–Amber

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Today we’re going to actually talk about how to make a small room look bigger and how you can create the illusion of extra space using a technique I like to call the top-to-bottom strategy.

Whether you live in a studio, dorm, or small home, every inch of space counts. So it is my goal to introduce you to three simple levels that may help you overcome small space trials that you may be facing.

The most beneficial part of this idea is that it can be customized to your preference.

It is a simple 3-step procedure that will help you reevaluate your thought process. Each level can be used to help you learn how to conserve more space by simply weighing any item you want or own against the top-to-bottom strategy.

So let’s get started.

The 3 levels of the top-to-bottom strategy are…

• Level 3: Ceiling Space
  
• Level 2: Wall Space
  
• Level 1: Floor Space
  

When you incorporate this idea, you’ll notice with each level you move from top to bottom (from the ceiling to the floor). You may also want to note that each level moves from (only) taking up air space to taking up air and walking space.

The further up your item is positioned the freer your walking zone will be and the more space you will have in your home.

You’ll notice that the highest level is level three, which is the ceiling.

The Nuts and Bolts of How it Works

When you had ideas in the past you may have encountered furnishing your home using these three levels but perhaps it didn’t occur to you to judge all items in this way. If so, the reason for this is easy to understand.

The typical way of purchasing items are:

• seeing an item you want
  
• considering whether you can afford it
  
• considering whether it will fit on the floor
  
• and then buying it if you’re comfortable with all of the answers
  

Who really thinks too much about it past that, right? The truth is most people don’t, because it’s easy to overlook—that is unless your home dictates what you purchase a bit more than usual.

In which case most small homes do.

So in light of that, today I’d like to help you see a little bit beyond the usual purchasing circumstances by offering you some pointers that you can keep in mind for future purchases.

From this day forward when you recognize that you want something you’ll look a little closer under the microscope.

And once you’ve learned how to do this it’ll be a heck of a lot easier to understand how to make a small room look bigger. And you’ll be an old pro before you know it.

So let’s start with an example that you can use to understand the nuts and bolts of how it works.

Take a television for example. Let’s use the top-to-bottom strategy to learn about level one.

How to Make a Small Room Look Bigger
Using Level One ==> Floor Space

Chances are good that you have a television in your home but for the sake of example let’s say you’re interested in purchasing a new television for your home. Your home is somewhat small so you’re looking for the most space efficient way to display it.

Right now you may be considering that your only option is the usual TV because it’s within your price range, but that still doesn’t take care of how you want to display it.

You’re looking for several options. You find what you’re looking for and within those options you want a TV stand that appears to give your home a little more space. That presents you with the following choices.

You can go with the…

• TV/Entertainment Stand [?]

  The bulkiest option in appearance. Although it doesn’t technically take up much more space than your other two options, visually it could make a significant enough difference in your home, especially in small homes.

• Ceiling Mounted TV Pole [?]</a

  This option most likely will not save you any more space than your basic TV/Entertainment stand. However, it could offer a slight advantage visually when it comes to making a small room look larger.

• Pedestal TV Stand [?]

  It may save a bit more space. However, most likely not much more than the other two options. But what may make this choice more appealing is that visually it looks a bit more space conservative than the other two options.
  

When faced with choices like this, ultimately, in the end you may realize it is a choice between how much money you want to spend versus how much space you want to save.

With the examples above, it is a specific scenario in which it’s not how much space you really save but how much space you “appear” to save. To cut to the chase, it’s all about creating visual illusion more than anything else.

With many level one items you will find that this will be the case. You’ll have plenty of opportunities in which you consider items that actually save your home real space just as often as you’ll deal with items that will offer you the advantages of putting up “appearances.”

And in the end the illusion of more space is just as vital as the ability to actually save space.

And say you were faced with this choice. What would be the choice to make? Well, really it’s up to you, but I can speak for myself.

If I was personally faced with this choice, the first thing I would do was weigh my needs against my wants.

Truthfully, the entertainment stand looks bulkier but overall would it help me store items that would otherwise be difficult to store elsewhere? If so, then maybe it would be a better choice.

However, is it possible that I could get away with a more slender looking choice like the pedestal stand and store my other items elsewhere? If so, then the pedestal stand would be what I decided to go with.

Overall, my first choice would be the pedestal TV stand and my second choice would be the TV/entertainment stand.

I would purchase the TV pedestal stand only if my needs didn’t require otherwise and only if I could find the pedestal stand within a comfortable price range. If not, I would go with the most space conservative entertainment stand I could find and cross the pedestal stand off of my list.

