DIY studio kitchen repair

Today, more and more often you can hear the phrase: "I want a studio apartment." This layout is considered all the rage, a sign of good taste and progressive thinking. Such apartments are becoming more and more popular. Basically, there is a desire to connect the kitchen with the living room, hall, dining room or loggia. But in order to achieve the ideal balance of convenience, functionality and beauty, many important details must be taken into account.

Studio kitchens are an invention of the West, where apartment owners have to abandon spacious dining rooms and "independent" kitchens due to the elementary lack of space and combine rooms. But it turned out that this is not a problem at all, but a stylish and rational innovation. Such a layout gives a feeling of freshness, spaciousness, freedom and lightness. If you equip the kitchen with a studio wisely, then it will become a favorite place for every family member because of the comfort, harmony and functionality.

It should be noted that the studio kitchen will look most appropriate either in a large apartment with at least three rooms, so that each family member still has a private closed space, or, conversely, in a small one. In the latter case, it will even be possible to enlarge the apartment by removing the interfering walls and making it easier to access any corner of the dwelling. Especially the studio apartments are loved by men who are too lazy to bypass all sorts of obstacles every time in an attempt to get from the resting place to the refrigerator.

It is imperative to approach the design of the kitchen in a studio apartment with intelligence and careful preparation. The most important thing is to prevent clutter and wasteful use of the area. To begin with, decide what you yourself want to see in your kitchen studio, what you plan to do there, where it is convenient for you to place a washing machine, microwave oven, TV, sofa, etc. If you are not going to invite guests often, then you should not buy a large table.

If you like to cook and watch TV at this time, then position the table so that you can see the screen from the workplace.

There are several tricks that will allow you to choose the design of the studio kitchen so that every centimeter of space is used as efficiently as possible, while creating the perfect picture. Examples can be seen in the photo of the studio kitchen.

The harmony, pleasing to the eye and consistency of every element of the interior of the studio kitchen is definitely worth striving for. But still, a monochromatic light panel or the absence of at least some kind of separator between the kitchen and the living room becomes annoying and even annoying after a while. So it's best to use a few tips to highlight specific areas and add contrast.

The kitchen area will look great with a ceramic tile floor, and for a relaxation area, for example, laminate or linoleum is suitable.

A podium, bar counter, small steps can become a separator between the zones. For the top, stretch or false ceilings, multilevel lighting will be the ideal solution.

A round dining table surrounded by wicker chairs or, conversely, an elegant table and chairs with high backs looks very nice as a "buffer" zone. Also, a bar cabinet can zone the space, where you will put a collection of exquisite wines, "star" brandy or liqueurs for every taste.

A false wall, various partitions - for example, illusory glass partitions - harmoniously fit into the design of the studio's kitchen.They perfectly transmit light, leave a feeling of coherence in the interior, and unwanted odors, which are in abundance during cooking, do not penetrate through them.

The creation of several light zones in a studio apartment is not only a spectacular appearance, but also an element of convenience. Think: bright lamps with length adjusters will allow you to see small details on the desktop, the dim light above the dining table will create a romantic atmosphere, the original floor lamp will become indispensable during evening reading.

All of the above methods of zoning space are widely used by architects, designers and just active people who want to improve their apartment and turn it into a piece of paradise, from where you do not want to leave. In the photo of the interior of the studio kitchen, you can see how the design tricks look in practice.

Of course, in addition to the obvious advantages, the studio kitchen has a number of disadvantages. First of all, it is the smells from the kitchen that are constantly floating around the apartment, and this is not always vanilla. To avoid unpleasant odors and at the same time not to limit yourself in culinary activities, you need to think in advance about a high-quality ventilation system and hood. This will also help to get rid of overheating and musty air.

Not only smells can disturb you, but also sounds. No one wants to watch a tearful melodrama or a football game to the rattling sound of a washing machine or the monotonous hum of a microwave oven. So, it is better to buy more expensive household appliances, but to protect yourself from headaches and nervous breakdown.

