Creating an open plan 3: Designing a kitchen in an open plan

Here is our new shell:

As I progress in my interior designer career, I realise that I love designing kitchen. This might be linked to my background as a French person (being French means a culture around good food and eating) as a scientist (a laboratory is very much like a kitchen) and to the fact that in my childhood the kitchen was the most important room of the house where everything was happening. So I am always delighted when asked to design a new kitchen.

It is always exciting to design a kitchen for a big new opened space. It is time to imagine where and how a kitchen will become this so important place, and be a functional space at the same time. Yes, a kitchen is for social gathering, and need to be functional.

In this case there were many different possibilities for the new kitchen and a challenge to propose the best one (and I love this sort of challenge!!!). The client was quite surprise but understood quickly that the kitchen had to change radically and be re-positioned in what was the un-used office room. The dining area could then be fully used as a dining area and host a big dining table and what was the kitchen would become the place to relax and chill out, with a sofa, a library and a TV.

With this new design this bigger room has now three functions, a cooking place where you can also entertain with no shame, a dining area and a library/snug area. What an improvement!

Many things can be said about designing a kitchen space; to be functional the space has to follow certain rules, including the golden triangle so that you don’t have to walk kilometres while preparing food. We have included an island in this kitchen, to provide a bigger work space and a link to the dining area. The island is also used as a breakfast bar, and provides extra storage.

A good way to define each area in such an open plan space can be by the use of colours, rugs, specific lighting...

Emmanuelle Lemoine

Case suty: Advice only on a living room

Case study

What a great idea one of my client had. Make a surprise to her husband while he was on a working trip by redecorating the living room and dining area in his absence! To put her plan into action, this lovely lady asked me to create a design for her living room on a base of "advice only". So, we met at her place and discussed her needs and tastes. This lady leads a very busy life juggling between a job in the city, running her own business, and as if this was not enough, she is the proud mum of three lovely children.
All these parameters had to be taken into consideration when advising her on the design of the living room as it had to be comfortable, sophisticated with a contemporary feel but also suitable and practicle for family life. I tookthe brief incluing all the necessary measurements of the room so that I could draw a detailed plan of the room in question, and create a furniture layout 　
　
　
　 Furniture layout on scaled plan

Enough sitting had to be provided as well as an area for a large television set, with a place to hide a DVD player and other satellite accessories. Attached to this side of the house is a conservatory overlooking onto the garden that is used as a dining area. My client wanted people to feel more comfortable in the dining area. I decided the best way was to link both area by turning the living room toward the dining area, with an un-obstructive window treatment, and the seating turning their attention to the conservatory/garden area. The use of soft furnishing (cushions for the dining chairs in the same colour as the curtains) was another way to link the two spaces together.

Two sofas were used - a two and a three seaters- to provide enough sitting and use the space wisely as well as keeping the room opened/linked onto the conservatory. The sofas are covered in coloured leather, which is comfortable an easy to wipe and maintain with children.
As the living room is not a big one it was very important to use the space available wisely. Colours had to be chosen in order to get an equal/ balanced feeling of space and cosiness. As my client liked big patterns, I found a way to include some on the chimney breast by using a lovely wall paper with big parsley motives and lovely (lovely is a boring word!! change it, something more technical and professional) colours. The restricted use of big pattern on a small surface is a good way to add interest without adding a claustrophobic feeling.


Sample board

A TV bench is supporting the TV on the left side of the chimney breast and bespoke shelving are located on the other side of the chimney breast, where personal belongings can be displayed. All the boxes and controls can be hidden inside the TV bench, living a clean and tidy room.

As my client had decided to keep the lighting as it was, as you can see from the plans I have included in the scheme two floor lamps. One, standing next to one of the sofa, to provide task lighting and another one located on the right side of the smaller sofa, almost underneath the shelving to provide a very atmospheric lighting.


Axonometric drawing, to show how the furniture layout works... be aware that with a computerized drawing, colours are not always reliable, especially on this sort of drawing.

View as if you were standing by the door.

View from the three seater sofa

As the project was on a smaller budget and "advice only", I gave the satisfied lady all the plans, furniture layout, drawings and drawing boards needed to know how to implement the scheme. A detailed shopping list to allow her to find and buy all the components required and a technical leaflet, where all the furniture and lighting are described, was also included.

Now my client is free to implement the scheme at her own pace and make her own very special surprise to her husband.
I only wish I could see his espression when he enters the place!



Emmanuelle Lemoine