How To Make A Small Room Feel Bigger Without Spending A Fortune

How To Make A Small Room Feel Bigger Without Spending A Fortune

This blog post is here to answer the question “How To Make A Small Room Feel Bigger?

Here is a guide full of tips and tricks to help you create a room that feels more spacious than ever.

Remember, personal preferences play a significant role in decorating, so feel free to adapt these tips to suit your style and taste.

When decorating or re-decorating it is possible to be budget-friendly. Consider thrift stores, garage sales, and repurposing what you already have.

Discover ideas for your small space where size doesn’t matter, but the illusion of space does.

Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are ‘affiliate links’. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission.

How To Make A Small Room Feel Bigger With Furniture Placement

Experiment with different furniture arrangements to find the most efficient layout.

Think about how the space will be used for most

Tailor the furniture and layout to your specific requirements.

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Vanessa’s Cabin
Although this is a large couch in a small space, the purpose of this space is to sit around the fire and appreciate the view. Therefore this couch works perfectly in this small room.
small living room
Sarah Griggs
This sitting room was designed for socializing, note the abundance of seating while not feeling cluttered.
kitchen dining lounge combo
STEPHEN KARLISCH
A small space doesn’t mean you can’t have people over or a large family. Work with what you have, a bench can seat more people than chairs. Here the bench against the kitchen island and a large table don’t affect the flow by taking up too much space.

Place Furniture Off Walls

Create a more dynamic and spacious layout by allowing some furniture to float in the room

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
EDMUND BARR
With the furniture floating in this room, you can take full advantage of the large windows. Which in turn allows for more light to enter the room.
furniture against wall
 Yellow Brick Home
Moving furniture off the wall is not always possible in some spaces. However, a great idea is to place a shelf between the couch and the wall. The shelf gives you storage and brings the couch into the room more without affecting the flow of the room.
Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Michelle Becker
Bringing the couch away from the window is to allow the natural light to drench the white couch in sunlight. Instantly brightening the room.

Furniture Against The Wall

Depending on the shape and layout of your space, place furniture against the wall to help create an open center and flow.

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Alyssa Vela
lounge room corner sofa
Mark Fox

How To Make A Small Room Feel Bigger With The Right Pieces

Scale The Furniture To The Space

Choose furniture that fits the scale, style, and purpose of the room.

ladder for storage in small bedroom
A Beautiful Mess
This blanket ladder takes up less space than a basket but still fits both the scale of the room and the style.
Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
MATTHEW WILLIAMS
Placing larger items such as a big couch in a small space can give the illusion of space. As a posed to squeezing in mulitple smaller pieces.

Multi-Functional Furniture

Opt for furniture that serves multiple purposes, such as a sofa bed, storage ottomans, or a fold-out desk.

table in lounge room
Combine a console table as a desk in a small space.

For more Home Office Inspiration have a read: Desks For Small Spaces: Sleek & Space-Saving And Two-Person Home Office Layout Ideas For Small Spaces

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
OHN BESSLER
Placing a tray on poufs gives them another use as a coffee table.
sofa bed
Ikea
One of the best interior design tips for small spaces is having a sofa bed. Not only is it great for guests but perfect for a movie night or snuggling up on a cold night. Most sofas come with storage underneath which is another plus.

How To Make A Small Room Feel Bigger With Clear Floors

Declutter

Keep the room clutter-free by selecting a few key decorative pieces. Clutter can make a small room feel cramped, so choose items that add value and appeal without overwhelming the space.

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
With a clear space, the light can bounce off the white in the room to help it appear larger. Although there are a lot of items in this kitchen everything is put away to give the space a sense of openness.

Enjoy some more Decor Tips: Decorate Your Kitchen On A Budget

studio apartment
Chloe Berk
Having hidden storage and a place for everything instantly makes a small space bigger. For example, this space has a trunk at the end of the bed, under-bed storage, and a vertical shelving unit.

Having a small space can make cleaning feel like a never-ending task as it doesn’t take long for a small room to feel cluttered and in need of a clean.

