Feeling cramped in your home can often be the result of wasteful floor plans or neglected areas. The opportunity to create more space while adding style is one of the biggest benefits of a home remodel. Even minor changes can drastically improve the overall sense of space in a room.
Adding bespoke shelving or designing dual-purpose spaces, for example, can make all the difference. Bigger undertakings, like tearing down non-structural divisions, will create a wealth of new space to work with. In addition, lighting upgrades paired with lighter paint colors will go a long way in making the room look more open.
By working with your field builder to plan ahead, you can improve the aesthetics and function of your home while adding space. Use these eight expert design tips to get started designing a more spacious, more stylish home that accommodates your lifestyle.
Key Takeaways
- Give your existing space some serious consideration. Identify underused spaces, improve circulation, and measure storage effectiveness to improve use and appearance.
- To make the most of a smaller space without losing style and function, use multipurpose and modular furniture.
- Rearranging furniture and using rugs to define zones will help make the most of your space by making every room feel open and purposeful.
- To make the most of vertical space, put in floor-to-ceiling shelves. You might raise curtain rods or make lofted spaces to improve utility without adding to your home’s footprint.
- Stick with light, neutral colors to help add brightness and a sense of openness to your space. Use mirrors and glass to add depth and reflect natural light.
- It’s important to keep your home simple and clutter-free. Take advantage of smart storage solutions, and make sure your design doesn’t sacrifice cohesion and function.
8 Ways to Add Space and Style to Your Home Remodel
1. Open Concept Design
Knocking down unnecessary walls can create a more open and airy space. An open-concept floor plan allows for better flow, increased natural light, and a modern aesthetic.
2. Built-In Storage Solutions
Incorporate built-in shelving, cabinets, and hidden storage options to make the most of every inch of space. Custom-built furniture, such as benches with storage compartments, can enhance both functionality and style.
3. Multi-Functional Furniture
Opt for furniture that serves multiple purposes, such as fold-out beds, extendable dining tables, and storage ottomans. These versatile pieces help save space while maintaining an elegant look.
4. Light and Neutral Color Palettes
Lighter shades and neutral tones can make rooms feel more spacious and inviting. Consider using whites, soft grays, and pastels to create an open and sophisticated atmosphere.
5. Strategic Use of Mirrors
Mirrors can give the illusion of a larger space by reflecting light and creating depth. Place them across from windows or in small rooms to enhance brightness and openness.
6. Smart Lighting Choices
Layered lighting, including recessed lights, pendant lights, and under-cabinet lighting, can improve functionality and ambiance. Well-placed lighting fixtures can highlight architectural features and create a more expansive feel.
7. Outdoor Extensions
If possible, expand your living space outdoors by adding a deck, patio, or sunroom. These additions can seamlessly blend indoor and outdoor areas while providing additional space for relaxation and entertainment.
8. Maximized Vertical Space
Take advantage of high ceilings by installing tall bookcases, vertical storage, and hanging plants. This design approach draws the eye upward, making the room appear more spacious and stylish.
Assess Your Current Space
Creating a more spacious and stylish home starts with understanding your existing layout. By identifying underutilized areas, analyzing traffic flow, and evaluating storage efficiency, you can make thoughtful changes that maximize both functionality and aesthetics.
Identify Underutilized Areas
Empty corners, odd shaped nooks, or even an extra bedroom can all be put to better use. Make your bay window the perfect spot to curl up with a good book! Install a built-in bench with hidden storage for all your beloved novels.
Multipurpose furniture brings amazing versatility to your space. For instance, a sleeper sofa might be your best day-to-day seating and then the most comfortable occasional guest bed comes at nighttime.
Modular pieces, like stackable ottomans or nesting tables, make a space that’s versatile to serve different purposes. Furniture with legs that are exposed can help small spaces feel larger.
This design lets light and air pass underneath, resulting in a more vibrant and breezier environment.
Analyze Traffic Flow in Rooms
When traffic is comfortable and efficient, that creates a sense of comfort and usability along the corridor. Move furniture around so that pathways aren’t blocked and there’s an easy flow through the room.
For example, placing a dining room table nearer to the kitchen might make it easier to serve dinner. In open-concept layouts, using rugs or shelving to establish distinct areas for living and dining brings a sense of organization.
If your space seems tight, consider knocking down a non-load-bearing wall. Just last year, 53% of homeowners opted to do this to achieve a more expansive open floor plan.
Evaluate Storage Efficiency
Open, clutter-free spaces tend to feel like they have more space. Vertical storage options, such as floor-to-ceiling shelves, use every inch of wall space and keep things looking extra tidy and seamless.
