5 Tips To Design A Room With a Multiple Purpose – Living+Dining Room Decor Ideas

The open space concept is a very common feature today. I love the concept of open space because you can fill this space with more decorative that are larger, brighter, and more contemporary. However, it’s true that here we have two different kinds of areas in the same space where we will develop two or more different kinds of activities, so we must follow these steps to make the space look coherent and beautiful.

Define Your Style

We need to give them their anchor but always search for the balance between each one, creating a harmonious composition. You need to make your living and dining room speak to one another by maintaining the same style or styles that you want for your home. This way you will have a guide to follow.

For example, if you have a contemporary dining room with clean lines and contemporary finishes like black matte combined with wood, it doesn’t make sense that your living room has an entire glam style with shiny chandeliers and glitz because the contrast is too strong and you will visually divide your attention by the differences of each style.

However, you can always mix and match but the point here is to develop all the designs with the same language. If your dining room is contemporary with a touch of glam, then your living room should have the same appearance and visual language. Selecting the basic styles is crucial to developing a multipurpose room in harmony and it will be the guide to selecting your furniture, color palette, accessories, lighting, pictures, and all the elements that will be needed to create a space.

Furnish Your Space

In the dining room, we share a meal and moments with family and friends whereas, the living room is more versatile depending on how you use the space and which kind of activities you do there. You will organize and place your furniture in a specific way according to the activities you want to carry. That means if a family enjoys watching TV in the living room or the dining room while they’re having breakfast, the composition of this space and the placement of the furniture will be very different from the room of the family that doesn’t use the TV in the living room.

Therefore, I always say that space should work for those who use the space and live there. Here are some different examples of how to furnish your dining and living room. These examples will help you determine the placement of your furniture in a multipurpose space.

First Example

Second Example

Third Example

Define Each Area

A very important point is to define each area but that doesn’t mean that we need a divider overall. We can define our spaces through our work, ceiling design, or some texture. A rug is the easiest way to do this in the living room. It will place an obvious border around that part of the room. Another way to define the areas is with your furniture. You can use a sofa across the room to split it in half, or a couple of Ottoman benches to create a visual limit with your furniture. If you have different ceiling heights or you have a different texture on your floor, you can take advantage of those architectural details to define your areas.

Make living and dining room speak to one another

We must unite everything to create harmony in the entire composition. Yes, we define the space, but now we need to create a cohesive atmosphere. We must make our living and dining room speak to one another without making it look too forced or too matchy-matchy! Sounds a little bit tricky, right? But it’s very simple.

You must choose some texture, materials, colors, or shapes and you will use them in both areas. For example, the TV unit and dining table top can be a similar material, texture, and color. The color tones in the dining room can speak to the color tones in the Ottomans or pillows. Be sure that the metals of your pendant lights above the dining table speak to the color of some accessories such as some vases, furniture legs credenza handles, or other details. Even your flowers can be in a similar color tone to some accessories, wall art, or furniture. It might seem like an accident, but every single element has been selected with intention so that when you’re in the open living and dining room space, it looks cohesive and harmonious.

I need to be clear here, don’t be afraid to select pieces with variations in color and material, but make sure they speak to another element across the room. Another important recommendation is to maintain the flow in your space. Be sure to select furniture with a maximum height below the visual angle.

Can you imagine a sofa with a high back put across a room?

You remove the connection between both areas and the concept of a contemporary open space will disappear. We want to define each space, but each one will be part of an entire composition. In a zone like this, you can have a low-back sofa cutting across the room. A low sofa cutting across defines the zone but your eye still glides over the sofa when you are sitting or standing up. It doesn’t dominate or hinder the visual flow between your dining and living spaces.

Incorporate a wow factor!

Now a wow factor is extremely subjective. It simply equates to what you consider a statement-making feature of your room. This would be as simple and small as a treasured accessory. It could be as large and bold as a mural or a gorgeous wall covering. It could be an incredible ceiling design or a fabulous area rug on the floor. Here is a list of items that are most appropriate for an open living+dining room décor.

• The first item is a doormat or an area rug. It is not just aesthetic but gives an expensive look to your space and will also trap all of the excess dust from your shoes so that you don’t trail it all around the house.
• You can add a small booklet of fresh flowers or a really small plant on your entryway console that just breathes lightness and fresh air into the space.
• If you’re not a fan of the mirror concept in the living room, then instead of a mirror, you can install statement artwork. Statement artwork in the space is simply a standalone piece of artwork that you place instead of the mirror. It doesn’t have to be huge to make a statement, it could simply be a beautiful piece of photography that you’ve taken on vacation. It could also be a vintage piece of artwork that you scored at an antique shop or could be a custom LED neon signs that gives a contemporary look to your space. You can get your zodiac sign, your favorite emblem, or any phrase you use as your mantra,  turned into a neon sign!