6 Ways to Give Your Attic Room a New Lease Of Life

Vogue

13-06-2025

For interior designer, furniture maker and antiques dealer, Max Rollitt, a good attic space 'is one that's treated with as much thought as any other room in the house. You can get away with more daring looks.'
In need of inspiration? Here, the experts share how to give your attic a new lease of life.
Consider the layout
As with any project, it's always worth considering how you will utilize the space first, deciding which areas lend themselves to different aspects of daily life. For example: 'The parts of the room with lower head height should be utilized for tasks that don't require standing,' advises Tiffany Duggan, interior designer and founder of Studio Duggan. 'Maybe that's a cozy reading corner or a bed. Keep the tallest parts of the room for wardrobes or areas you frequently walk through.'
Envelop the space
Sparse white paint in an attic room only makes the space feel drab. Instead, so say the experts, wrapping either a paint color or wallpaper over the walls and ceiling is the way to go. 'Enveloping the space in color or pattern takes the focus off odd angles and edges and makes different surfaces feel part of the whole,' says Rollitt, while Holly Vaughn, interior designer and founder of Vaughan, adds that a characterful ceiling is not to be shied away from: 'They offer an instant coziness which are harder to create in other rooms—definitely embrace them.'