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When your home is essentially made up of 3 rooms – a bathroom, a bedroom and a living space – you need to be smart about how you utilize furniture, color, and light to make the most of your open plan living. Fortunately, as this architectural trend has permeated modern buildings, interior design has caught up and now there are lots of fashion trends for exactly this kind of space.
1. Define Each Area.
The huge benefit of open plan living is that every inch of space is put to good use. Rather than a series of rooms with set purposes, you can entertain guests while you cook a feast or watch the news while you sit at the dining table. The open space gives you a little bit more freedom too in how much room you allow certain areas to be. A larger lounge is easily achieved with a fold away dining table.
To break up one large space into more defined zones, you don’t need walls or tall furniture. In fact, just a neatly place rug could make all the difference. Lights are also great for creating drama and a series of low hanging lights over a dining table will always be a winner.
2. Be Smart with Furniture.
Lots of antique furniture built with hard dark wood is beautiful but for a small open plan apartment, it’s probably going to look a bit out of place. A better approach is to choose modern furniture that will be a bit smaller and lighter – much easier to blend in. Many pieces are now put on wheels specifically so that you can move them about in your space to reinvent your ‘rooms’ according to your plans each day.
In an open space, furniture is a great way to create divides such as placing a sofa in the center of the room to create a clear living area. Be prepared to spend a little more on your furniture to get the look you really want. As it is on view everywhere, it is worth the splurge!
3. Consider Texture as well as Color.
When you decorate a room, the first thing most people think of is the color scheme they are going to use. While using contrasting colors is a great way to make a room really pop, textures are gradually becoming more important, especially if you are going for a neutral palette. Think about how you want a room to feel and then pick a single color or a few shades of similar colors for a luxuriously modern feel.
There are lots of different textures you can choose from shiny metallics to soft faux fur through to silks or chunky knits. The material you choose for your floor will be important too as this will continue throughout the open plan area. Parque is making a comeback and is perfect for layering rugs on top. Tiles are also popular and exposing a brick wall will give an instant connection to the building itself – just make sure it’s a nice looking brick wall before you remove any plaster!
