It wasn’t so long ago that homeowners all wanted centre hall plans when buying or renovating a home. This is the type of home where you walk in the front door and a hallway divides the rooms on the left from those on the right side of the hall. Each room was self-contained and often had a door to shut itself off from the rest of the house. 

Things couldn’t look more different nowadays as the demand for open concept homes has been going strong with no signs of a change. An open concept home is defined as having two or more spaces joined together. Most often this is the kitchen and living room. It can also extend to include the dining room and possibly even the family room. 

If you’re considering a renovation to update your main floor it’s very likely you’ve considered an open concept design. Here are 5 reasons that everyone loves an open floor plan.

1/ Better Space Utilization

When our homes are divided into distinct rooms we often have areas that are used far less frequently than others. This is particularly true of separate dining areas which may only be used a few times a year.

With an open concept floor plan we can allocate the space for areas that are high priority for our family. That makes your floor plan as efficient as possible. The most common request I receive is to give the home a larger kitchen that also doubles as a dining room. 

2/ Better Lighting

If you’ve ever lived in a traditional home you’ll know that some of the spaces may suffer from very low light. Even when there’s a window and adequate overhead lighting, it can’t be avoided. Rooms that are north facing may always seem dull and cold. Depending on the direction of the room’s window you may be getting all the best natural light while you’re at work. 

When you open up a space you’ll have access to the bright light because all light orientations become part of the new open space.

3/ Your Space Feels Larger

Taking down walls and creating an open concept home will give the illusion of a much larger space. If you don’t want to move but aren’t happy in your small home, this could be the solution to create a new space.

You might be surprised to see how large your open concept space appears when you incorporate those rarely used rooms into the new floor plan.

4/ Perfect for Entertaining

If you have a large extended family or lots of friends, consider yourself lucky. You may not feel so lucky if your space doesn’t accommodate your desire to be the hostess with the mostest. 

An open concept space allows for a lot more people because there isn’t definition between the main areas. People can flow from kitchen to family room to dining room effortlessly.

5/ Perfect for Watching Young Kids

If your family is growing and you have young children, an open concept floor plan can allow you to multitask. While you’re in the kitchen preparing a meal you can be keeping a close eye on kids who are playing in the next “room”. 

Be aware though that being able to keep an eye on your children means you’re also exposed to the increased noise level of having them so close by. If you prefer to cook in solitude you may have to put your earbuds in and listen to a podcast while cooking to block out some of the noise. 

A Dated and Tiny Kitchen Gets a Big Update

In this previous client project these homeowners were frustrated with their small kitchen that was separated from the rest of the entertaining areas. They love to entertain and wanted a space that allowed for groups to gather and mingle, all in the same place.

I got to work designing an open concept space. We started with plans to remove the wall between the kitchen and dining room completely. By partially removing the wall to the living room these clients could have everything on their wishlist - a chef’s kitchen with a large island for dining. And all of that flowed seamlessly into the living room for the perfect entertaining home.

What started as a small kitchen, dining room and living room now looks like a beautiful, open concept space which is used all the time. Today our clients couldn’t be happier. The kitchen is an area they feel proud and happy to entertain friends and family in their new, modern, open concept space.

You can read more about this renovation and see more images of before and after. Read the post here.

Dealing with Storage Issues

One of the things that can be a surprise to clients who are renovating for an open concept space is the removal of some closets and storage. When walls come down we can’t avoid also removing whatever was part of the wall. This might be a storage closet, shelving or even just the wall itself where a piece of furniture was previously housed.

It’s always a priority to maximize storage so I’ll create the perfect design plan with this in mind. Sometimes I’ll suggest including built-ins and in other instances I’ll plan for the purchase of free-standing furniture like a china hutch or buffet. It’s also possible that I can relocate closet space somewhere else during construction. Every space will require some individualized planning.

If you’re considering a move somewhere down the line I will recommend furniture instead of built-ins. That way you can take the furniture with you to your next home.

Plan for New Furniture

It may not occur to you when you’re considering an open concept space but often your old furniture won’t work in this larger space. The configuration of your new space just may not accommodate the old furniture.

Sometimes larger furniture is required because the space is now so open and your older pieces may feel too small. We often also have to consider a lower back on seating. We don’t want a seamless view to be broken by a sofa or chairs with very high backs. 

Another change to your space that needs to be planned for is lighting. If you love having lamps, either table or floor, in your space you’ll want to plan for that. I can always include electrical and floor plugs into the design plan if we plan ahead. This will eliminate the dreaded cord being dragged across the floor to a wall outlet.

Defining Your New Spaces

So you’ve made the decision and you’re ready to take down some walls. Are you having a hard time figuring out how to define each unique space? 

Instead of working within a room with walls my best tip is to use your furniture to create the boundary of the space. Essentially the furniture itself becomes the walls of the “room”. Use decorative furniture like console tables behind your sofa to create a strong boundary. Now you can use tall objects like vases, lamps or stacks of books for definition.

I also love using rugs to define the boundaries of each space. Just be sure you buy large rugs that accommodate all the furniture. A too-small rug will actually make your open concept space look awkward and off scale so go big.

You can also be creative and use an etagere or open bookcase to separate spaces. Be sure that either there is no backing so there’s a view from each space as opposed to seeing the unfinished back of a bookcase.

It’s not just floors that can be used to create definition in your space. Your dining space can be defined with a ceiling treatment like a coffer. Even without a rug or anything aside from a dining table and chairs, a beautiful ceiling treatment will leave no doubt that this is a “room”.

Considering the Structural Elements

Structural beams can often interfere with the clean aesthetic of an open concept space but they’re necessary. Sometimes they can be removed but when they can’t we need to get creative. 

That’s exactly the case in this previous renovation project. The structural support beam ran straight into the new cabinetry so I designed  built-in wine storage. This allowed the beam to remain while also utilizing the space and camouflaging the beam with something more interesting to look at. To see more of this project, read this post.  

Window placement is another factor that needs to be considered. If a wall comes down you may need to rethink a previous window and how it aesthetically appears in the new space.

What about views within your space? Consider what you’ll be seeing that may have been previously blocked from view. I had a recent project where the kitchen wall was scheduled to be removed in order to create an open concept space and a large island. Suddenly the powder room toilet became visible and nobody wants to eat dinner at the island while looking straight down the hall to a toilet. We modified the design so that the kitchen now had a larger entry instead of removing the wall completely and this helped to maintain the privacy between the kitchen and the powder room. 

So what do you think? Do you like the idea of an open concept space? If you’re planning a renovation in 2024, reach out to me. I’d love to discuss your project and how I can help.

Warm regards,

Adrienne