You may be wondering why I never even considered the ceiling mounted TV pole. Well, it was personal preference really. I would rule out the ceiling mounted TV pole simply because I wouldn’t enjoy the look of a pole extending from my ceiling to my floor. I would consider it a major eye sore and it would annoy me.

So now that you understand the type of options you may be faced with using level one, like the example above, you’ll also want to select the most comfortable choice for you. One that will do the job and be cost effective in the process.

The truth is that some items may save you space in your home but they will not always be the most suitable item for you due to your specific needs, wants, and spending capabilities.

Now that we’ve talked about level one, let’s move on to level two using the same example.

How to Make a Small Room Look Bigger
Using Level Two ==> Wall Space

These days with LCDs, plasma TVs and wall mounts, a home can easily be furnished with a television using level two. So in the case of level two, say you were interested in applying some space saving techniques to your home.

You’re interested in level two because it saves you floor space and that means a lot in your small home.

In this case, your options are very similar to level one but also quite different.

The three options you’d be faced with would be…

• CRT TV (wall mounted)

  This is your basic television. It is typically bulkier in appearance and typically heavier than an LCD TV, but not necessarily heavier than a plasma TV.

• LCD (wall mounted)

  Often a lighter option than your basic TV, depending on size (some LCDs are just as huge as plasma TVs). Also it is a visually space conservative item. That means it may not actually save you more wall space than a basic wall mounted television but it may “appear” to do so because of depth perception.

• Plasma TV (wall mounted)

  Less bulky in dimension than your basic TV. That means it has a flatter appearance and may be more visually appealing in regards to space saved as opposed to your basic television.
  

As you may now be aware, creating a home that saves space is about illusion just as much as it is about reality. Not all things that appear to save your home more space actually do, but as I said above it’s all about keeping up appearances.
With space, illusion is just as important as reality.

Level two is no different than level one in the sense that you’ll have to make a balanced choice by factoring in financial costs versus the illusion or reality of space saved.

If I was personally faced with these choices it would be a comparison against a basic television and an LCD. Chances are if you have a small home, a plasma TV would never be an option. Unless for some reason you’re the exception to the rule. But most people who live in small homes wouldn’t buy a huge plasma TV for their wall.

It wouldn’t make much sense.

Because if you could buy a huge plasma TV, chances are you could buy or rent a much bigger home.

But let’s say I was in this situation and had to make a choice. Between the basic TV and the LCD there would be no competition.

The basic TV would win hands down if I was on a budget.

However, I would upgrade to an LCD when finances permitted. Since LCDs are capable of using less energy (ranging from up to one half the amount of CRT TVs) so the money spent on the LCD TV would return to me over time with a lower bill.

How to Make a Small Room Look Bigger
Using Level Three ==> Ceiling Space

Using the same example. Say you wanted a new TV and you wanted to consider level three. You have three options with level three.

However, these options aren’t much different than level two. So, chances are level two may be your preferred choice in the end. But let’s go through the motion anyway.

The three options that you’ll have at your disposal are…

• TV (ceiling mounted)

  Typically bulkier in appearance and typically heavier than an LCD TV, but not necessarily heavier than a plasma TV.

• LCD (ceiling mounted)

  Often a lighter option than your basic TV, depending on size (some LCDs are just as huge as plasma TVs). Also it is a visually space conservative item. That means it may not actually save you more air space than the basic television but it may “appear” to do so due to depth perception.

• Plasma TV (ceiling mounted)

  Less bulky in dimension than your basic TV. That means it has a flatter appearance and may be more visually appealing in regards to space saved as opposed to your basic television.
  

The same answer stands here as well. If I had to make a choice between the three options I would likely choose a basic television if I was on a budget and then later choose an LCD TV when I had more money.

My choice was once different but now I know that LCD TVs use up less energy and the costs I’d put into one would be given back to me each month with a lower energy bill.

All in all, the truth is that you always have the ceiling as a space option but chances are the ceiling will be the least ideal choice. Simply because the ceiling is not applicable for most home furnishing. Also, the wall will oftentimes offer the same advantages and require a lot less work.

Also the ceiling will likely be the least visually appetizing choice.

Level three is an option that requires the judgment of good taste and careful consideration for rare and unusual circumstances. But the good thing is that you know it is there if you need it.

Judge all Things Equally

As you may have noticed, the television was just one example, but if you begin to judge all things against the top-to-bottom strategy you’ll find it can help you save a lot of space in your home.

What I found most helpful when using this method was not assuming that I knew all of the options right off.

There are too many advances in today’s society to assume I’m on top of most choices that are out there. So, often enough I spend time looking for items on the internet that fit each level of decorating.

