Everyone has that special room at home where they go to unwind after a long day at work. Perhaps it’s your bedroom, or maybe your lounge or study. Regardless of which room it is, you want it to be your own sanctuary, where you can forget all your troubles and simply relax.

What if your room feels too small to relax or socialise in? This may put some people off and lead them to only visit their small room when absolutely necessary. This doesn’t need to be the case though. By following a few simple design and furnishing tips, you can make even the smallest room feel light, airy, and inviting.

Choose your flooring carefully

Colour can have a big effect on the overall feel of your room, and your flooring plays a big role in this. When choosing which type of hardwood floor for your room, try to stick with woods in paler, lighter shades, such as oak, beech, or maple. While dark colours will make your room feel smaller, lighter shades will give a more natural, open appearance to your room.

Keep your colour scheme light

Your hardwood flooring isn’t the only element of your room where colour is important. For smaller rooms, try to use lighter colours for your walls, as well as your furnishings. Lighter colours will reflect more natural light and can help add a feeling of openness and space.

Be creative with your storage

One of the main causes of a room feeling small and cramped is clutter. If you have a smaller room, try to keep clutter to a minimum. Make the most of storage space which may be going unused. Try utilising multi-purpose furniture with hidden storage space.

Use mirrors to create the illusion of more space

By strategically placing mirrors in key parts of your room, such as opposite windows, you can reflect more natural light and create the illusion of a more spacious, open room.

Choose a few key decorative pieces

With a smaller room, it can be easy to fall into the trap of thinking any decorative pieces must also be small. Interior design experts actually encourage the opposite of this. Having multiple smaller pieces can leave your room feeling cluttered. Instead, opt for a few slightly larger pieces, such as lamps or vases, and this will make your room feel bigger.

Board Sizes

We would always recommend a wide board in a small area as this will give a feeling of scale. Its the same with a carpet or tiles, small fussy patterns draw the room in, while plain or large tiles open the space up. This can be seen to full effect in a small bathroom with big square tiles compared to small mosaics!!!