Heavy, dark-colored drapes crowd a room, making it look smaller.
Drapery in rich dark shades make large and high-ceilinged rooms visually shrink and appear cozy. If the furnishing is scarce and there is a lot of empty spaces, dark coloured drapes can make the room look fuller.
Picture your bedroom, and give your window wine-colored curtains. Think about how little light makes it through the deep red and notice the way your eye is distracted by the window. Now picture white curtains for your room. The space opens up immediately because it's getting more light.
Making Your Room Look Larger or Smaller with Curtains
High-hanging curtains with long vertical stripes create the illusion of height, which is excellent for low ceilings. However, short curtains and horizontal stripes shorten your wall height and make the room appear smaller.
Your curtains can be lighter or darker than the walls as long as they are of the same tone as your walls. That means that warm-colored walls should go well with warm-colored curtains regardless of whether they may be lighter or darker. The same story goes for cool-colored walls and curtains.
It is always a good idea to match your curtain color with home decor pieces. A double layer of one sheer and one blackout is a classic and functional choice. If you are looking for minimal and modern style, pick a color that is close to you wall color or a slightly darker shade.
They offer a great contrast in any room with neutral colors. They can create interesting focal points and complement other pops of black color in the entire room to bring it all style in a backdrop that is both versatile and timeless. This allows all your colorful accents and wall art to shine through.
Big floral patterns make a room appear larger. Install wallpaper with horizontal stripes to make a room seem wider, or commit to vertical stripes to stretch the room visually and raise the ceiling. A busy pattern featuring chevrons, simple geometric designs, or a texture that mimics marble can make a room seem bigger.
Hang the Curtains as High as Possible
In order to make your window and the whole wall seem higher, put the curtain rod as high above the window as possible. Attaching the rail close to the ceiling tricks the eye into believing the wall is bigger. Thus, it visually expands the whole room.
A rule of thumb (from Architectural Digest) is that curtains should be hung between four to six inches above the window frame, so install your curtain rod accordingly. When you hang the curtain rod high, it will make the window appear taller.
Windows Will Make a Small Room Look Bigger
Letting in natural light is great when creating the illusion of a bigger room. Using big, beautiful picture windows, bow windows, bay windows or architectural windows are perfect for creating that spacious feeling.
Dark curtain benefits
Strike a balance between relaxing and romantic. Dark curtains lend a sense of drama, contrast and elegance to a room and, when used right, can be very inviting. Dark curtains don't show dirt and dust like light coloured curtains will so a good choice for high traffic areas (if the size is right).
Remove Curtains With Dark, Heavy Fabrics
Curtains made from heavy dark fabrics will make your room feel drab and dark. Replace them with sheers! Sheer drapes will let natural light diffuse for the room and will visually lighten the space too! If you don't like sheers add drapes made from light colored cotton or linen.
Blackout curtains and shades will reduce the amount of heat which is transferred via your windows by as much as 24 percent, keeping the rooms where they're installed cooler in summer and warmer in winter. This will allow you to use your heating and cooling system more efficiently and save energy.
Use contrasts and light colors that make rooms look bigger
Light and bright walls are more reflective, making a space feel open and airy, which helps maximize natural light's effect. Dark shades tend to absorb light, making rooms feel smaller.
Gray can make a room feel cave-like if not used in appropriate ways. It is, however, possible to make a gray space feel large and expansive by using a monochromatic decorating scheme. The result is a room that feels larger than its measurements indicate.
Because they add extra details, accent walls break up the space, making it feel bigger the same way an area rug does to a floor. Even darker colors that would otherwise make a room feel smaller will make a room feel bigger when you use them for an accent wall.
Thin stripes give the appearance of stretching, vertical stripes will make a room appear taller and horizontal stripes will make a room look wider. Consider applying striped wallpaper to not only create an illusion of more space but to create a simplistic feature wall.
The key to using an area rug to help your room look bigger is to use the correct rug size. A common decorating mistake people make is selecting an area rug or carpet that's too small, making the room look choppy and disjointed, and therefore makes it look smaller.
Soto follows what she calls the cantaloupe rule: "Decorative accents that are smaller than a cantaloupe cramp a room." Opt for a single, statement-making piece instead. Photo by iStockphoto. Media Platforms Design Team.
Black, white, grey, brown, and beige are all neutral colours. Neutral curtain colours as per Vastu are considered the best. You can combine them with colors of your choice to add a pop of color here and there to make it brighter, if needed.