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DESIGN 101
4 Simple Design Tricks to Brighten Your Space for Spring
Published: March 18, 2025
Spring is coming—time to brighten up! If your space lacks natural light, these easy decorating tips will make it feel airy without losing warmth or personality.
DESIGN 101
4 Simple Design Tricks to Brighten Your Space for Spring
Published: March 18, 2025
Spring is coming—time to brighten up! If your space lacks natural light, these easy decorating tips will make it feel airy without losing warmth or personality.
Soft Color Palette
It’s time to embrace your softer side with light neutrals and shades of white. Not only are they soothing, but brighter hues will also naturally reflect and amplify any ambient light. Swap out oak furniture for light-colored wood, darker lamp shades for pristine white, or, for a bigger impact, contrast your dark floor with a big bright rug.
Reflective Materials
A dark room can often feel smaller and more cramped. Instead, you can create the illusion of a more expansive, and open space with reflective materials. Commonly, interior decorators use mirrors throughout a room for this effect, but you can also incorporate modern touches like metal or chrome frames, or coffee tables made of translucent glass, acrylic, or Lucite.
Upward Light
It may feel obvious that adding lamps can brighten a room, but there’s a method to this tip. Choose torchieres and lamp styles that aim the light upward, helping disperse the light when it bounces off the ceiling, rather than pendants and lampshades that cast the light down. Plus, we recommend layering your light with multiple sources to create a warm ambiance.
Natural Decor
Take a page from the 2024 natural beauty trend with houseplants, flowers, and organic materials that bring the springtime indoors. Retire heavy fabrics like wool or velvet for breezy linen and jute. For dark rooms, ditch live plants for artificial ones that can thrive sans natural light or add eye-catching botanical prints — from leafy wall art to floral throw pillows.
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F.A.Q.
How to make a dark room brighter?
To brighten a dark room, use strategic lighting like floor lamps in corners and wall-mounted sconces for a layered effect. Choose glossy, reflective surfaces and light tones to enhance brightness — mirrors and glass work especially well. Maximize natural light by avoiding heavy curtains and bulky furniture that block windows and light sources.
How do you fake natural light in a dark room?
Mimicking natural light is no easy task, but there are a few tricks that can do the job. As far as light bulbs go, use warm-toned LEDs for floor and table lamps. For overhead lights, pick options with white or translucent shades to create a diffused glow.
Decorative mirrors help brighten a room. Place them opposite any source of light you may have to distribute brightness evenly across the room. The same applies to shiny pieces of furniture and decor — although the result may be a bit more subtle.
Another crucial element is adding light-colored wall art or decorative panels to maximize reflections across the space. As a bonus, you’ll get your walls to feel less heavy and dark.
What is the best color to brighten a dark room?
White is the best color to brighten a room, as it’s the one that reflects the most amount of light. However, using plain white can feel a bit too “clinical” for some people, and it degrades a lot faster than other colors.
Instead, you can use light neutrals such as off-white, beige, or a very soft gray. These will still reflect a good amount of light without making the room too cold. Also, they pair better with modern and minimalist styles.
If you want a cheerful touch while thinking about how to brighten a dark room, you could also go for pastel tones. Pale blues, soft greens, and other blush tones can add a noticeable hint of color without darkening up the room.
In any case, try to avoid mixing too many colors between wall paint, furniture, and decor. Simple color schemes help prevent visual clutter, making the space feel more open and inviting to everyone.