TL;DR
Get tools and workshop supplies delivered free — and shop member deals
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Access to Prime Big Deal Days deals on October 6–7
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
Ideal Home asked seven interior experts for ways to make open-plan living rooms feel more cosy. Their six suggestions include darker or zoned wall colour, warm layered lighting, seating that defines an area, soft furnishings and a plush rug.
Ideal Home has published six expert tips for making an open-plan living room feel cosier, drawing on advice from seven interior professionals. The recommendations focus on adding warmth and defining the seating area without building walls, including through lighting, colour, furniture and textiles.
The advice responds to a common design challenge identified by the experts: open-plan rooms can feel light and sociable, but the lack of walls may leave a living area feeling undefined or exposed. Monika Puccio, director of buying at Sofa Club, said furniture in a large shared space can seem to “float” without clear boundaries. Mara Rypacek Miller, founder of Industville, said the absence of natural divisions can make it harder to create a cocooning feel.
The first suggestions are to use darker wall colours or colour zoning. Chris Cooke, head of design at King Living, said dark walls in the company’s London showroom help draw attention to individual pieces of furniture. Magdalena Gierasinska, head of product and displays at Barker and Stonehouse, said rich colours can make a room feel warmer and more intimate. As an alternative to painting the entire open area, Nicky Emlick, creative director at Sofa.com, recommended using a deeper or warmer shade in the living zone to give it a distinct identity.
The remaining ideas centre on creating a more enclosed, comfortable seating area. Experts recommend warm, low-level lighting from table and floor lamps, rather than relying only on overhead lights; a corner sofa or strategically placed armchairs; and a tactile sofa dressed with cushions and blankets. A plush rug can help mark the living area while adding softness. These are design recommendations from the experts quoted by Ideal Home, not reported results from a comparative study.
How to Define the Living Zone
The suggestions address the practical trade-off of open-plan layouts: a shared room can support socialising and a sense of space, while giving the living area fewer visual boundaries than a separate lounge. Defining the seating zone can make the room feel more settled without changing its layout or adding partitions. Colour, lamps, rugs and furniture are presented as ways to create that distinction through interior design.
The advice also offers options at different levels of commitment. A rug, cushions or floor lamp can be added without permanent work, while repainting a wall makes a more visible change. The source does not compare costs or establish which approach works best in every home, so the suitable choice will depend on the room, its existing finishes and the reader’s preferences.
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
Why Open Rooms Can Feel Exposed
Ideal Home frames its recommendations around the contrast between open-plan rooms’ spaciousness and the lack of enclosure that can come with fewer internal boundaries. In a conventional lounge, walls help define where the seating area begins and ends. In a larger shared room, furniture and lighting may need to perform more of that visual work.
The report presents the tips as timely for the start of autumn, when people may want their homes to feel warmer and more comfortable. It does not report a new product launch, building trend statistic or formal industry study; the development is a lifestyle advice report based on interviews with interior experts.
“Open-plan spaces are brilliant for creating a light, sociable home, but that openness can sometimes work against you when you want the living area to feel cosy.”
— Monika Puccio, director of buying at Sofa Club
What the Advice Does Not Establish
The recommendations are attributed design opinions, and Ideal Home does not provide testing or measurements showing how much each change affects comfort or perceived room size. The source also does not rank the six ideas by cost, suitability or likely impact. Which approach will work best depends on the room’s dimensions, natural light, existing furniture and the look its occupants want.
The supplied report does not state its publication date, and it provides no information about reader response or subsequent updates. It is therefore not clear whether the advice has been revised since publication.
Practical Choices for Each Room
The source does not announce a follow-up, product release or scheduled next step. For readers applying the recommendations, the immediate decision is which part of the room needs more definition: a darker or warmer wall, a lower and warmer lighting scheme, a more enclosing seating arrangement, or softer layers underfoot and on the sofa. These can be considered individually rather than treated as a required full-room redesign.
Any further developments would depend on updates from Ideal Home or additional guidance from the experts. The report itself does not specify a timeline for new advice.
Key Questions
What are the six ways to make an open-plan living room feel cosier?
The experts recommend darker wall colour, warm low-level lighting, colour zoning, a corner sofa, layered cushions and blankets, and a plush rug.
Do I need to paint the whole room a dark colour?
No. The report also suggests using a deeper or warmer colour in just the living area to distinguish it from the kitchen or dining zone.
How can lighting make an open-plan room feel more intimate?
The experts advise using warm-toned bulbs and table or floor lamps to create pools of softer light near the seating area, rather than relying only on overhead lighting.
Why do the experts recommend a corner sofa or rug?
A corner sofa can make the seating area feel more enclosed, while a plush rug helps anchor and visually separate that zone. Both add definition without adding a wall.
Source: rss
Fall yard work Picks
leaf blowers
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
