Lighter paint colors like off-whites, light neutrals, pales, and pastels give the illusion of larger, brighter rooms.
Painting the wall on the far side of the room in a dark contrasting colour while keeping the side walls a light shade will help the room look more spacious. Another solution is to paint a single element such as wall shelving to catch the eye and make the rest of the space appear lighter in comparison.
Stark White
Naturally, white is an obvious choice for making a room feel bigger. It's no secret that light colors make a room look larger, especially if the space is bathed in natural light. Eggshell or satin finishes will help reflect the light, creating the appearance of even more space.
Darker hues can work to make a room seem larger, too, even though this may seem contradictory. This is because darker colors tend to blur the edges of a space, designer Rozit Arditi explains.
White can work well in a small bedroom, but be careful with stark white, since it can make any size bedroom feel cold. Soft tones of cream, butter or ivory are good choices, as are whites with a touch of grey, green, blue or even pink. Layer complementary shades of white, or choose accessories in a favorite color.
To sum up, there isn't a lot of scientific research behind how colour affects your mood. However, anecdotal evidence suggests it can affect your frame of mind and consequently your sleep. The best bedroom colours we'd recommend to make you happy are yellow, blue, green, and pastel shades such as lilac.
'Many choose to use bright white in smaller spaces assuming white will make the room appear larger, however light neutrals and soft colors used in a tonal scheme will have the same effect whilst not appearing too stark or cold,' adds Ruth Mottershead, creative director at Little Greene.
One way to make a long narrow room look wider with paint is to use a monochromatic color scheme. This involves selecting one color and using variations of that color on the walls, ceiling, and floor. This can help create a sense of continuity, which can make the space feel larger and more cohesive.
Some painting techniques to make a room look bigger include:
Stay with one color – when different colors are used, the eye automatically stops at the line where one color ends and another begins, creating boundaries in the room. When you use only one color, the space appears continuous.
Let in the Light
Any room will look larger if it's well-lit, either by natural light or artificial lighting. Get rid of heavy draperies, and open up the windows to let the light of the outdoors into the space. Add more lamps or install track lighting or recessed lighting.
Red is the color of power. It gets people's attention and holds it. It is the most popular color for marketing. The color red tends to increase the heart rate and create a sense of urgency.
Style Notes: Cream and ecru tones have the power to make every outfit look significantly more expensive, but paired with navy, even for casual looks, this is a combination that always looks so high-end.
Red is more effective for impulse purchases, so it's a common buy button choice on ecommerce websites. But it's more effective for B2B software vendors too.
Add reflective surfaces
Yes, you know that mirrors make a space appear larger. (“It's like doubling a room,” Curtis says.) But other reflective surfaces — high-gloss painted ceilings, lacquered furniture, shiny tile on a kitchen backsplash — have a similar effect, casting light and creating the illusion of volume.
Pick dark shades that have a bit of color. 'I love dark green as a feature wall in a room with a lot of natural light,' says color and paint expert, Annie Sloan. A dark purple, brown, burgundy or navy blue can also work against a soft white or cream to help trick the eye into making the space feel bigger.
Stripes can work wonders!
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.
Gray can make a room look bigger. A light gray can be a great pick in place of white; it will reflect natural light, but it looks less architectural and cool than white, which you might prefer.
Cooler paint colours help walls to recede, making the room feel more spacious and light. Go for pale shades of grey and blue for maximum lightening effect. If it's warmth you're after, don't be afraid to use light terracotta or yellow paint colours – a sunny hue can brighten and warm a dark, dingy space.
Light and Warm Paint Colour
Whereas light and cool can make a space feel bigger, light and warm can work if you want it to feel bright and big, but still warm and inviting! Sherwin Williams Creamy is another light, bright and warm paint colours (that isn't obnoxiously yellow).
In essence, then, small rooms can be painted in dark or light colors, depending on the effect you want to create. Dark colors can make a small room look larger, but so can light colors. Pinks, blues, greens and grays are all good choices for small rooms, but so are off-whites.
To help small spaces along, paint your longest walls dark paint colors. Deep colors like pewters, bronze, and charcoal emphasize the length of the longer walls if you… A wall with a window is an excellent choice for a lighter accent wall. It tricks people into thinking the window and wall recede together.
' It's why color-drenched rooms feel modern and fresh - there's a minimalism to them that gives even spaces with traditional features a contemporary feel. Painting the ceiling the same color as the walls can also help a small room look larger, especially in rooms that have low ceilings.
Choose light colors
Making the exterior of your home a light color is the best way to make your home look larger, brighter, and more inviting. Light colors such as white, ivory, pale gray, and sage green reflect higher amounts of light than dark colors, tricking the eye into perceiving the home as larger than it is.
Let's debunk a myth right now about dark wall colors. It's a misconception that dark walls shrink a room. Dark wall colors do not make a room look small just like a light color will not cause the room to look any larger. Dark wall colors tend to recede.
Lighter and cooler colors make the space appear larger. Darker colors make them appear more closed and smaller to the eye. The arrangement of colors or textures in an environment changes the perspective, making the room appear taller, longer, wider, or highlighting a particular element.