Wide plank flooring can make a room look bigger. Since wider flooring takes up more space, there are fewer seams on your floor, making the space feel less crowded and overall bigger. They can also be more affordable because you need fewer of them.
Think cream carpets, natural and neutral toned tiles and whitewashed wood flooring. These attractive, light and neutral colours give a room an open and airy feel, making it appear larger, whilst also drawing in the natural sunlight from outside.
High-contrast patterns, such as black and white, can create a dramatic and attention-grabbing statement. However, they can also make a room feel smaller and more visually busy. Softer color contrasts, like light gray and white or beige and brown, tend to create a calmer and more expansive atmosphere.
We recommend opting pale or neutral tile shades, such as white, cream, beige or grey which reflect light and make a small room look lighter and brighter – and therefore, larger!
It may seem counterintuitive, but wider planks and bigger tiles work best in a small space. That's because fewer seams and grout lines make the room look more spacious.
Wooden flooring is a type of flooring that never goes out of style. After all, the planks bring nature's beauty to the inside of your home. That being said, thousands of wood species can be used to create hardwood floors.
Using a wide plank causes an optical illusion making your space appear bigger than it is. We always recommend wider planks for bigger and more vast, open spaces. Don't forget that picking the right colour of your wide plank will also affect how 'big' your small room feels.
Big Tiles for Big Impact
Goodbye Grout Lines, Hello Openness: Small tiles mean lots of grout lines, which can visually cram a small space and make it feel busy. On the other hand, large tiles or even bigger, porcelain slab tiles, have fewer grout lines, creating a cleaner and more expansive visual plane.
One of the best ways to create the illusion of a larger space is to choose light-colored flooring that can reflect natural and artificial light. Whether the flooring is tile or engineered wood, opt for a light color, such as bleached wood tones, soft whites, sandy beige, or soft grays.
The geometric patterns of herringbone can create a sense of flow and balance, enhancing the perception of space and style. Additionally, the clever use of these patterns can create a space illusion, making the room appear larger than it is.
Parallel Planks
The direction you install your flooring makes an immense impact on the flow and spatial feel of a room. We recommend placing the planks parallel to the widest wall. This will create an elongated look by drawing attention to the longest portion of the space.
Black and white tiles are still very much in style. This classic color combination has endless appeal. With today's exciting developments in textile production, black and white tile has found new ways to present itself in interior and exterior spaces.
Wood-Look Bedroom Flooring Ideas
Wood floors are all the rage in every room of the home, but in the bedroom, it gives a classic look to the room and it's easy to complement with decorations and furniture. In bedrooms, you'll see wood-look tiles, vinyl, laminate, and even wide-plank engineered hardwood.
Light wood furniture on a dark wood floor offers a striking look. The best choices usually are furniture that is just a few shades lighter in color than the floor. Too much of a contrast will leave the room feeling stark.
What Flooring Adds the Most Value? Hardwood flooring has long been the top choice for homebuyers and remains so today. According to Realtor.com, installing new hardwood floors may increase a home's value by as much as 2.5%, though some realtors place that figure at 6 to 10% or more.
Floors with a white finish go with almost everything. A light burlap-like color is a great choice because you still get a light floor, without installing a truly “white” floor. You can use a variety of wood species to create a light floor.
Darker flooring will give your kitchen a dramatic and moody flair, especially when paired with lighter cabinets. Meanwhile, lighter flooring paired with darker cabinets will also add contrast, but the space will feel much brighter and open.
Consider choosing larger-format planks or tiles when floor shopping. These can make a room look bigger visually. With fewer grout lines, these oversized options create the illusion of a more continuous and uninterrupted surface, making the room appear larger to the human eye.
Mixing 3 or more sizes together and creating a tile pattern from it can give your room the feel of being larger than it is. One of the more popular tile patterns that uses 3 or more sizes is called a Versailles Pattern. This pattern will help create a feel of expansiveness which in turn will make you room feel bigger.
Small rooms can feel cramped, but the right rug can make them appear more spacious. Light-colored, large, and flatweave rugs create visual flow and enhance openness. Avoid small or bold-patterned rugs that break up the space. Choose rugs that unify the room and reflect light to create a more expansive feel.
The large size makes them quicker to lay and creates a uniform surface, making the room look big, bright, and minimalistic. In contrast, large tiles are not ideal for those hoping to mix shape, color, or pattern. If you want to create an intricate design, small tiles are your best option.
Wide plank wood boards don't have as many seams as narrower boards. This makes them prone to warping or cupping due to changes in humidity. That's why wide planks are not recommended for environments that have wide humidity fluctuations.
Temperature also plays an important role when it comes to selecting the right type of flooring. Wide planks expand more in hotter environments, making them better suited for cooler climates while narrow planks are better in warmer environments due to their smaller size.
Do Light Floors Make a Room Look Bigger? Light color flooring tends to brighten up a space and make it feel larger. Easily modernize a small room and add freshness and light by incorporating bright, creamy floor tones.