Bigger on the Inside: 3 Methods to Make Any Room Seem Larger Than It Is

If your house isn't as large as you'd like it to be, it can be frustrating. You may think that moving or doing large-scale renovations are your only options.

However, with a little cleverness, you can make rooms seem larger than they are. There are three methods for doing this, and you can combine techniques to suit your needs. Here's a rundown of how to use these three tricks.

Using paint and colors to make rooms seem larger isn't too difficult, and it may be the least expensive way to accomplish this goal. Start with lots of natural lighting, and complement the sunlight in windows and skylights with a soft and simple color scheme.

You do well to choose a monochromatic color palette. Vary shades of a single color--a pale, neutral color like gray, ivory or pastels--on the walls, trim and accent wall. A single color scheme helps the eye to travel uninterrupted and keeps walls from being easily distinguishable.

Add height to a room by continuing the light colors on the ceiling or draw viewers' eyes upward by adding a fun pop of bolder color to the ceiling. If deciding between these two approaches, it may be beneficial to work with a professional interior painter before proceeding.

Your monochromatic color plan can be extended beyond just the wall colors. Look for a piece or two of furniture in the same color so that it blends better into the walls around it.

Slim furniture is a go-to method for opening up a room. Opt for sofas, tables, and chairs that don't extend all the way to the floor but instead feature legs. Legged furniture has less of a visual footprint on the square footage of the room.

If you want to go bold instead, trade out several smaller, slimmer pieces of furniture for one or two oversized pieces instead. Reducing the amount of furniture while emphasizing its large size can make everything look larger.

When choosing upholstered furniture, avoid large or busy patterns. A clean look with solid colors or small patterns is another aid to keeping guests' eyes from lingering too long on any focal point.

Where you place furniture can also make a difference. Don't feel the need to push all your furnishings up against the walls. Leaving breathing room between them and the walls can separate their visual impact from the wall's footprint and create open space around them both.

Having to navigate around obstacles makes occupants feel cramped, so be sure to create traffic patterns so that people can move comfortably around a room. One way to help open up space is to choose multifunctional furniture, like a small table with leaves to extend for larger dinner parties.

You can go beyond creating an illusion of space if you de-clutter and minimize the actual items in a room. Some people like to look to "home staging" tips for advice on how to judiciously remove items. For example, removing about one-third of furniture and wall hangings can quickly open up a room.

However, since you're living in the room and not just staging it for buyers, you may not be able to de-clutter as much as you'd like. The answer to this dilemma is storage. Look for furniture that naturally adds invisible storage to the room--like ottomans that double as storage cubes and tables with hidden storage underneath.

Have knick-knacks or are a book lover? Try bookshelves that go all the way to ceiling--both to add storage and to emphasize the height of the room. And don't forget to create hidden homes for extra gadgets and accessories to store then out of the view of guests. A simple basket can hold electronic devices and chargers while blending into the background.

No matter what type of room you're trying to enlarge, any of these tricks can help you create a larger and happier space you'll love to come home to.