“It’s amazing how the use of the space can make it feel so different from what we originally saw when we first viewed it,” says Souyioultzi.
“It felt so much smaller; I doubted at first that we’d be able to fit in. Clare asked me what I’d do differently, but space-wise I wouldn’t change a thing.”
How to increase the sense of space within your home
Think about which rooms you need most during the day, and therefore where you will want the most daylight, and plan your layout accordingly. Relocating a kitchen, as here, for example, might not be too disruptive. “It’s easier to move a kitchen than a bathroom,” says Stevenson. “We had a great builder, so it wasn’t an issue, and because we had to raise the floor level a bit to install insulation, we were able to change the service runs underneath fairly easily.”
Consider how to improve the natural flow of the living space, and maximise natural light. If knocking down walls is required, replacing the wall with sliding or folding doors allows for more flexibility. Enlarging doorways and installing glazed internal doors will also allow light to travel through the interior.
Invest in built-in storage, which can be expensive but is a more efficient way of maximising space than free-standing cupboards, particularly if it extends right up to the ceiling. “Joinery is such a key part of a project for us,” says Stevenson. “Particularly where there isn’t a huge amount of space to put things, you need to use every corner. Right from the start we figure out where everything will go and specify every cupboard, so that everything has its place.” It’s also a good way of utilising awkward nooks, and making a room look more symmetrical and streamlined, which will enhance the sense of space.
Come up with a cohesive colour palette: here, colour has been used to create different atmospheres within the rooms, with shades of blue in the hallway and bedrooms, a pale grey in the living area, and accents of yellow and black throughout. The way the wall colour has been used on the woodwork and over the internal doors also helps to increase the sense of space visually.
Details such as flooring can make a big difference to the way a room feels. Here, the pattern of the chevron flooring in the hall draws the eye along and into the living space, where it changes direction over the threshhold. In the bedrooms, plank floorboards have been used, for a calmer visual effect.
“Little tricks that lead the eye can really help to open up the space and create a vista through an interior,” says Stevenson.
