Open layouts are a very popular feature in modern interiors, both in small apartment and in large houses because they visually enlarge the space and bring a feeling of freedom.

However, such a floor plan may look badly disorganized. Small apartment may look cluttered and in big spaces you may get inappropriate emptiness, so how to avoid these things there are some visual techniques to avoid such problems, and you needn’t create any partitions. Furniture, colors, accessories, decorations will help you decorate to advantage. Some of them can be used together for a better effect, let’s have a look.

Furniture

Using furniture is the easiest and most obvious way, and it really works and doesn’t require much effort. The human brain percepts the objects standing side by side as a whole, and furniture in open layouts is no exception. This way all the areas will be clearly defined, and if you can’t afford a wall or a partition, furniture is your best way.

You may use sofas of various kinds and sizes, shelving units and chests to arrange them as partitions. Put this furniture in parallel or perpendicular or add dynamics with 30 or 45 degrees to each other. You will be surprised how much the perception of the place will change. separate the areas with a couple of sofas placed like here

dining space is separated with a modern fireplace and a woven chair

cozy sitting nook with two sofas and a chair on the side

every space is separated with its furniture - sofas, tables and a kitchen island

sofas here perfectly divide the space into zones and separate the living space from the kitchen

a dining table defines the dining space and the sofa separates its sitting zone

a narrow console table helps to define the areas here

separating the zones is achieved with a rustic console table

a console on casters separates the spaces and can be moved somewhere else if needed

such tall shelving units are ideal for storage, separating and still let the light in

a tall shelving unit separates a bedroom zone from the living room

try various unusual angles for decor, and separating won't look boring

45-degree angle is always great and looks interesting

Different Floor Levels And Covers

Raise the part of the floor creating a podium to separate the spaces. Place some very popular area on this podium level – a living room, a dining space or else, and some public space on the lower level. Remember that even the podium may be used to advantage, and you can place some storage inside – just make drawers inside the steps and voila!

Another idea is to use different floor cover for separating zones, and it’s super popular and actual today. This way you can divide a kitchen and a dining space or a living room and dining room and so on. You can use the same floor cover of different shades or structure or go for absolutely different covers, like laminate and floor tiles, for example, it’s a hot trend and looks very eye-catching. mosaic floor tiles in blue and warm wood floors in the living zone

whitewashed wooden floors in the serene kitchen area and black tiles in the dining area

a podium level for a living room and a dining space lower

these steps separate the kitchen from the living room perfectly

podiums may contain storage drawers, which is a perfect solution for any small apartment

dark wooden floors with a raised level for accentuating the dining space

graphic floor tiles for the cooking area and wooden floors for the rest of the space

hexagonal tiles in the dining zone and wood around it

the wood edge takes on an interesting zig-zag border

Ceiling Design

The ceiling can be decorated in various ways dividing it into zones – just add some decorative elements like plaster or different chandeliers, separate the ceiling into zones and make it even multi-leveled. Use different lamps and chandeliers to highlight each area, they will look especially cool on different ceiling levels. multi-level ceiling with various colors and lamps to separate the spaces

beams of various kinds can be also used for dividing the space visually

various levels of the ceiling with wooden beams and lights

sleek ceiling with various levels of light and different chandeleirs

various shapes and levels of the ceiling that visually separate the zones

such a cutout in the ceiling accentuates the living room area