Hanging curtains above a window, as high as possible if that’s not too high, gives the appearance of greater room height. Creating elevated areas, like lofted beds, adds more storage or usable space without adding to the home’s footprint.
Enhance Room Layout
An intentional room layout can help even a modest home feel bigger and more usable without expensive alterations. Look at thoughtful layouts and artistic design elements. You’ll achieve an ambiance of spaciousness and elegance that’s tailored just for you. Here are some tangible suggestions to make your home feel more open and flowing.
Rearrange Furniture for Openness
Just by repositioning some furniture, you can create a completely different atmosphere that better suits your needs. Set them all out on one side of the room. This improves flow, creates a clean, wide path for pedestrian movement, and serves to make the room feel less cluttered and busy.
Choose leggy, low-profile furnishings to further contribute to the feeling of spaciousness, without compromising on utility. Mirrors are another important design element in opening up the space visually. Hanging a large mirror across from a window bounces the natural light, making the room feel brighter and larger.
In tight quarters, painting all but one wall in a single hue introduces subtle depth without competing for attention.
Create Defined Zones in Open Spaces
Especially in open-concept layouts, clearly delineating zones is key to keeping space in harmony. Use area rugs, lighting, or furniture groupings to create definitions between areas such as a living space and eating nook.
Vertical features, like bookcases or tall shelving create lines that draw the eye upward and give the illusion of higher ceilings. This approach not only brings added architectural interest, but maximizes every square foot to its highest use.
Avoid Overcrowding with Minimal Design
Therefore, minimalism is essential to avoiding a claustrophobic setting. Use a cohesive color palette for walls, furniture and decor to tie the space together. Fewer but more thoughtfully selected pieces will help a room feel bigger and more purposeful.
If storage is a concern, look for multi-purpose furniture, such as ottomans with compartments. For the changemakers who would like to see more profound transformation, stacking it on a second floor is one way to go.
In dense places like Pacifica, this investment can recover over a third of its cost and create twice the amount of living space.
Maximize Vertical Space
When space is at a premium, maximizing vertical space can open up new avenues of beauty and practical purpose. Although many people overlook vertical layouts, maximizing vertical space with style can open up new possibilities and completely change the layout of your home.
Here’s how to maximize vertical space.
Install Floor-to-Ceiling Shelves
Shelves are a no-brainer when it comes to vertical storage. Opt for floor-to-ceiling shelving to free up tons of room for your books, decor, and everyday goodies. They have a way of drawing the eye up, too, creating the effect of a taller, more expansive room.
Built-in shelves are ideal for a seamless look, while modular options offer flexibility for renters or those who like frequent updates. In a kitchen or dining room, combining built-ins with a banquette-style seating plan boosts efficiency and conserves room.
Hang Curtains Higher than Windows
Mounting curtains a few inches above the window casing gives the impression of higher ceilings. Select large, thin textiles to maximize this impact. Complementing lofty drapes with vertical style elements such as wainscoting or tall shower curtains will only draw more attention to the room’s height.
This small tweak will leave any space feeling much bigger and more welcoming.
Add Lofted or Elevated Areas
Lofted spaces, like a sleeping nook or raised office area, are ideal for rooms with tall ceilings. This strategy increases usable square footage without cluttering the crowded floor plate.
If complete lofting isn’t possible, consider elevated furniture or bunk beds. They are capable of producing additional sleeping space and can perform miracles in kids’ rooms or compact urban dwellings.
Use Light and Reflective Elements
Whether using glass or other reflective surfaces, incorporating light and reflective elements into your home remodel will make any area feel bigger and more stylish. These aspects can add massive amounts of natural light, while providing a fresh, open, airy atmosphere.
Here are some real world examples to illustrate how you can do this, plus some highly actionable tactics to maximize your design’s impact.
Utilize Mirrors Strategically
Mirrors are not just for checking your hair—they can help a room feel bigger when hung strategically. Place a big mirror directly opposite a window to reflect the natural light around the whole room.
In tight corridors or petite spaces, mirrored accent furniture pieces or wall panels will add an unexpected depth illusion. A simple grouping of framed mirrors hung as a gallery wall can serve as décor while boosting light.
This easy addition maximizes the light you already have and makes your home look sharp.
Opt for Light and Neutral Color Schemes
Using lighter colors will create an expansive, airy feel, making any room look and feel larger and more welcoming. Colors such as white, ivory, cream, and light pastels are reflective and bounce light around the room, increasing illumination.
Painting the top half of a wall in the room’s complementary color can add depth and intrigue without any garish contrasts. Combine these deep hues with light, high-hung drapes to pull the eye toward the ceiling, giving any room a stately, spacious feel.