Some housewives cannot calmly rest or do what they love if they see a mess or unwashed dishes. And with a studio layout, the kitchen surfaces and the sink will be perfectly visible. What if guests suddenly come? Therefore, leaving dirty dishes or a gas stove with smudges will not work. There is a way out: a dishwasher, dirt-repellent surfaces, spacious cabinets and, not without this, the neatness of family members.

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It was possible to start repairs, sending the whole family to their historical homeland. In order not to be so boring to be engaged in repairs, I decided to take pictures along the way. What if my experience is useful?

So, it WAS: an ordinary smoky gray room with an area of ​​6.5 sq. m (I forgot to take a picture, excuse me).

I wanted something cool and loft, but money was running out.

The first two days I studied the assortment of Ikea, Leroyamarlene and Obi and tried to compare my desires and possibilities. The results were not very encouraging, so first I decided to dismantle everything old.

To start repairs, you need to disassemble everything old, unscrew and drag the necessary one into the next room.

I took out 5 heavy bags of tiles from the walls to the trash heap. As luck would have it, the elevator was not working.

Tried to get close to the wiring to do it the way I need it.

Finally, we managed to clear the last wall of wallpaper. The war was fought for every centimeter: the hellish mixture of glue, which becomes terribly slippery from water, left me practically without hands.

This wealth of textures of the peeled wall, on which time has worked great, inspires me terribly. I would live alone - I would ask the designer to arrange such walls.

The ceiling has already been made, the walls and furniture remain. I decided to leave the working area above the stove as it is.

And our ceilings are crooked. The door frame is level.

Having cleared the paint from the windowsill, I saw such a stunning color that my hand did not go up to paint it back. And I will choose the color of the laminate to match the color of the window sill.

I could not find a lamp suitable in size and price in stores. Converted an old chandelier. Here is the result.

Fit new doors to the mezzanine

The most interesting thing is that the last stage of the repair was the most protracted and costly.Hanging furniture, connecting a washing machine, shelves, hooks and other little things took more time and money than the repair itself.

To be honest, the impetus for the start of the repair was the dream of such a faucet (switching modes, retractable spray) and a sink.

This is how our kitchen began to look after renovation:

The concrete was thoroughly washed and covered with wax from Ikea

I decided not to glue the wallpaper, I painted the walls with water-based paint. Covered on top with mother-of-pearl enamel from Leroy. And it is pleasant to the touch and washes perfectly.

Panorama of the kitchen after the last changes and improvements

If you have some free time and some money, and life has become too monotonous, you can do your own kitchen renovation. This will not only save money, but also acquire useful skills and even improve health, because physical activity has not harmed anyone yet.

The chances of getting a result in which you are not afraid to invite people to your kitchen after your own repair will increase significantly if you use the advice of a specialist.

When deciding how to make repairs in the kitchen, it is necessary first of all to consider the finishing materials, taking into account the costs of their acquisition and the possibility of self-assembly.

So that the kitchen does not stand out much from the rest of the rooms, it is advisable to do everything in the same style.

When determining where to start renovating a kitchen, first of all, they choose a style. There are more than a dozen of them for kitchen decoration, the most famous: classic, high-tech, modern, minimalism, baroque - the implementation of many requires a lot of money.

In the classics, expensive natural materials are used - a wooden kitchen set, parquet on the floor. High-tech and modern require the presence of expensive plastic and glass materials and are more suitable for modern young people, baroque with carved furniture looks better in living rooms and bedrooms.

For established people, one of the options that are simple and affordable is to decorate the kitchen in the Provence style on their own, which allows you to create a beautiful, cozy interior, characterized by comfort and grace.

Recently, Provence has been quite popular, it assumes the presence of light pastel colors in the decoration of the room and the furniture itself (finishing under natural light wood), the presence of plants and decorative elements. Provence excludes the presence of bulky interior items (heavy curtains, massive chandeliers), the kitchen should be light and a little romantic.

