The hallway is the visiting card of every home – it is the first thing a visitor sees, so we should take good care of its decor to make the best impression. We suggest how to change a dark and depressing hallway into a representative room, which encourages to go further.
When the hallway is narrow and dark, we need to take care of tricks that will optically expand and brighten it. The most common trick is simply to change the color of the walls, it is more difficult to replace the floor. It is more difficult to replace the floor, because light-colored panels or parquets would be perfect. If you prefer tiles, choose stoneware with a shiny surface – when light will be reflected in them, it will optically enlarge the space.
You do not have to choose immediately the classic white, you can bet on pastel colors, such as beige and gray. It is necessary to choose paints, which will be resistant to abrasion and stains, so that in such a cramped room there are no problems with removing accidental dirt
There are paints with glitter particles available on the market – our walls will start to shimmer gently, which will give them a certain glamour and effect . If you like wallpaper, choose mineral wallpaper, which works on a similar principle, or bright colors with delicate patterns.
A perfect trick for narrow and small hallways are mirrors, which optically enlarge the space and add depth to the interior. If we can afford it, it is worth devoting for them the whole one wall or inserting furniture (e.g. closet or a closet) with mirror inserts. The lamps placed above the mirror will be reflected in it, brightening up the whole anteroom.
>> See also: Don’ t know what to decorate your walls with? We give you a hint!
We can not always manage without furniture in the hallway. For such an interior we necessarily choose bright, simple and light equipment. Ideally, if we limit ourselves only to a pouffe, an inconspicuous small chest for shoes, or a built-in closet. A larger number of furniture pieces will overwhelm the space and make it smaller, and in the end, this is not what we want.
Hallways in apartments usually do not have natural lighting in the form of windows, so we have to take care of that ourselves. To brighten up a dark hallway, we need good, but also subtle lighting.
We do not choose large non-functional chandeliers, effectively overwhelming the already reduced space, but point halogens along the entire length of the ceiling. The light in the corridor must be white, close to natural. It is worth thinking about additional lighting near the mirrors.
If we can afford it, it is worth choosing doors with glazing, which will let in light coming from outside or neighboring rooms. This will also brighten up a dark hall in an interesting way. Solid, thick doors don’t let the light in but are suitable for blocks.
If there is no real space for a proper hallway in your apartment, but you’d like to get some kind of a substitute, openwork wood inserts are a good idea. These can also be half-walls or wooden partition walls. They will not overwhelm the space, but additionally emphasize the designer decor of our house.
If we don’t quite agree with simple and functional style of our anteroom (especially in glamour style apartments), we can not only paint the walls, but also try to create a striking faux-wood paneling. The paint color should be light, but it can be a few tones darker than the paneling itself.
As you can see above, we don’t have to settle for a dark and cramped hallway. Appropriate tricks, such as changing walls for lighter shades, mirrors, appropriate lighting will help us achieve a stylish effect.
