Ways To Make Your Hallways Look Wider

Let’s face it: NYC apartment hallways feature many different doors. Where do they all lead? Well, that’s for residents to wonder—at least when it comes to service doors. These should be camouflaged as much as possible, and I advise doing so by painting them the same color as the hallway wall covering so that they disappear a bit. In turn, hallways will appear more substantial in size when these doors take up less visual space.

With so many carpet choices to choose from, it may be difficult to determine where to begin when designing your lobby. Well, let me help you narrow down your picks! I advise choosing carpet patterns that run the width of the hallways. This forces the eye to widen its view as individuals walk down the halls and will make the overall area feel larger.

Additionally, I want to chime in with another tip when it comes to hallway carpeting. Adding in horizontal breaks in the carpet—making each component look like an individual small rug—will break up the halls even further. These horizontal borders push the walls away from each other (and they look pretty neat, too!).

There’s nothing wrong with going a bit bold at the elevator landing. There, we like to use a darker accent color wall covering. Why? It forces those walls to recede, making the hallways wider.

Go ahead and hang those mirrors on the wall—strategically, that is. Mirrors should provide some additional visual interest; opt for an antique piece that has a unique patina. When it comes to choosing a mirror shape, the world is your oyster. The mirrors you select can be framed or frameless, and they can be small or artfully clustered together. Their subtle reflectivity widens the hallways. Additionally, mirrored walls with a decorative grillwork over them plays tricks on your eyes and depth perception in a very effective way, therefore widening the space.

Feeling ready to get started? For maximum effect, I advise implementing all five of these tactics in your space when completing your NYC apartment hallway design. Trust me, you and your building’s residents alike will notice what a difference these design decisions make!