Provence will add coziness and warmth to your kitchen, as it looks organic

Making repairs in the kitchen with your own hands with a small budget in the Provence style is not difficult, it does not require a lot of construction experience and special expensive tools.

Most often in the kitchen, plasterboard ceilings are used, stretch, painted or pasted over with wallpaper. You can also use a ceiling finish made of expanded polystyrene or foam ceiling tiles or PVC panels - do-it-yourself repairs are easy, although in the latter case, you will need to arrange a wooden or metal frame to fix the PVC panels.

It is not difficult to paint the ceiling, it is enough to have a roller with a long handle

Usually the ceilings in the kitchen are painted with waterproof paints - acrylic latex, water-based. If the ceiling is flat enough and has been painted with waterproof paint, it will not be difficult to repaint it with a roller.

This must be done at least twice, the first time the staining occurs perpendicular to the direction of light from the window, the second time - along.

In some cases, it may be necessary to level the ceiling - for this it is necessary to rinse it very well and clean it up to the floor slab, prime and apply a putty, and after it dries, wipe it with sandpaper.

Wallpaper on the ceiling looks unusual, but it is advisable to buy a waterproof version

Gluing thick waterproof wallpapers to the ceiling will eliminate the need to level it and give it a more interesting aesthetic appearance than in the case of staining.

The choice of wallpaper for the ceiling is a budget option, besides, pasting the ceiling is a fairly simple job that even housewives can handle. It is advisable to prime the ceiling before wallpapering, the stripes should be glued in the direction of the light.

Do-it-yourself Provence-style decoration requires a light wooden floor. Naturally, in a kitchen with high humidity, natural wood is expensive and impractical, it can be replaced with such common flooring materials as ceramic tiles, laminate or linoleum - all of them come with a natural light wood finish.

Ceramic tiles are durable materials with water resistance properties, but require careful handling of heavy objects

Not the most suitable option for decorating the kitchen with your own hands; for laying tiles on the kitchen floor, you will need a special tool (tile cutter, grinder) and the skills of a qualified tiler.

In almost all kitchens, because the tile floor is rather cold, it is laid on an electric heating mat in the form of a wire about 5 mm thick. on the grid. This further complicates the task of laying tiles and requires the connection of the heater control unit with a knockout to install it, a hole in the wall and a strobe for the electric wire.

Considering that finishing a Provence style kitchen on your own will require the involvement of specialists for laying tiles, and the work will be quite expensive, this option can be abandoned.

It is advisable to choose a waterproof laminate, since the kitchen is quite humid and there is a high likelihood of frequent splashing of water on the floor.

Ordinary laminate is not a very suitable material for the kitchen due to its low water resistance, so you should use more expensive moisture resistant types with special surface treatment and locking joints. It is quite easy to repair the kitchen with your own hands, laying the laminate on a substrate, subject to a simple work technology.

Moisture-resistant types of laminate can withstand exposure to water for about 6 hours without consequences, while waterproof ones are not afraid of its effects. Waterproof laminate is also made in the form of panels of various thicknesses or glued to the floor, its only drawback is the very high price.

If linoleum breaks in one place, you will have to replace it throughout the room.

A budget option for laying on the kitchen floor, modern types have the widest range of colors and patterns, commercial brands are highly durable and durable.

The disadvantages of linoleum when laying in the kitchen include its small thickness, which leads to different levels of the floor if laminate is laid in the corridor. That is why many people prefer to lay out the floor in the kitchen from impractical ceramic tiles.

This problem has a simple solution - the floor in the kitchen is filled with a leveling self-leveling mixture to the required thickness (3 - 10 mm) - this allows not only to raise the level, but also to level the floor.

You can do the filling work yourself if you have a special toothed roller and a mixer for mixing the solution (self-leveling is sold in bags as a dry mixture).

Before laying linoleum, it is necessary to make a perfectly flat floor so that there are no differences in height.

