Many houses (especially more modern houses) can appear deceptively large from the outside, yet are a disappointment inside. Such rooms can often feel claustrophobic and thus not provide a comfortable, relaxed living space. However, there are some simple steps which will allow you to transform a small room into one which looks much larger and more comfortable. This will not only improve your quality of life but will also prove useful when it comes to selling your house: a room which maximises its space will prove a more attractive selling point than one which seems cramped.

Colour

Something as simple as the colour scheme of your room can prove vital when trying to enlarge the feel of a room. Stick to light and bright colours when decorating your room as these colours reflect any natural light and thus fools the eye into seeing a larger space. Watch out though: white walls can look too sanitised and stark, to say nothing of the fact that they also get dirty very quickly. It is best to stick to the wide variety of cream shades available in all DIY stores in order to create a more relaxing environment. Conversely, ceilings look far better painted white. The ceiling is unlikely to suffer the potential problems which walls do. It is rather difficult to make ceilings dirty (unless of course you are a smoker) and the softer shades of your walls will counteract the possibility of the white paint appearing stark. Painting the ceiling bright white will maximise the reflective potential of the surface area of the room and instantly make the room feel bigger. If a ceiling is painted a dark shade it can have the somewhat disconcerting effect of making you feel that the ceiling is falling in on you. White paint makes it much more difficult to judge where the ceiling actually is in relation to the floor, thus increasing the apparent depth of the room.

If you want to decorate your room with wallpaper, it may prove more difficult to make the room seem larger. However, if you must, steer clear of intensely patterned designs as these can decrease the reflective, open nature of the room. Stick with one shade wallpaper or else one with a tiny, discreet pattern on it in a light colour. Similarly, try to avoid dark wood panelling as this can make the room feel cramped instantly.

If the idea of cream walls and white ceilings strikes you as mind-numbingly boring, you can be more adventurous with the shade of the soft furnishings or pictures in the room. A darker coloured sofa can act as an original focal point for an otherwise bland room, without making it feel smaller. Choose pictures with an interesting splash of colour to liven up your room if you are concerned about the shade of the walls.

Positioning your Furniture

Strategic placement of furniture can instantly transform the apparent size of your room. Many people fail to make the most of the dimensions of their living space because they fall into the trap of placing furniture particularly their sofa straight along the wall without considering the use of angles. Mathematically, the longest straight line in any room is its diagonal and so placing furniture at a diagonal angle (even if this angle is only slight) draws the eye away from the shorter straight lines of the walls and seems to enlarge the room instantly.

It is also important to be realistic and sensible with the type of furniture you place in your room. If you try to place a three-piece suite in a small room, it will instantly make your room look cramped and tiny. However, if you stick to a simple sofa which is in scale with the dimensions of your room, the floor space will obviously be increased dramatically, making the room seem larger.

Consider using furniture which has a dual function in order to avoid clutter and increase floor space. Glass-topped coffee tables can give the impression of taking up no space at all due to their transparency. Alternatively, buy a fold-down table which can be stowed against the wall when it is not needed. Sofa-beds can turn your room into a guest bedroom if need be. Many modern sofas actually offer the option of storage in the form of a single drawer along the length of the sofa, which can prove very useful if you are short of cupboards. Significantly, placing your furniture at an angle not only helps to increase the size of your room but also allows you to store possessions behind the space produced by the angle. In the bedroom, consider the use of built-in wardrobes and wall units to store items which otherwise clutter, such as the television, books and suchlike.