How To Make A Small House Feel Spacious

In a recent study, it was proven that 92% of respondents said that they wish that they had a bigger home. It's easy to guess that the hefty price tag of purchasing a new home is keeping the majority of those survey-takers from upgrading to larger living quarters. While this might not be the right time for your family to move into a larger home, there are many different things that you can do to make your current home feel much larger. Depending on your budget (which could range from $0 to thousands of dollars), there are many easy and simple ways how to make a small house feel spacious.

Using natural light more effectively is a great, inexpensive way to make a room feel more spacious.  The two ways to do this are to either make better use of windows in the room or by using light bulbs that provide natural light.

If the room has adequate window lighting, using blinds and curtain that allow a certain amount of light to pass through will really help open the space up.  Instead of using curtains and blinds that block out sunlight, there are many affordable ones that filter the light instead of blocking it which allow sunlight to brighten your room.

If you're like me and like the privacy that the light-blocking blinds provide, then you can simple upgrade your current light bulbs to the new, energy-efficient fluorescent bulbs.  These type of bulbs provide light that is extremely close, if not identical, to the type of light that the sun puts out.  The new fluorescent bulbs are actually energy-efficient, last much longer and provide a much better level of light then older, incandescent bulbs.

Another, slightly more expensive, way how to make a small house feel bigger is by using a color scheme that that makes spaces look larger.

Light paint colors such as off-whites, light blues and other pastels reflect light.  This reflection of light makes a room look more open, which in turn makes it appear much more spacious.  Dark colors such as dark reds, blues or greens actually absorb light.  The idea here is the same with lighting - when the room appears darker and not-so-well-lit, it appears much smaller than its lighter counterpart.

Probably the cheapest (yet not always at the top of my list!) way to make a home feel larger is by keeping it neat and tidy.  It's common sense that a cluttered home will look smaller.  So why is it that most of us hate de-cluttering our homes?  I'm not a hoarder, but if I have something around my home it's because I either use it or like it's appearance.  I have to fight my instincts occasionally and get rid of things that I know I truly do not need.

Keeping your home neat and clutter free is a very quick way to turn a small-looking home into a spacious one in just a few hours.  Put away remote controls, get rid of excessive knick-knacks on the shelves and counters, throw away old newspapers and magazine.  All of these things are quick and easy ways how to make a small house feel spacious.

One of my closest friends has a small, but cute, house, yet she is always complaining that it is too small for her and that her daughter does not have enough room to play.  After all of that, when I walk into her living room I am immediately greeted by her very large, oversize L-shaped couch.

The biggest thing that makes a space look smaller is when you have furniture and other furnishings that are too big for that room.  In my friends situation, she would be much better off with a smaller couch or even a loveseat, rather than her behemoth of a couch.  The same thing goes for bedrooms - if you sleep by yourself, do you really need a king-sized bed taking up 1/2 of your bedroom?  Do you really need a couch large enough for the entire Brady Bunch?  Downsizing your furniture into more size appropriate pieces is the most effective of the ways to make a small home look bigger.

In addition to choosing furniture that fits your home, another popular way to make a small house feel larger is by having furniture that also provides ample storage such as a coffee table that acts as a chest.  If you live near an Ikea store you should take a trip there to see some of the amazing storage and space-saving ideas that they have.