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Original poster

Anyone got fully open plan downstairs?

122 replies

Lovingmylife · 16/03/2021 18:50

We are looking at doing some building work and thinking we might make the whole downstairs open plan. Has anyone done this and ended up hating it or regretted it? I wonder if I'd miss a cosy living room or if I'd love the open space.

OP posts:

DelurkingAJ · 16/03/2021 19:57

Open plan kitchen dining room living room here and we love it. DSs are 8 and 4 and it means if one of us is cooking we can keep an eye on DS1 building Lego and DS2 colouring all at once. They can go up to their rooms for privacy but rarely chose to. Might not love it so much with teens but for the last five years it’s been great. We lived in a property before that was split and I loathed it...not enough space in any one room for more than about six people.

RandomUsernameHere · 16/03/2021 19:57

We've got this, downstairs is a separate hallway, loo and then one room which is kitchen, dining and sitting room. I quite like it as it works well for the size of the house (which has quite a small footprint as it's 3 storey). If the downstairs was bigger though it would be nice to have a separate study and possibly a small additional sitting room.

whenwillthemadnessend · 16/03/2021 19:58

Absolutely not with teens

I dont want to listen to Xbox and teens need privacy to have mates over or just to chill unseen by parents eyes. I'd much rather a separate downstairs space that have teens in bedrooms 24/7

Frazzled2207 · 16/03/2021 20:03

Friend spent a fortune on it and generally hates it. Good when the kids were very small as could easily keep an eye when cooking etc but now she hates the fact there’s “nowhere to hide the mess”.
Our house is the opposite of open plan and we have mess/clutter everywhere EXCEPT the lounge which I really like

BlowDryRat · 16/03/2021 20:57

I have an open-plan part downstairs but not all of it. The kitchen opens into the dining room/play room but the living room is its own space with a door off the hall. I can't imagine how DH and I would watch TV in the evenings or have a cosy chat or have sex on the sofa without disturbing the kids if there weren't walls and a door between the living room and the upstairs. I do like having the open-plan kitchen though as I can talk to family members and guests while I'm preparing food without them getting in the way.

SplendidSuns1000 · 16/03/2021 21:09

I had it in my last house. It was a long room so kitchen at one end, dining table in the middle and living room at the end with the sofa facing away from the kitchen. It was cosy, fine to heat and it was nice to be able to chat with DH from the kitchen. Dinner parties were fun too. I think it's fine if you're willing and able to keep everything clean and tidy.

lumpybumpylooloo · 16/03/2021 21:19

We recently moved house in order to achieve more open plan living. We have a hallway and formal lounge but then a huge kitchen/dining room/ sitting room that stretches across the width of the house. We have a separate utility too which drowns out the noise from the washing machine.

We absolutely love it and it’s given us everything that we hoped for! Our family lives almost entirely in our back area. It’s way cosier than I anticipated too.

CreosoteQueen · 16/03/2021 21:22

We have an open plan kitchen / sitting / dining room, and a separate sitting room. I would really miss the sitting room if we didn’t have it - it’s nice to have a cosy room where you can shut the door on the rest of the house.

itsgettingwierd · 16/03/2021 21:24

I've seen some lovely open plan downstairs.

My favourite are the ones which are open plan but still have separate areas iyswim? So walls but no doors and wide spaces.

But I would want a utility as wouldn't want to be contending with washing machine and TV at the same time!

RoomAtTheEndOfTheWorld · 16/03/2021 21:38

Yes and no, we have lounge/kitchen/diner all open plan, but it's a bungalow so that along with the hallway (which is quite big/wide) is like our downstairs.
The only doors we have are to the bathrooms and bedrooms, and 2 storage cupboards in the hallway.

We renovated the house from classic 70s bungalow style to make it like this, and honestly can't think of any negatives. Has always been great to keep an eye on DS (moved here when he was a toddler) chat to people while cooking etc. no issue with heating.

We like having lots of open floor space for DS to play, dog to run about being crazy etc.
My brother and sister in law bought a 1030's 4 bed detached and they knocked the lounge/diner into one and added an extension on the back of the kitchen/lounge to essentially make their downstairs a big loop with a dividing wall in between kitchen/lounge. Works really well for them too with 2 small DC and 2 dogs.

The only thing that springs to mind is that since Covid while I've been WFH I've become quite fed up of feeling like I've been stuck in the same room for a year, (have my desk in lounge area) other than when I'm asleep! But obviously I never would have imagined that in a pre Covid world

RoseMartha · 16/03/2021 21:38

I would prefer not to have open plan as prefer the kitchen separate at least.
My flat is semi open plan which as it is fairly small actually works ok, but if I had the choice I would not have it.

