Having a more open floor arrangement in your home is a design trend showing no signs of abating soon. Before starting renovations, it is crucial to evaluate the existing floor plan to identify structural elements like load-bearing walls and consider how the current layout will impact the desired changes. If your home was built in a period style, it may have a warren of separate rooms. An abundance of separate rooms and walled-in spaces often isn’t very conducive to modern living. Many property owners are now considering how to adapt their own homes to suit the increasing desire for large, airy, and light spaces. When done through the right home remodeler, your home can have a beautiful update and enhance your lifestyle. In this article, we’ll discuss how to convert your home to an open floor plan and some popular open floor plan ideas today.
Open Floor Plan Homes
There are many reasons why homeowners are increasingly considering how to adapt and remodel their current living areas to enjoy a more open-concept house. With the right remodeling for your unique spaces, your home can have a gorgeous update and feel like new again. To enjoy a more personalized, open-concept space, it takes careful consideration of the current layout and the history of the location. Older homes often have degrees of character and history that are hard to replace or recreate once removed. Deciding how to change up your house can be difficult without a qualified remodeler to help you with ideas and knowledgeable suggestions.
By definition, an open floor plan includes any home layout that has no partitioning wall between the living room and dining room, between the areas of the dining room and kitchen, or between all three of these room types. In older houses, a living room, parlor, den, kitchen, dining room, and any breakfast nook or butler’s pantry remain traditionally separate with interior walls. However, many people can feel crowded by these walls or believe them unsightly. An open floor plan can provide many benefits, including bringing family and friends closer together, incorporating or eliminating underused areas, and giving the impression of more area space. The family room plays a central role in modern living by enhancing flow and light, and creating a cohesive aesthetic with adjacent areas.
Having fewer walls can present challenges in terms of storage and decor, necessitating innovative solutions to maximize storage while maintaining an open layout.
Open Floor Plan Ideas
Before you officially begin your renovations, you’ll want to first evaluate your home’s layout with a local building professional. Consulting a structural engineer is crucial to understand the structural implications of removing walls, particularly load-bearing ones. While it may seem that some of your interior walls are unnecessary, many walls can contain amounts of wiring, plumbing, and load-bearing features. You’ll want to be aware of these features so that you don’t accidentally do irreparable damage to your home and its property value as a result. Once you’ve learned which structures you may remove and which you’ll need to work around to achieve your ideal remodel, you can determine which walls you’d like to remain present for security, division, and personal spaces.
Open floor plans allow for more natural light in the living space, which can reduce energy bills and enhance the home's aesthetic appeal. This feature encourages a more informal style of living and entertaining, improving the overall atmosphere and functionality of the home.
With vast knowledge and experience, a renovator can give you some fantastic ideas to open up your available rooms. To keep your home functional and stylish, be sure of individual zones for activities, including which areas you’d like for dining, cooking, working, and relaxation. Some of the most popular open floor plan ideas right now include dividing spaces with an area rug, repeating an element in your sections, applying a cohesive color scheme, designing layouts for optimal flow, and involving floors and ceilings in the plan. You can also decorate with multi-function pieces, add a room divider for flexible privacy, and open up your entryway.
Divide With a Rug
When arranging your furniture away from various walls for an open floor plan, you still want some level of separation between different areas of activity, creating individual spaces that are uniquely sized and shaped. A sizeable area rug can separate spaces visually, allowing you to enjoy an open plan while maintaining levels of distinction throughout your home.
Repeat a Chosen Element
In creating a more cohesive space, consider repeating an element of your choice throughout different spaces. There are always trending elements that people favor, such as metal, wood, velvet, prints, or period pieces. By having a consistent, repeated element in each of your spaces, you can tie in present furniture pieces and maintain the appearance of connectedness.
Continue a Color Scheme
A continued color scheme throughout can provide your open-concept house with a sense of unity. Some popular color choices include gray-green, citron, deep aubergine, and chartreuse. Other colors that continue to be widely popular for interior design include light gray, schoolhouse white, and other tranquil neutrals that complement warm and deep tones elsewhere.
Design for Optimal Flow
The greatest focus to achieving a beautiful open floor plan is optimal flow. Incorporating features that maximize natural light contributes to a brighter, more inviting atmosphere, improves energy efficiency, and enhances the overall flow and functionality of interconnected living spaces. You want your spaces to have adequate flow and access for guests and activity so that your home remains functional and stylish. Maintain regular walkways between rooms and their focal pieces to give higher utility.
Involve Floors and Ceilings
In maintaining optimal flow and cohesion, make sure to consider your floors and ceilings in your renovation plans. Floors and ceilings should ideally match the rest of your furniture and decorations throughout your open floor plan and not disrupt the flow from space to space.
Decorate With Multi-Function Pieces
A means to get creative with your open concept house is with multi-function furnishings. A dining table can serve dual purposes, such as providing additional workspace while being positioned near the kitchen for easy serving. Decorating connected areas such as your living room and kitchen with a fireplace can add practicality and style.
Add a Room Divider
If you’re interested in options for temporarily dividing spaces, look no further than moveable room dividers. Modern lifestyles have evolved from traditional, segmented living spaces, including the formal living room, to more contemporary open-concept designs. You can get creative with your dividers for style and taste, enjoying enhanced privacy only when you want it.
Open Up Your Entryway for Natural Light
Open doorways and entryways continue to be widely popular for style and visual appeal. You can set the scene in your open-concept house by widening the space of your main entryway or the different entryways in your house. Having a wide entrance to the living room and dining room, for example, gives an immediate feeling of flow to an open floor plan home.
Converting Your Home to an Open Floor Plan
There are many reasons why people are converting homes to an open concept floor plan. Open concept spaces enhance connectivity and traffic flow, fostering social interaction and improving natural light distribution. To start converting your home into a beautiful open concept today, connect with Project Build.
Commenti