Biggest Open Plan Design Mistakes & Why It May Not Be For You

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Timestamps:
00:00 - Intro
00:46 - Open vs Closed vs Broken
02:21 - No Zones
03:39 - Too Many Styles
04:47 - Oversized Furniture
05:37 - Not Considering Lighting
06:33 - Everything Pushed Against Wall
07:07 - Kitchen Doesn't Suit Space
08:04 - Open Plan Into Broken Plan
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[@rockshot100]

Reynard, love your analysis, above all others. YOU make sense and use reason to illustrate your points. Nobody else does.

[@HLR4th]

My old house had an open plan living room with floor outlets. My new house is all open plan, with stone floors, only 1 floor outlet in the family room (poorly positioned), none in the living room- a nightmare. Rugs, sturdy flat extension cords have been the fix, but your caution about outlets is so vital.

[@marcc9670]

This is EXACTLY the video I needed. I just recently moved into a house with a large open living room, and trying to figure out how to furnish it without going broke or making it look like a show room. It was particularly difficult to figure out the sofa/TV area, since the layout is a bit clunky. I’ll be studying these tips as I continue to design my home!

[@dmsheckler]

Well what did you do? I'm having the same issue. Where do I put all my stuff?? Lol

[@losenikromah7802]

Worst thing about open plan is the heat from cooking and baking, the grease vapor from frying floating around the entire great room, the sound of stirring, metal pot covers and utensils, frying, blenders and kettles. Then the scent of cooking spreading all the way through the great room, and up the stairs into your bedrooms! Then, When you want to air condition the living room, the kitchen, enitre floor and even the stairwell need to be covered by your air conditioners all at once!

[@gayleendream5073]

Exactly.

[@AndreasLindholm]

This is a real struggle, especially in smaller studio flats. I even avoid cooking certain foods as food fumes would get stuck in my bedding in my bachelor flat..

[@l.5832]

Yes! The half wall. I have a half wall separating my living room from the kitchen in my condo. This allows natural light from the living room window to pass through in to the kitchen (no window) but still separates the space, which I prefer, and allows a surface on which to align a small table/desk for my lap top. The more walls you remove, the less surface area to align furniture. Furniture that 'floats' needs a big room so you can walk around it....often times wider than what the width of an interior wall would be.

[@CRTRRTinGA]

Yayyy! I'm glad to see designers approaching this topic. I *love* a contemporary/modern look, but I'm also super practical and having everything completely open is incredibly IMpractical.

[@grazynapietruszka7658]

The video I requested! Reynard, you really deliver outstanding content. I wasn't aware of many mistakes I did and now my friends praise my home for being cosy. Thank you!

[@bjski4557]

I used to live in a closed space house and have been in an open space for 10+ years. At first, I was always trying to hide the kitchen, but I’ve finally gotten used to the open plan and now remember how when I had a closed plan, all of my company always hung out in my kitchen anyway. Now I have an island to keep them out of the work area but they can still talk to me while I’m working.

[@ghostgirl6970]

You are so concise and clear in your explanations, I really am glad I recently discovered this channel.

[@33Jenesis]

I make meals everyday. I use cast iron pot with lid; mid heat and no frying. I make soup often. I use slow cooker for stews and beans. My fan hood has excellent suction power. I still find greased dust on surface in and around my semi open kitchen. Greased dust is harder to clean. I also installed frosted glass sliding wardrobe doors as room partition for living room and a 10x10 nook (my craft room).

[@quinosonic82]

This is key. No matter what, you end up cooking in the living room or sleeping in the kitchen. I'm an argentine designer and as much as we love kitchens and much of our culture revolve around the cooking-eating-chatting experience, it's no fun to have one's clothing or pillow smelling like a steak/stew. Sleeping/dressing and cooking should be separate spaces, then lounge and dining can be added to either as you please.

