Decorating
Help Your Open-Plan Living Area Become Great at Multitasking
Here's how to make your open-plan living space work seamlessly for you – because one room doesn't have one job anymore...
For many of us, life is getting busier, and with that, the walls inside our homes are coming down to make room for more communal living and greater functionality. Our lounge room, for example, doesn’t just serve as a lounge room anymore – it’s often used as part office, part kids’ room, the place to entertain and also the place to try and relax.
With the current architectural trend for open-plan living unlikely to ebb anytime soon, here is how to perfectly blend spaces that have varied uses.
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With the current architectural trend for open-plan living unlikely to ebb anytime soon, here is how to perfectly blend spaces that have varied uses.
Find interior designers in your area
Consider the floor
The change in flooring material in the kitchen/dining area, including the step up to the kitchen, provide an obvious indication of how the space is separated in this wonderfully seamless design.
What makes this space truly beautiful is how the two finishes work well butted up next to each other. The natural and warm timber with the cool grey of the concrete have a great authentic feeling.
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The change in flooring material in the kitchen/dining area, including the step up to the kitchen, provide an obvious indication of how the space is separated in this wonderfully seamless design.
What makes this space truly beautiful is how the two finishes work well butted up next to each other. The natural and warm timber with the cool grey of the concrete have a great authentic feeling.
See more of this villa
Pop a study nook in the kitchen
Kitchen designs are including study nooks due to a growing list of reasons. As computers are now such an integral part of our lives, a study nook in the ‘heart of the home’ can be a useful space to help your day run more smoothly. You can use it to look up recipes on the computer, or send off emails while waiting for your egg’s to boil, keep an eye on the kids’ online activity or help with their homework while preparing dinner. You could even entertain guests watching you cook with photographic slideshows or music.
A study nook can be easily integrated into the kitchen by situating it in a recess next to the main kitchen work area or by putting it behind a cupboard.
Read more about study nooks around the home
Kitchen designs are including study nooks due to a growing list of reasons. As computers are now such an integral part of our lives, a study nook in the ‘heart of the home’ can be a useful space to help your day run more smoothly. You can use it to look up recipes on the computer, or send off emails while waiting for your egg’s to boil, keep an eye on the kids’ online activity or help with their homework while preparing dinner. You could even entertain guests watching you cook with photographic slideshows or music.
A study nook can be easily integrated into the kitchen by situating it in a recess next to the main kitchen work area or by putting it behind a cupboard.
Read more about study nooks around the home
Break down the walls with style
You can use furniture to break down the boundaries of what a space is primarily used for.
This great example shows bright Bentwood Chairs around a table pushed up against a comfortable leather couch. It’s putting it straight out there that this area is for dining as well as relaxing – it’s an eclectic spin on the current trend of using bench seating on one side of the dining table. This interior definitely screams fun with a genuinely usable and laid-back experience.
Shop furniture on Houzz
You can use furniture to break down the boundaries of what a space is primarily used for.
This great example shows bright Bentwood Chairs around a table pushed up against a comfortable leather couch. It’s putting it straight out there that this area is for dining as well as relaxing – it’s an eclectic spin on the current trend of using bench seating on one side of the dining table. This interior definitely screams fun with a genuinely usable and laid-back experience.
Shop furniture on Houzz
Hang pendants
Pendant lights are a great way to create an invisible dome around an area. They come in so many varied and gorgeous designs so you can really have fun choosing the style that suits your home.
The pendant that hangs above the dining table here perfectly completes the design. It creates a seamless and sophisticated area around the table without the need for walls.
Pendant lights are a great way to create an invisible dome around an area. They come in so many varied and gorgeous designs so you can really have fun choosing the style that suits your home.
The pendant that hangs above the dining table here perfectly completes the design. It creates a seamless and sophisticated area around the table without the need for walls.
Use colour and shape
Different areas have different uses, so to create beauty in a could-be chaotic place, use colour and shape. In this room, the large square ottoman can be used as seating or a coffee table, while the bench seating by the window can be utilised as a reading nook, or as extra seating when guests are over. Note how the squares of the ottoman reflect the many square cushions and straight lines of the room. Also, how the greys in the bench seating and cushions tie to the grey of the main lounge and the carpet, bringing the separate areas of the room nicely together.
Different areas have different uses, so to create beauty in a could-be chaotic place, use colour and shape. In this room, the large square ottoman can be used as seating or a coffee table, while the bench seating by the window can be utilised as a reading nook, or as extra seating when guests are over. Note how the squares of the ottoman reflect the many square cushions and straight lines of the room. Also, how the greys in the bench seating and cushions tie to the grey of the main lounge and the carpet, bringing the separate areas of the room nicely together.
Here is another example of how colour can define areas. This design works so well because the kitchen island and stools are a crisp and structured white while the birch dining furniture, including the Wishbone dining chairs are more organic in shape.
If you want the areas within your open-plan space to really stand apart, use different colours to define the spaces, but for a more seamless transition of spaces choose complementary shades.
BONUS TIP: Choose your colours to define the experience and feeling you will have in these areas. For example, this kitchen looks clean and organised – an obvious working area – while the dining area is softened, creating an inviting and comfortable place to slowly enjoy a delicious meal and good company.
If you want the areas within your open-plan space to really stand apart, use different colours to define the spaces, but for a more seamless transition of spaces choose complementary shades.
BONUS TIP: Choose your colours to define the experience and feeling you will have in these areas. For example, this kitchen looks clean and organised – an obvious working area – while the dining area is softened, creating an inviting and comfortable place to slowly enjoy a delicious meal and good company.
Think about room dividers
There are many creative ways to separate spaces while still keeping them open. Room dividers are one way of doing this and can build interest in your interior. The vertical panels used here not only create a privacy screen between the living and dining areas, but allow the light to penetrate, invoking a wonderfully cosy yet airy atmosphere.
There are many creative ways to separate spaces while still keeping them open. Room dividers are one way of doing this and can build interest in your interior. The vertical panels used here not only create a privacy screen between the living and dining areas, but allow the light to penetrate, invoking a wonderfully cosy yet airy atmosphere.
Meet your new friend, the rug
With such a wide array of rugs to suit any style and budget, a rug is the perfect soft furnishing to help you contain and determine a space. Here the brilliant blue of the rug also imbibes warmth and elegance to the lounge space. The area is separated within the open-plan scheme, yet cohesive.
Learn more about decorating with rugs
TELL US
Do you have an open-plan home, or maybe not enough rooms in your home to separate all your needs? How does your space flow? How do you seamlessly designate areas? Let us know in the comments section.
With such a wide array of rugs to suit any style and budget, a rug is the perfect soft furnishing to help you contain and determine a space. Here the brilliant blue of the rug also imbibes warmth and elegance to the lounge space. The area is separated within the open-plan scheme, yet cohesive.
Learn more about decorating with rugs
TELL US
Do you have an open-plan home, or maybe not enough rooms in your home to separate all your needs? How does your space flow? How do you seamlessly designate areas? Let us know in the comments section.
If you are not just furnishing the inside of your home and are performing a major renovation or building new, think about the structural design of your home. For example, how will the ceiling heights affect what areas are placed below? What are your windows going to look like and where will the frames sit? These things will all affect the overall designation of spaces. Most importantly, will you have flexibility in the future to change the functions of different spaces?