Why We Love Great Rooms + What Yours Should Have In It
It’s absolutely no secret around here that we believe in designing spaces (especially great rooms) that feel incredibly personable to who you (+ your family) are. And while it often feels like the design world is focused on what’s hot + trendy or what isn’t — we tend to lean more towards the idea that home, in general, should feel a bit more timeless because the real magic happens with you, when your home is lived + worn in with the people you love.
With all that love in mind, great rooms are often where movie night unfold, the super bowl is watched and our furry four-legged friends snore so loud the house shakes so let’s take a peek at why we love great rooms + what to be sure yours has in it.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A GREAT ROOM AND A LIVING ROOM?
While great rooms + living rooms are often used interchangeably they actually were designed to have very distinct differences in your home.
Now, by no means do we believe you should use a room because it was designed or built with a specific use in mind. In fact, because decluttering + getting organized is the foundation to our design process we believe whole heartedly that every space in your home should a-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y have purpose + function in a way that works for the way you live.
Nevertheless, living rooms in a traditional sense were designed to be a more formal room to entertain guests on special occasions. Typically, these spaces would feature higher quality furnishings meant for light wear + tear.
The great room however, is often a larger open spaced floor plan with a more relaxed + casual vibe than the living room. Being that they’re open to the rest of the home, great rooms offer the illusion of more natural light (because of less walls) as well as space, typically by way of heightened ceilings or large expansive openings. Great rooms are often spaces for both entertaining family + friends but also a place for relaxation in your everyday life.
SO, WHY INVEST IN MAKING THE GREAT ROOM A PLACE YOU NEVER WANT TO LEAVE?
1| A well designed + styled great room brings families close together + has a place where everyone feels comfortable, welcomed + at home. This way, you can host game-night + feel like you’ve thought of everything your guests might need (or that you want them to have) before they need it.
2| When it comes to selecting furnishings, comfort is key in great rooms so your kids, family + friends want to stay.
3| Typically the kitchen is just off of a great room which invites conversation to flow freely between spaces despite everyone doing separate tasks.
4| Great rooms are designed to have multiple functions around entertaining + relaxation. Clearly identifying what you + your family need from this space + then creating room for those things to happen.
MUST HAVE’S FOR GREAT ROOMS?
Being that great rooms are often the most used spaces in your home, the goal when designing great rooms is to make both your everyday life a lot easier but also ensure this communal space has timeless style + evokes your personality.
But, this space can be challenging.
Since great rooms serve so many different functions for you, your family + your guests they can be difficult to decide exactly what needs to be in these spaces not to mention the perfect layout, scale of furnishings, or even a swoon-worthy color palette for this open space.
So — here’s a list of must-have’s to consider in order to make your great room the place you never want to leave.
DEFINE ZONES
When it comes to great rooms one of the biggest challenges for clients (+ designers — *wink*) is to separate the room into different activity zones. Tip: Instead of looking at the great room as one big area of your home, consider how you’ll function in the space.
Ask yourself, who uses this space the most + what’s the main purpose of this room? Then dig in a little bit deeper + think about any secondary or tertiary activities that take place in this space that you might need to designated room for. By looking at your open great room from a perspective of how you actually live + what everyday life looks like, you’re able to begin honing in on exactly what the room should have in it.
CONSIDER SCALE + LAYOUT
In great rooms, layout is paramount which is why the very next thing you’ll want to consider when trying to create an amazing great room is the layout. And because you’ve identified exactly how this space in your home can better serve you (based on activities + the way it’s most often used) this part is much easier to accomplish.
When placing furnishings like a sofa, sectional or armchair in your great room you don’t want to simply everything up against the wall + line the entire room with furniture. In fact, to create depth + dimension we want the furniture to float off the walls whenever possible. Not only does this add depth as well as the illusion of even more space to your great room but it distinctly separates the areas of your room by function.
But the layout of your room isn’t the only thing to consider here. Understanding scale is key. In some homes with great rooms there’s still a separate dining room while in others, you may need to create a dining area. So, depending on how much room is available as well as your priorities, you may want to opt for a dining set that seats fewer guests in exchange for comfortable sofa + chairs in the great room to accommodate everyone.
DECIDE A COLOR PALETTE + REPEAT MATERIALS
When deciding on a color palette, you really want to land upon something that’s uniquely you. Ideally, it feels timeless + doesn’t make it difficult for you to transition your space between the seasons. Plus, let’s not kid ourselves... your style evolves which means it’s important to think about versatility so that as you begin to introduce new pieces to your great room everything plays nice with each other.
To create a cohesive design for your great room, once you’ve selected your color palette consider all the ways you can repeat it + layer similar materials into each defined zone. (psst… need help picking paint colors? Let’s chat) From wall colors to fabric selection to decor accessories + accents there are literally infinite ways to make your great room feel complete.
MAKE THE SPACE YOUR OWN
What you don’t want to do is walk into a showroom, throw down your credit card + buy yourself a complete matcy-match set of furniture I’m talking about the sofa, chairs, coffee table, accent tables, they have on display. And, the same thing goes for finishing touches like buying the exact table lamps or the piece of artwork they have displayed over the console table.
Of course it l-o-o-k-s nice in that big shiny oversized box store but 9 times out of 10, when you get it home the furniture’s going to look + even feel different than you remember it. Plus when you’re making such a big investment who wants a room that’s been copied a million times over?!
Homes should be designed to be uniquely you. They should be curated thoughtfully with intent, purpose + exude your personality. They should tell your (family) story.
So while we want to create a sense of continuity + cohesiveness between the defined zones of a great room (including colors in your kitchen or dining areas) the last thing we want is for things to feel too on the nose matchy-matchy. To create a space that is both modern yet classic consider the pieces from your travels or the things you’ve curated over the course of your lifetime.
How can that piece of art that you brought all the way home from your honeymoon infuse the great room with personality?
Ultimately, you want to consider in what ways you can complement the design of your space with design elements that feel unequivocally like you.
Andddd we’ve reached the end! There’s a lot of reason to love great rooms, amiright?
Remember, your to-die-for home isn’t going to happen overnight (or even in a day.) To get gorgeous success, I suggest you focus on one tip at a time + have a total, all-out blast with it.
Now that’s the joyful home you deserve!
Until next time,
Sherri