Interior Design with
Julia Luttrell
Creating the Illusion of Space
Recently a friend of mine enthused, “Oh Julia, I love your place. It
must be great to have such a spacious home with all that squandered
space to stretch out in.” It was a gratifying moment, I admit. “Aha,” I
replied, “So the illusion is working. My place is no larger than yours
is! Yet once again devious design works it’s delightful magic.”
Astounded, she said, “That can’t possibly be true. With your living
room, home office and dining area all in that one L-shaped area, it
still looks huge, it must be larger than mine.” I rose to the challenge.
“All right, I’ll bet you. I may live in a house, but I’ll bet I have
even LESS floor space than you have in your one-bedroom high-rise
apartment.”
So out came the measuring tape, the bet was on and I’m happy to report
she now owes me a fine bottle of wine. Hmmm, I must remember to thank
her for inspiring the subject for this week’s column.
Yes, just as magic is all about illusion, so too desirable design is all
in the planning.
A combination of careful space planning of furnishings and the expert
use of strategically placed mirrors, can create an expansive airy effect
that tricks the eye into believing a space is much larger than it
actually is.
Mirrors are a key element to an expanded illusion of space. Still, there
are a few useful design guidelines to the successful use of mirrors.
Have no fear of size - large mirrors have maximum impact. And if
expansion of space is your goal, allowing them to do their primary job,
which is merely to reflect space, means you should not allow the
mirror’s frame to have so much importance that it steals the show.
For this reason, I like to use unframed mirrors. They do not restrict
you to a particular ‘look’ and you maintain that ever-important ability
in design, the ability to change your mind!
Using a three by five-foot mirror (with polished edges) and vertically
installing it with discreet chrome clips, for example, can influence the
entire room’s design direction, merely by changing the frame detail of
the mirror.
Among the many creative ways to create a frame detail for a mirror, one
of my personal favourites involves applying an interesting carved wooden
moulding directly onto the wall, at the top and bottom opposite corners
of the mirror.
Large mirrors placed on opposite walls will double the size of a room,
however, it is important to avoid having them reflect one another. This
only confuses the eye and defeats your purpose. Instead, try installing
one mirror vertically, toward the right hand corner of a wall. Then on
the opposite wall, install the another large mirror horizontally and
place it toward its right hand corner.
You’ll find this design technique has an understated elegance. Without
dominating the room, the mirrors expand your space to twice its size,
yet create a relaxing atmosphere which envelops you in a comfortably
enhanced reflection of your surroundings. Try it, you’ll like it. And
who knows how many wagers you may win!
