How can I make a small house seem larger?

Lots of mirrors, with and without frames. Lots of light. Extend drapes past the window frames so that all of the window is exposed when drapes are open. No big or bulky furniture. If you like yellow, there are some paints out there that look like the sun is inside your house. Good luck.

Light colored walls,furniture,window treatments,bright colored accessories,and keep the furniture on a lighter scale.

It's all about playing with the rooms. Strategically placed mirrors will create the illusion of space. Furniture with exposed legs will make a room look less closed in and boxy. If you can, leave windows exposed and curtain-less to give the room more depth. I've also heard about this "cantaloupe rule": decor items that are smaller than a cantaloupe crowd a room.

Most importantly, have fun!! Would love to see what you come up with!

I'm for painting all walls and trim Valspar's Oyster Pearl. It's a pleasing light neutral color. Paint all ceilings in a High Hiding White (Ace Hardware) satin finish which will reflect light better than flat ceiling paint. Hang sheer white curtain panels 4" from the ceiling to the floor to add an airy feeling. Add mirrors, large, small, oval, or square in groups of 3 to 5 on both sides of the windows to 'open' up the room. Keep the furniture in front of the windows minimal (chair and table) and the heavier furniture on the opposite wall. Keep the main flow of the room unobstructed so the passage is free flowing from room to room. And last but not least, a neutral area rug if desired. Have fun. Best of luck. (p.s.) brighter light bulbs will also help.

This may sound silly but if you try it, this will work wonders! My great-great-grandfather told me this trick. Collect a tremendous amount of empty boxes all sizes , the larger the better. Set them up throughout the house-stacking them high throughout the room. Leave ONLY enough room to walk through the living room and watch the television. Pretend that you cannot touch those and cannot move them. 10 whole days. NO moving them at all!!!!

On the 10th day, remove every box. Vaccuum, dust and you WILL be amazed at how large of a living room you have! it didn't cost you any monies, but it did cost you a lot of discipline to NOT move the boxes prior to your 10th day! Try it, !

Patti Knop

poitivecoach101@aol.com

Glass top tables go a long way to making a room look open and larger. I replaced draperies with shutters which makes our rooms appear larger. Look through magazines for pictures of rooms that seem spacious, or if you have the luxury of watching some of the Tiny House programs look at how they make use of space!

My hom is quite small and I added larger mirrors that are framed so they look like windows. It brightened up the room giving an illusion of being more open.

It would help if you provided some photos of your interiors, however, one basic rule is eliminate clutter. Remember that when it comes to knick-knacks and such, less is definitely more ... for example, if you have a mantel or a buffet or sofa table, ensure you don't have a pile of tiny accessories (vases, figurines, etc.) ... it's much more preferable to say, have one large vase (at one end of a surface) than too many little things then balance the other end with two items of varying heights.

Look at your walls. Does every wall have a painting or print on it? If so, remove a few to give the eye a chance to rest. If you have windowsills, remove anything on them so you have less clutter and if you have a lot of items on the coffee table such as remotes, eyeglasses, etc. keep them in an attractive basket instead - they are very inexpensive to buy.

Regarding curtains/drapes, if you choose a material color that blends in with your wall color, that creates less "visual" clutter. Another similar point re wall (or furniture) color ... if your wall color is, perhaps, a creamy white, a big brown sofa will stick out more than a paler colored couch due to the contrast in color. Case in point, I have a large (dark wood) dresser in my bedroom and when deciding on a new paint color for the room, I picked a medium brown on the wall (even though I wanted a lighter color) because my dresser would have stood out too much in the room - again, due to contrast.

If the budget allows, having the same flooring throughout REALLY opens up a house too. Plus like another reader said, hang drapery rods wider than the window to "enlarge" the window and hang the rod as high as possible to create the appearance of a higher ceiling.

The subject of making a small home appear roomier involves a lot more than what I've typed at this point but I hope I've helped.

I too have a smaller home, about 1100 sq ft. I have the same color accessories in all the rooms, and have limited the same 3 colors throughout the whole house. The living room, dining room, and hallway are all the same color (pale green). The kitchen and bathroom are different shades of yellow. All the bedrooms are pale rose. They are all colors pulled out of favorite cabbage rose patterned curtains. All the colors are pale shades. I want a uniform look throughout the house so as not to look all "chopped up". I love cottage style, with a little shabby chic, and that's the style in every room. I think it's best for each room to "flow" into the next in a smaller home. I have a friend who had different colors in every room of her home, and different styles. She loves it, but to me it feels "disjointed".

Sometimes the furniture in rooms are too large and will make the room look much smaller than they are. Make sure accessories are not over whelming also. Again the lighter colors help. Lay out is mportant also