[@MelloCello55]

Had an open kitchen starting in 1990 (uncommon back then) and I loved it. Realized I had previously felt like I was being punished in my former kitchen, sent away while everyone else was having fun together. The “mess” only matters if you have company, in which case, just plan accordingly and make things in the oven (hidden), or in advance, or set out a buffet on your countertop or island. People like to congregate in a nice, big kitchen anyway. If you prefer to hide by yourself, go for it, but don’t talk other people out of the sociable lifestyle they want or even need.

[@rockshot100]

May I add a detail that makes a world of difference? If you have you sofa in the middle of the room, then consider having the back only reupholstered to reflect the other side of the room. This is a very low cost job with high impact. Repeat a fabric or color that the back is seen from. Very important not to clash with the existing fabric of the sofa, so when looking at the sofa by itself, it doesn't look weird. You can always get some print or stripe that uses the color of the sofa, but also has the colors of adjacent space. This is an extremely easy job for a reupholsterer, and they can usually come to your house to do it. Labor cost is very low, or if you have very minimal experience, you can do it yourself. Thanks Reynard, another great post.

[@Geronimo2Fly]

I never would have thought of this in a million years. What a great idea.

[@rockshot100]

@@Geronimo2Fly Nice of you to say, but I have seen chairs done like this, why not do a sofa like this? Pretty sure it would be low cost, and would look expensive and custom. You wouldn't need much fabric and it is a pretty simple job. I think it would help a lot. Also throw pillows have a different pattern on the back.

[@lynndupree1205]

It all depends on your lifestyle. For instance hubby and I are both retired and spend most of our time around the house. I do decorating projects and read, while he prefers to watch television and talk on the phone. Can you see the issues we have? Sound travels way too much in an open floorplan. We enjoy having separate rooms designated for our activities.

[@jsimp4050]

I live in an open concept. It was difficult at first. But over the years I’ve mastered the zones. My home is on the smaller side, 1600 sf, so to me the broken concept would look terrible. But I think that could work in a larger home. One thing I did change a few years ago is the flooring. It originally was hardwood in the entry, kitchen and dining then transitioned to carpet in the living room and down the hall. I changed it all to the same LVP flooring and it’s much more cohesive. I zone w rugs and furniture placement. Loved your video!

[@Stiasteny]

As someone who worked for a heating company: an open plan makes your electricity bill go up. If you use a radiator or convector, it mostly uses air heating, which means the ENTIRE room needs to be heated in order to feel a temperature change. You could use zonal heating like an (electrical) infrared panel above seating areas, but they are relatively expensive if you want high quality (not Made in China). A closed plan makes it possible to close doors of unused rooms, so you can only heat the rooms where you’re are and to heat it more quickly. So I think open spaces are okay for smaller houses and apartments, but for bigger ones you might regret it.

[@Stiasteny]

Where you’re at* oops I made a typo

[@l.5832]

Same with vaulted ceilings. My last house had a huge open living room/ dining room that also opened to a sunroom. It also had a very high vaulted ceiling. Despite having a ceiling fan, the temperature never felt comfortable. I was too cold in the winter and too hot in the summer. (I live in Canada).

[@silvslim]

Depends on your climate and local environment. Using nature’s defences impacts this as well.

[@kalliemj]

a broken plan is really what i am looking for. i have 2 cats with pica which is a chewing disorder so not only does the house have to be baby/pet proofed, have closed shelving, and have minimal items sitting out but i also have to find a solution to prevent them from getting into the kitchen and dinning areas. If they have access not only will they break things sitting out because they are clumsy, but they will also chew on any human food, packaging, or plastic that they can see. To be able to close those two rooms off but still have the open feel is absolutely ideal. I've been wanting to custom build my home so this has given me some helpful ideas to thinkabout in terms of layout and room division

[@Boutys_mom]

Aww poor baby. I've never heard of pica. It's so nice to hear someone looking for ways to make life work for yourself / family AND your fur babies. I hope you are able to find a beautiful solution to keep all safe and happy. ❤

[@kalliemj]

