Bright ideas for rooms without windows

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The benefits of natural sunlight cannot be underestimated, but just because we need it, it doesn't mean that every room in our house will be able to give us access to it! Oddly-shaped houses, basement conversions and re-purposed spaces can all offer valuable additional space in our homes, but not always a window.

Windowless rooms do not need to be dark, oppressive spaces, as there are a host of fantastic ideas for brightening them up and making them more pleasant to be in and we thought it might be a good idea to tell you about some of them!

Take a look at our top tips for creating fantastic windowless rooms and see if you want to follow any of our ideas!

Make your lighting exceptional

When there is no way for natural light to stream into a room, you have to be on top form with your lighting choices! We're talking about ceiling lights, lamps, uplighters and spotlights – anything goes!

Thanks to the array of daylight imitation bulbs on offer, it is a simple task to fill a space with wonderful illumination to prevent it from feeling too enclosed or claustrophobic. Just take a look at this example from Lucia Navajas and you'll see what we mean. There are no windows in sight, but thanks to multiple spotlights, the room still feels bright and airy, not to mention luxurious!

Ensure great ventilation

homify Tropische Küchen Kleingeräte

Windowless rooms can invoke a sense claustrophobia if you're not careful, but a great way to avoid this is to ensure that the entire space has been well ventilated. Warm, stuffy surroundings will only exacerbate a feeling of being closed in, but cool, clean air will make it feel as though you have a window open!

We think ceiling fans are a great idea, but only for rooms with a high ceiling height! For anything else, it's worth taking the plunge and opting for air conditioning. Though this can be an expensive addition, it will pay dividends in summer, when you want to use every possible room in your house!

Use pictures to imitate a view

Apartamento Vila Nova Conceição, Marcella Loeb Marcella Loeb Moderne Wohnzimmer

Hanging art on the walls of windowless rooms is a tried and tested technique and the reason it is so successful is that it almost imitates a 'view'. No longer is the room just four solid walls, it is suddenly three walls and one gallery. 

To make this technique extra successful, try to keep your walls painted in a fresh and light colour and think about hanging pictures that depict scenes from the natural world. Though any art will have the effect of breaking up the vastness, pictures of nature will make it feel tangibly closer to hand.

Add some nature to the equation

If you like the idea of adding pictures of nature to your windowless rooms but it doesn't quite have the effect you were hoping for, why not take things one step further and bring the outdoors in? After all, if you can't open a window to drink in some plant purified air, bring the plants indoors and have them do it there, while looking amazing!

In a windowless snug or living room set up, we think this living wall installation would look incredible and serve a practical function too. Never again would the air feel stale and your claustrophobia would come to an end too! Thank you Mother Nature!

Make your walls really fun

When you can't break up a big expanse of painted wall with windows, you can afford to get a little more creative and expressive! When it comes to windowless rooms, however you want to break up the space is up to you and we are huge fans of fun DIY inclusions, like these darling hanging shelves.

Creative, unusual and artistic installations can really detract from a lack of windows and when you choose to add plants, brightly coloured books and even fruit, as seen here, to your walls, you'll find that you soon forget what windows actually look like! 

Add a little ambiance with candles

Sometimes, a snug atmosphere is exactly what you want and in this instance, windowless rooms are perfect! We suggest that you invest in some tactile cushions, low-level furniture and add a plethora of candles to keep the room nicely lit, but subtle too. Not every house is able to have a designated cosy room, but if you have a space without a window, this could be a great project for you!

For window dressing inspiration, take a look at this Ideabook: Decorating A Bay Window. Just because one room has no windows, it doesn't mean you can forget about the ones that do!

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