Ylvamoon · 16/03/2021 21:40

Ours WAS open plan. I think what I hated the most was the cooking smells and the constant mess in the kitchen that comes with family life.
Good points were entertaining space and keeping an eye on the kids while in the kitchen. Having a big table in the kitchen is great for things like arts and crafts, cooking or simply doing homework with DC.
We now have a separate sitting room and a lovely kitchen / family/ party room, thanks to an extension.

katienana · 16/03/2021 21:43

I think after lockdown trends are heading away from open plan. People want separate rooms to work and live in.
As a teen I used to revise in what was then our dining room, less distractions than in my bedroom and a bigger table to spend 2 says making a timetable on...

changingnames786 · 16/03/2021 21:46

I think you should have a separate living room at least. I think total open plan is going out of fashion now for practical reasons, especially after a year of lockdown.

Shmithecat2 · 16/03/2021 21:49

If it will be the only living space, don't do it, especially if you have pets/kids/like a bit of quiet or privacy without having to retreat to the bedroom. I was obliged to live in totally open plan downstairs living for 7 years and hated it. I'm in a more conventional house now (kitchen diner, sitting room, dining room) and much prefer the separate spaces. You can 'zone' open spaces all you like, but they will still interfere with each other in one way or another unless you live by yourself. Again - don't do it.

TaraR2020 · 17/03/2021 01:14

@changingnames786

I think you should have a separate living room at least. I think total open plan is going out of fashion now for practical reasons, especially after a year of lockdown.

Absolutely. Doesn't help that some of the open plan changes I've seen made to ordinary houses look absolutely appalling.

Grey is also on the way out.

Letsallscreamatthesistene · 17/03/2021 03:14

Open plan kitchen diner, 'middle' room (with books and a chesterfield) and living room. We have sliding doors to close off the living room if we want. I like it bexause we have the option of privacy. We also have a separate study. I dont think id like a fully open plan house.

Only do open plan if you have an option of a utility room. Otherwise your tv/zoom calls etc are competing with the sound of the dishwasher/washing machine.

DramaAlpaca · 17/03/2021 03:57

I would absolutely hate living in an open plan house. For us as a family it would be totally impractical as we like doing different things in different rooms.

Ragwort · 17/03/2021 04:13

Agree with Drama, I would hate it .... especially after a year of lockdown and being with my DH 24/7 ... I need peace and quiet and can't bear bring in the same room if someone else is watching tv and I am not interested in the programme for example .... and cooking to me is something to do on my own, quietly pottering around not performing like a chef ! When teenage DS was home from Uni we would all happily co-exist but in completely separate rooms.

MixedUpFiles · 17/03/2021 04:46

I grew up where all the houses were open plan. Moved away and ended up with individual rooms in every home. It always felt odd. One even had doors on the doorways connecting the rooms, which was something I had never encountered before on the main floor.

Many years later moved back to our hometown and it’s back to open plan.

I don’t think one is inherently better. It’s more habit than anything.

ButtonMoony · 17/03/2021 05:44

I hate open plan for many reasons, but if you do go that way make sure you think about fire safety if not for your own peace of mind then for if you ever want to sell.

There are good reasons why the fire brigade tell people to close doors at night to give you time when a smoke alarm detects a fire.

A fire in an open plan area that can come straight up the stairs and leave no means of escape other than an upstairs window and with no doors to even buy you a few minutes?

No thanks

Sceptre86 · 17/03/2021 05:47

Nope, we are asian and I hate the smell of cooking everywhere. We also have young kids and can still keep an eye on them by taking a few steps to see what havoc they are causing in the living room.

BogRollBOGOF · 17/03/2021 08:07

I like having an open kitchen-dining room. That's practical for moving plates and food is contained within one area, including most smells. I am naturally not tidy, and loads rarely fit neatly into the dishwasher.

I would hate for the main living space to be completely open. Over lockdown, it's driven me beserk having DH's voice booming down the stairwell from work and gaming/ youtube noises from the lounge. Last summer I could escape off into the conservatory (which much of the year can open off to the lounge and or kitchen if you wish) but was too fricking cold over the winter. DS1 also has sensory issues and is intolerant of others' noise. I really missed being able to put the radio on when the DCs were (attempting) home learning. I would also struggle to relax having too much open space and people doing behind me. I like the security of a nice, defensivr wall

For heating, I would also hate for the stairs to come off the main living area. Too cold and draughty.

The consenus from people who like it seems to be very tidy people and either maximising very small spaces or having a large enough home that you can retreat off elsewhere, but not the middle ground.

thecatsthecats · 17/03/2021 08:12

Not fully open plan, but the only doors between the hallway, kitchen, lounge and conservatory are into the conservatory.

Don't do it.

The times I spend longingly looking at the gap where the doors should be, wishing I could close them...

The House Plans Helper website is excellent for breaking down what makes a space work - circulation space, social space, the holy triangle in the kitchen. It really analyses how to make a space flow.

But all open plan? shudders dramatically No.

CMOTDibbler · 17/03/2021 08:16

I used to live in a terraced house where it was completely open plan downstairs, including the stairs so you came in the front door and could see everything. Drove me nuts as you couldn't escape from anything

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