Incorporate Glass or Transparent Materials
Glass elements including doors, tabletops or room dividers keep spaces open, letting light reach farther and creating a sense of connection by lessening visual barriers. Skylights are a fantastic source of natural light in the daytime.
Or add the convenience of built-in lighting to illuminate your path at night. In smaller spaces, opting for a glass coffee table provides additional surface area without the bulk and visual clutter, keeping everything feeling spacious and modern.
Improve Lighting and Airiness
You can make a home feel bigger and more elegant with some smart lighting and visual design decisions. Small changes in how light flows and how space is utilized can significantly impact the overall feel of your home.
Use Layered Lighting Solutions
Layering lighting means using ambient, task, and accent lighting in your space to meet varying needs. For instance, overhead lights give overall brightness, but table lamps or pendant lights create directed light for tasks.
Change your lighting settings automatically throughout the day to increase comfort and productivity. Consider soft, warm tones in the evening and brighter, cooler tones during working hours.
Mirrors are great friends to lighting, too, as they reflect and amplify natural light, making even the tiniest of spaces feel bigger.
Install Recessed or Wall-Mounted Fixtures
Recessed lights and wall-mounted fixtures eliminate clutter on floor and tabletops, creating an open, airy appearance. These choices are incredibly practical in tight spaces where each square foot matters.
Pairing these lights with a white or light color palette and clustered furniture layouts establish lines of passage that give a sense of movement and airiness. Additionally, vertical design elements such as tall bookshelves can help draw the eye upwards, creating the illusion of more height in ceilings.
Replace Heavy Drapes with Sheer Fabrics
Blackout curtains can cut out all natural light and leave rooms feeling dark and cramped. These lightweight, sheer fabrics provide just the right amount of sunshine without compromising your privacy.
Pair these with white floors or airy textiles for a light, welcoming feel. Painting a large-scale accent wall or adding horizontal stripes can make a big impact without consuming the decor.
Expand or Repurpose Areas
Making the most of your home’s potential usually begins with reconsidering how spaces are occupied. Repurposing or expanding spaces to offer more flexibility can improve functionality, increase property value, and promote a more open, peaceful environment. Here are a few simple, commonsense ways to get there.
Open Up Floor Plans Where Possible
While open floor plans may be all the rage, 53% of homeowners are still going with the walls and keeping the spaces separate when remodeling. Taking out non-load-bearing walls between the kitchen, dining room, or living room can immediately open things up.
Sliding barn doors are practical and fashionable. Stat from Zillow, they make homes sell faster and at a premium of 3-5% more. This affords the best flexibility for privacy without compromising openness.
Convert Closets into Functional Spaces
Unused closets can quickly become cozy reading nooks. A small closet could become a home office, craft area, or reading corner with simple additions like shelving and a compact desk.
This cost-effective approach makes the most of available square footage. With a little ingenuity, you can fashion a comfortable, inviting guest space that doubles as a productive home office.
Add Built-In Features in Awkward Corners
Built-ins make great use of under-appreciated nooks and crannies. Built-in shelving, window seats with under seat storage, or pull-out bed cabinets maximize narrow areas while offering looks and function.
These solutions integrate into your home harmoniously providing functional use and artistic beauty.
Enclose or Finish Outdoor and Attic Spaces
Outdoor spaces and attics represent low-hanging fruit. Enclosing existing patios or decks into screened-in rooms adds a more usable living area perfect for enjoying nature or hosting friends.
Completing an attic can create a quiet getaway, game room, or even a new walk-in closet. Each one presents real-world opportunities to expand programmatically without a heavy lift structurally.
Keep Design Simple and Functional
An uncomplicated yet functional design can make all the difference in taking your home to the next level. It creates a more open and sophisticated environment, while removing excessive ornamentation. By emphasizing clean lines and intelligent layouts, we bring a beautiful balance of form and function.
This strategy makes the most of each square foot.
Avoid Clutter with Smart Storage Solutions
It can be easy for clutter to take over, making even the most spacious of homes feel tight. When you add intelligent storage solutions, such as built-in bookshelves or under-bed drawers, it’s easier to keep items neatly stored and hidden away.
Vertical storage, such as tall shelving or wall-mounted units, draws the eye upward, emphasizing height and creating a sense of openness. A custom table joined with a banquette provides additional seating in cramped quarters.
It further doubles as additional storage, proving perfect for kitchens and breakfast nooks.
Maintain a Cohesive Design Theme
One design theme carried throughout the home can do amazing things in visually opening up a compact home. Keep it simple and cohesive with color, using one primary color to the ceiling or beams across the room, along with complementary patterns or textures.
