Design Techniques to Create a Spacious Home
By Mary White
Photo © Baloncici - iStockphoto
 A home that is crowded, cluttered or cramped is unappealing to its occupants and to prospective homebuyers—no one likes feeling confined. Take steps to make your home more appealing by using decorating techniques that can make any home feel spacious and inviting.
Sufficient Lighting - Rooms that are dark tend to look smaller than rooms that are well lit. So make sure that each room in your home has plenty of lighting, and turn on all the lights before showing. To add depth to a room without sufficient overhead lighting, use strategically placed floor or table lamps. By directing ambient lighting directly on the walls of narrow rooms, you can create an illusion of width.
De-Clutter - Rooms crowded with too much furniture, knickknacks, clothing, books, toys, and such, contribute to making a home feel
small and overcrowded. Even though you may be selling |
your home because your family has outgrown it and you are moving to a larger home, prospective buyers shouldn't get that impression when touring the home. If the home feels too small for the current residents, potential purchasers will likely sense that it will be too small for their needs as well.
Color Techniques - Dark colors make small rooms seem smaller, but light colors make small spaces feel more open. Rich, jewel tones, which can be beautiful in a large room, usually overpower a small space. If you want to use darker colors, use them sparingly, and only as accents. Touches of dark or rich color can add depth, but more than just a little will have a confining quality.
Mirrors as Art Elements - In rooms that are particularly small, or in narrow hallways, use attractively framed mirrors as artwork. Not only are the mirrors themselves a beautiful addition to any space, their reflective properties add depth to a room and visually open up tiny spaces. Placing a mirror at the end of a short hallway will create the illusion that the hallway is double its size.
These simple techniques can go a long way toward helping your home seem spacious and inviting, giving prospective buyers the impression that when they move in, they'll have room to spare! |
