Home interior painting tricks to remember if you have a small space

The power of paint cannot be underestimated. Because paint takes up such a big part of your home visually, it can completely alter how your space feels depending on the paint you select.

When it comes to painting a small space, there are a few tricks to keep in mind and employ so your space can seem bigger.

Go white only if you get lots of natural light

Everyone knows that light colours can make a small space seem bigger, so white is an obvious choice.

But it's not the best option if your space doesn't get a lot of natural light. White walls tend to look dull and dreary if there is little to no light to help bounce the colours around the room.

If you want a neutral colour but don't have a lot of daylight, go with grey or taupe hues with undertones in them that will help create some visual movement in the space.

Stick to one colour or try tone-on-tone

One of the easiest tricks in the book is to go for just a single colour on all of your walls-including the ceiling if possible!

The lack of colour contrast and the lack of dividing lines mean your eye cannot tell where things stop and start so your space will seem a lot bigger.

But if you like a bit of variety, the trendy tone-on-tone look, which is basically employing the use of different shades of the same colour, is a good alternative.

Get on board with half and half for interest

Another paint trick you can consider in a small space is to go with a half-painted wall. To make this work, paint the bottom half of the wall a darker colour compared to the upper half.

A one-third split would produce the best visual effect. A half-painted wall changes things up and emphasises your ceiling, making your room appear taller than it really is.

Don't be afraid to use dark colours

When it comes to painting a small space, don't be afraid to go the darker route if that's your thing. While dark colours are known to reflect less light compared to lighter hues, they don't shrink your walls.

In fact, it's precisely because they reflect less light that they can increase the perception of depth and cause the confines of a space to be less defined, lending to the sense of a bigger space.

If you are just starting out, paint just one accent wall dark while keeping the rest of the walls light.

For the adventurous, painting most or all of your walls, including your ceiling, in dark colours can better blur the edges of the room.

Create a feature wall that draws the eye sideways or upwards

Paint is a great way to add a visually interesting detail in a small space since it doesn't take up any physical space. A painted feature wall also draws attention away from your room's size.

Consider a design that can help to visually elongate the room or make your ceiling appear taller.

In the homes below, geometric shapes emphasise the length of a room and also draw the eye upward towards the ceiling.

This article was first published in Renonation.