Balancing Open Floorplans and Privacy

The open floorplan – since the 1970s, interior designers and homebuilders have convinced us all that the best way to communicate, gather, and spend time with our loved ones was to live in one giant room. Open floorplans had a good run, but current trends indicate that they might be on their way out (especially now that the pandemic has made many of us crave privacy from our loved ones). So, if you are living in, working with, or selling open floorplans, don’t be quick to run back to the drafting table. There are ways you can regain privacy in such an airy spaces. All it takes is a little ingenuity and a few design tricks.

Create “Rooms” with Furniture

The original intent of open floorplans was to create a sense of “oneness.” No more were wives banished to the kitchen while the kids and dad played in the family room; thanks to the open floorplan, everyone could see each other and interact from any part of the home. Downplay the feeling of constant “interacting” by creating an artificial “room” simply by rearranging furniture. Place couches facing away from the kitchen to create a sense of division between the space. Place a console table in the dining room to separate it from the other spaces. A few well-placed pieces can give everyone in the household a feeling of their own space.

Use Color to Carve Out Space

Color can do many different things for a room. It can give it a sense of ambiance, it can make space seem bigger or smaller, and it can certainly delineate a divide between two rooms. Consider using paint – or even different textural pieces like throw blankets or colorful rugs – to create a visual separation between the “rooms.” This can make a substantial improvement in the home design and help present the sense of personal space (and even privacy) from one room to the next.

Utilize Privacy Screens

Design tricks are well and good, and they certainly can make you feel like you are in your own personal space, even in an open floorplan. But let us address the time when homeowners ACTUALLY need privacy. This is a good time to show the use of some form of a temporary wall. A temporary wall can be anything, from curtains to a folding privacy screen.

Current design trends have elevated the privacy screes to be more style-forward with the use of colors, materials, heights, and widths. These offer flexibility and are great for people who want privacy but still want to enjoy their open floorplan on occasion. They can put up a screen and get some alone time, then put them away to enjoy some time with the whole family.

Shop with Privacy in Mind

Changes in lifestyle and day-to-day schedules often make things that were once a luxury now a priority. In today’s “work from home” world, we realize home important having a private space to handle business, conduct zoom calls, and manage your work responsibilities. New homes in Sacramento are being built with this in mind. In fact, Blue Mountain Communities offers home offices designed for modern day work from home schedules while still providing spacious gathering areas when you’re off the clock.