15 Renovation Ideas That’ll Make a Studio Apartment Look Bigger

When it comes to walls, going dark is never good as it always makes a space appear smaller. Paint your walls white, off-white or a pastel to reflect the natural light and allow it to enter the space. And another studio apartment decorating idea? Keep the continuity with the colours and use similar tones that flow, not separate shades that clash.

Just as you would for the walls, keep your kitchen space light too. Opt for white cabinetry and appliances, neutral or light-coloured countertops and either pot lights or a clear light fixture to give a small apartment the illusion of expansiveness.

It’s pretty rare that the windows in a studio apartment can be expanded and near impossible to add a skylight. So if you’ve done all you can as far as bringing in natural daylight (light walls, matching curtains or blinds), make sure you have ample artificial lighting which can open up any room to make it appear larger and airier.

Now, if you can expand a window or add a skylight, it’s a fantastic way to increase the light which, in turn, will make the space seem bigger and wider because you’re adding natural dispersed light, which gives a room more dimension, rather than direct light.

A common, no-fail studio apartment idea? Add floating shelving to free up your space from those decorations, knick-knacks and other small items that end up looking messy. Also, it’s tough to create space in smaller kitchens but, chances are, the cabinets don’t go all the way up to the ceiling. Utilize those precious inches by installing shelving to not only cut the clutter but seemingly extending those cabinets: it’ll make the kitchen appear bigger.

Whether it’s your kitchen or bathroom, use wall-mounted faucets instead of built-ins to add those precious extra inches to countertops. And speaking of the loo, save a little more space by installing a round toilet bowl rather than an elongated one.

If the ceilings are high and permits allow for you to add a loft for living/sleeping space, go for it. If not, buying or building a loft bed to maximize the space underneath is both a fix for space as well as storage issues. Obviously there are limitations, but once you figure out what’s required and permitted, it’s a great studio apartment idea every dweller can appreciate.

Wall beds or Murphy beds are the ultimate pièce de résistance for any studio apartment. The idea of folding up a bed into a wall, storage closet or entertainment unit not only saves space, but it also transforms the entire place, giving you more than one option for the room.

Mirrors reflect light so if you want to make an open floor plan appear more expansive, hang mirrors anywhere and everywhere that makes sense. And those standard sliding closet doors? Replace with mirrored ones for the same effect or, have a massive, wall-to-wall mirror constructed.

For the heart of the studio apartment, white backsplash to match your appliances will go a long way. But if you want to add drama and even more faked space, particularly in a galley kitchen, try a mirror finish.

Depending on how old or new the studio apartment is, if there are bulky doors (whether it’s a bedroom, closet or even hall doors) taking up much-needed inches, remove them and replace with a pocket door (if you have a wall in which it can hide) or even a curtain that can be tied up to the side.

In most studio apartments, the bedroom, kitchen, living and dining areas take up one large space but occasionally, there are some exceptions. If a wall exists that is cutting into the room, consult a professional to see if it can be brought down. That will open up your home and increase the sight line so it extends to the end of the space, giving it all kinds of airiness.

Adding legs to furniture creates the illusion of loads of empty space under them, thus making a room look larger. And if you’re raising pieces off the ground significantly, it allows you more storage space, which is what every small apartment owner covets.

If you want something more than simple, light, neutral walls, add some striping with similar tones. Painting a striped pattern to the wall is a sure-fire way to make a space look longer.

Brighter usually means bigger, but when it comes to flooring, you need to do the opposite. Dark flooring in combination with a light wall colour makes a space appear broader. so consider a cool colour tone for the walls (maybe a pastel blue) and darker carpet or hardwood or laminate (try cherry, oak or walnut). Another trick is to place the flooring diagonally, it creates an optical illusion so the widest part of the pattern is what you first see upon entering the room. Bigger is better, as far as tiles/planks go, as is consistency, so use the same flooring in all the rooms.