Many people live in small houses or apartments, where space is limited, and there isn’t adequate ceiling height in the rooms. But there are ways you can make your room look bigger by choosing the right curtain colors.
Curtain colors, such as neutrals, light greens, blues, and grays, can make a small room appear larger and airier. By hanging these curtains the right way (we’ll give you some tips later in the article), you can successfully enhance your space. Lightweight and light color curtains work best in small rooms. Texture can also play a role in opening up your space, but again, it does depend on your window treatment color choice.
Using excessive dark colors in a small room can be overwhelming. It is never recommended to choose black or dark brown curtains for small rooms. Fill your interior with neutral and light colors if you want to open up the room and make it feel inviting.
Want to know what curtain colors make your room larger and airier? Then take a look at the following:
8 Curtain Colors that Make a Room Look Larger
White
To make a small room feel brighter and bigger, opt for white curtains. This idea works especially well in rooms with white or off-white walls. Such curtains help increase flow around the small room and keep the eyes on the other decorative elements instead of the windows.
To widen your compact room, opt for full-length silky white curtains. This helps make the room feel more comfortable by reflecting light whilst retaining privacy. White is a neutral, versatile color that spreads natural light to the room during the day, so it is especially recommended for small living rooms.
Pale Blue
One of our top favorite curtain colors that makes a small room appear larger is pale blue. This restful, soothing color is especially ideal for bedrooms as it induces sleep as well as concentration.
Light blue curtains are also perfect for home offices or study rooms. This timeless color brings peace and tranquillity to any home decor. From azure and sky blue to turquoise and ocean blue, this desirable curtain color certainly demands attention. You can use it with or without other pastel shades to make your bedroom stand out and appear larger.
Light Purple
Light purple shades have a calming effect, and just like blue, they also make a great addition to a small bedroom. This stately color for the curtains of a small room will liven up the space and create depth. Purple is associated with luxury and royalty after all! If you love this color, opt for lavender, iris, orchid or periwinkle as these are pale, light shades that won’t make the room feel closed in.
But it’s not just a small bedroom that can benefit from light purple curtains. For formal dining rooms or living rooms where space is limited, a semi-sheer light purple floor to ceiling curtain will allow some light to filter in the room whilst emitting a warm vibe. And if you want to create an opulent feel, allow the luxurious purple drapes to puddle on the floor.
Dusty Pink
A perfect combination of elegance and openness can be found in dusty pink curtains. When paired with white walls in a small room, light pink curtains can bring a soft, layered feel. These curtains are ideal for girls’ bedrooms, where space is limited. You may even add a sheer white curtain to the dusty pink panels for ultra sophistication.
Sunny Yellow
We all know how energetic and dynamic yellow is in its pastel form, but how about using this sunny shade for your small room’s window treatments. Yellow curtains can certainly stand out as they have a broadening effect in small spaces. Shades like lemon or sunshine yellow are ideal, but if they’re too bright for your liking, opt for mustard yellow instead.
Light Green
As one of the most trending colors, light green shades, such as apple, pistachio, lime, mint and lawn green can make a small room look bigger. This nature-inspired color brings the outdoors inside thanks to its smooth, simple appearance.
Whether you prefer using this curtain color in your small bedroom or living room, it can instantly inject peace and harmony into your interior. Again, it is better to hang light green curtains from the floor to the ceiling to emit an open and bright feel.
Light Gray
For a simple, yet luxurious look, try light gray curtains to make your small room look bigger. Light gray is subtle enough to add visual interest whilst drawing the eye to the window.
Bear in mind that the shade of gray you choose will have the utmost impact on how large you want your room to appear. To balance out the light gray curtain with your room, paint your walls white or off-white. Shades, such as silver or cloud are especially suitable for small living rooms or bedrooms.
The soothing effect of light gray curtains makes any room appear brighter as these window treatments allow plenty of sunlight to enter the room. With the addition of mirrors with gray frames, you can surely make your small room appear larger.
Sheer Curtains
Sheer curtains are transparent or see-through window treatments that are most commonly seen in small rooms. They can be embroidered or feature shimmery thread designs. These types of lightweight and thin curtains allow maximum light to enter the room during the day, thus making them suitable for living rooms, kitchens and dining rooms.
With sheer curtains, your room won’t have privacy – unless you add sheer blinds to decrease visibility from outside. Such curtains create an illusion of a bigger room as well as brighten up the interior. For larger windows, there are floor to ceiling sheer white or pastel curtains that flow beautifully. Note these curtains aren’t suitable for small bedrooms as they don’t block light.
Tips on Hanging Curtains to Make Room Look Bigger
– When hanging your curtain on a rod, allow it to stick out from the side of the window. A slightly visible rod will make your windows appear larger, thus, your room won’t feel closed in. You can always open the panels entirely to the side to let the window show. When your curtains frame the window this way, the window gives the impression that it is larger than it really is.
– Rods with a minimum length of 8 to 10 inches above the window frame will make a small room seem bigger.
– Long fabrics that lightly touch the floor can elevate the ceiling height and make the walls appear taller.
– While curtains come in various patterns and styles, it is best to avoid floral patterns or horizontal prints. These curtain styles will only further shrink the small room unless you choose vertically patterned drapes for your small room.
– Avoid choosing heavyweight and thick fabrics. These are only recommended for large rooms.
– Additional frills on curtains, such as lace, ropes, or poms, will only shrink the room. Although these textures are visually interesting and pleasing to the eye, the add-ons will only cause the curtain to take up more space than necessary.
Do Full-Length Curtains Make a Room Appear Bigger?
Yes, full-length curtains can make a small room appear bigger. You should hang the curtain from the rods above the window frame as close to the ceiling as possible. To do this, drill holes into the window frame before fitting the rod. Leave a gap of 2 or 3 inches between the rod and the ceiling. This will make your room appear larger once you’ve completed hanging the floor-to-ceiling curtain.
Can I Hang Patterned Curtains in My Small Room?
If you ask any interior designer, they will tell you not to use heavy or horizontally patterned curtain designs. Large-scale prints or stripes tend to shrink the window, thus making the small room appear even smaller.
These types of curtains are therefore only recommended in bigger rooms, where the homeowner wants to balance or enhance the grandeur of the room.
Loud fabric prints like polka dots or geometric designs as well as dark colored patterns weigh down the small room and detract the eye from other decorative elements within the small space. Instead, all the attention will directly go to the window with the heavily patterned curtains.
In Closing
By picking lightweight, thin curtains in the colors we’ve recommended, your small room will undoubtedly appear bigger and airy. Remember to avoid heavy patterns or textures as these curtains close in the room and overwhelm the compact space.
You don’t have to limit your options to just white or gray. As you can see in our examples, pale blues, pinks, yellows and green shades can also work in small rooms.
