Open Floor Plans, Living Room Layout
Open floor plans, living room layout and ideas can help you get the most from your living room space. If your living room is one of the smallest areas in your home, then this is particularly important.
But if you’ve got an open floor plan layout in your home, then you can make the most of this room’s natural flow and function. Here are some tips for making the most of your living room on an open floor plan.
Living Room Layout
First, make sure you have a comfortable sofa set that is appropriate for your size living room. In order to create the most open plan living room ideas of the floor plan, you’ll need a sofa with high backs and armrests.
If the sofa doesn’t have these features, then you can opt for a loveseat or folding chair. You will also want somewhere to put a few magazines and books so they don’t get in the way of the activities going on in the room. For the floor, you may use rugs or carpets to create open floor plans.
Second, figure out what materials you’re going to want to use to get the open floor plan effect you’re after. In many cases, this is not a problem since you have hardwood floors. For more elegance, however, you may want to consider using marble, granite, or glass tile.
Linoleum floors are another option, although they can be difficult to install and if you have small children, there’s a chance that they could hurt themselves.
For families with children who are old enough, laminate floors may be the right answer for the living room layout. If not, you might need to ask the flooring manufacturer for options that are suitable for your family’s needs.
Third, think about the arrangement of furniture. On an open floor plan layout, you’ll want to make room for at least one coffee table (often on the side) as well as side tables, a fireplace, and possibly music or video area.
If you’re working on a budget, you can usually get away with just a computer desk. Still, you’ll want to include at least one seating area – even a settee – in your plan.
Open Floor Plans
Living room ideas such as these allow you to be more flexible with the size of the room you’ve designed when it comes to incorporating smaller pieces of furniture. You can open the floor plan to the dining area if you’d like, for instance.
Or you could close it off with a solid block of walls so that the kids can have their own play space if you have the open floor plans. It all depends on your needs and how much flexibility you feel like having.
Another aspect of living room design that lends itself to an open floor plan is the fact that most households are smaller than most living rooms. In fact, many of us have more rooms than we know what to do with!
A family of four might have four separate areas to socialize in: the living room, the kitchen, the den, and the basement. When you open a living room plan, you’re given the chance to be creative with the other three. Let the kids go exploring in the den; entertain guests in the kitchen; and spend time in the basement with friends and family.
Another big plus of living room design with an open floor plan is that everyone gets to see the entire room at the same time. Some times we all can’t get comfortable at the same time, whether because of noise from the television, conversation going on around you, or simply because we’re all seated close together.
But when you open a floor plan design in this way, you give everyone the opportunity to be comfortable at the same time. This can include infants, who can see every detail, as well as grown-ups who may be reading a book and enjoying a conversation with their friends.
Open Plan Living Room Ideas
As you can see, there are many benefits to using an open floor plan. You can open it up to be as creative as you like for the greatest effect. It’s also a great way to make sure that every member of the family has a place to comfortably sit and relax.
Also, it will help prevent some scheduling issues in your household, such as how much time one person spends in front of the TV or computer versus another.
This way, everybody has space to spread out without the two people fighting for just one chair. And, at the end of the day, you can have the open plan living room ideas that you’ve always wanted.
