While decorating a home with an open floor plan can be challenging, it can also be an exciting and completely new experience. You’ll need a bit of creativity and some help from the experts, so you could design the home of your dreams. With a myriad of great ideas in this guide, you’ll be able to create the perfect living area, so you’ll never have to feel like you’re living in storage.
Create Barriers
Open floor plan is characterized by the lack of walls, which means that an entire living area is brought together visually. This can also create the illusion of a storage-like living area, so introducing a couple of barriers into the entire space would be perfect. Separate different areas of the home with rugs, shelves and various architectural elements. A large bookshelf can be the perfect divider between the kitchen and the living room. With a large carpet, you could perfectly anchor the living room as well. Focal points could do the trick too. Namely, a panelled television wall will indicate the living room area alongside an anchored carpet, and two sofas facing a coffee table. Furthermore, the breakfast table would be the focal point of dining area. A very modern and functional barrier can also be a slightly raised floor you could put in one section of the room, thus creating a room-within-a-room.
Use the Help of Colours
When it comes to the colour palette, you have two options. You can choose to paint all the adjoining walls the same colour and divide the areas with furniture in different colours. Should you opt for this solution, we recommend you paint the walls a delicate pastel shade and brighten up the space. Choose the furniture in complementary colours, and accentuate the space with various colourful details.
On the other hand, you can separate the space by painting the walls of the living room, kitchen, and dining room a different shade of the same colour. This way you won’t get the effect of too much colour-popping, and yet the space will have its charm. This way it’ll be easier for you to match the colour of the furniture with the shade of walls.
Windows and Doors
When you lack ideas for visually dividing the space, using windows of different shapes and sizes can be of great help. Make the windows in the living room differ from those in the kitchen, and you’ll feel like the space isn’t connected. What’s more, install functional bi fold doors in the kitchen or dining room, and have the perfect exit to the backyard, and a great source of lighting. If you can’t afford different windows, you can achieve the same effect by hanging different curtains on each of them.
Lighting
No matter what kind of space you’re decorating, lighting plays a major role in any interior. If you don’t choose your lights properly, the entire home can look dark and have an uninviting setting. Therefore, install a fancy chandelier above the dining table to separate it from the rest of the home. Gorgeous pendant lights can be the perfect addition to the kitchen island, while an overhead ceiling fan with a light kit would fit perfectly over the living room. Make sure you choose the lighting fixtures wisely, or your home will look disjointed.
Final Thoughts
Decorating an open floor plan can be intimidating at first, but you shouldn’t worry too much. Just be sure you divide the space properly with furniture, use the appropriate colour scheme, try to incorporate various windows and light up the place with stunning lighting. Finally, alongside these suggestions, all you need is a little creativity, and you’ll quickly create a gorgeous home you can enjoy for a long time.
Diana Smith is a full time mom of two beautiful girls interested in topics related to business technology and marketing.