Small spaces require specialized forms of decorating, something that will overshadow the fact that they are small, and bring out instead, their full potential by making them seem larger than they appear. With a few space decorating tips and ideas, it is possible to convert a small space and give it an illusion of being larger than it is. The following Buzzle article will highlight these tips and tricks that you can implement while decorating the room in question. Before starting out on the varied decorating tips, it is important to get one thing in order―clear out the clutter. If a room is cluttered with a lot of things, it closes the space and makes the room appear even smaller than what it actually is. Clear out anything and everything that is not needed and start off from there. The walls and the paints used on them have a huge effect on the appearance of the room. Open up the room by painting it in tones of white and off whites, or other light shades like a pale yellow. This gives the room an open and wider feel. Another option that one can take up is to paint a single wall in a bright color. Find the focal point of the room and paint that wall in bright shades of red, yellow, blue, or green. This contrasts well with the rest of the walls, increases the depth of the room, and gives it a feel of the room being big. One can even paint all the walls white and have a single piece of furniture in a bright color. It will work in the same way. One of the simplest things that you can do to give the room an illusion of being bigger is to place a mirror facing a window. This instantly opens up a closed room by allowing more space in. In case you're planning on using wall decors, make sure that you choose a single wall to decorate rather than cluttering all the walls. Also, the pieces or frames that you use should be wide and large―this will draw the attention to the wall, making it the focal point and give the illusion of space. When making furniture choices, choose one or two big pieces and let the attention be drawn to these, like a big chair or a book shelf. Do not clutter the whole room with tiny knick knacks and odd pieces that only serve to make the room appear busy. A recent trick that designers and decorators use when furnishing smaller spaces is, they use glass furniture pieces, like a dining table set. What this is does is it allows the eye to travel instead of locking it in one place. This gives the feeling of being in a bigger and open room. The placement of furniture should also be done such that it does not block the entrance or other doorways to the room. This not only thwarts free moving about, but gives a feeling of being in a tiny room. Opt for cutting down on walls wherever possible. For example, instead of dividing the kitchen and hall into two separate rooms, break down the wall, thereby instantly creating a more open area for the eyes to sweep across. Instead of the walls, one can choose curtains, or wooden dividers for when privacy is required. Shelves are not only a great way of bringing about storage options, but are also a great way of using them to create the illusion of a bigger space. Using open shelves instead of closed ones opens up the space to a great extent. It serves a dual purpose because not only does it create space, but because the shelves are open, it automatically forces you to filter the things that you will store on the shelves in order to keep them looking presentable and clutter free. Find areas that can be fitted in with shelves instead of cabinets, like, the space under the stairs. The same tips that work for opening up any other space will work for the bathroom as well. Using light tones for bathroom walls and contrasting them with a strip of tiles on one wall, gives the illusion of a bigger space. One can also place a potted plant onto an open shelf for the same feel. Similarly, using mirrors and glass dividers is another great way to open up the space by allowing light to travel throughout the bathroom. These tips will definitely help in making a small area look larger. Use these tips to decorate your own home and see the effectiveness of the same for yourself.