The combination of a guest room and a dining room is an excellent design solution not only for small apartments. A living room with a dining area will allow you to make some bright accents, and will also help guests sit comfortably in the apartment for dinner or just friendly gatherings over a board game.
Combining the dining room with the living room makes it possible to get rid of small cramped spaces and end up with a fairly spacious and comfortable space
Rules for creating an interior in the living-dining room
The decision to make a dining area in the living room will allow you to rationally use the available space. The main thing is to immediately decide on the style and color scheme of the room. The design of the dining room and living room in the apartment should be uniform for a harmonious picture. You can look at a photo of the design of the living room-dining room and choose the option you like as a guide.
The design of the living-dining room largely depends on the available space
Living room dining room in a small apartment
The small footage and small number of rooms do not allow making a separate dining room, and you have to install it in the living area. This layout is not always bad; you can choose a convenient location for all the furniture and even save space.
Combining a dining area with a seating area in one room provides more opportunities for family communication
If two rooms are located together, then you need to choose light furniture to visually increase the space.
To make a small room functional, you can install a corner wardrobe, a bar counter and a small sofa in front of the TV. This design will be convenient, the living room dining room will be able to fully fulfill its function.
The photo shows an example of the arrangement of a small living-dining room, made in light colors
Furniture for a small living room
When setting up a small living room with a table, you have two options to choose from. If most items can be stored in cabinets in other rooms, we focus on low, not very massive furniture. It enlarges and optically expands the room, and - of course - takes up little space. However, if the furniture is small in size and designed to hold a huge amount of stuff, it's better to face the truth: those things will be on top or perhaps (at best) in baskets or boxes.
And this is an easy way to clutter and optically reduce the interior. In this case, it is better to equip your small living room with tall, spacious cabinets and use smart solutions, which we will write about in the next paragraph.
Currently, there is a lot of multifunctional furniture in stores that is ideal for small interiors. We are talking about solutions such as poufs with a closed lid, sofas with a container or coffee tables with drawers. It is also a good idea to buy additional chairs for guests, which after use can be folded and put, for example, in a closet or hung on a special hook. If you want to optically enlarge the interior, you need to take a glass table and combine it with transparent plastic chairs.
In a small living room, minimalist furniture will look good with smooth, preferably glossy, fronts without handles. This will make the room seem more spacious. If you have an open bookcase in your living room, you'll want to make sure it's always neatly organized—and it's best to display books in rows that are easy to keep organized.
There's not always room for a chair in a small living room First of all, this will allow you to comfortably watch TV, but also turn towards the guests. Secondly, free lower space will make the chair lighter.
Zoning the space in the room
When zoning a living room combined with a dining room, the size and type of the room are taken into account. In a separate room, you can choose the design of the living room dining room to suit your taste, but in the walk-through room you will have to place furniture in limited places.
When combining zones in one space, it is important to correctly separate the living room and dining area
Zone division options
To divide a room into several zones you can use:
- Partitions – cabinets, cabinets.
- Tabletops and bar counters.
- Arches and beams.
- Color accents in furniture.
In a living room with a dining table, you can create a division even with the help of a sofa and carpet, which will symbolize the guest area, and a table and chairs standing on linoleum or parquet will symbolize the dining area.
The choice of zoning tools depends on the area of the room, and the design style determines the features of the implementation of the same techniques
Furniture dimensions
Large and massive dining tables for the living room are suitable for a spacious room, but for small rooms it is better to stick to compact furniture.
When choosing sizes, it is important to consider the number of seats at the table, which will allow you to seat family members and invited guests and relatives.
Room decoration
When choosing an interior for the living room and dining room, you need to immediately think about all the details. Choose the type of covering and furniture so that they are in harmony with each other, decide on the color scheme.
When choosing a color palette, use a simple rule - the smaller the room, the lighter the finishing materials should be
Floor finishing
Linoleum, tile and laminate are cheap and durable covering options that are suitable for a combined dining room. Of the more expensive ones, you can take parquet and cover it with carpet in the guest area. You can also use a multi-level floor to separate zones, but this is for those who are not afraid of tripping.
The podium is a convenient and effective way to divide a room into functional zones
Ceiling finishing
An economical and effective option is to make a plasterboard ceiling on two levels. It will be lower in the dining room and higher in the living room to visually enlarge this space. You can also use beams if the room is not three by three meters. In a modern style, contrasting colors are allowed, as long as one of the colors (the largest area) is light.
A two-level ceiling is a convenient option for zoning space, equally well suited for both a cramped room and a spacious room.
