As the proportions of a hall are frequently rather uncomfortable a long and narrow room, or high walls leading up to stairwell this area is a prime candidate for playing with color and lighting to enhance the good points, and detract from the bad. To make the space seem wider and the back of a long, narrow corridor appear closer, paint the ceiling and back wall in the dark shade, but keep the side walls as pale as possible. Shiny surface will also reflect light making them appear slight sheen for the walls.

If you live in a period property, there may already be moldings on the walls of your rooms and the hallway is a prime candidate for them as they add decorative details and enhance proportion. The large expanses of wall can also be well served by adding a dado rail and being decorated with different color or finishes above and below. Authentic moldings are available in plaster or wood, or you may just prefer to paste on a wallpaper border. Getting the proportions right for positioning the top of the dado can be difficult, but the best place to aim for is about a third of the way up the wall. Experiment by drawing chalk lines along the wall.

For a high stairwell, it would be worth installing wall-mounted down lighters at just above head height so that when the lights are switched on, the lower half of the wall is bathed in light, or starry halogen bulbs inset into the ceiling. With either of these ideas, the eye is discouraged from sweeping up to the ceiling above. Pictures hung at eye level as you walk up the stairs will also help to break up the sheer quantity of walls that are the feature of staircases, as will a continuation of a dado from the hallway below.