Both air purifiers and robot vacuums have helped us a lot when living in space spaces ( 4 people + small Paris apartment). The air purifiers help to give the room a sense of freshness and a robot vacuum speaks for itself. Let it run at night and the floor is clean in the morning.

Go Vertical

Use floating pieces and wall-mounted storage to free up floor space. or use floating furniture to create a sense of flow.

vertical storage
Michael Sinclair
Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
DYLAN CHANDLER

How To Make A Small Room Feel Bigger With Lighting

Emphasize good lighting to make the space feel larger and more inviting

small space lighting
Yellow London/Matt Clayton
The aim of lighting in a small room is to minimize dark areas. Not only to ensure that the space is well-lit but also to give the space an open and bright feel.
Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Ikea
Layering lighting adds brightness and style. As shown here, an oversized shade provides a beautiful focal point while illuminating the room.
mood lighting
 Future / Brent Darby
Have multiple light sources in a small space not only to open the space up but also to create mood lighting.

Use Mirrors

Place mirrors strategically to reflect light and make the room appear larger. Mirrored furniture or a large mirror on one wall can be effective in creating the illusion of more space.

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Chris Stout-Hazard
an oversized mirror with a minimal frame gives this small living room the feel of a space bigger than it is.
mirrors on wall
Display a collection of mirrors to not only reflect light but act as wall art.
Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Lamps Plus
Bounce light from a lamp off a mirror because light, natural or artificial, will help to expand a room

Maximize Natural Light

Keep window treatments minimal to allow as much natural light as possible. Use sheer curtains or blinds that can be easily opened. Natural light helps open the room and makes it feel more spacious.

natural light
Helen Cathcart
Natural light does all the work in this space to brighten and enlarge the room.
Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Sheer curtains allow light to pass through from the window brightening the space.
light through glass doors
Bring natural light into other rooms in your home with glass interior doors.

How To Make A Small Room Feel Bigger – Choose The Right Rug

Select a floor covering that is large enough for most furniture to sit on or go wall-to-wall.

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Opt for a rug that has a large neutral pattern that adds texture to the space without being busy.
rugs in lounge room
Find a rug in a light shade of your favorite color to help visually expand the space. Also, lighter colors reflect more sunlight (or artificial light) than darker colors do, so the increased light in the space helps towards an open feeling.
stippped rug
Erika
Create the illusion of a wider room with strips that are running perpendicular to the walls.

How To Make A Small Room Feel Bigger With Tones And Texture

Don’t Be Afraid to Go Bold

Experiment with color and embrace the size of your small space by using darker shades to create a cozy atmosphere.

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Simon Brown
bold color in living room
Simon Bergström

How To Decorate Your Space With The Basics – is a post for budget-friendly decorating and using what you have.

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Trevor Tondro
Even in a small space going bold can work to your advantage. For example, this small apartment has a light and airy feel as attention is drawn to the couches and the back wall, not to the size of the room.

Light Colors

Use light, neutral colors for walls and furniture. Light colors create an illusion of space and make the room feel more open and airy.

cool colors
Mary Patton Design
Cool colors make a room feel light and airy. In addition to natural lighting, a small room can seem larger than it is.
matching couch cover to walls
Minette Hand
Choosing a couch cover that is the same shade as the walls keeps this room from feeling and looking overfilled.
Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Lighter colors make a room look bigger however pairing that with a contrasting color creates the same effect but with more interest.

Optical Illusions

Incorporate optical illusions to make the room seem larger. This can include using striped decor items or wallpaper, selecting furniture with legs to create a sense of openness, or using floor-to-ceiling curtains to elongate the walls.

Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
NICK JOHNSON
With curtains starting at the ceiling this room looks bigger and the ceiling higher.
vertical lines on wall
Kate Marker Interiors
Vertical lines draw the eye upward and create a sense of height in the room.
Make A Small Room Feel Bigger
Dean Hearne
Another example of vertical lines gives a space a sense of openness while feeling cozy and comfortable.
Make A Small Room Feel Bigger foot image
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