With natural light a prized element in any room, getting to grips with a north-facing room can be quite a task.

Putting in an additional window or skylights is of course a great option if you are undertaking some serious re-modelling in your home. If this is not feasible, you can always attempt to steal light from other rooms by knocking through the walls into a brighter room. Leave the two rooms open plan or else install French doors with lots of glass to maximise light into the darker room. Otherwise consider replacing the solid doors in the room with ones that have large translucent glass panels.

Pay attention to what is outside your windows. Relocate any trees or hedges that block precious light entering your room. If you can't change the amount of sunlight coming into your room, work on solutions that brighten the room by using colour. Painting is the cheapest way of redecorating.

To make the right colour decisions for a north-facing room you must always keep in mind the fact that light, both natural and artificial, will really alter the colours you choose. With reduced light, north-facing rooms will make colours cooler. That's why the Mediterranean blue you fell in love with on your holidays won't work in our northern European climes and why shades from the cool side of the colour spectrum - blues, greens and purples - will make a north-facing room look even colder. Equally in south-facing rooms, which get lots of light, strong warm colours may be a little overpowering. So cosy up your north-facing room with some warm colours such as reds, yellows, oranges and golds. Don't go overboard with sunny yellow, make sure to team it with a white ceiling and keep the floor neutral. With small, dark rooms avoid patterns and use pale colours, with accent colours in the accessories.