@@Boutys_mom it’s something I never heard about before adopting them. When they are kittens it’s hard to distinguish normal childlike behavior vs pica behaviors but as they become adults you can more easily spot a pica cat. Unfortunately there isn’t a lot of information or advice on the internet with how to deal with it. Every day I am learning something new that could be chewed on. The main advice is just to remove the item but then you end up in a minimalist home. They also advice baby proofing so a lot of thought goes into hiding cables. I think anyone looking to adopt a cat should get informed because you never know what dangers lerk in your house, even if the cat isn’t a pica cat. But if you ever want to adopt a cat and are afraid they might turn out to be a pica cat then you can more easily avoid it by opting out of adopting an oriental breed. I adopted karats but when I got them I was told they were Russian blues. It’s a lookalike breed. Unfortunately personality wise they are two completely different cats but I still love them regardless of their wild tendencies. I just worry 24/7 something bad will happen instead.

[@tealkerberus748]

My cats don't have any health issues, but they do love shoving things off any flat surface they feel like sitting on. Locking them out of the kitchen is a major goal in my next house!

[@jeahtm]

Wow! Thank you for this video. I have an open concept living dining and kitchen and have no idea how to make it look better.

[@rochapires]

Great video! Curtains are also a great way to break open spaces, creating a visual and sound barrier when needed. You may also play with the opacity

[@OutOfHereSoon]

I'm not sure that a curtain will create a sound barrier.

[@rochapires]

@@OutOfHereSoon Thick felt curtains, for instance, provide way better sound insolation than thin glass. Also, way cheaper to apply

[@heidikamrath1951]

I’ve seen some GORGEOUS metal (chainmail ?) mesh curtains used to divide spaces.

[@NealosMetropolos]

@@rochapires As an architectural acoustics consultant I can confirm that curtains provide negligible sound transmission loss compared to any mass element such as glass but can certainly add much needed absorption in a space dominated by hard surfaces.

[@tealkerberus748]

Good heavy curtains are a excellent way to absorb and muffle sound. You'll still hear it, but it won't be intrusive, and you won't be able to hear every word of a conversation like you would without the curtain.

[@duskyrose23]

I love open space, colour scheme is shades of creme white beige and pops of yellows, 0:10 light pink and light blue, book shelf from floor to ceiling to cut the long hallway to the dining area, kitchen is separated , very very very small but well furnished , separated with a non see glass door- the kids bedrooms- in another corner of the apartment -just another design story😂😂😂. Loved the video❤

[@Hubbyhappymeals]

I love ur video. Useful and easy to understand, the calm voice and all the inserted videos and pictures to explain information.

[@frankiefurbag9030]

Open concept is great with small children. That time goes fast, those kids and parents are all looking for individual space really fast.

[@Smart-Skippy]

#Reynard, thank you so much. I'm an Aussie bloke, with no idea how to decorate. You inspire me and your videos help me make my home better, more welcoming and bring me joy. Or as you say in Sing... #ATAS xie xie, terimah kasih. - Perth WA.

[@marzenas8727]

Thank You for the practical advice. I like my open space appartment but latetly made a mistake in it. I've used the accent wall (green paint) to make a dining zone, now I see on Your film the rug under the table and neutral beige wall (like all other walls) would give better feel of the space.

[@RockBottomRebootIRL]

I love open floor plans as I grew up in a place with very small closed off rooms.

[@gayleendream5073]

I was and still not a fan of open floor plans. They feel cold and impersonal to me. A lot of new homes I have looked at are doing the half wall concept which is a relief to see.

[@reynaldo-music]

Broken Plan - that always happen to me 😆

[@sooalbor8785]

Thank you so much, Reynard for your valuable insights and tips to how to make a better place to live in. 😊

[@keyboardbunny]

I don't like Open plan but sadly I live in Australia and everything is Open plan, kitchen dining living all together in 1 square is not good to me. I hate smelling food getting cooked or just the fact that I can see the kitchen wide open.