A construction mixer can be replaced with a household drill by purchasing an inexpensive whisk for mixing the solution, a roller - with a metal comb with teeth (this option is very risky to use, liquid self-leveling may not spread well on the floor and it will be damaged).

You can repair the floor by laying linoleum on KS or PVA building glue yourself, this is not too difficult construction work.

Kitchen walls should also be practical and easy to clean.

Renovation of a Provence style kitchen implies light colors; for wall decoration, MDF or PVC panels, ceramic tiles, painting, wallpapering are most often used, and the types of finishes are often combined.

Nowadays, rarely anyone decorates the entire kitchen with ceramic tiles, even to the middle of the walls, it is too expensive and out of fashion, the working area is mainly laid out with tiles.

There are 2 types of MDF, fiberboard or PVC panels: from a solid sheet (average size 1.2 m by 3 m) or type-setting, which are mounted on a wooden or metal frame.

In the latter case, the use of type-setting panels is impractical, since this significantly reduces the free space of the kitchen by the thickness of the frame and panel. In kitchens, it is better to use MDF panels covered with moisture-resistant PVC film or one of the types of fiberboard - laminated hardboard. The sheet panels have a thickness of about 3 mm. They are attached to the walls with glue.

Choose only waterproof paint that will not lose its appearance after washing

For painting the walls, preparation is necessary by leveling with puttying and rubbing, otherwise the light falling from the windows will highlight all the irregularities. The work is quite difficult for a layman and will require additional financial costs, and a monochromatic painting of the walls looks rather boring and is unlikely to become an interior decoration.

It is common knowledge that waterproof acrylic paints can be washed, but this statement is not entirely true. In the area of ​​the working area, drops of food with fat often fall on the wall, which are absorbed into the porous surface of the paint and is practically not washed off.

3D wallpaper has an unusual texture that will help to hide irregularities

The most budgetary option is wallpapering the walls; the most practical way is to do it with paintable or vinyl glass wallpaper. The latter, due to their thickness, will hide irregularities on the walls, and all types of dirt, including grease, are perfectly removed from their smooth water-repellent surface.

For finishing the working area of ​​the kitchen, you can use the same moisture-resistant materials as for finishing the walls. It is not difficult to install PVC panels or laminated MDF and fiberboard on the wall by gluing.

When decorating a work area, it is very important to apply the coating to a flat wall. In this case, the top of the countertop will fit snugly against the wall, and the thin panels will adhere well in all places.

The currently popular tempered glass panels with a bright pattern are not quite suitable for the Provence style, the use of frosted glass will fit more.

This is a rather expensive option, and although the glass can be installed independently, it makes no sense to save on this if the cost of the material itself is much more than the installation work that takes little time (1 - 2 hours).

Glass panels look sophisticated and suitable for expensive kitchen options

Laying tiles on flat walls is easy to do with your own hands if you have the simplest tool (hydraulic level, glass cutter), the only difficulty arises when cutting out holes for sockets - you need a grinder.

Conventional wall tiles, unlike floor tiles, have a rather soft base. Therefore, it is easy to cut it in a straight line using a conventional glass cutter, drawing a line on the glaze and breaking along the notch line at a hard corner.

In order to avoid misunderstandings, it is advisable to make repairs in the kitchen according to a design project - this will allow you to select and purchase materials suitable for the interior in advance, avoiding their shortage. The sequence of repairs in the kitchen is as follows:

• Freeing the room from the kitchen set and all accessories (removing the chandelier, baguette).
• Dismantling of old ceiling, wall and floor coverings.
• Garbage removal.
• Plaster or putty, followed by cleaning the ceiling and walls.
• Work on leveling the floor in the kitchen (screed, self-leveling).
• Shtroblenie walls and floors in the apartment, followed by the wiring and installation of boxes for sockets and switches, the output of lighting wires. Sometimes you may need grooves for plumbing pipes, followed by the output of plumbing fittings pipes to the walls.
• Ceiling decoration.

