Open Concept Kitchen Living Room
In an open floor concept, unnecessary walls are knocked off to make room for one massive, free-flowing space. The intent here is to connect different zones to bring family members together. But the downside to an open floor layout is that it reduces privacy and increases noise. Hence they work best when implemented in common spaces such as the living room. Open plan living rooms are connected to the dining area, or kitchen, and sometimes both. Such floor plans create larger entertaining spaces for the users and encourage communication, bonding, and socializing.
Today, we will be looking at some amazing examples of such combined open living room and kitchen. Stick with us, you might gain a few ideas to design your internal space.
1. Open Layout with a Broadened Scope
Image: HomeDSGN
Cat Mountain Residence, designed by Cornerstone Architects, is located in Austin, Texas. The layout of the house is designed in a way to maximize the surrounding vistas. The rear of the home has a coarse landscape view, which is echoed in the interiors of the house via exposed ceiling beams and stone accents.
A transitional style has been opted for the circulation of the users. The openness of the living and kitchen and the inclusion of the french doors that open to the outdoor seating – makes for an expansive entertaining space.
Image: HomeDSGN
Contrasting elements like antique pieces are mixed with modern decor, and rustic materials are paired with clean and shiny furnishings.
2. Semi-open living and kitchen
A downside to open layouts is depriving the users of privacy. If you are conscious of opening up your entire kitchen to your guests sitting in the living room, you could use this trick. Shielding the kitchen with a decorative barrier either fully or partially helps.
Image: Pinterest
A lightweight plasterboard structure is the barrier between the living room and the kitchen. Although it doesn’t cover up the entire kitchen, it covers it enough to provide some privacy in the kitchen.
The plasterboard wall is used as a decor element to mount the TV and does not come across as a clear barricade between the two rooms. The wall further seamlessly extends into an informal breakfast table. It fulfills its demarcating function as well as the aesthetic function.
3. Not your stark white room
Image: Pinterest
An open layout makes an area look more spacious and bright. Add white walls, doors, and furniture to such a room, and you’ve got yourself – an airy, roomy space. The green velvet armchair and the subtle pops of color sprinkled around the area – avoid turning the space into a cold white room.
4. Central cooking island
Image: Design Cafe
A central island cooktop in a living cum kitchen is quite alluring. It works best for families that cook together. This could also work when entertaining friends who love to cook along with you while having a good time.
The sleek chimney centrally placed over the island is essential to eliminate the smoke, food odors, and heat from this entertaining space. The black cabinets incorporated with the wood finish cabinets are an interesting combination.
5. Play of lights
Image: Design Cafe
Well-positioned lights can add another dimension to a space which is what we see here. The installation of different styles of lighting fixtures – floor lamps, pendant lights above the island, backlights, and strip led lights for cabinets – adds depth to this tiny kitchen. The kitchen lights brighten up the living space and add a bit of drama.
6. Organized Kitchen
A cluttered and disorganized kitchen can look shabby and not very welcoming when it is open to a hosting space like the living room. Creating ample and creative storage space in your kitchen lends the space a neat and put-together look.
Image: Design Cafe
Image: Design Cafe
Here we see a bunch of trendy storage options like the appliance garage, magic corners, mini wine rack, and wine glass hangers. Most of the storage is concealed to give a clean and mess-free look to the kitchen.
7. The Three in One
Image: HGTV
This beach house in Hamptons is casual and homey. The family room accommodates a dining table (large enough to seat eight people comfortably), and a few other casual seating chairs are spread around a warm fireplace. The dining table lays parallel to the kitchen counter, which acts as a pass-through and a prep counter. The glass doors slide into the wall – wholeheartedly welcoming the outdoors inside – it works as a good spill-out area and adds freshness to this family room.
8. Cohesive Space
Image: HGTV
The furniture groupings delimit the functional spaces and determine the circulation pattern in this open layout. Similar and agreeable materials like steel, dark-stained oak, and rift-sawn white oak are used throughout the living, dining, and kitchen to bind the different zones together. The color scheme is another unifying element. For example, the subtly patterned couch color matches the kitchen’s rift-sawn white oak cabinets.
9. The One with a View
Image: HGTV
This log cabin on Coeur D’Alene Lake in North Idaho is as stunning as its view. A contemporary look has been delivered to a log cabin that embraces the breathtaking view of the lake from every room. The use of natural materials keeps the house looking warm and inviting.
10. Quirky Elements
Image: HGTV
A bold mix of colors and elements is visible in this tiny space. The AGA cooker in black is a standout against the sea-green backsplash tiles. A couple of bling elements are added like the silver dining chairs, a shiny ceiling fan, and the massive wall-mounted chimney. The hot pink pendant lights are stylish and pair well with the funky artwork in the living. The books are stacked vertically to add a bit of drama to this elevated ceiling room.
11. The multi-functional island
Image: Designing Idea
This kitchen connects the dining and living room. The whole setup looks elegant due to its classic decor style. The glossy white paint in the kitchen is beautiful and subtle – with a splash of blue in the center.
The kitchen island is gigantic and functions as an extra eating space. This is perfect for a quick breakfast with the family or even when entertaining a large group of friends (some extra dining space is always appreciated).