[@heatherridgway1552]

I’m downsizing to an open plan house, I found this really helpful. I really mustn’t expect all my old furniture to fit in 😳

[@lindantsie7924]

Since COVID, I see more and more people seeking divided spaces, I still do enjoy open floors tho😊

[@sarahlouise7163]

🙄

[@snowdogbreeder]

Really grateful for your videos, and good advice (& good taste!). Thank you :)

[@eattherich9215]

I don't care to live in my kitchen or consider that cooking is a spectator sport. @5:50, that is an underground space with a low ceiling. You can't fix that. @6:44, where do you put the telly? The problem with open plan is that you lose walls against which furniture can be placed.

[@mguti090]

No you don't. You lose the inner walls against which furniture usually should NOT be placed. Then you can divide with your couch and area rugs.

[@rogerhuston8287]

Open floor plans are popular in the US, but not so much overseas.

[@rickmanwarren]

Always helpful. Thanks!

[@Junebug93309]

I really like your videos. You give concrete and workable advice and solutions. I subscribed.

[@geowatcher888]

Open plans don't work in tropical climates. One can't air condition a kitchen, rather one shouldn't - it is a terrible waste of energy. OTOH bringing in the kitchen heat to the living area is a great idea in temperate climate zones.

[@eattherich9215]

Bringing in the kitchen heat also brings the smell of cooking to the living room. I don't care for that.

[@NealosMetropolos]

@@eattherich9215 Only if you cook stuff that stinks bad :)

[@mguti090]

"One can't air condition the kitchen" ... says who???

[@dijpurdy]

Im looking to move to an open space which should Beverly as I have no load bearing walls within the property, in all of the examples I notice the obvious missing feature is a television set!

[@theOlLineRebel]

There are no walls to place anything. Seriously annoying. Don’t like ugly electronic rear panels out in the open for all to see. No space for wall art!

[@DJ-ti2vg]

Excellent video, thanks for making.

[@joebloggs4191]

Unless you live on your own or have more than one living room (and even then cleaning the grease from everywhere will be a pain), open plans are a dumb idea probably started as a 'trend' by house builders because it's way cheaper to build, no walls no doors less windows it's a win win for them!

[@CaseyEckert-g5k]

I have a growing active family and love my open kitchen, dinning, living room floor plan and grease has never been an issue. I do keep my house relatively tidy and have ventilation over my cook top and wipe down my kitchen counters after using.

[@joebloggs4191]

@@CaseyEckert-g5k All depends what type of cooking you do on a regular basis and grease gets everywhere not just on the cooktops.

[@theOlLineRebel]

Absolutely right. Open plans are a developer panacea so they have less material and work to spend on. THEY sell and convince people this is great, all to market their wares. People are so gullible. Same with “pretty” things like “old-fashioned” bathtubs in the middle of a bathroom, with no supporting surfaces. You need places for soap and bottles, etc. and the truly old-fashioned, which take extra work o clean underneath since they clear the floor. These aren’t cheaper but they’re still examples of designers convincing people how something is de rigieur. Cute, but stupid!

[@joebloggs4191]

@@theOlLineRebel Where I am developers are now building expensive 'luxury' apartments which have open plan en suite bathrooms! Can you believe that? Marketing it as luxury, what a load of tosh who wants to see their other half or someone else in the toilet from their bed? They are even using the back of the fitted wardrobes as the wall of the bathroom! Total crap build for exhorbitant prices!

[@LuQiYun]

I have both open plan and separate kitchen in my house so i don't know why so many ppl argue which kitchen should they have.

[@TheSushmaHomeSellingTeam]

Plan design may be uncontrollable specially if we are driven by so much emotion when deciding but no worries this can also be a start of our home improvements soon. 😉✨

[@josefalawson3049]

Great ideas about open concept.

[@chalisblur]

Would be good to add more remarks / sketches to the example pictures, would help with newbies trying to visualize what you are describing to fix in those pics. Thank you for the video!

