Are you considering opening your kitchen into your living room? Don’t think twice about it! It will bring in more light, make the space look bigger, better connect the rest of the house and its residents, etc. whatever you decide, it will bring more life to your kitchen (what we love!).
But be careful! We have noticed some common design flaws that can take away from the comfort and functionality of the space. Take note and avoid these mistakes in your open-plan kitchen.
Not thinking about the floor in advance
While it might seem obvious, a very common mistake is to think of an open-plan kitchen as two rooms. What we have now is one single room where everything should flow in harmony.
The element that we should think about first which will give us they key to the rest of the decoration is right below our feet. Should we use the same floor for the whole room or two separate floors for the different spaces? The answer, like everything in life, depends. We need to consider the layout, the materials we are going to use, the atmosphere we want to achieve, and so on.
To get some ideas, take a look at our article Open-plan kitchens: the same floor or two different ones?
Leaving household appliances in plain view
Similar to the previous piece of advice, you should think about what you want to do with your appliances, particularly large ones such as the fridge, extractor hoods, dishwasher, washing machines, etc.
In a closed kitchen, you only see these when you are inside, but in an open kitchen, they can really take over the space. We would recommend that you either go for stylish appliances or follow the current trend of integrating them into the furniture (a great idea for creating unified spaces).
Putting the leisure area next to the cooking area
Remember: kitchen and living room, together, but not the same. We have different activities in each of these areas, so they should complement each other but not be mixed together. There should be a smooth, comfortable and functional transition between the two.
The easiest way to do this is to “separate” them with a dining area, which provides a hybrid space between work and rest – a perfect transition.
And we don’t just mean the aesthetics, it also helps functionality. Imagine putting a sofa up against the kitchen island in the cooking area. Not only would you be disturbed by the noise and smells from the kitchen if you were trying to rest in the living area, communication would also be difficult as the spaces are not facing each other.
Not planning the storage areas
Opening the kitchen into the living room also means changing your habits, starting with organisation. Working in the kitchen involves moving lots of utensils and food which can result in (visual) chaos if your storage is not properly thought out.
We suggest you figure out what you do the most in the kitchen and how you like to do it. This way you will know what should go where. For example, if you like sugar in your coffee, you should put the sugar near your spoons and your favourite breakfast foods or snacks, such as biscuits and cereals.
From here, you can explore the specific storage options we have on offer to keep everything in its place.