Wall decoration
There are no clear criteria or wishes here; a person proceeds from his own budget. The only rule is not to combine two styles and different materials. If in the guest area it is wallpaper with a floral print, then in the dining room there should be no painted walls in the form of a mosaic.
To decorate the walls of a small room, it is better to choose neutral shades from a light color palette
Table shape
When designing a room, you can choose the ideal shape for the table, which differ in variability and possible design:
The rectangular table is perfect for daily use and formal serving for a holiday or before receiving guests.
Square models are compact and portable, easy to move and use for corner placement in a room.
The classic round table in the living room stands out among other models with its smooth silhouette, which is ideal for a romantic style.
Oval designs, without sharp corners, such elegant designs due to their oblong shape provide maximum capacity.
Figured models, embodying practicality and bright originality, fit perfectly into spacious rooms and emphasize the exclusivity of their design.
For small rooms, you can choose corner or triangular tables that fit perfectly into the interior and help to effectively use the free space.
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Creating the necessary lighting in the interior
A living room with a dining area requires good natural and artificial lighting. If there is a choice, then the table is placed closer to the window, and the furniture is forced into a dark corner, where floor lamps or additional lamps can be placed.
Correctly placed lamps automatically become a room zoning tool
It is better to install several lighting systems:
- recessed lamps in the ceiling for intimate light;
- large chandelier for bright lighting;
- a small lamp with soft light in the relaxation area - near the sofa or armchair.
The design of lighting fixtures must correspond to the chosen style direction of the interior
Style directions and colors for the design of the living-dining room
The size of the room and the type of housing do not play a role when choosing a style; it all depends on the taste of the owner of the room.
The atmosphere in the house or apartment depends on the choice of style for the living-dining room. It is important that the interior matches the lifestyle and worldview of the home owners
Modern
The most popular and simple style, which is easy to match with furniture. It has many directions - Art Deco, Provence, Modern, Minimalism. Almost always, the furniture chosen is light, made of plastic, with a minimum of details and small details, everything is modest and stylish. Any color scheme, with bright accents and contrasts.
Modern interiors, such as minimalism or hi-tech, are characterized by simple and laconic forms, a small number of decorative elements
Classical
Often chosen for large rooms and country houses. You can install large soft chairs with a sofa, a massive wooden table and strong chairs with backs. Pastel colors, if contrasts are made, then only in small details. You can make a pattern on the walls, install carved cabinets and even order antique furniture.
Luxurious interior, implemented in a classic style, always looks expensive and elegant
And others
A wide range of styles (Scandinavian, eco-style) makes it difficult to choose furniture and finishing materials. Therefore, if you choose an unusual option, then consultation with a designer is required, who will select everything with taste.
Bright living-dining room in a studio apartment designed in Scandinavian style
Spacious living-dining room with bar counter in eco-style
Modern small living room
A small living room in a modern style is, first of all, furniture of simple shapes with a sleek, minimalist finish (no handles). 3-4 colors are currently fashionable. White or gray are often used. This combination looks fantastic with colorful accessories such as pillows, a vase or a pouf.
For a modern living room, we will choose furniture with a lacquered or glass facade or with a glued mirror. Currently, the most fashionable colors for the living room are white, gray, black, pastel colors and natural wood colors.
In a small living room, a sofa in a versatile, bright color (no patterns!) would be great, as long as you make it a main color piece—black, bottle green, or indigo.
Too many additions are certainly not suitable for a small living room, so if you want to add decorative elements to it, let them be items that also have a practical function: airy curtains, pendant lights, statement lamps, a mirror on the wall or unique colorful pillows on the couch.
Choosing furniture for the interior of the living-dining room
Must be:
- table and chairs;
- sofa or soft chairs;
- small coffee table;
- shelves or cabinet.
All this will not take up much space and will easily fit even into a small apartment. If the space of the room allows, then you can cover the free space with a fluffy carpet, put a chest of drawers or a bookcase. The furniture material is selected based on the style of the room.
The dimensions of the dining room and upholstered furniture are selected relative to the total area and shape of the room
Different sets of furniture look good if the chairs and table are from one set, the sofa and armchairs are from another, but everything is done in the same tone.
Upholstered furniture is often used to zone a room. For example, a sofa will clearly mark the boundary between two territories if you place it with its back to the dining area
Choosing furniture
The choice of furniture and household appliances for a combined room is also a very important issue.
The style direction and dimensions of the selected set, upholstered furniture and other small attributes can provide both a heavy interior and organize a light, airy space.
