How To Maximise the Living Space in your Home

Expert advice from Origin

Do you remember stepping into your home for the first time, imagining where all your furniture would go, which room your family would enjoy the most and how you would make the place truly yours? Often, our big dreams change as we settle in and accumulate more belongings, so you may now find yourself daydreaming about what you could do with more square footage.

While moving to a bigger property may seem like the obvious solution, it’s not the most practical and you may find that you take some of the reasons you were feeling cramped with you. Luckily, there are a number of ways to create a feeling of space in your home, without calling the estate agents just yet.

In many ways, it’s just a trick of the light.

Keep It Simple

When it comes to how your home is decorated, the best thing to do is keep it simple. You can greatly aid the flow of your room by removing all the clutter which is likely to make it feel cramped, and replacing smaller items with larger statement pieces such as prints or coffee table books.

To make your space feel more open and bright, use light colours to paint your walls, as darker colours can make a room feel smaller – literally giving a feeling that the walls are closing in. You can take this even further by using lighter coloured flooring, too.

Materials Matter

It’s also worth considering the type of material that your furniture is made from and how this impacts your room – the difference that glass cabinets and coffee tables or Perspex chairs can make to your home in comparison to a dark wood is not to be underestimated.

Let in More Light

Removing barriers to the flow of natural light is key. This includes considering how your windows are dressed – and whether they need to be dressed at all. If they currently have heavy curtains surrounding them, it would be worth replacing them with a lighter blind that you can roll back
completely to make the most of the daylight. And then there’s the windows themselves – could the panes of glass be bigger? Could the sightlines be slimmer? There’s a lot to be said for an uninterrupted view and increasing the amount of glass in a home can have a transformational effect on a room, making it feel brighter and airier.

Link the Indoors with the Outdoors

One of the most effective ways to create the illusion of space is to add bi-fold or sliding doors to your home, essentially creating a complete wall of glass. Not only does the additional light instantly open up your space, but your garden feels that bit closer, giving the feeling that you are in a much bigger room, and helping you to enjoy your inside and outside worlds in a completely different way.

You can make this feel truly seamless through using the same flooring in both your inside and outside space.

In a way, this is taking open plan living to the next level – just imagine, if your kitchen, dining room, living room and garden were unobstructed by any walls. The same floorplan would instantly give the impression of more space, while the space available would be more useable.

Consider Positioning

Placing mirrors on walls opposite windows will enhance the levels of natural light in the room and give your walls an extra sense of depth, instantly making your room feel larger. The position and placement of your light fittings also has a part to play on where you focus your attention and for most homes, this is the middle of the room. Try adding lamps at a lower level or fitting lights which go around the border of your ceiling to open up your space.

Replace Clutter with Greenery

How we feel about our homes greatly impacts our wellbeing, and a lighter, airier, brighter space will help to make us feel brighter in ourselves. Of course, now is the perfect time for a spring clean after the hectic additions of Christmas trees and ornaments cluttering the home, so why not replace them with some air purifying house plants? These will not only reduce stress and improve the air quality of your home but will make it a more loveable, enjoyable space.

Conclusion

Our research has shown that families are happier when they feel safe and secure, with well-lit rooms, big windows and a sense of privacy from the outside world, so that they can enjoy their space together.

In an ideal world, there’s a balance to be struck – clean lines, an open space, and you at the heart of everything. As you look forward and think about how you will maximise the space in your home, consider where you spend most of your time and concentrate your attention there first – and remember, natural light is your friend.

To find out more about Origin’s premium aluminium doors and windows, visit here.

Written by Ben Brocklesby, Director at Origin