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With a separate kitchen, functionality is never an issue. But how do we deal with combined living rooms and open-floor schemes? How do we make a kitchen both functional and beautiful? Open kitchen and living room combinations ought to be so perfectly executed, that people will not even distinguish between them. The big question is: How?

Check out our kitchen living room ideas; and look for your answer!

Focus on consistency

Open-Kitchen-And-Living-Room-Design-Ideas1 Open Kitchen And Living Room Design IdeasImage source: Christine Kelly / Crafted Architecture

A kitchen living room combo should be monochromic. There should be no clear division on the wall, or an obvious difference in colors and shades. After all, why would you divide them if you already decided to combine them? Wouldn’t that large and spacious room look impressive?

The same as colors, materials should coincide. Tile walls will require tile walls, while wool throws will require wool throws. As simple as that!

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This should also be a guiding rule for purchasing items, as you’re always required to think of materials which will function equally good in both parts (for instance, porcelain flooring looks perfect in kitchens, but it will not make your living area pleasant and warm). If we had to make an overall suggestion, we would probably go for natural stones with excellent quality.

Still, it can be very hard to pick a floor suitable for kitchens and living rooms. In case you’re forced to use two of them, make sure they come in similar tones and textures. A wrong and contrasting choice will destroy the harmony and the balance.

Avoid corridors

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But how could you resist that stubborn temptation to make an ‘optical hallway’ towards the kitchen? You must! Architects excluded the need for people to surround couches and tables in order to go to the kitchen, so why would you change that? The more complicated it looks to go the kitchen the less motivated people will be to do it!

What is expected from you is to do the opposite: push furniture to the side; and maximize free space. In such way, people will move freely; and there will be absolutely no feeling that there are two rooms instead of one.

Avoid artificial partitions

Open-Kitchen-And-Living-Room-Design-Ideas5 Open Kitchen And Living Room Design IdeasImage source: Dyer Grimes Architecture

Open kitchen living room design looks exactly as it sounds: open. People are often tricked by the idea of ensuring privacy; and they opt for artificial partitions such as folding screens, curtains, bookshelves, or entire panels.

Ladies and gentlemen, why did you kick the wall down at the first place?
The reason why we need open floors is that we want our place to be airy and spacious. Both physical and intuitive barriers are likely to spoil that.

Instead, try to balance furniture, and to ensure harmony. The key rule is to avoid tall elements, and to introduce bulky cabinets equally deployed through the entire room. Applying two completely different sets of furniture will make both kitchens and living rooms look smaller; and will attach/detach attention only towards one of them. This is exactly why balance is necessary.

Let accessories do their work

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Still willing to provide two separate identities? Accessories and layout details can do that for you! The same pieces positioned in a different way can indicate that there is a space division. For instance, sitting areas in the living room can stand on the one side; but on the completely opposite one in the kitchen. Artworks and rugs are also powerful dividers.

Don’t forget the details

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While a single pillow means nothing to large reception rooms; it can mean the world to two-room combos. When you blend interior, every detail will act as a blender! Besides, it is much more affordable to decorate with a single plan, than two separate ones.

Open shelving is an enemy

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While you’re thinking upper cabinets are counterproductive to your open plan; ‘jumping’ on the other side proved to be even more dangerous. Open shelves are a great kitchen solution (they look cute and inviting); but applying them in the living room is not exactly the minimalist solution you needed.

In fact, you may end up with a clutter you never expected (one that has nothing to do with dirt and dust)! Some ‘do-it-your-way’ designers can make entire lists of open shelving pros; and in case you really want to listen to them, plan the shelving carefully.

Another thing to consider are colors and polishes: as expected, there shall be no obvious clashes or contrasts. Does it mean you’ll apply the very same tone for all of the shelves? Are you sure?

Summing up, don’t make the ‘deadly sin’ of using open shelves to divide areas. Why would you need artificial clutter to distinguish the room YOU imagined as spacious?

Go for a small kitchen table

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Nowadays, people rarely use dining tables; and they opt for the ‘eating in front of the TV option’. With an open floor design, you certainly belong to the group of families that won’t benefit from a dining table either.

Take a moment and imagine the picture: a kitchen table; a dining table; and a smaller living room table. Isn’t that too much? Why not choosing a small kitchen table that doesn’t occupy space? It will be much easier to hand the desert over; and you won’t need incredible efforts to clean it.

Remember: Function comes first

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Open plans have a wonderful social dimension: they gather the family in all sorts of occasions; and they help you enjoy cooking while chatting with your friends. Trust us-you’ll love that casual vibe!

In this aspect, we recommend you to choose functional furniture, ideally comfortable and stain-resistant.

Stay in control of smell and noise

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To be completely honest, open floor plans are not the best ones in terms of containing smell and noise. That’s exactly why it takes to be extremely practical: do your best to stop smell from steaming in the living room; or the TV noise from traveling to the kitchen.

First of all, make sure you have enough smell extraction means. If you can, place the cooker or the oven close to a large window, ideally in the furthest corner from the gathering area. In the case of an absolute need, install folding doors which you will close only when cooking.

In terms of noise, things become a little more complicated. Unfortunately, there is no way to prevent sound from spreading around the room; and the least you can do is to introduce items which can ‘absorb’ it (heavy drapes, soft throws, pillows, and upholstery). Folding doors can help in this case too.

Ensure there is enough storage space

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With an open floor scheme, expect to need more storage space than usual. Rather than bringing piles of cabinets inside, think of multi-purpose items which can adopt a storage role.

For instance, you can install an island in the kitchen (it will be your working surface, but it will also ‘hide’ the pots and the plates); or coffin-bars which will be your breakfast tables; and they will store the cooking books, snacks, or shopping bags.

Don’t change the style

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This statement ‘wraps’ nicely all that has been stated before. Stylistic consistency and coherence are essential for kitchen living room combos: all elements need to interact in harmony; and no piece should ‘jump out’. As simple as that!

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