Open up living space
lauren_michael81
6 years ago
Hi all,
We have just purchased our home, built in the late 80’s and has never been upgraded. Would love your thoughts on opening up the living/dining/kitchen. As you can see there is some dead space with the passage way and entry. As far as we have been told none of the walls that are highlighted are load bearing so could be removed. Any ideas are welcomed with open arms because I am very new to this, what would you do, where would you put things? Would you include a walk in pantry? We can probably reconfigure the laundry at the same time if you have any bright ideas for there...
Thanks
Lauren
We have just purchased our home, built in the late 80’s and has never been upgraded. Would love your thoughts on opening up the living/dining/kitchen. As you can see there is some dead space with the passage way and entry. As far as we have been told none of the walls that are highlighted are load bearing so could be removed. Any ideas are welcomed with open arms because I am very new to this, what would you do, where would you put things? Would you include a walk in pantry? We can probably reconfigure the laundry at the same time if you have any bright ideas for there...
Thanks
Lauren
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Comments (13)
PROWild Bear & Co Hervey Bay
6 years ago
lauren_michael81
6 years agoHi Nik Star
Thanks for your response, I hadn’t thought of opening up the kitchen with a servery type window to outside. There is a patio out to the side of the house, I’ve highlighted in green usually accessed through the sliding door in the dining area but at the moment we go out there through the laundry. In blue I’ve highlighted storage type cupboards, there’s a small broom cupboard and then the pantry cupboard that run on the wall dividing the kitchen and laundry then another tiny linen cupboard in the hall. The house is definitely not big on storage so would definitely love more kitchen and laundry storage. We haven’t had a builder here yet but our friends friend had the exact same house built when the town was expanding and they removed all of those walls when they did a renovation a couple of years ago so we’re pretty sure it can be done but will obviously need to get it confirmed before we get too carried away!
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Comments (18)Hi ASVInteriors, I think you forgot to attach a link to the Ikea chairs (would love to see which ones you meant :) The only worry I have with moving the sofa closer to BR2 wall is that it might block the flow from the entrance through to the large-ish hallway (where it has tall bookcases domintaing one wall and an Ikea 4x2 Expedit uni on the other wall) into the living room (see the plan). But maybe it would work? I should try to move it around a bit. At the moment eh sofa is moved onto the 344cm wall temporarily, with the coffee table in front it. Not sure if it shows up in the pictures well but we have quite a large 6 seaters dining table in the kitchen, which is placed fairly close to the carpet area. I would say that the distance between the back of the closest chair (tucked in, not when pulled out), on one end of the table, to the edge of the carpet area is only 20cm. By moving the sofa closer to the BR2 wall, and with the diving wall between kitchen and hallway being there, it may close the flow? Hmmm...I am not a designer so sometimes I can't visualise it first, maybe I should try to move it around a bit. I did try to move the sofa closer to the BR2 wall and felt a bit claustrophobic of how little space (on carpet area) is left at the back of the sofa. Definitely have to think seriously about getting a large ottoman :)...See MoreHelp with open plan Kitchen/Dining/Living space c
Comments (12)not a professional just obsessed with building and renovating..bagging the fireplace wall would make it easy to fill in the old master bedroom doorway with bricks to make a seamless match for the whole wall and brighten the whole new room and a simple roof extension on legs at right angles to the house with a gable roof, simple steel framed construction with Colorbond and lazerlite roofing and raked ceilings would make an ideal alfresco but you would probably need a skylight in the new kitchen to keep indoors from being too dark (and/or check out Solar Skylights that are excellent for adding extra light without holes in the roof) ...the alfresco could have basic concrete slab extended out from the existing verandah, screen walls, outdoor fireplace and outdoor barbq kitchen and sink..we've done something similar in a previous reno using a custom sized steel carport supplied by a local garage maker and then adding screen walls with lazerlite, lattice and plastic cafe blinds subject to views and direction of the weather ... you should also consider bug screening using horticultural shade cloth as you may find rural living a bit more fly blown than the suburbs and the screened room makes a safe play area for small kids and for pets left home alone btw don't forget to check the measurements of all the rooms as there are some discrepancies that need to be corrected in the plans and would be happy to redraw with correct measurements...See MoreReno ideas for this floorplan - family home