Non-experts recommend doing kitchen repairs with your own hands from top to bottom: ceiling, walls, floor, which in practice is not entirely true. For example, painted walls and ceilings at the beginning of renovation work when installing screeds, self-leveling in the kitchen, laying tiles on the floor can be heavily soiled, so it is correct to do the most dirty work first (plastering walls, screed, laying tiles on the floor and walls).

• Wall decoration.
• Laying the floor covering.

If the flooring is linoleum or laminate, the installation of which does without dirt and dust, and the material itself is poorly wiped off the paint, paint work should be carried out first. In the case of wallpapering, it is more practical to put the floor at the beginning, and then proceed to decorate the ceiling and walls.

It is not very difficult to make repairs in the kitchen with your own hands using the cheapest materials (wallpaper, linoleum) in the Provence style if the work is carried out in stages. The working area can be independently decorated with laminated MDF, PVC, fiberboard or tiles, in many cases it is supplied with a custom-made kitchen set.

The kitchen is the heart of the whole home, where the family gathers for dinner in a warm atmosphere. Do-it-yourself kitchen renovation will allow you to create an interior that you like, in which you will be comfortable. Self-repairing your kitchen is primarily beneficial. So you can realize your desires based on your financial capabilities. In this and the following parts of the article, we will tell you how to make a kitchen renovation with your own hands inexpensively and beautifully.

Before you get started, you need to think over the design and ideas for renovating your kitchen. Repairing a small kitchen will differ from repairing a kitchen in a private house or in an apartment with a large area. First, make a list of what you need to do. Decide if you will be doing a redecoration of the kitchen or need a major overhaul. Find pictures of the kitchen that you like.

Further we will tell you in detail about each of the stages that have to go through the repair process.

Thinking over the design of the kitchen, you should initially pay attention to the functionality of the room, and then to its beauty. It is worth carefully considering every detail, because any thing, from a microwave oven to a refrigerator, can simplify the work of the hostess.

It is also important to choose the most suitable finish for the kitchen for you. After all, you must agree, it is pleasant to cook and eat in the kitchen with an attractive and aesthetic design implementation.

The kitchen layout must be started with a working triangle. Every housewife knows that a lot of energy and time can be saved if the furniture is positioned correctly. Think about how to put the refrigerator, stove and sink so that it is convenient for you to move around and prepare food. It is recommended to create a kind of triangle in the kitchen, the tops of which are the stove, sink and refrigerator. The length of such a triangle should not be more than one meter.

The design of the rest of the kitchen is already being planned based on the aforementioned triangle. So, the hood will be located above the stove, and the dishwasher - next to the sink. If the kitchen is not too spacious, then it is better to place the microwave on the wall to leave more usable space on the surfaces.

Free-standing and wall-mounted cabinets must be selected in accordance with the dimensions of the space between the working modules. It is because of the size that it is sometimes difficult to choose a ready-made kitchen, and adjusting the parameters costs additional money.

A dining table in the kitchen is good, but you should never sacrifice a kitchen working area for its large size. On the contrary, it is better to choose a small table or even install a bar counter. It is very convenient and does not take up much space, and if you wish, you can place everything you need on it.

Based on the size of the area of ​​your kitchen, it is advisable to choose the appropriate options for decorating the room and completing it with kitchen equipment.

For repairing a small kitchen with your own hands, the area of ​​which does not exceed 6 sq.m. there are rules for the selection of design and furniture. First of all, it is important to choose the optimal and appropriate option that will be convenient for the hostess in the kitchen. Of course, the main purpose of such a small kitchen will be cooking, but the right design will please the eye.

It is better to choose a dining table of an oval shape and a small size, or even move it to another room. The doors can be removed or replaced with sliding doors, if you have a powerful hood.

Walls and furniture should be predominantly light colors, because this will make the small kitchen brighter and more spacious. If you have a balcony in your kitchen, you can combine it with the kitchen by placing a dining table on its territory. Naturally, in this case, the balcony will have to be insulated.

