Does the living room seem cramped to you? Make it appear more spacious with the right tips

Having very little space available in a room puts us in front of a whole series of difficult challenges: between determining the best combination of colors / paint for walls, furniture and accessories and choosing the models that can be put in the room without creating too much clutter and thereby making it unlivable, you have to make calculations which are very precise. And maybe there will be a series of attempts and failures before finding the best set-up.

But what if, after all this effort, the room seems too small and oppressive? To avoid or overcome this problem, we can help ourselves with a series of steps that serve to give the impression that a room, such as a living room, actually is more spacious and liveable than it really is.

When choosing chairs and armchairs, try to chose those that - although comfortable - have the lightest and least bulky lines / frames possible. Thinner structures and frames that support the seats means that no bulky masses will occupy the space. These are guidelines to be inspired by.

Thus, stools for the counter / worktop that are used as a breakfast table in the kitchen, but also the armchairs in the living room with their seats raised off the ground by a sturdy, but robust, open structure or frame will be the best choice.

The same goes for tables, side tables and coffee tables: whether it is one in the living room, or one in the center of the living room or next to a sofa, if it has a slender and thin shape and a transparent frame, it will certainly be the best ally in furnishing a small room.

The lighting makes everything seem wider and more pleasant: so placing mirrors - even large and showy ones (for example, the so-called accent mirrors ) - is the best known method to amplify the natural brightness of the room. By reflecting natural light (but also artificial light, especially if properly set up in the environment), you will give the impression that the room is much more spacious.

Use a large carpet, but not too large. We talk of "area rug" in English, and are the large rugs that can be placed in the living room or under the beds. They need to be big enough for the edge to go under each piece of furniture, but not too big to cover all of the floor. Both small and disproportionately large ones give the opposite result to the desired effect. So how do you orient them? It takes a bit of an trial and error, but an often used rule of thumb is that the front legs of sofas and armchairs should rest on the carpet, while the rear legs should not.

But can we use a very large sofa? Here the schools of thought are different. If the decor of the room (furniture, wall units, shelves, chairs ...) is not very bulky, then you can choose a large sofa (but always compatible with the size of the room) which becomes the central focus. However, if it is a room in which there is already a lot of "noise" of objects, then perhaps it is better to choose a comfortable sofa which is not too large - and best if not L-shaped.

The (artificial) lighting: not only natural light, but also artificial light must reach every corner of the room as much as possible to enlarge it and make it feel comfortable. It is never enough just to have a central chandelier / light fitting. It will be necessary to add floor lamps, wall lamps or spotlights that must not be grouped all together, but will still allow you to light up any dark corners.

Multifunction furniture: the first priority is always to not waste space, so 2-in-1 solutions come in handy. In a living room, for example, the coffee table can hide useful compartments or even itself, if necessary, can become an extra seat!

Combining the various tips above can truly turn any cramped room into a comfortable one!