Comments (11)Hi there Lots of good points and suggestions made already, but if you’re willing to try a more radical - but still workable - solution, try this one. Most of the internal layout would need to be shuffled about a little, making it a more expensive option, but it’s still MUCH cheaper than extending and leaves most services where they are, which is a saving. It involves 3 main moves: 1) move the master suite into the living area w. bay window, which immediately makes a broken-plan living/dining/kitchen space which accesses the courtyard; 2) give the kitchen a large island to gather around, remove the bottom bench wing and turn the top section into a full-width, shallow butler’s pantry that can be opened up or screened off as needed; 3) give 600mm of laundry to the pantry and turn the rest into a corridor with bench + under-bench appliances + hall cupboard running along it to the back door - this allows the family bathroom to increase in size. (Then just crib some robe space for the tiny bedroom out of the larger bedroom.) CONS: Moving the en-suite bathroom is likely the biggest single cost the bathroom/laundry/kitchen flooring would also need replacing the living room loses the bay window the master bed faces the street (though a line of trees would solve that) 2 windows would need adjusting/inserting = new en-suite would need one and the current laundry window would need to shrink PROS: usable kitchen space is hugely increased and improved without moving any essential services the living space opens out AND flows better AND accesses both north-facing windows and the courtyard master suite is still divorced from the other bedrooms, but is larger and more private (not opposite the front door!) the family bath is much larger, while the laundry loses no useable space (trust me, I’ve had one like this and it worked beautifully) the butlers pantry is integrated into the kitchen but can be closed to conceal mess there’s a net gain of about 5% useable floor space PLUS larger utility areas + master suite without having to extend In saying all of that, there’s a lot of variables re light, position, grounds, structural load that could impact heavily on its viability. For instance, I would consider putting a solar tube in the master suite over the robe/hallway - it could be hard to see otherwise. It’s a more expensive option, but it could add considerable value to the house if done right :-) Cheers...See MoreFeedback wanted for our open plan living layout
Comments (6)Hi @oklouise, thanks for responding. It's a 3 bedroom semi-detached home, so we have a common wall with no windows on one side. We cannot go any further back, and are limited to an additional 1700mm sideways. The rear from the kitchen back has been extended in blueboard by the previous owners, which is there area where we were looking to go sideways as it will not be as complex or expensive. The original part of the home is double brick. We're a family of four. Our goal was to add a second bathroom (en-suite), additional storage (attic), and to delete the current laundry cupboard to open up the living space (extension + laundry). Loved the main bedroom idea you provided recently which made me wonder what other potentially better ways we could configure the rear of the home....See Moreoklouise
6 years agolauren_michael81
6 years ago- PRO
Wild Bear & Co Hervey Bay
6 years ago
The roughest idea there ever was lol! Sorry Lauren.... just a quick idea that I'm not sure will work as it definitely isn't too scale - just placement ideas more than anything until we get some more information from you. Trying to keep as much in place as you already have.... I have added a servery window to the kitchen and large stackable sliding doors along a potentially large undercover entertaining area to further open up your space. That may give the illusion of a large open plan area that will go on forever out into your yard :)
- PRO
Wild Bear & Co Hervey Bay
6 years ago girlguides
6 years ago- PRO
Wild Bear & Co Hervey Bay
6 years ago oklouise
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agolauren_michael81
6 years agooklouise
6 years agothinking about your climate my suggestions include a screened covered outdoor area and studio with an optional extra bath and rumpus guest room on the north east to help cool the house and create more comfortable covered outdoor living area and space for future extension for the living area...some of the hallway has been added to the new kitchen with a pantry and space has been allowed for a biw in bed 3 and extra space to enlarge the ensuite and rearranging the family bathroom could be more comfortable for teenagers and visiting grandparents
PROPaul Di Stefano Design
6 years ago
lauren_michael81Original Author