The trend for tiny rooms
Don’t they say that the best things come in little packages? Well thats the topic of todays podcast debate as Kate and I ramble around the advantages of the smallest rooms in our home. Earlier in the year we reported on the trends for 2023 and House and Gardens magazine declared that open plan spaces are no longer top of the lust list when it comes to home renovations. It’s time to put the walls back up as we feel the need to curl up and feel safe in our cosy rooms. Maybe after being locked in our houses for two years, we discovered that having different rooms for different things is, well, more interesting and convenient. The trend for tiny rooms also goes hand in hand with our motivations to create cosy and cosseting spaces.
From books nooks, breakfast booths, walk in closets to down stairs loo’s, box bedrooms and pantries, these spaces are being celebrated in a cacophony of colour and pattern.
As my house is quite cottage like in style I have quite a few tiny rooms, and they are among the most favourite in my home. My shower room is just 1 m x 2m so we tanked it out to make a wet room, but the patterned floor tiles and sunny yellow make it a joy to rise and shine in every morning. Another bathroom that is big and bold on design while being small on proportions is this amazing tile layout design by Buchanan Studio.
Using a simple colour palette of pink and yellow (a personal fave of mine) the tile layout is carried out all around this room almost acting like a wallpaper. Like many bathrooms the room is only as wide as a bath but it delivers meters of design flair.
Pantries and larders have been a high on the hot list for a while now. I remember my Mums laundry room come pantry in our child hood home which was all white laminate units, the dog bed and laundry baskets. But somehow these small rooms that are off the kitchen have become everyones designer dream, with fitted joinery, beautiful storage jars on display and mouthwatering colour palettes. This design by Sarah Brown Interiors show’s how a punchy paint colour can elevate this humble room instantly.
Hallways, staircases and landings can present themselves a design challenge and my advice is to resist the urge to paint them pale in order to make them feel bigger. Embrace the quirk of a titchy stairwell or hallway with a saturated colour that invites you in.
Partitioning an area visually by colour blocking is a wonderful way to add interest and enjoy a bold and bright hue without it becoming claustrophobic. This hallway in the home of Jess Alavi-Ellis is a masterclass of taking a tiny room and making it visually very special. Check out the floor tiles, attention to detail is everything!
Fitted banquet bench seating is a genius way to maximise space in small dining areas, typically in kitchens. I have one myself. They create a really cosy and intimate area, while also allowing you to maximise bums on seats. The lack of chair legs cluttering up the spaces makes it visually more streamlined too. And you get to introduce plenty of colour and pattern through fabrics and cushions. I’m totally in love with this narrow dining room designed by Meta Coleman Interiors
Talking of adding plenty of colour and pattern, this home bar situation, designed by Salvesen Graham, is a masterclass in how you can go full-throttle with colour and pattern in a small room and it totally rocks. Any regular readers of this blog will know that I think you can go hard on colour and pattern in EVERY room in your home, but lots of people bottle it in small rooms as they worry the effect will be overwhelming. This works so well because they have drenched the whole room in one pattern so its impactful and yet still elegant.
Box bedrooms are often a struggle as they hallow room for a single bed and not much else. I’m loving this idea to fit a fabric bed canopy, that acts to entice you into a space to curl up and get cosy. In this girls room designed by Sarah Vanrenen, a strong yellow frames the window, while plenty of pattern found on the wallpaper, blind and bed head and canopy make this room feel rich and luxurious.
Who doesn’t lust after a walk in closet? When I set eyes on this gloss pink parlour in the home of fashion stylist Erica Davies it was love at first sight. Erica has indulged in her love of leopard print with a feature fitted carpet. This is not the biggest walk in wardrobe but the confident colour scheme elevates it to a highly glamorous level.