Sometimes I find new items to consider and sometimes I don’t, but many times it ends in good results and it’s well worth the effort invested.

Using the strategy has helped me save a considerable amount of (visual and walking) space in my home. It has also helped me get creative and have a lot of fun in the process.

The beauty of it is that, like me, all you have to do is remember that it’s there for you whenever you want to buy something new. But the good news is that that’s what Furniture for Small Spaces is here for.

You don’t have to go searching the internet for all of those space saving items. They’re right here at your disposal which will save you a lot of time.

All you have to do is simply keep an open mind. Remember that just because an item saves you the most space doesn’t mean it’s the best item to have in your home.

But even that’ll be an easy task for you. All furnishings on this site are compared against the top-to-bottom strategy and the only thing left for you to do is pick the choice that’s best for you.

Simply weigh the pros and cons and keep these things in mind…

• how comfortable (or uncomfortable) each option makes you feel
  
• your space needs versus your financial needs
  
• and the extra benefits of an item versus a similar item that may not have those benefits
  

…and you’ll be ahead of the game.

Once you’ve got that down, you’ll be able to make a confident buying choice in terms of space and finance.

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Well that’s great because I have some furniture arranging ideas that I think you’ll love.

You’ll find that these ideas will be useful to you whether you’re arranging living room furniture, bedroom furniture, furniture in a dorm room or studio apartment.

In short, it’s applicable to just about every room you’ve got your sites set on decorating.

Before I get ahead of myself let me forewarn you that mainly the living room will be used as an example throughout this discussion today. But remember you can apply these tips to any room in your home.

Truthfully, you’ll find this strategy often happens naturally. However, it is still worth mentioning since it could save you a lot of trial and error. And let me not forget, your precious time and effort will also be cut down to a minimum.

One last thing before we get started…

Keep in mind this isn’t a die-hard rule, just a simple way of seeing things.

So let’s begin viewing your room in terms of whether it is a rectangle or square.

Generally, most rooms are shaped either of these two ways. You have your square which simply means all four walls are the spaced apart evenly. And you have your rectangle which means two out of four walls are spaced further apart than the other two.

In my experience it is more common to find a living room that is rectangular shaped. But let’s not forget that the smaller the dimension of a living area, the more it will appear to be shaped like a square. Although technically, it would still be considered a rectangle.

But we’re going to go by looks here. No need to get technical.

If your room looks like a square, call it a square. And the same goes for a rectangle. Since it won’t make any difference, keep mathematics out of it.

So, take a look around your room and take note of what you consider the room to be.

Is it a rectangle or square?

Once you’ve done that, next you need to consider…

Arranging Furniture in a Room by Wall Size

Now think of your walls in pairs. If it is rectangular shaped, you’ll need to look for the two longest walls in the room. Of course they’ll be adjacent to one another.

Just like me, you may find that one of the longest walls in your home isn’t technically very long because it is shortened by doors or doorways. If so, don’t worry, you’ve still found the right wall.

The goal is just to find the longest wall in your home and pair it off with its adjacent wall so that the appropriate furniture, like your sofa and television, can be placed across from one another when it’s time to start arranging furniture in a room.

If you have a square shaped living area, simply look for the two walls in your room that you feel will offer you the most advantage or will make the most sense when arranging furniture in a room.

Now that that’s done, let’s discuss a few other things.

Arranging Furniture in a Room by Width

Since the process of arranging furniture in a room is easiest when you match large pieces of furniture against long walls, that’s what we’re going to talk about now.

In Laymen’s terms arranging furniture in a room is as simple as matching…

Big to big and small to small.

Big furniture to big walls. Small furniture to small walls.

But let’s consider it a bit more. Although you generally match large pieces of furniture to the longer walls, before you do that it’s important to ask yourself if the furniture you are arranging in a room is a “width” or “length” item.

Since they are placed in a room differently in order to maxamize space it helps to differentiate between the two.

If you are decorating your living room, it’s common to deal with “width” items.

Examples of “width” items are…

• Sofa
  
• Loveseat
  
• Daybed
  

They are simply items that are greater in width than length.

As said above, “width” items usually work best placed along the longest wall. The reason it is usually best to place it along your longest wall is because your biggest piece of furniture usually takes up the most space.

By placing it against the longest wall it leaves you with a lot more co-operative space left over.

Let’s use an example to make this a little clearer…

Say you wanted to put your sofa against a small wall. You place it against the wall and take a step back and realize something doesn’t look quite right.

