How to bring space and light to the trickiest room in the house

telegraph.co.uk:

Essem to help “utilise as much of the wall all the way up, rather than taking up floor space”.Her other tricks include hanging a large mirror with an organic, sculptural shape over the radiator console – her favourites come from Reid & Wright  – “to add movement and make the space feel bigger”; and hanging one dramatic pendant light “to make a statement, but also to help draw your gaze upwards, giving the space a sense of grandeur.”She has lined the walls of her own narrow hallway at home with a seagrass wallpaper in a muddy hue “to give a bit of texture and richness, as well as being a lot more robust against marks than a painted wall.

It’s a really good backdrop to art as well”.“Be mindful however that whatever you have in the hallway tends to then have to run right into the house and up the staircase,” she points out. “I have carried my wallpaper around all the walls, and even round the front door – but then I actually think that if you have a small space, darker walls lend depth, making the space feel a bit bigger.”Make the most of the height of a hallway by filling its walls with art, advises designer Adam Ellis, whose studio has provided art for the Ivy Brasseries. “Hang pictures in vertical columns, stretching from just above the skirting and up to just below any cornice or picture rail to add drama and increase the sense of space,” he says.

Also play with scale – “avoid the artworks all being similar sizes”. Contrasting larger pieces with smaller ones further increases the sense of space by making the larger works appear even bigger; mixing different frames adds further interest.