Ten ways to make small big

Small spaces are greater design challenges than their larger counterparts. The smaller the space, the greater the need to maximise storage, mood and even style.

1. USE space efficiently. The living room opening into the dining area and an open kitchen is the best way to make the space look seamless. Make a list of what you want in each space and then where you want it. 
    
2. MAKE your space multitask. If you want a library and have no room, use your bookshelves as a wall. Your dining can then double up as the bar, work table or the kitchen counter. Open kitchens allow interaction with the family as you rustle up a meal. 
    
3. SHAPE spaces with partitions and not walls. Flexibility in a small space is mandatory, keep your partitions between rooms sliding, louvered and reflective rather than opaque. This also allows you to use the six-inch width of the wall as shelf, storage or even a screen. 
    
4. CLEAN floors enhance space. Minimise furniture and rugs. Borders or motifs on the floor or on bathroom tiles constrain space; single or neutral coloured stone/tiles make a space look bigger. 
    
5. ACCENTUATE doors with mirrors or fabrics like silk or organza for a touch of colour and glamour. You could even have a collage of family photos displayed on doors for a different look   
    
6. MAXIMISE natural light — it also reduces your lighting load. Take windows up to eight feet and then use light drapes or neutral colour blinds starting from the ceiling. 
    
7. COLOUR can expand space. Soft, monochromatic tones create the illusion of more space. So apply one colour to all walls and ceiling. Let the accent as a dark colour or texture or wall paper be just one contrast wall. In a small space you can certainly mix patterns and colours, but be careful to stay within a chosen palette so that each part of the whole space is smoothly continuous with the next. 
    
8. CLUTTR is both wasteful and constraining and can take away from the best designed spaces. Innovative storage solutions can be the answer, but you could also make sure your space does not have too many knicknacks or accessories or even too much furniture. Build on your walls instead. 
    
9. KEEP the loose furniture light, not blocky. Use single pieces like a coffee table or rocking chair to highlight. Other pieces should be multifunctional. An ottoman could be a coffee table and have storage; a classic bench could double up as bedside table or have a shoe rack below. A couple of stylish folding chairs could become extra dining chairs when you have guests. A working desk could expand into a dining table. 
    
10. MAXIMIZE storage. All beds should have storage. So can the under sink areas in the bathrooms, corners and areas behind doors. Concealed storage disappears into the walls and furniture, hiding necessities like shoes, coats and quilts and even photographs, inverters, tool boxes and step ladders.

[The writer is a Delhi-based interior designer]