Those of us living in small apartments have most likely experienced some deficiency in space that can negatively influence moods as well as rental rates

All it takes to fix this is some forethought, planning, a day’s effort, and some consistent habits.

Pick the right furniture

It all begins with your furniture. You might have your personal preferences, but it definitely pays to go minimalist when working with a small space.

Minimalism is one of the few objective art styles that prioritise practicality over self-expression with slim profiles, simple geometry, and neutral shades – features that will help to accentuate your physical and perceived space.

At a higher ratio of length to width, a rectangular table looks better than a circular table in a small room and provides more surface area above the floor for the temporary placement of objects.

KonMari your place

Keep things off the floor and opt for furniture that shows off the floor as much as possible to maximise the perceived volume of a small room. Think “savannah” rather than “jungle”.

For reasons that relate to how we navigate through natural environments, a clearly visible horizon accentuates the illusion of a large space, and a busy floor tends to diminish any sense of spaciousness.

Perception begins with stimulation, then organisation, interpretation, and finally, memory encoding and recall. A messy floor, overly stuffed shelves and busy-looking wall decorations diminish the sense of free space with an overabundance of stimuli demanding visual attention.

Let one hue dominate

In the same vein of how we mammals perceive our environments, letting one light hue be the main shade of your room creates a sense of uniformity and greater volume in a small space.

Be reserved in the number and size of objects you choose to accent with brighter colours, and stay light or neutral as much as possible to counter the room-shrinking effects of shadows.