One of the hottest trends in home design right now are open floor plan designs, and it’s easy to see why they’re so popular. This trend really creates a dynamic space for entertaining, is super efficient for living, and can be the best flow for movement around the house.
When you’re thinking of creating an open floor plan for your home, no matter what size your project is, there are a few key considerations to space planning that will help you along with your design:
- Consider getting from one area of the home to another. Traffic flow matters with the open space just as it does the closed one. You will need to allow at least three feet of space for your travel patterns.
- Group your furniture ahead of time. Decide not only which pieces of furniture go together, but the negative space (the space in between your groupings) and traffic flow space between them. If you can see how the living area is separated from the dining area by furniture grouping, you can see how you can have ‘rooms’ in an open space.
- Choose which spaces will be private, semi-private, and open. This is important when it comes to design. For example, a closed-off dining room makes for more formal entertaining.
- Decide on how your spaces will flow, and what areas will be adjacent to one another. Depending on your lifestyle, you may wish to have the dining area separated from the living area by a workspace, entertainment or play area, etc.
When looking into the elements for open floor plan designs, consider these tips for choosing the ideal design elements in your living space. Doing so can help you create the space you want and need that works best for your style of living.
For more information on award winning architects in Seattle, feel free to contact the Gelotte Hommas Architects.