If you are renovating a kitchen of 9 sq. meters with your own hands - this is already an easier task, because there is more space for the necessary furniture, including for the dining table. When choosing a finish, you should also give preference to white colors. However, do not overdo it, because there should always be some bright accents to stir up the interior.

When planning a kitchen renovation 9 sq.m. do it yourself, remember that the wallpaper should be with a small pattern. If you choose wallpaper with a large pattern, this will only visually reduce the room, which is highly undesirable.

In the event that you have a studio apartment, do-it-yourself kitchen renovation is the most optimal and inexpensive option. A feature of such a kitchen is the absence of a partition from the living room, which visually increases the space of the kitchen. This is very convenient, because the free space can always be used with benefit.

When planning the design of a kitchen studio, it is worth considering not only its aesthetic and attractive appearance, but also functionality. It is important to remember that the kitchen is connected to the living room (or any other adjoining room), which means it must match its design. The style and color of these rooms should overlap with each other.

It is necessary to choose equipment for such a kitchen with extreme caution, because the kitchen will always be in sight of a person relaxing in the living room and nothing should distract attention. That is why it is recommended to prefer built-in kitchen appliances. You will also have to get a good hood, because odors will easily get into the next room. When choosing equipment such as a refrigerator, microwave oven, dishwasher, various combines, etc., pay attention to silent models so as not to interfere with the rest of people in the living room.

If you are the owner of a large kitchen in a private house, you have a wonderful opportunity to place everything you need and leave as much free space as possible. It is only important to arrange the furniture correctly so that it is easy for the hostess to prepare food and kitchen chores do not take much time. So, for example, in a spacious kitchen, you can make a U-shaped layout, thanks to which there will be a lot of free space, which is always good. Setting up an island in a kitchen like this would be a great idea.On this island, if you wish, you can arrange a sink, stove and other necessary equipment. In especially large kitchens, sometimes not one, but two islands are installed, which is very convenient for a large family.

Read also: We decorate the interior of the kitchen in a private house: photos and options

The good thing about the kitchen in a private house is that you can install a huge window on the entire wall, which will become the main decoration of the interior. It looks very unusual and allows you to admire the view from the window while cooking and eating.

In the next part, we will talk about finishing the kitchen, what materials are best suited for DIY kitchen renovation, and how to choose equipment and appliances for the kitchen.

Originally developed as a space optimization tool for small western apartments, the studio kitchen has become incredibly popular for large scale dwellings as well. Combining the kitchen, dining room and living room, sometimes with an entrance hall, corridor or loggia, allows you to create a single spacious and very bright room, endowed with incredibly extensive functionality. The design of such spaces requires special care in the selection of the color palette, decoration and layout of furniture, because in one large room there are several functional zones, each of which has its own specifics.

Regardless of whether you got a studio kitchen as the originally conceived room for an apartment of a new layout or you decided to demolish the walls in a dwelling built in the last century, one thing is obvious - to get a comfortable, functional and seemingly harmonious space, you will need to think over every little thing. Even on the small scale of a standard dwelling, the open-plan kitchen studio is full of light and air. Due to the absence of blank walls, we can sense the perspective and enjoy the spaciousness. Obviously, a room of this type should be designed in the same style, harmoniously combine practicality and comfort, and every centimeter of usable space carries a functional load and is designed to optimize the available space.

One of the most common examples of combining kitchen and living room occurs in open-plan three-room apartments. Such a combination allows you to create the most comfortable space with great functionality, where you can not only carry out all the kitchen work processes, get together for family gatherings, but also receive guests without feeling embarrassed. At the same time, two isolated rooms (most often bedrooms) remain in the apartment, in which you can always retire.

The creation of a studio kitchen is also possible in a one-room apartment of standard sizes and even small-sized dwellings. Combining a kitchen with a single room will be advisable for singles or married couples without children, for whom there is no need to use the kitchen daily and for a long time. But in this case, creating a harmonious, integral interior in the resulting combined room is a very laborious task. After all, the association presents not only the working and dining area of ​​the kitchen, the segment of the living room, but also the sleeping place.

