There’s nothing like the free-flowing expanse of an open concept loft to challenge your design aesthetic. Though the spaciousness a loft provides is unparalleled, you’ve got to define your “zones” in creative ways to make it work.

Design experts advise that the eye should not be led in a continuous line throughout an open loft. Using furniture, lighting and accessories, you can create different living areas with subtle transitions that give the appearance of one cohesive unit. Here are some ideas:

Lighting: Different levels of glow create highs and lows in a space and help visually compartmentalize it. In the dining or office areas, you may choose lots of direct lighting, such as track or pendant. In the living or bedroom, ambient lighting with table and floor lamps can keep it mellow.

Rugs: An area rug anchors a space, making it one of the easiest and most striking ways to define a room. Choosing accessories and paint colours to tie in with it also contributes to making it fit together.

Oversize plants: One of the advantages of open-loft living is the access to sunlight. Huge plants and small trees can separate one area from another while filtering the light in interesting ways.

Screens: In some design circles it’s considered gauche to use panels in an open-concept space. However, screens with translucent panels may be an exception. They allow light to reach interior areas while offering much-coveted privacy.

Drapery: Most lofts are furnished with huge windows that owners are loathe to cover. But privacy is important. Consider shimmering or light-coloured, semi-transparent drapery that appears to melt away in the daytime. Or, install a hospital track that mounts to the ceiling and hang drapery from it to create an interior curtain around bedroom or closet areas you want to block off from public viewing.

Multi-purpose furniture: To divide space, try furniture with finished backs instead of cardboard or raw wood material. Or, remove the back from an entertainment centre to make see-through shelves. Buy coffee tables that double as storage bins, swivel chairs that can turn to face different rooms, a desk with drawers that converts to a dining table or a modern daybed that is sofa by day and guest bed by night.

For storage solutions, try cupboards with floor-to-ceiling doors and drawers on wheels.

The beauty of an open-concept living space is the limitless possibilities. Invest some time in design, shop around and you’ll have a home that truly reflects who you are.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 16th, 2008 at 10:13 am and is filed under On the Inside. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.