How to Combine Kitchen and Living Room in a Small Apartment: A Successful Example

Combining the kitchen and living room is a popular approach when decorating small apartments: by eliminating unnecessary walls and partitions, the space appears larger. The unusual shape of the living room in this Swedish apartment allowed for thoughtful integration of kitchen furniture into the interior design: zones visually continue each other thanks to a shared Scandinavian finish, but each looks like a distinct and functional room.

In Northern Conditions

This two-room apartment with a total area of 48 square meters is located in the center of Stockholm, on the third floor of a typical five-story building. The design concept is explained by the small size and lack of natural light: to address both issues at once, the owners opted for a Scandinavian style interior—white finishes, open windows, and minimal furniture. To add variety to the Scandinavian design, the walls in the hallway and bedroom were painted gray, and the floor was covered with wooden parquet that served as a retro accent in the interior.

From General to Specific

The main space of the apartment is taken up by a spacious room with an irregular shape: here, the living room and kitchen are combined. The dark kitchen furniture is placed along parallel walls, with a narrow space between them that is convenient for cooking—everything needed is within reach.

The bedroom is set up in a separate room, accessible from the spacious entrance hall. To save space in the bedroom, the owners chose a white wardrobe and integrated it into a niche, with the central element in the room being a large bed with an elegant gilded table.

Eclectic Touches

Despite the overall Scandinavian concept of the interior, elements from different styles were brought together here: a console with a polished concrete countertop, an ethnic woven rug, framed movie posters, and heavy gold candlesticks. The result is a stylish interior with an eclectic touch reflecting the owners' individuality.

The desire to create a cozy and stylish interior also showed in the balcony setup: a bench with decorative cushions was installed, a wooden box replaced the table, and a string of lights was secured to the railing.