5 clever ways to separate your kitchen from other rooms

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casa di ringhiera, marta novarini architetto marta novarini architetto Modern living room
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When you've embraced a more open-plan scheme in your home design, you might live with it for a while and then long for a little bit of segregation, especially in terms of your kitchen. So, we found some great ways for you to get just that! 

You don't want to start adding walls back in, so take a look at how talented interior designers get around this taxing issue by using a host of clever techniques. 

Come with us now as we fill you in on all the tricks for sectioning off your kitchen and see which would look and feel right in your home.

1. A half wall with an island

You can see from these pictures that this room is an open-plan space that combines a kitchen and chic living room, but in order to make the distinction between space a little more defined, a half wall and island have been added. 

It's such a simple technique but it really works and even creates a little corridor whilst the island itself is ideal as a casual dining spot. How's that for killing all the birds with one big stone?

2. Inset the kitchen into a niche

This space is absolutely gorgeous and has a myriad of functions that it needs to fulfil, from acting as a living room and dining area, to housing a kitchen.

By setting the kitchen back into a wall niche, it almost disappears into its own little zone and, despite the lack of walls or countertops boxing it in, it certainly feels a lot more separate.

You could even add doors and shut it off completely!

3. Use the ceiling

Here's a trick that eagle-eyed design buffs will spot instantly; use your ceiling height and lighting to denote different areas of functionality within an open-plan room. It's so simple but incredibly effective, as you can essentially create a border for each zone of the room without adding any bulky, physical walls. 

As an added bonus, it also looks amazing so you don't have to compromise your style and taste to carry this one out!

4. Install a glass wall

In recent years, we've seen these glass 'cages' exploding into kitchen world as a hugely popular design choice and we can see why. They don't totally shut off the kitchen from a wider open-plan space, as you can simply open a window but, by adding a physical barrier (however transparent it is), there is a sense of cordoning off designated areas. 

We think this technique looks incredible in every home, from ultra-contemporary to heritage.

5. Use your furniture

Casa SC, Bodà Bodà Modern kitchen

Casa SC, Bodà Bodà Modern living room

An oldie but a goodie; using your furniture to blockade certain parts of open spaces is a quick and easy technique that can be changed as and when you need more or less space, or perhaps different furniture. 

In this example, we love how very different furniture styles have been adopted for the kitchen and living room so you can be in no doubt which part of the house you're in!

For more open-plan inspiration, take a look at this Ideabook: 20 small open-plan kitchen ideas (to improve yours).

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