How do I make the most of this apartment layout?
July 22, 2015 3:43 PM   Subscribe

I am considering moving into an apartment that has couple of pillars inside it and I want to know what the best way to design around them is.

I am looking at this new apartment in a building that has been repurposed. The apartment is a small 1 bedroom (500 sq ft) and has pillars inside it.

Floor plan here.

The pillars are the grey rectangle near the top and the grey circle in the kitchen.

Before I take it, I am wondering if I will find the right kind of inspiring flow in there. I'm not sure how to lay things out the best. The kitchen feels away from the light, as does the bedroom. Most importantly, how to arrange furniture in the main living areas that make the most sense?
posted by miles1972 to Home & Garden (18 answers total)
 
The kitchen pillar doesn't seem a problem. It's integrated with the wall and might even offer a useful little storage niche behind it.

The living room is annoying. The obvious thing to do would be to designate the area to the right of the pillar a dining zone, and put a big table there, and the area to the left the lounging zone, with some couches.
posted by Miko at 3:53 PM on July 22, 2015 [1 favorite]


Wow, that really is an annoying location for a pillar. I'd second Miko's suggestion and use it as a room divider. Were you able to measure how much space you've got on either side?
posted by thomas j wise at 3:59 PM on July 22, 2015


in a bit more detail, guessing at the scale, and guessing at the furniture you have, and guessing at your tastes, i'd put a table with chairs where the "491" is; a desk to the right of the pillar against the window; some comfortable chairs / sofa to the left of the pillar.

i'd also take care to get the lighting right in the kitchen.

it's not just the pillar, it's that the living area is also a passage and entrance...
posted by andrewcooke at 4:10 PM on July 22, 2015


Response by poster: The pillar has about 8 feet on the left side to wall and 6 feet on the other. Could fit a love seat in between wall and pillar on right side, flat against window.
posted by miles1972 at 4:13 PM on July 22, 2015


That south corner looks like you should put in a daybed or something to turn that into a book-reading and laptop-using nook.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 4:16 PM on July 22, 2015


How far is it from the pillar to the South wall? I'd put in a KALLAX Ikea book case (or some other similar cube storage - right in between the pillar and the south wall to use it as a sort of room divider - you can put in books as well as decorative elements.

If you don't overfill it with stuff, it'll continue to have nice flow through while still dividing the section a bit. Then you can use the smaller section as a office space of sorts.
posted by Karaage at 4:28 PM on July 22, 2015 [1 favorite]


I'd suggest putting your bed with the head centered against the outer/south wall, or else have the head against the inner/west wall the door is in --- the point being to have your head as near to the window as possible. Maybe tuck a small chair in-between the bed and the window for a reading seat.
posted by easily confused at 4:29 PM on July 22, 2015


What would you like to use the main room for? Traditional living room? Dining area? Would you have a TV there? Couches? Other furniture? I think it makes more sense to figure out what you plan to do with the space before figuring out layout.
posted by Aleyn at 4:38 PM on July 22, 2015


Response by poster: I have just realized that the directions on that floor plan are wrong. South and West are reversed.
posted by miles1972 at 4:38 PM on July 22, 2015


Response by poster: I'd like to use it as both a traditional living area and dining room. I'd like to be able to host people sometimes. I don't need a TV in there, but there will be a TV somewhere in the apartment.

Couches, yes. Open to any other furniture, yes.
posted by miles1972 at 4:42 PM on July 22, 2015


I'd probably float a sofa perpendicular to the window, to the left of the pillar paired with two small arm chairs across. I'd flank the pillar with two sofa tables. Then make the area to the left a nice reading nook, with lots of texture. Shag rug, comfy oversized reading chair with ottoman, and a task floor lamp. (or you could go with small desk area)

Then a narrow table just above the 491. You can float it if you'd like people over for dinner. Or against the wall, if you'd like more of a buffet style and floor space.

Make sure the sofa is scaled as apartment sized. It's sooo easy to get too large of a sofa, which will that cramped.
posted by politikitty at 4:56 PM on July 22, 2015


West facing windows would put me off completely. Afternoon sun in the summer is hell.

There's probably enough space to get a living area to the left and a dining to the right, I would measure and use floorplanner.com to check.
posted by kjs4 at 6:07 PM on July 22, 2015


Depending on the level of light reaching the pillar, deck it out in tiers of wooly pockets overflowing with houseplants. You may call it Jungle Column.
posted by Drosera at 6:32 PM on July 22, 2015


I think this is perfectly lovely and workable but I super love weird spaces. This isn't to scale or anything but I would try something like this, with an open bookcase delineating the the pillar corner and a desk under the windows there.
posted by DarlingBri at 8:20 PM on July 22, 2015


Big mirror on that east end wall in the kitchen will help with the light in that space. Is there even a window in the bedroom? If not, look at it as the best black-out sleeping space ever, and watch movies in there. Create a "foyer" landing space on the exterior bathroom wall with small table for keys, etc., and possibly another mirror. That could also help bounce light into the bedroom.

Love the idea of an open shelving unit between the pillar and window. Use the right side as office/dining, and the left as living room. I might do a small sectional in the southeast corner, with a club chair and ottoman cattycorner by the pillar. Use multiple small ottoman that can double as seating for a crowd (and maybe even storage).

Perhaps fill the exterior wall of the bedroom (within the office space) with books and more books. Consider getting window treatments with blackout linings, but something to mitigate the glare and heat if there's no shade outside that west wall.
posted by wwartorff at 10:12 PM on July 22, 2015 [1 favorite]


Do you plan to have a dining table of any sort? There's no bar area and the kitchen seems too small to eat in. Maybe a very narrow table in the area behind the pillar? I'd probably use a bench for seating on the pillar side of the table. Full size chairs will break up the room more.
posted by 26.2 at 12:09 AM on July 23, 2015


If you use a desk for working or whatever, maybe put the desk up against the pillar? I don't like putting desks against walls because then you are facing a wall and your back is to your living space. But you kind of have to put desks against something, I find -- or at least that's what I tend to do. With that pillar, it would be a natural spot to position a desk, so then you'd be looking into the room and your back would face the wall. Like so. That would be cool.
posted by AppleTurnover at 12:35 AM on July 23, 2015


A very similar question was asked on Apartment Therapy today. I find the commenters there are very astute with decorating problems.
posted by matildaben at 9:35 AM on July 24, 2015


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