Dark Room

Lighting up a dark room is a challenge every homeowner faces at some point, and it’s much harder to tackle when you live in a home that has small windows.

While major renovations — like expanding your doors and windows or installing new ones — can work effectively, they can also be expensive and inconvenient.

Thankfully, though, other simpler and cheaper methods are just as effective. From repainting your walls to updating your window treatments, here are six transformative ideas that will brighten up even the darkest room.

Place mirrors strategically

When placed in strategic positions, like near a light source, mirrors can give the illusion of brightness and spaciousness. And since they come in different styles and sizes, they can also add style to your room’s interior decor.

For the best result, hang a large mirror on the wall directly opposite the largest window in your room — this will reflect more natural light around the room, thereby dispelling any gloom the room previously had.

Paint your walls white

Painting your walls white (or as close to white as possible) will bounce light onto every surface in your room, making the room look larger and brighter than it is.

If you’re feeling bold, don’t stop at your walls — consider incorporating other elements that come in white variants, like furniture, fabric, flower vases and lampshades.

Light the walls and ceiling

While you might feel tempted to install your lights in random positions all over your room, you’ll benefit more if you focus your lighting on your walls and ceiling instead. When you bathe your walls and ceiling in light, every corner of your room will naturally take on a warm glow.

If you ever consider installing pot lights into your ceiling, always place them at the edges of your walls, then aim their light downwards.

By doing so, in the process of their illuminating your wall, they will highlight whatever decor pieces you’ve hung on your wall, making your room look cozy and inviting.

Cover floor with a colorful area rug

It’s hard to illuminate a room when its flooring is a dark shade. While refinishing the flooring is a great idea, a less expensive approach would be to cover it with a large, colorful area rug. Not only will this make the aesthetic of your floor pop, but it will also add warmth and texture to your room.

Choose light filtering window treatments

Every home’s biggest source of natural light is its windows. As such, instead of treating your windows with dark and heavy curtains that absorb light, use lighter, energy-efficient blinds.

Most homeowners often ask, “do blinds block UV rays?” The truth is that light filtering fabrics are effective at blocking heat and UV rays while still allowing giving you light and privacy.

Add plants

Plants have a way of adding life, color, and natural light to dark and gloomy rooms. And since they come in a wide variety of colors, plants naturally make a good decorative accent.

However, before you pick a plant for a dark room, first ensure that it’s a plant that can thrive with little sunlight. But even if you discover that it can grow with little sunlight, this shouldn’t stop you from giving it some time near a window every once in a while.