Optimizing the living space of a home by combining a kitchen with a dining room and living room is so popular all over the world for a reason. Such a merger can be characterized by the following advantages:

• the combined space is replete with light and air;
• thanks to the open plan, even a small room seems more spacious;
• every centimeter of the available area will be used rationally;
• the ability to accommodate a large number of people in one space (an advantage for families with several children and those who like to receive guests);
• the ability to spend a minimum of time on the delivery of cooked dishes to the place of the meal;
• the hostess doing business in the kitchen area has the opportunity to look after the children who are in the living room recreation segment.

But where there are advantages, there are always disadvantages. The kitchen-studio is not devoid of those:

• the main point stopping many of our compatriots from combining the kitchen segment with the living room is the smell of cooking emanating from the work area;
• the spread of particles of fat and burning in the air, the possibility of their settling on the surface of upholstered furniture is also an unpleasant consequence of combining functional segments;
• no one wants to see a pile of dishes left in the sink or the remnants of food after cooking in the kitchen area, being in the recreation segment of the living room;
• Another unpleasant feature is the loud sound of working household appliances, the use of which often accompanies kitchen work processes.

Thanks to advanced technologies, most of these disadvantages can either be completely eliminated or significantly reduced. A powerful yet quiet cooker hood will help get rid of cooking and burning odors, trap droplets of fat and purify the air in the room, giving a feeling of freshness. The use of modern energy-saving household appliances (from a refrigerator to a washing machine) will help not only to protect guests in the living room from loud sounds, but also to save money paid for electricity consumption. Well, to save yourself from the unaesthetic appearance of the kitchen area with dirty dishes and food residues, only timely cleaning and periodic cleaning of all work surfaces will help.

In addition to timely cleaning and bringing all household members to order, materials with dirt-repellent properties, surfaces that can be easily cleaned with special products will come to help modern homeowners. Convenient storage systems for food, dishes and other kitchen utensils will help to keep the kitchen in order. The use of tempered glass and plastic surfaces covered with special protective films helps to create a neat image of the kitchen area. Dust and fingerprints are practically invisible on such elements. The use of artificial stone (at the expense of durability compared to natural materials) will protect yourself from grinding and polishing and will enable the use of cleaning agents to maintain ideal cleanliness.

But for those who want to “hedge against the arrival of guests at a time when you have a mountain of dirty dishes in your sink, and there are traces of cooking and unassembled products on the countertops, the designers offer a“ kitchen in the closet ”. The entire complex of storage systems, household appliances and work surfaces is closed with doors (like sliding wardrobes or using an accordion design). As a result, nothing can disturb your relaxation or reception in the living area.

When designing a kitchen-studio, the main task is to correctly distribute all the elements necessary for the comfortable functioning of the space. But at the same time, it is important not to overdo it with furniture, its quantity and dimensions, decor and additional elements in order to prevent cluttering of the common space. To do this, you need to carefully consider all the functions that your kitchen studio will perform. The following factors will influence the formation of the interior of the kitchen-dining room-living room:

• main indicators - the shape and size of the room;
• location, size and number of window and door openings;
• the location of communication systems (water supply, gas pipes, sewerage - affect the layout of the kitchen area);
• the number of people permanently living in an apartment or house;
• the frequency of cooking in the kitchen segment (for some, the kitchen is a “hot shop” that functions almost continuously, for others it is just a gathering place for the whole family in the evenings or on weekends);
• it is necessary to prioritize the features of the family's lifestyle - do all household members often gather at the same table, are guests invited, is there a need to arrange an extra bed in the living room area;
• the need to equip a full-fledged dining area for those who prefer family lunches and dinners or the presence of a bar (island, peninsula) for short meals for two or three people;
• the need to design a workplace, a surface for installing a computer (laptop);
• the need to equip a video zone and its accessibility from different segments of an open-plan room.

