How to update small condo kitchen and living room
Going for a simple, nature inspired style, with natural wood colours and plants.
Plan is to add under cabinet lighting and to switch to LED lights.
Looking for:
1) Flooring ideas
- We're thinking about keeping the flooring in the kitchen and living area the same- what material do you recommend? We like the idea of a light oak floor but am worried about putting it in the kitchen. Also, any ideas on colour?
2) Wall paint colour
- Should we keep it white?
3) Back splash
4) Window treatments
5) Any other simple, affordable changes. Note- furniture will be changed.
Thanks.
Comments (17)
3 years agoRelated Discussions
living room update on a small budget
Comments (43)With regards to a rug: I too had that same dingy beigey/brown carpet in my last home, and since re-carpeting or redoing the flooring was not on the priority list of home improvements, I went the rug route. At first I got a cheap acrylic rug and it buckled and the folds stayed, the plastic of the rug basically took on the folded shape. Then, one day while I was not even shopping for a rug, I found a gorgeous all wool Persian rug on super sale. With that rug, I had less buckling, but still some. I had to hang it a couple times a year to smooth out the folds, and I was constantly straightening it. I still have it doing the same duty in our new place. But it is very pretty and most of the time it is an asset. Weekly rug straightening is part of our routine. I tried a lot of things to keep the rug in place too, a pad and tacks. They didn't stop the buckling. But a wool rug will straighten out and pop back into shape fairly easily. Your room looks good and that furniture looks comfy. I would just look for bolder more colorful art. Tie in the red/black/cream color scheme or go with some new colors for pillows, lampshades and art, if you are tired of the other scheme....See MoreDesign my small condo living space! (exposed brick & wood)
Comments (18)Sit down dinners for eight? Well, you will certainly be hanging your capacious cookware from that potrack! The dimensions of the room don't allow for a dining table the size needed for eight people to be up all the time, but there are a few ways around that. One is a console table that when folded has a small silhouette and functions as a sofa table that you put behind the sofa table to hold a lamp, your remotes, a drink, etc. When you need it, it expands, and expands, and expands! With that you can use collapsible folding chairs and there are some very nice ones, including wood ones that you can store under your bed, along with the very long tablecloths. In fact, there is an article about just that sort of table on Houzz. Then you may or may decide to not get a small table for two or as you initially thought, just get two bar stools. [https://www.houzz.com/magazine/5-instant-dining-tables-stsetivw-vs~928815[(https://www.houzz.com/magazine/5-instant-dining-tables-stsetivw-vs~928815) Another option is to get a small table that you leave in your room and then a much larger piece of wood or plywood to put on top for parties, (with maybe saw horsesif the table topper is much larger) padding the table and the wood and using a tablecloth, and storing the piece of plywood and saw horses under your bed or in a storage unit in your building. To seat 8 people, tables of these configurations should be of these dimensions: Round: 60 - 66 " diameter Rectangle: 8 feet long...See MoreHelp update a small condo kitchen
Comments (2)I think the cabinets look great. I would go with a solid quartz counter. A lot of the Scandinavian style inspo pictures I have seen are going back to white walls. this photo is a little more contemporary, but shows the white quartz and walls with a similar cabinet color....See MoreKitchen island as only dining? Ideas for small kitchen/living room?
Comments (3)I don’t know if you ever finished your kitchen, but in case you did not, and in case others come across this thread, I thought I would tell what we did. We remodeled our kitchen using a 24 year-old high end kitchen from a kitchen charity reseller (Green Demolitions). It had a huge island that I could fit into our space if we did not have a kitchen table. I have lifelong knee problems and could hardly rise off a regular chair height, so moving to 24” kitchen stools sounded like a solution. We went with the island, with space for four to comfortably sit. It turns out that my knees don’t much like sitting on stools, either. We are a family of two and take our meals in our recliners, anyhow. The issue became how to have people over and sit comfortably. Then I discovered convertible furniture of Italian design! They make coffee tables that rise up on scissor legs to dining height with tops that swivel 90 degrees and open like a book, doubling their size. There are other designs as well, all creating full size dining tables. We found a leather sofa at Macy’s that has a seat height of 20” and we keep our old dining chairs in the basement to bring out when people visit. Our family room is now easily and quickly converted to a dining room with banquette seating. Here is where I got our table. If you live near NYC there are local choices, too. https://expandfurniture.com...See MoreRelated Professionals
Queens Interior Designers & Decorators · La Crescenta-Montrose Custom Artists · Green Bay Lighting · East Bridgewater Window Treatments · Oak Park Window Treatments · Fort Lauderdale Cabinets & Cabinetry · Graham Cabinets & Cabinetry · Santa Barbara Furniture & Accessories · Hialeah Gardens Lighting · Modesto Lighting · Elk Grove Village Fireplaces · South Jordan Fireplaces · Athens Flooring Contractors · Canton Flooring Contractors · Everett Flooring Contractors- PRO3 years ago
Here is a visual showing white oak flooring. What I would suggest to make your decor "pop" is mainly to accessorize. Starting with the kitchen island, I show a new ligting pendant and a white pot with greenery to stand out on the dark countertop. I also show a natural fibre entrance mat. You don't seem to have a dining table and chairs but have a chandelier. I suggest here a small rectangular table & 4 chairs, the end of the table can be placed against the wall if you don't have sufficient space to center with the light. If the table is against the wall you can loop the wire to place the pendant centered with the table. For your window, I suggest a longer black rod to extend on each side of the window so that the drapes stand against the wall when open which will make the window look larger. Your blue chair looks stuck in the corner, try to bring it in more into the room and have the side table close to it. I show a plant in a wicker basket, a floor lamp, and a few decorative cushions and a throw. Those are a few ideas to get you started...
Tetra Xe thanked lisedv - PRO3 years agolast modified: 3 years ago
Just saw the note on lvp flooring, it's a great inexpensive option. Here's one from Home Depot showing the white oak.
- 3 years ago
- PRO3 years agolast modified: 3 years ago
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- PRO3 years ago
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- PRO3 years ago
I've adjusted a few items including a light grey sofa you mentioned. I've also put down the prices so it gives you an idea budget wise. I also included a colour suggestion for the white walls. Hope you'll like the suggestions, I tried to keep the budget as low as possible while keeping the decor interesting. Everything is based on the white oak lvp flooring you were interested in.
Everything on this page is from Ikea except the dining set:
TV stands and baskets are from Ikea:
Curtains and rod are from Ikea:
- 3 years agolast modified: 3 years ago
- PRO3 years ago
- PRO3 years ago
- 3 years agolast modified: 3 years ago
-- Do you happen to have a floorplan of your condo? That would help. Or perhaps it can go where the TV was to go... Even though you won't be buying everything at once, it's nice to have an overall plan so that your decor will be well coordinated.
Definitely agree that it's nice to have an overall plan, which is why I haven't really gotten anything yet. I have not yet moved in so I have some time; didn't want to buy something I dont end up using.The only thing I have done is measure the windows, as you said- I can see that it makes a big difference.
I do not have a floor plan but I made a rough one that is not to scale.
Forgot to add that the only windows are in the bedroom and living room, unit faces south
- 3 years ago
ptreckel