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25th Aug 2019

The super simple paint trick that will make a small, dark room look much brighter

Trine Jensen-Burke

Up for some really easy weekend DIY?

Here is a paint trick I recently came across, and am actually dying to put to the test in my own home very soon.

You know the way some rooms can feel a bit gloomy compared to others? This often has a lot to do with natural light and what direction said roomis facing, of course, but luckily, you don’t have to be at the mercy of the sun completely.

Got a dark-ish room you would love to make feel a bit brighter? Well, then this paint trick might just do the – ahem – trick.

According to PureWow, to trick the eye into thinking your space is brighter than it actually is, what you should be doing, is painting the room or hallway that leads into the room in a high-contrast, dark color.

How would that work, you say?

Well, what you need to do is paint the walls of the hallway or adjoining room a navy or dark green or maybe charcoal grey, so that it frames the gloomy room behind (which you need to paint in a bright, light colour, such as white or pale pink or blue etc.)

Or maybe it means painting the partition walls and bookshelves a chalky gray to define the adjacent white living room.

Regardless, going from dark to light will instantly trick the eye, making you (and others) believe the not very bright room is actually rather large and bright.

Have YOU tried this trick yet? Have you other DIY tricks to share with us? Let us know in the comments or tweet us at @herfamilydotie