Love Your Little House: Decorating Tips for Little Houses

 

Beth, from Design Your Dwelling, was so kind as to write this post for me.  She’s local (sort of) and has great style.  Plus, she’s a farm girl.  I love her little gallery wall!  Please check her out and show her some love!

 

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I have never lived in a house larger than 1800 square feet.  That includes growing up, the first home I owned and the home I live in now, which is a beautiful farm house in rural Iowa that looks big on the outside but is only around 1300 square feet.  I've always had to come up with clever ideas to make the most of my small space.  That being said, I was excited for the invite from Katie to be a guest blogger to share ideas to live large in a small space!

1} Use Light, Neutral Colors

Everyone loves color and it often seems that painting the walls a dark color, even an accent wall, is the best way to add color in our homes.  The truth is, it makes your room feel small.  Lighten up your walls with light, neutral colors and create a contrast with stark white woodwork.  Then, bring in color with crisp contrasts like black, red and blue with accessories like pillows, lamps, throws and curtains! Our guest bedroom is a perfect example.  The previous owner painted the guest bedroom a dark maroon and mint green, (poor color combination to start with - yikes) and covered the windows with maroon roller shades (the ones impossible to work).  Repainting the room was first on my agenda when I moved here!

Before - Dark Colors

The room is only 10 x 12 but once it was painted with a neutral color the bedroom felt 100x larger.

After - Light/Neutral Colors

If you do nothing else, lighten up the walls in your home and your space will expand ten-fold!

 

2} Hang Mirrors

Mirrors are a fantastic way to create the illusion of space - and to see your beautiful reflection!  Mirrors reflect light, which will illuminate any room and create depth.  They work best position opposite of entry ways and windows.

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3} Create Height

Standard ceiling height is generally 8 to 10 feet.  To create the illusion of higher ceiling, hang your curtain rods a few inches above your windows or even closer to your ceiling and hang 84" or larger curtain panels.  This will create the illusion of height and add color to your space. 

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To create height and depth, build floor to ceiling shelves and paint the inside of the cabinets a darker color.  The darker color on the inside of the cabinets will create a sense of depth. 

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Now, for my favorite way to expand your space - hang your flat screen TV on the wall.  Our living room and dining room is one long narrow room, approximately 11' x 24'.  When I first moved here, the 64" flat screen TV sat angled in the corner of our living room space (keep in mind this was a former bachelor's tv).  We did a little re-wiring and hung the TV on the wall. 

This created so much additional space in our living area and gave us a place for storage too.  Hanging your TV on the wall is a change you wont regret! I hope these ideas help you to "Live Large In a Small Space!"  You can find me over at Design Your Dwelling - feel free to stop in anytime!

 

Thanks Katie, for the opportunity to be a guest blogger at On The Banks of Squaw Creek!