Using Lighting to Make Your Space Look Bigger: 4 Tips

Share:

Using Lighting to Make Your Space Look Bigger: 4 Tips

Staff Writer · Sep 2, 2010

Using lighting is one way to make a small room or apartment look bigger. Living in a small apartment has some benefits, but if you’re starting to outgrow it but don’t want to move, try adjusting the lights. You’ll need to do more than work with lighting, but this is one step that can make a difference. Here are 4 tips to keep in mind when using lighting to enlarge your space:

1. Avoid Dimmed Lights

Unless you want to set the mood with dimmed lights, you should avoid using them. Dark colors, whether it’s the wallpaper, furniture or paint will make the space look smaller than it is. In fact, some people who live in larger apartments choose dark colors for that reason: they want the room to feel tight and cozy. However, when dealing with a tiny space, you want the opposite effect.

2. Use Natural Sunlight

There are so many benefits to letting sunlight in the apartment, such as health and money saving benefits. However, it’s another way to make your room look better. Take a look at your window treatment and figure out the best way to optimize sunlight in your apartment. Perhaps you need window blinds instead of thick curtains. Blinds are inexpensive and easy to install. Remove furniture, electronics and appliances that are placed in front of windows, as these will block the sunlight trying to come in.

3. Add Floor, Countertops and Table Lamps

Perhaps you’ve been relying on the light fixtures and lightning in the apartment, but never thought to add your own. Lamps are good accessories that can add to your apartment decorating, but they’re functional too. They’ll help to keep the room well-lit which will make it look even bigger. Try using floor and table lamps, and find ones that match the theme and mood you want to create. Using lighting in bathrooms and your kitchen to enlarge the space is also important, and you can do that by putting lamps on the countertops. These are handy to have anyway, because they will give you more light to complete chores and routine tasks.

4. Put Mirrors to Work

Use mirrors in the apartment to reflect light back in the room. More light in the room gives the illusion of more space. This may be an incentive to buy large and full length mirrors, which are good to have for other reasons too. Hang the mirrors in a way that they will reflect light from lamps or other lights. One mirror per room is enough, as you don’t want to go overboard with this tip. The other thing to keep in mind is that you’ll have to make holes in the walls or in doors to hang up the mirrors, which may not go well with your landlord. Get the permission you need first, before adding mirrors, or be ready to pay to fix the holes.

These few tips will help you on your journey towards using lighting to increase space. Consider the potential for a larger electric bill as well as you make decisions.

You might also like:

Moving into a new apartment or rental property can be both exciting and stressful. From packing up your belongings to coordinating logistics, there’s a lot to manage. However, one aspect that is often overlooked is what to expect on move-in day regarding the condition of your new unit. Surprisingly, according to recent surveys, a significant […]

Jessica Lee

 · Mar 12, 2024

On ApartmentRatings, real renters have the ability to rate and review their apartment communities based on their experience touring and or living in the communities. ApartmentRatings offers renters the ability to see what life is like at a community through a report card grade style format called epIQ. Every month we highlight apartment communities whose […]

Jessica Lee

 · Feb 28, 2024

On ApartmentRatings, real renters have the ability to rate and review their apartment communities based on their experience touring and/or living in them. ApartmentRatings offers renters the ability to see what life is truly like at a community through a report card grade style format called epIQ. Every month we highlight a major city across […]

Jessica Lee

 · Jan 31, 2024