Discover how to use paint to make a room look bigger or smaller!

It is rare that there is no a room in  house that we would not like to be wider, taller - or paradoxically, less wide or  not so long. Although its actual dimensions cannot be altered - or at least it can only be done in certain cases and with a large expenditure of money - it is still possible to exploit the paint on the walls to change the perception of space in any particular room.

It is a question of exploiting the optical illusions obtained by putting paint only on some of the surfaces of the room (or on only on some part of them). Read on to find out more:

• Expand the room: If you want to make the room appear larger (in all directions), paint all walls, including the ceiling, white or some other light and bright color (and the ceiling should be in white in all cases).
• Raise the ceiling: to make the room seem higher than it is, you need to increase the contrast between all the walls and the ceiling. Then, all the walls will need to have a darker color and the ceiling should be in white.

The trick of bringing the white down from the ceiling to the top of the walls (i.e. just below the ceiling line), also works ... but without going too far.If you want to be daring, you could paint the walls with vertical stripes - or even just do one (or a pair of opposite walls).

• Narrowing: in cases where the space seems too large and dispersed, the width of a room can be reduced optically by painting the opposite walls the same color, and darker than the others. This is because dark colors absorb light, and thus makes the walls seem closer together to the viewer. This is a useful tip in very long rooms, such as certain passageways or very large corridors.
• Lengthening: if, on the other hand, the room seems short, you need to "push away" the back wall and take advantage of the perspective. Since the human gaze tends to follow contrasting (opposing) lines, you can make the back wall of a short room appear further away by painting it the same color as the ceiling, which should be darker than the rest of the room. For this technique, it is generally recommended to leave the other walls a neutral color.

• Make it smaller: another case in which a room is extra-large and you want to make it seem less disperse and empty. For a more intimate space, use a dark color on all the walls, and even on the ceiling. It is also fine to use combinations of wallpaper or various upholstery in dark colors to match the decor.
• Give prominence to a wall: this is the case of the so-called accent wall - the one that is painted in a different color to the rest (or, more often, is covered with wallpaper or some other type of cladding).

• Widening: is the room too narrow (perhaps it is a corridor)? Then you can paint the walls in two colors. A dark band at the bottom and a light band at the top. The level at which you decide to draw the dividing line will change greatly depending on the perception. Generally, it is recommended to paint the lower half of the room dark and the upper half white (together with the ceiling in white). But you could also lower or raise the line a little. An even more bold way is to paint the walls with large horizontal stripes (again, in opposite pairs or, perhaps, just one wall).
• Lower the ceiling: if the room is too high, as perhaps happens in former industrial spaces or some rural houses, the economical alternative to installing mezzanines, is to paint the ceiling darker than the walls.

• Shorten the room: paint the back wall in a dark color. It could be the excuse you need to create a memorable accent wall.
• Emphasize the ceiling: if the ceiling is equipped with beams, or any other element that deserves to stand out (sometimes, there are false ceilings with amazing lighting systems), leave all the walls white or neutral so that any element noticeable on the ceiling will stands out.

Have you ever used these these tips for your home?