How Paint Color Can Visually Impact The Size Of A Room

Paint color can do a lot for a room. You may assume it will always be a good thing to add a dose of color to a room, but depending on the size of the space you are working with, it may help or hinder the visual size of the room. Light and white tones will always make a room appear larger, and deep, dark, and bold tones can make a room appear smaller, but that’s not always a bad thing —if you have your heart set out on a certain paint color for your walls for a small space, considering how much natural sunlight the room receives is worth weighing, as a good amount of light can balance out a bold or dark space, helping it not appear so small.

Before you start considering a color you want for a room, consider the shape of the room and any obstacles you hope to address, such as a small space you are looking to visually expand with paint. Another point to consider is using paint techniques to further highlight a space.

I’m sharing 7 paint techniques below where paint color can impact the size of a room…

1

EXPAND A ROOM

Opting for white, light, and pale colors will always make a room appear visually larger, and to really make an impact, paint all the walls and ceiling the same color.

2

STRETCH A ROOM

To visually expand the height of a room, painting all the walls a bold color while painting the ceiling white or light tone, will create the appearance of more height for a low ceiling and elongating the room overall.

3

NARROW A ROOM

If a room feels too wide, a clever way to create a visually more narrow room is by painting the two long opposite walls in a room a bold color, like the look below, that helps to narrow the room. By adding dark color just on the two long walls, you can help narrow a space that will also lead the eye to see a longer room, which is visually appealing for a small space. I like this option because it’s a great way to make a bold statement with paint color, while also creating the appearance of a longer room in the process.

4

SHORTEN A ROOM WITH AN ACCENT WALL

Painting an accent wall a dark color can achieve two things : creating a visually shorter space for a long room and adding a pop of color to a wall to stand out.

5

LOWER THE CEILING

By painting the ceiling in a room a bold or deep color, you can give the appearance of a lower ceiling, which is great for a large room that you want to create a more intimate feel. By keeping all the walls white or light toned, it helps the ceiling stand out, as well, making for a statement making room.

6

COMPACT A ROOM

To create a smaller and more intimate space for an oversized room, you can paint all the walls and the ceiling one dark tone. Access to natural sunlight, like the look below, can also help to balance out even the most dramatic dark paint choices to really make it work.

7

SHORTEN THE WALLS + LENGTHEN HORIZONTALLY

A way to add some length to a room, horizontally, is to paint just the top half of all the walls a bold or dark color, and either leaving the bottom half white or adding white wainscoting. Doing so will help long walls appear shorter while lengthening the room at the same time.