How to make a bare room feel more inviting

A bare room rarely becomes more inviting by adding more things. It becomes more inviting through softer surfaces, warmer light and fewer hard edges.

Add textiles, not objects

Textiles are the one element that can soften sound, soften light and warm the palette at the same time. Three layers are enough: a correctly sized rug, curtains that reach the floor and something soft on the sofa.

Bring the light lower

A room feels cold when all the light comes from above. Bring it down: a floor lamp by the sofa, a table lamp on a chest of drawers, a pair of candlesticks. Choose warm white light, around 2200–2700 kelvin.

Let the curtains take up space

Mount the curtain pole close to the ceiling and extend it a few decimetres beyond the window on each side. The window appears larger, the wall softer and the room taller — without moving a single piece of furniture.

Add one more natural material

Wood, wool, linen, rattan, stone. A room with three natural materials often feels warmer than one with ten different pieces of furniture. If everything is already wood, add textile. If everything is textile, add stone or ceramics.

Group things instead of spreading them out

Gather books, candles and bowls into three groups on tables and shelves instead of distributing them evenly. The empty space between the groups is part of the composition.