South Africans love their space, and over the last few years so many of us have embraced the trendy open-plan floor layout. Tearing down dividing walls between the kitchen, dining area, and living room was the perfect way of fashioning out expansive open space at the heart of the home and bringing everyone together for casual living and entertaining.
Then came a global pandemic and suddenly the way we live, work, and use our homes changed considerably. We are spending more time indoors now and as a result space is becoming premium. The dining room table is especially taking a hit – not just being used to eat but is also doubling up as a school desk and makeshift home office too.
Combining open plan living with the work-from-home lifestyle is proving quite a challenge, with many of us now longing for clearly divided spaces that allow for privacy and flexibility.
Kim Williams, a top interior designer in Cape Town and creative behaviour strategist reveals the three main questions you should be asking yourself when deciding whether an open or closed kitchen is right for you, your home, and your lifestyle.
What kind of host are you?
The kitchen has always been a place where people come together so a good starting point is to think of how your kitchen will work during family dinner times, or a social event like a party or casual weekend braai.
Spend time thinking about how you as the cook and host would like to connect to your guests and other people in your home. If you want to keep the conversation flowing outside of the living or garden area and enjoy turning a task into a social event, then an open-plan layout will work best. Remember though, that with the good comes the not so good – while an open plan layout will allow others to join in and help you prepare, it also means they will be observing everything you do, even when things go wrong.
If a closed kitchen appeals to you more, then do bear in mind that even though you’ll be isolated from your family and guests, they will still feel obligated to assist you. This means that your guests (or children) are likely to inevitably land up in the kitchen anyway.
