reflect light and blend into your space so the room feels lighter and airier. It will look like you have less furniture in that space than you really do.

5. Lighting

More light fixtures brighten a space to make everything look larger. Use three fixtures in a room: a ceiling light, table lamps, and a task light or picture light.

6. Go big

Large-scale flooring reduces lines and visual clutter, tricking the eye into thinking the space is larger. Large wall art also expands walls by bringing attention to the piece itself. Small pieces of art visually shrink a space.

7. Wall-mounted furniture

Wall-mounted furniture clears up floor space. Use wall hooks in your front entryway, a wall-mounted media unit in the family room, or a wall-mounted fold-out dining table.

How to make a small space look bigger

Which one of Kristen’s decorating hacks will make your small spaces look bigger?

For more small home ideas, discover these 7 clever storage ideas and home organization hacks or how these renters make the most fo the space in their tiny Tokyo apartment.

To see more videos, check out the Kristen McGowan YouTube channel.