 | Shellie Blevens has 17 years of experience in the window covering and decorating field. She may be reached at 620-231-5440 for a free consultation. The Home Place at 616 N. Broadway is a full line Hunter Douglas dealer and appointments can be made to meet with Shellie Blevens, the owner and professional decorator to determine what would work best for you. They also carry custom window treatments by Graber and Comfortex. Custom made fabric beddings and window treatments can also be made at the Home Place, and there are many, many fabrics to choose from. The Home Place has been in business since 1983 and Shellie Blevens has owned it since 1996. |
Home Furnishings
1969-12-31 18:00:00
Tricks to “enlarging” a room
Answer: Well basically it has to do with illusion. You can’t make the room bigger, but there are things that can be done to create the illusion that the room is bigger.
Color plays a big role. Lighter colors usually will make a room look larger than darker. If the trim is painted, it is best to paint it either white or a lighter shade than the wall because of basic perspective 3-D rules. Darker colors recede in space while lighter colors appear to move forward. So if the walls are slightly darker than the trim they will appear to further away, thus making the room appear to be larger. Ceiling paint should be white as well as any cove molding that is painted along the ceiling line. Another area color can help is in the furnishing and fabrics. A Monochromatic color scheme will give a room the illusion of a bigger space. Using the same color in lighter and darker tones will give a uniform look to the room making it flow without disturbance.
Flooring should be kept light and solid in design. Patterns and dark colors will make the room look smaller because it will compete for attention, while light neutral floors will seem to disappear.
One of the most important things that will make a room look larger is to de-clutter it. Clear out small nick knacks to make the room feel more open. Limit multiple items on counters and tables. Use one or two distinctive pieces verses several small items. The same goes for walls, one large picture will make the room look larger than a group of small ones.
Lighting can increase the rooms feeling of space. A Torchiere light will bounce light off the ceiling and bounce it back down to the room, making the eye move around the room rather than focusing on one area.
Put the most visual element in the room in the farthest corner away from the entrance, so your eye will travel across the room as entering it. This will make the room feel more spacious. Angle some of the furniture because you look for the longest line in the room and furniture at an angle will appear to be longer.
Use a large floor or wall mirror to make a room look larger. This used to be a trick mobile homes did in bedroom by using mirrored closet doors, and it did work! However, there are more attractive mirror choices that can make the same illusion.
If you are able to pick out furniture for the space, glass tables will make a room look more spacious than heavy dark pieces, and choose furniture that is all similar in scale. If you want seating that doesn’t over power the room, a love seat may work better than a full size couch. Use as few pieces of furniture as you are able and keep it to outside of the room, leaving the center of the room open.
Doing one of these tips or a combination of them will help you to make that small room appear to be the large room of your dreams.
