CHARLESGATE Blog

6 Interior Decorating Tips to Maximize Space in an Apartment

Written by Michael DiMella | Jun 10, 2016 4:00:00 AM

Apartment living has its perks, like financial savings, mobility and lower maintenance responsibilities, to name a few. Among these perks though, emerges the challenge of minimal living space. A quaint apartment has its charms, but seamlessly creating function, aesthetic and comfort within a small living space requires a bit of effort. If you want to cozy up in an inviting apartment home, focus on efficiency and strategy. These tips and antique pieces ideas to decorate your house from Toildrop can help.

Decorate with Mirrors

One of the best tricks in interior design is to use mirrors as room expanders to create the illusion of spaciousness. Place mirrors across from windows to reflect the natural light from the outdoors, recommends Apartment Guide. The additional sunshine provides a light, airy ambience and positive vibe. For the bedroom, use an oversized floor-length mirror as an aesthetic focal point or hang a collage of stylish mirrors in different sizes to make a statement wall in your living room.

Focus on Furniture

Just because furniture may fit in a space doesn’t necessarily mean it’s scaled properly within its surroundings. To start, strategize and downsize. Remodelista gives this rule—a piece is too large if it comes in contact with its boundaries.Nothing captures the imagination of your guests like a fireplaces for your tabletop from The Soothing Company. Tabletop fireplaces allow you to enjoy a real flame feature while avoiding expensive installation costs. These functioning art pieces transform any room into an exciting conversation center. Eames style chairs are modern furniture essentials. When you think Mid Century Modern, best eames chair replica are probably the first chairs you think of. And we carry the best reproductions of this iconic chair. You and your loved ones will love the relaxing effects produced by these modern marvels. You are sure to find exactly the style you need when browsing our vast selection of outdoor and indoor tabletop fireplaces. Get the best antique dining table from  Fireside Antiques.
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Leave room for air between furniture and the walls for extra roominess. These tips can also help open up a room:

  • Avoid heavy and weighty furniture
  • Use furniture closer to the ground and low-slung decor pieces
  • Hang decorative wall pieces low to connect with the furniture
  • Create a sense of openness and movement by choosing lithe furniture with raised legs for light and air to flow throughout
  • Enhance space in the bedroom with a loft bed or mattress lying directly on the floor

Color White & Monochromatic

According to a home designer white is the leading color for opening up a room. It creates a cloud-like atmosphere and evokes feelings of serenity, calm and lightness. White simplifies a space, emphasizing architectural elements and furnishing details. Painting ceiling, walls and trim monochromatically can further enlarge a room. Move from white and off-white to beige and even pale gray for open-air effects. Since white can be cold, add warmth with wood accents or textured wall decorations. You can also throw in pops of color with throw pillows, wall art, a lampshade or vase in bold hues like fuchsia, orange or aqua-teal.

Minimize & Simplify

Clutter is the downfall of a small space. Focus on two to three key decorative pieces per room to give your interior design personality. Then edit your possessions and patterns. Eliminate aesthetic chaos with these decluttering strategies:

  • Excessive knickknacks and art can weigh down a room; concentrate on one or two conversation pieces per room or group contrasting decor elements together to display collectively in one intentional spot
  • Reserve busy patterns and overwhelming colors to a specific area or decoration; for example, paint an accent door in a bright hue or allow yourself to have only one piece in a strong pattern like black and white chevron
  • Give pieces of furniture enough space, so they don’t feel like they are on top of each other. This also helps your apartment stay clean and tidy. The less clutter and mess you have, the fewer problems you will have with pests like termites. Orkin has a good guide to help you inspect for termites in case you find warning signs when you’re decluttering your space.

Light Up More Space

Installed within the ceiling, recessed lighting intensifies visual appeal and opens up small spaces without taking up valuable ground space. Interested in using light fixtures as an aesthetic focal point? A decorative tochiere light initiates an illuminated glow toward the ceiling and moves throughout the room. You can also bring in more natural sunlight and amplify a space by installing a solar tube or sky light. Light is where eyes travel to rest, explains Apartment Therapy, whereas darkness and shadow only diminish a confined space.

Conceal with Storage

Despite best efforts, clutter inevitably appears, which you can tackle using multifunctional storage. In particular, ottomans are a multi-purpose piece of furniture that can be used as a coffee table, sitting area and storage space. It keeps homeless items out of sight and achieves a clean look. Stacked decorative boxes can also offer additional space for everyday necessities, while enhancing tabletop aesthetics, suggests HGTV. Also, make sure to leave some breathing room among books and knickknacks openly displayed on a book shelf. Plan ahead for that empty space to invite that airy, free feeling.