The most practical solution for such a room would be compact and multifunctional furniture. At the same time, it is important that the kitchen set somehow resonates with the rest of the furniture: it is preferable to choose stylistic unity and color contrast. For example, you can choose a snow-white sofa and black armchairs to match it. This technique will refresh the interior and make the composition more harmonious.
To arrange the work area, you can offer the following option:
- The kitchen set should be placed in one line against one of the walls.
At the same time, it must incorporate almost all important attributes. Panel cabinets with built-in appliances are located in the corners. The sink can be arranged under the window sill, and the storage systems can be located under the frame of the bar counter. We also place high chairs at her place, completing the logical chain of design of the kitchen space.
- The furniture in the dining area should also be light and not overload the space.
It is more appropriate to choose something similar in color and texture to the material from which the kitchen set is made. The dining group should not be massive and bulky.
It is worth paying attention to transformable furniture, which allows you to use the space more mobile. When guests arrive, the small round table will immediately turn into a large oval tabletop that can accommodate many people around it.
- It is good to place the furniture not in the center of the room, but against the wall, which can be decorated with bricks or wallpaper.
Their shade should be a tone darker than the rest. This will help to define clear boundaries of this functional area and focus attention on it. It is appropriate to decorate the area above the table using an original panel assembled with your own hands. Today this is easy to do even from scrap materials. And here the price is not important, what is important is that the work is done manually and from the heart.
Decoration
Practical for decorating the kitchen-living-dining room -.
They are very comfortable and can be raised and lowered with ease. They are inexpensive because they require little fabric to sew. In addition, Roman blinds do not take up much space, so they can be safely used even in a small room.
In general, window design is chosen taking into account the overall style of the room. Options for curtains made of organza, tulle, veil or mesh are available.
The best accessories are cute hand-made things placed on walls and shelves.
But there shouldn't be many of them. Nice upholstery on upholstered furniture, many small pillows on the sofa will decorate the interior. The material should match the fabric of the curtains. Fresh flowers and photo frames on the wall in the living area will also add coziness to the decor of the room.
Examples of room decoration
You can look at the photo of the dining room combined with the living room to find out the different views. There are now a lot of options and it’s easy to choose even according to a template or take a specific living room as an example of a color scheme. See what details you like, what repels you, and choose the ideal option for yourself.
Carved details, openwork elements, expensive textiles - this decor is suitable for decorating a room in the Baroque, Empire or Art Deco style
Antique objects, vintage lamps, handmade wooden products - suitable decor for a living-dining room in country or Provence style
Photos of successful examples of the interior of a living room combined with a dining room
Connecting the zones is a good solution, which many people are now resorting to. Look how interesting and unusual it looks. A room of any size can be easily furnished so that it does not lose its functionality.
A modern studio apartment in which only conventional elements are used to divide the space
The interior of the dining room-living room, in which minimalism is successfully diluted with loft elements
Spacious living-dining room in loft style
Dining area in the living-dining room, decorated in high-tech style
Now there is no need to sacrifice space and street light, no need to separate guests from the owners of the house while the latter are setting the table. A place for eating and guests in the same room is an ideal solution to a lot of problems.
Fireplace in design
By the way, a fireplace, which serves as a decoration and at the same time a common element for the two zones, is considered a useful element for the living-dining room. It fits the classic style perfectly, takes up minimal space and creates a magnificent effect. For an apartment, such an element is considered a unique opportunity to bring something unusual, original, and unique into the interior.
If suddenly a change in layout is not required, then in this case everything will be simpler. There are no restrictions here, because the initial design of the apartment already provides for the correct geometry of the room, taking into account the correct zoning. This means that you only need to find the right idea for the design of the dining room-living room. There are many of them for such premises, so there will be no difficulties. Just pay attention that such a room should, first of all, be functional, practical and modern, because only in this way will the time spent here be pleasant and the rest complete.
The interior of a kitchen-dining-living room sounds too complicated even for our language. You may ask what area an apartment should have so that we can build such a multifunctional space. You may be surprised, but such a merger is often practiced in small apartments, where removing interior partitions is the only way to make the home a little more spacious.
We described in detail all the pros and cons of such a reorganization of the apartment in the article about. In fact, the presence of a dining room here means the need to allocate another area in which we will only eat food and nothing else. How do residents of various apartments cope with this task? We hope our examples will help you understand this!
- Different floors, walls
- Podium
- Bar counter
- Screen or partition
- Decorating the kitchen area
- Living and dining room design
- Combination of a bar counter as a sink and table
- Study
- Sofa on the windowsill
