Featured Partner Post

When it comes to decorating small spaces, colour plays a key element. The right tones and shades can make a tiny room feel warm and inviting, or open and airy, depending on your preference. Whether you’re living in a compact apartment, or just want to make a snug room more stylish, this guide offers key tips on how to use color strategically to transform your space.

Go Light and Bright

Lighter shades reflect more natural light, creating the illusion of openness. Think of warm whites with undertones of brown, red or yellow, as these colours will keep a room light without feeling cold. Avoid whites with undertones of blue and green, which feel cooler.

double drench

Using different tones of one colour family throughout the room can help everything flow seamlessly. Picking one tone and using lighter and darker versions of it throughout the ceilings, walls and woodwork creates a visually interesting scheme that is cohesive. Paint brands often categorise tones by pigment as ‘colour groupings’ and it’s worth referring to their websites for guides on complementary tones from the same colour palette.

Choose Rich, Warm Tones

Whether you want a snug, cocoon-like vibe or prefer more colour in neutral spaces, consider incorporating earthy tones like terracotta, olive green, mustard, or plum. These colours can make a room feel more intimate and inviting as they are organic shades that tend to absorb light instead of reflecting it.

Add Subtle Contrast

While soft shades are ideal in small spaces, darker accents can make your rooms feel more dynamic. Don’t be afraid to bring in small pops of burgundy, brown, charcoal, or deep green through decor or artwork. If you paint a room in these colours, consider colour drenching the room for maximum impact.

Mix Warm Neutrals and Texture

If bold colours feel too strong, opt for caramel, mocha, or taupe paired with cosy textures like velvet, boucle or woven fabrics. This combination of warm hues and tactile materials layers a room to make it feel lived in and inviting.

Use Reflective Surfaces

Mirrors, metallic accents, and gloss surfaces bounce light around to instantly brighten any room. A strategically placed mirror opposite a window can double the sense of space, while on-trend chrome accents look stylish and reflect light.

Try a Two-Tone Effect

If you want to bring in colour but cannot commit to painting a darker hue on the walls, try paining just the woodwork in a deeper hue, or even just the bottom half of the wall for a dado effect. This adds colour to your space but as it is paired with a neutral, it maintains balance.

Layer Your Lighting

Every room requires a different layer of lighting for both task and mood. Use table lamps and wall lights for a cosy, relaxing atmosphere. Keep pendant lights and downlight just for use when required.

Featured