[@JV-sj8bc]

I am trying to plan my open plan living space I have found two couches that will work wonderfully however they are 30 inches tall my table is 30 but the chairs are 32 inches should I be concerned about the height difference ? Any thoughts greatly appreciated

[@donnasharpe7512]

Good night,Can one usees the same flooring for living room and kitchen.

[@noemicasanova745]

Excellent!

[@akinyiomer4589]

Open plan kitchen - living rooms become quite tiresome even for people who originally love them and can deal with them at first. Its not just the reality of kitchen food prep and cooking: smells/vapours (however delicious!) and grease will just transfer into your living room, particularly on any soft furnishings. It's ALSO your kitchen appliances large and small. Depending on what you're used to in your country, your kitchen might have a dishwasher, washing machine/dryer and other small appliances like food processors or blenders. Those things make NOISE. Wash cycles for both dishes and laundry tend to be 30+ mins standard, probs closer to 1 hour. If you're thinking of an open-plan kitchen because you want to capitalise on small space, you'll need to think very carefully about how you'll mitigate against those disturbances (if at all possible). Maybe you're in a very high cost of living area so those compromises are unavoidable. But just food for thought for those that have the option between open or more closed-plans from the outset.

[@lutra-lutra]

very helpful advice, thank you very much 🙂

[@JS-um3ji]

I really enjoyed watching your video. Is it possible to get the link for the room divider?

[@michele.wolf.homestaging]

Super nice❤

[@hellototheworld]

Thanks for sharing also I didn't know people didn't like open plan lol

[@jeffevans7226]

Hi Reynard. Love your content: it's always on point 😊 Just wondering who the artist is for the large picture of two figures walking together? It's visible when you open the curtains at the beginning of the video.

[@reynardlowell]

Interesting, that is actually the Samsung Frame TV! The client bought the artwork from Etsy - maybe you can take a screenshot and use google image search to trace the source?

[@Geronimo2Fly]

@@reynardlowell I'm planning to get a Frame TV after my upcoming remodel. I think they are such a great way to avoid those big black holds in your living room wall. That one seems awfully high though; I thought the center of the TV is supposed to be at eye level when sitting?

[@lisareich9696]

Where is photo used at 3:08 from? I'd like to see more of this home.

[@reebeeable]

A kitchen in my living space would make me eat more - not good. I think builders build open floor plans because they are smaller and cheaper to build.

[@l.5832]

Exactly. Drywall is expensive and time consuming and they also save on the lumber for the framing, and the cost of trim and paint. Builders could slap together an empty box and promote it as 'open floor plan' and it was marketed as something desirable rather than what it actually was.....a cheap build.

[@mariog7682]

What are some good shelves?

[@michele.wolf.homestaging]

Sehr geschmackvoll 😊😊

[@MultiAnne36]

My open floor plan has asymetrical walls, entry ways on all sides. One solid wall and i cant figure out how to arrange the tv or furniture so it makes sense.

[@brattyyogi3512]

Hi, can you please let me know what plant 0:14 is? 🙏🏼

[@ChuckBowie]

Do my house next!

[@CRTRRTinGA]

Can anyone link to the item shown at 08:38 please? I can't make out what Reynard is calling that line and I'd love to locate it.

[@ashton8878]

Turn on your CC. IKEA modular storage system. KX or the Alvari.

[@azabujuban-hito-dake]

I dont understand why people ( particukarly americans) love having a kitchen in their living room ! it's ok if it's in a small apartment or a tiny house, but it doesn't make any sense in a normal-size house.

[@Weatemilly]

The key is to have two living rooms. One big kitchen with dining/relaxing and another for cosy sofa/TV

[@geowatcher888]

There could be many reasons. In my build, the open plan is the best way to bring in light in a part of the world where this is a challenge.

[@eattherich9215]

@@geowatcher888: windows?

[@thetumanshow]

What were the names of the IKEA items that will “break” and open room?

[@carolinacarsolio5476]

One is Kallax, the other I don´t know

[@gbunag3]

If you are cooking for a party, the last thing you want your guest to see is you struggling to prepare food. I prefer to keep the kitchen separate.