12. Furniture placement defining space
Image: Pinterest
The orientation of the bar stools and the tan sofa define the boundaries of the kitchen and living room. Although the kitchen sticks to a rather white theme, unlike the living room, the addition of the grey stools to match the grey couch in the living room – creates a fine link between the two open spaces.
13. The industrial style
Image: Fifi McGee
The juxtaposition of natural and man-made materials in this room is brilliant. The pitched roof with the beams and the exposed brick wall includes a rawness in the decor. This raw factor, paired with the sleek matte-finished black kitchen counters, the spotlight, and the pendant lights – brings an element of interest to the room and works well for the industrial look.
14. The Danish inspired one
Image: Real Homes
A muted color scheme of grey and light wood tones with a pop of yellow – looks refined and modern. The blonde wood is comforting and fashionable as the flooring. The same wood looks unfinished and crude on the ceiling alongside the exposed brick wall. The contrast is impressive and blends well with mid-century modern and contemporary furnishings.
15. The easy pastel room
Image: Adore Home Magazine
The all-white kitchen is balanced out with the inclusion of pastel shades in the living room. The white herringbone tilework in the kitchen adds some pattern to this room. A minimalistic living room with bare minimum furniture pieces. The pile of books that lay next to the couch instead of being stacked on a fancy side table – reminds us of a relaxed and carefree home.
16. Naturally lit garden room
Image: Fifi McGee
The wall-to-wall window frames and the roof windows usher ample sunlight into the living and dining space. The natural light further bounces and brightens up the adjoining kitchen as well. The moss green paint used on the art wall and the underside of the kitchen island impart the home a garden room feel.
17. Designed around a furniture
Image: The Effortless Chic
The sofa was the first piece of furniture purchased by the homeowners. And because the sofa’s color is bold, the entire space had to be decorated around it. The base color scheme is muted – with brown and blue tones as the highlight. A mix of metal, ceramic, and woody materials are observed.
18. A tiny living and kitchen combo
Image: Love Property
If you are not much into cooking or have a tight space – a kitchenette should suffice. This kitchen and living room combination is perfect for studio apartments. The kitchenette has a small counter for blending and preparing a quick snack. It doesn’t require much space and components to replicate this decor.
One can always create different zones that exhibit different personalities to create contrast within a tight space. Here the mood of the kitchenette is dull with grey shades and dark wood furnishings, whereas the adjoining seating nook is a breath of fresh air with bright colors and fun decor pieces.
19. Taking it to the next level
The open layout concept avoids walls between rooms to create a free flow of connection and communication between rooms. Although an open floor plan is usually observed on the same level, it doesn’t necessarily mean the rooms have to be on the same floor. Especially in a double-height room, utilizing vertical spaces avoids space wastage.
Image: Love Property
Converting a mezzanine floor into an open-plan, intimate room like this family room is a clever way to connect two rooms on different levels. The metal wire fencing works as a safety barrier yet allows for a free flow of communication between the kitchen and the living.
20. The sunken pit
Image: Love Property
Here is another example of creating levels within an open floor plan. The different zones are divided without any physical barriers. The kitchen and dining rest on the same level, while the living room snugly fits in a pit. The pit is compact yet accommodates a comfy sofa, TV, and storage/display unit. The cluster of suspended ball lamps ensures ample lighting in the pit.
21. Zonal flooring
Image: Pinterest
Creating divisions between functional zones does not require walls. Mixing different flooring helps define the areas without any actual boundaries. The flooring choices should be compatible and blend well to create a cohesive ambiance. You can play with different patterned tiles, or flooring finishes to create a fascinating mix in a single space.
22. Fencing with furniture
Image: Love Property
The giant bookshelf provides visual privacy for the kitchen without hampering the smooth flow of conversations between the two rooms. It acts as a physical barrier between the two rooms and defines them.
The same flooring, lighting, and aesthetics unite the spaces and bring about a similar mood. The usage of light wood for the flooring and the bookshelves binds the zones without creating an actual divide to the human perception.
23. Color blocked kitchen
Image: Pinterest
Color blocking divides a large open space. It adds character and dimension to any given room. The classic combination of black and white does not disappoint. The black kitchen is the focal point of this white room. The black color visually carves out the space for the kitchen in a creative fashion.
24. An attractive view
Image: Pinterest
If your kitchen is open to your living room, you might as well build an impressive one to grab the attention of your guests. The geometric patterned tiles are striking against the all-white cabinets. The simple and clean decor further draws one’s attention to the magnificent tilework. This view will certainly leave a lasting impression on your guests.
25. Rug – the segregator
Image: Pinterest
The jute rug sits in harmony with the light wood floor. Even though it is not calling out for attention, the rug behaves as a visual segregation. It adds warmth to the living area and makes it feel cozy. You can introduce bright colors and patterned rugs to zone your functional areas and reduce noise.
Margarita Bravo
Denver’s Best Interior Designer
Margarita is a luxury interior designer and decorator, remodeler, furniture curator, and creator of experiences. Margarita’s unique skill set has evolved from her strong educational background and European and Latin American sources of inspiration. Now with design studios in Denver, Miami, and Montecito.
Margarita