You ponder a moment and then finally it hits you…

Your sofa has swallowed up the entire wall. And your living room looks a whole heck of a lot smaller simply because the sofa is in the wrong place.

You’ve changed nothing except location, but why does it matter? Well the answer is simple.

There is an imbalance in positive and negative space.

The result is that you’ve got too much space on one end of the room and not enough space on the other. In short, your sofa is taking up the wrong chunk of space in your living room in terms of proportion and dimension. In the end this leaves your room looking a bit off.

So, to save yourself some time, simply pair off “width” furniture with your longest walls. And you’ll be on the safe side of decorating.

Arranging Furniture in a Room by Length

Okay, now that we’ve talked about “width” items, how do you handle “length” items when you’re arranging furniture in a room?

Well they’re actually arranged a little differently. The most common “length” item that you’ll deal with will be a bed. Sometimes you’ll also run into “length” items if you’re dealing with wall mounted furniture.

Your job with “length” items is to simply make certain the length of the item is either parallel to the longest wall or placed against it.

That will be the easiest way to keep the balance. And speaking of keeping that balance. Let’s talk about…

Arranging Furniture in a Room to Keep the Balance

When arranging furniture in a room, a good way to keep it all in perspective is to imagine your room is a seesaw or scale. And each piece of furniture is a weight that tips the balance of the scale in one direction or another.

Your main goal is to keep the scale leveled off so that no part of your home is tipping over with too much furniture and the other with too little.

To elaborate, generally your largest piece of furniture, such as a sofa, would balance off your living area by being placed in the center of your longest wall.

The scale is then leveled off and you are usually left with positive space on both sides of the wall.

And that’s where the smaller pieces of furniture come in.

Furniture like a…

• Chair
  
• Desk
  
• Dresser
  

They are there to offset the scale.

Arranging Small Furniture in a Room

You now know that “width” items are placed along the longest wall and “length” items are placed along short walls and parallel to the longest wall(s).

Well, smaller pieces are also placed along the shorter walls and where you have space left over after you’ve placed the larger pieces of furniture.

Remember… Big to big, small to small.

Big furniture to big wall and small furniture to small wall.

When you’re arranging furniture in a room, keep in mind that any wall you put a piece of furniture against should have some space left over. Ideally, no wall should ever be swallowed up entirely by one piece of furniture.

Some space should be left over on either side of the furniture.

Think of it like this…

A piece of furniture should take up some space but is should also give back a little.

With that in mind you’ll be giving each piece of furniture room to breathe and keeping the balance between positive and negative space.

Arranging Furniture in a Room by Height

When you’re arranging furniture in a room you may notice that “height” items are can be very guilty of being space hogs. One particular “height” item that is guilty of this is a lamp.

Lamps can be major space hogs when placed in pairs. Some lamps sit very tall on side tables or night stands and when lower furniture such as a sofa or bed is placed in between them, the sofa or bed looks swallowed up.

In cases like this, to fix this problem this is what I do…

• I remove the lamps from both sides of the sofa or bed.

• I look for a way to pair them off in two corners across from one another that do not ensare my bed or sofa. Or I look for two corners in any part of my room—diagonal from one another. They don’t have to be close together. The goal is just to get them far enough away from the bed or sofa so it does not look entrapped by the pair of lamps. Once I’ve found my two corners I catty-corner the stands and place the lamps on top.

• If I only have one corner free, I catty-corner the stand in the corner I have left and place the lamp there. If the corner where the other lamp is placed is far enough away from the other, I may leave one stand by the bed or sofa. If not, then I find a free place along a wall in my room that would look good and offer enough distance from the other lamp and I place it there.
  

And that usually solve the height hog issues I come across when I’m arranging furniture in a room.

Keep Things Open When You’re Arranging Furniture in a Room

Now that we’ve talked about everything else, how do you handle the space in the center when you’re arranging furniture in a room?

Well what you do with that is really up to you.

As a personal preference I tend to keep the center area of my living room free of furniture so that I can focus mainly on decorating that area with a rug. At best, you can also place a coffee table in the center of the room to offer your home that special touch.

However, as I said what you do with that area is strictly up to you. Just as long as it’s kept to a minimum in which there is room to walk around and there’s enough negative space to feel the room isn’t closing in on you, you’ll do great.

The main goal is to make sure it adds to the beauty of your home and does not detract from it. Just keep in mind that too much of a good thing isn’t good.

And remember when you’re arranging furniture in a room, balance is the key.

Place big to big, small to small. Level off positive and negative space by giving your furniture room to breathe. Sprinkle your accessories in the left-over space and throughout your home.

And voila! You’ve arranged the furniture in your room beautifully!

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