[@DrWarBear]

The counter thought to this is that if you have guests and you’re still cooking, you wouldn’t want to separate yourself from your guests. If you have an open plan you can still be a part of the gathering while you prepare the meal. So really it’s all just preference. I like more the hybrid where the kitchen is half wall and half peninsula into the living room, so it’s still open for conversation and watching TV while I cook but I can also hide the mess in the kitchen from the living room if I don’t feel like cleaning

[@josephsweeney4219]

Agree. I love cooking while talking with our friends across our kitchen island into our dining area. Moreover, having the kitchen open into the dining area increases the volume of that social area around the dining table.

[@starbuggle]

having dry and wet kitchens (common in southeast asia) is one solution. mess and smell can be confined to the wet kitchen, and the final/more presentable stages of cooking can be done in the dry kitchen

[@azabujuban-hito-dake]

Me too. I dont want people to see my maid cooking and washing dishes.

[@DonnaMaria-xq2zk]

If you “struggle” to prepare the food, why on earth are you hosting a dinner party?

[@jsavage5150]

Can you tell me the plant names behind you?

[@tealkerberus748]

"broken" plan sounds horrible for something that actually works extremely well. Let's just call it semi-open and everyone will know what we mean without using negative language about it.

[@paulcampbell3497]

They will be closing them back up in a couple of years

[@paradisesunprincess]

These days? Never realised that. I'm in my early 30s and my childhood home was opened concept.

[@Calypso-22]

Cooking is noisy, messy and chaotic. No, I don’t want everything visible all the time.

[@donggiangvo9284]

Exactly. I don't get why people like their kitchens connected to their living rooms. The whole house ends up smelling like food when you cook.

[@silvslim]

@@donggiangvo9284The house will smell like it regardless if you have an open plan or not. There is a social aspect to food which appeals to those who like open floor plans

[@wahyuferiyansyah7290]

But people forced to be clean like a pro if they use open plan kitchen

[@silvslim]

@@wahyuferiyansyah7290 Or you just be comfortable with a bit of imperfection, have fun making food and art around the kitchen island with friends

[@lockdown5726]

Cooking is a art and I want to show it to everyone.

[@MrPathorock]

I don't like too open that your guests walk right into the kitchen when they step into your house.

[@127Claumc]

Broken plan is kind of ugly

[@Natedoc808]

I prefer larger spaces for family/living room however I believe all homes should have a formal dining room for the family to sit and eat together; not surprisingly research has shown that families that eat together have far lower rates of divorce and criminal behavior.

[@alexiswinter6948]

Ease stop sauing matchy matchy. 😣

[@tealkerberus748]

I would like the design world to stop talking about "matchy matchy" already please. We get it. People who can spend time curating a collection of different pieces so they go together are classier than people who see something they really like and throw their chequebook at the complete set. Now can we please accept that a complete set is a valid solution too, and just get over the snobbery?

[@mguti090]

It doesn't change the fact that the complete set does not look as good. It looks lazy. Sorry.

[@LeahBandB]

The biggest open floorplan mistake is having an open floorplan

[@Eminmedvall]

Free Palestine 🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸 ✨️ ❤ ✌🏻✌🏻

[@slowslug3247]

I’ve tried to listen to multiple videos, I can’t hear the words with such a heavy accent. The words are not pronounced right

[@eattherich9215]

I guess you are not even bright enough to turn on the SUB-TITLES.

[@nohandle508]

I have 3 suggestions for you, pronunciation police: 1. Subtitles. 2. Other channels. 3. Limiting unnecessary comments to zero.

[@lisaa2104]

The explanations are super clear and this channel is great. I suspect you have zero interaction with international people - at some point you have to start to open your mind…

[@l.5832]

I am hearing impaired. Before I watch any video I first turn on closed captioning, then I reduce the playback speed to .75x which gives me adequate time to both read the captioning and read the lips and process the information.

[@kittynanami]

just like you username, i think you are just a slow person