A contrasting horizontal stripe around the walls gives the room added depth. In contrast, vertical features such as wainscoting or extra tall shiplap draw attention to the height.
Low-profile furniture – such as a 19th-century-inspired bed – keeps things feeling open while still adding some serious style.
Focus on Practicality and Versatility
It makes a big difference how you arrange the furniture. Placing all of your furniture along one side of a room will leave obvious pathways, increasing flow.
Versatile pieces, such as nesting tables or foldable chairs, ensure the space can flex to different needs without requiring additional space.
Conclusion
A home that feels spacious and welcoming can completely change your day-to-day experience. Even simple tweaks—such as rearranging furniture or adding mirrors—can make a noticeable difference. Smart lighting and vertical storage solutions are easy yet effective ways to create the illusion of more space without extensive renovations.
For homeowners looking to take things a step further, reclaiming overlooked areas or investing in a well-planned addition can dramatically enhance both appeal and usability. Carey Bros Remodeling specializes in transforming homes with thoughtful design and expert craftsmanship, ensuring that every square foot serves a purpose while reflecting your personal style.
Each phase of remodeling presents an opportunity to reimagine and rejuvenate your home, making it work more efficiently for your lifestyle. Whether you’re considering a small refresh or a major renovation, Carey Bros Remodeling is here to bring your vision to life. Don’t wait—start your home transformation today with smart design and expert renovations!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How can I make a small room feel bigger during a remodel?
Hang wall mirrors and paint the room in light colors to visually expand the area. Furniture placement plays a role — create clear paths while letting in as much natural light as possible. These modifications are a big improvement in style and functionality.
2. What are the best furniture choices for small spaces?
Choose pieces that pull double duty, such as storage ottomans or sofa beds. Select furniture with open bases to achieve a light and breezy aesthetic. Compact, space-efficient designs are perfect for maximizing space.
3. How can I maximize vertical space in my home?
Put in floor-to-ceiling shelves, cabinets, or pegboards. Consider wall hooks or pegboards for clutter-free organization. Vertical solutions clear floors and go up to the ceiling, making rooms feel more expansive.
4. What lighting changes make a room feel larger?
Include soft, ambient lighting, such as recessed lighting, wall sconces or floor lamps. Choose bright, warm LED bulbs. Good lighting removes shadows and makes the area feel more expansive.
5. Should I expand or repurpose areas during a remodel?
Yes, turn wasted books such as corners or a closet into useful spaces, like a petite workspace or a cozy reading nook. Knock down walls where you can to gain square footage or create a more natural flow.
6. Why is keeping the design simple important in small spaces?
Simple designs work more efficiently and help spaces function better. Minimalist decor and clean lines add a dash of upscale calm to the open, spacious quarters.
7. How can reflective elements improve my home’s appearance?
Incorporate mirrors, glossy surfaces or metallic accents to bounce light around the room. These features fill rooms with light and dimension, creating the illusion of larger, airier spaces that feel more open and inviting.
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The Secret to a Stress-Free Remodel: Carey Bros. Remodeling, Your Contra Costa General Contractor
Remodeling your home is exciting, but it can also be overwhelming. Between permits, budgets, design choices, and unexpected delays, the process can quickly become stressful—especially if you don’t have the right team by your side. That’s where a trusted Contra Costa general contractor comes in. With years of experience handling complex renovations, we take the guesswork out of the process, ensuring your project stays on time and within budget while bringing your vision to life.
At Carey Bros. Remodeling, we specialize in making home renovations seamless and stress-free. Our expertise, attention to detail, and commitment to quality mean you don’t have to worry about costly mistakes or unreliable subcontractors. From the initial consultation to the final reveal, we guide you every step of the way, ensuring your home transformation is everything you imagined and more.
The home of your dreams is within reach, and it all starts with choosing the right Contra Costa general contractor. Whether you’re upgrading your kitchen, expanding your living space, remodeling your bathroom, or giving your home a complete makeover, we’re here to make the process smooth, efficient, and rewarding. Don’t settle for anything less than expert craftsmanship and exceptional service – contact us today and let’s start building your dream home together.
Disclaimer
The materials available on this website are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to provide legal, financial, or professional construction advice. You should consult with a qualified general contractor, architect, or other relevant professionals before making decisions regarding remodeling, construction, or home improvement projects. Do not act or refrain from acting based on any content included on this site without seeking appropriate professional guidance. The information presented on this website may not reflect the most current building codes, regulations, or industry standards. No action should be taken in reliance on the information provided on this website. We disclaim all liability for actions taken or not taken based on any or all of the contents of this site to the fullest extent permitted by law.
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