The answers to these questions determine not only the choice and quantity of furniture and household appliances, but also the location of all elements relative to each other, the selection of finishing materials, lighting systems, methods of space zoning.

Of course, the entire kitchen-studio room should look like a single whole, with a harmonious, functional and comfortable interior. But at the same time, it will be useful to outline the boundaries (most often conditional) for all functional segments, as the studio space will acquire orderliness and even some rigor in design. Let's take a closer look at what interior elements and design techniques can be used to zone an open-plan room.

The kitchen studio should be presented in a single image and the same finish in all functional segments of the room helps incredibly in this. But, you must admit that not every method of surface design is suitable for such a functionally loaded and specific area as a kitchen. If the decoration of the ceiling and walls in the dining area may well be the same as in the living room sector (a powerful hood will help prevent the deposition of particles of burning and fat on the surfaces), then with the flooring, not everything is so simple. The best option for finishing floors in the kitchen working area is ceramic tiles. It can be effectively combined with the flooring of the living room area, made of laminate, parquet and even carpet.

It is also inevitable that the difference in the finishing materials used for the walls of the studio kitchen and the apron, as the zone most strongly exposed to moisture, high temperatures and various contaminants, is inevitable. But the design of a kitchen apron cannot be called a zoning element, but rather a way to create a practical accent.

By creating a low podium for the kitchen and dining area, it is possible to subtly separate the segment of the living room's relaxation, while maintaining the feeling of the spaciousness of the common room. In such a structure, you can hide all communications, place a system of underfloor heating, and build in backlighting. A similar technique can be achieved with the help of the construction of suspended ceilings of different levels. For example, a kitchen and dining area might have a lower ceiling level with recessed lights located around the perimeter or where needed most. And in the living room, it will be enough to hang a chandelier and install a floor or table lamp.

One of the most popular, logical and practical ways to create a conditional division of a room into functional segments is zoning with furniture. A bar counter, a peninsula or an island can help to draw some border between the kitchen area and the living room. Also, a dining group - a table with chairs - can easily cope with this role. At the same time, the functionality of a kitchen island or peninsula can be addressed to both zones - from the side of the kitchen, conventional storage systems can be located behind solid facades, from the side of the living room, you can equip a showcase with glass doors and spectacular lighting.

If we talk about the visual highlighting of the living room segment, then most often the border is outlined with the help of a large sofa - ordinary or corner. In this case, it is the corner sofa that allows you to create a kind of recreation sector, fenced off by its rear walls.

Of course, the use of interior partitions (in any of their modifications) somewhat violates the openness of the kitchen-studio layout. But sometimes such elements are simply necessary to maintain the integrity of the character of the room and some allocation of certain housing segments. In spacious studios, such a design technique will hardly disrupt the movement of light and air, traffic between functional areas. Glass partitions are often used in modern interiors - they almost do not interfere with the spread of light, allow you to see what is happening in the neighboring area, but block the path of the spread of cooking smells.

In a spacious room that combines several functional areas, you simply cannot do with a single central chandelier. Using local lights or strip lighting, you can create a unique lighting scenario in each segment of the studio space. In the working area of ​​the kitchen, it is necessary to create a high level of illumination, which will allow all kitchen processes to be carried out with a high level of safety. In the living room area, soft, diffused light created by pendant, wall or floor lamps is more suitable (it all depends on the general concept of the interior and your personal preferences).

Whichever zoning method you choose (and most often several options are woven into a single picture of a studio interior), it is important to preserve the general character of the space design. Designers recommend using light, neutral colors to decorate such spaces. A calm palette that does not annoy anyone with brightness or variegation will help create a peaceful atmosphere both in the entire room as a whole and in each functional segment in particular. Bright accents - textiles, dishes, decorative elements will help to revive the interior of the kitchen-studio. Such interior items are easy to replace if the color accent is bored or seems uninteresting to you.