Interior Designer Serge Van Lian: Mirrors Are Magic!

I, like many New Yorkers, would love some more square footage in my apartment, and I'm sure you feel the same. Maybe your home is a little cramped, or your dog feels more like a room-mate than a pet, or your walls are crowding you somehow? Please don't scream or call your real estate broker just yet. First, let's try some design magic!

Mirrors aren't just for decorating the walls. They can create perceived space, reflect color, add the illusion of depth, and bring extra light into a room instantly. Have you ever taken down a mirror that was hanging in your place for a long time? Well, if you haven't, try it out and prepare yourself for a dull and lifeless change of atmosphere. Mirrors not only work magic creatively, they are functional too.

So here are some functional and creative ways to use mirrors in your home:

Functional:

-If there's no room for a full body floor mirror, place a large mirror on the inside of your bathroom door.

-Place a mirror above the console table by the front door to get that final reassuring glance before stepping out.

Creative:

-Place a large sized mirror directly across from any window in your home. Congrats! You have an extra window now! (Note: if there's a doorway across from your window, you can also hang a small mirror above the doorway at an angle to reflect the light)

-Place mirrors across from each other in a narrow hallway to give the illusion of infinite space!

-Place a mirror across from an exposed brick wall, painting, or something you want to draw attention to, and magic, you see it in two places!

There are no limits to the innovative ways you can transform your space with mirrors. Take my friend Jamie, the owner of my favorite little East Village coffee shop Abraco. Abraco is the size of a closet and is constantly packed with people. A couple of days ago they placed two mirrors at a slight angle below their ceiling. The mirrors completely open up the space and reflect the foot traffic on 7th Street. The place may be just as small, but it seems twice as big now! Abraco's lovely chef Liz also uses those mirrors to jot down the menu items of the day in her foxy font so the mirrors serve both a creative and functional purpose.

Here's to good design and even better espresso!

-Serge Van Lian