Once “Khrushchevs” were the salvation of millions of people who received instead of falling apart wooden barracks a separate living space. Today, these small-sized apartments, where it is difficult for a person taller than 170 cm to turn around, are increasingly becoming the housing of a newly created family, an undergraduate student or a young specialist. And then the main question arises: how to think over the design of the Khrushchev? How to draw up a project, choose decoration and decorative materials in order to correctly use the available small square meters and get a space in which it will be convenient to live?
Distinctive features of the apartment of the Khrushchev era
Khrushchev can be easily identified by characteristic signs:
low ceilings;
small rooms, most often aisles;
scanty kitchens (4-5 sq.m.);
narrow small hallways;
combined or separate, but minimal in size, bathroom;
doors that are located so that if one is open, then the other cannot be opened.
These "achievements" of Soviet housing construction differ in the materials of the main structures: brick and block. Brick-built options have a slightly larger floor area, an acceptable ceiling height, and are better suited for normal living. But to design the interior, to design Khrushchevs of any size, adapting it to the needs of all the inhabitants, is a complex, fascinating process, where you should take into account every centimeter of space so that it works as a plus. The more difficult the task assigned to the designer, the more interesting it is to solve, coming up with design and decoration moves to make a small room ergonomic, voluminous, optimally suited to a specific person.
Hall in a two-room apartment
First steps and general tips
How to use design tools to improve every room in Khrushchev? We’ll go through all the premises of the Khrushchev’s heritage and decide on a starting point, decide where to start developing the Khrushchev’s design: determining the modern style, taste preferences, counting finances or redevelopment.
Even with minimal redevelopment, it is necessary to draw up measurement plans for each room, indicating the location of water, gas pipes, batteries, sockets, conclusions for the lamps. The next step is to develop a sketch, or an exact project, and then to obtain permission from the appropriate authority.
Decorating techniques that solve the problem of limited space:
Interior decoration Khrushchev using light colors. The lighter the space, the more voluminous it seems.
Laying on the floor of the entire apartment of the same type of high-quality expensive coating.The area of Khrushchev is small, so this purchase will not make a financial breach in the budget, but it will look decent for a long time, emphasizing the reasonableness of the interior.
The use of one color for the decoration of the vertical surfaces of all rooms. If such a decision seems boring, then accentuate one wall of the living room (opposite the window) with contrasting wallpaper, or using a very large picture. This technique will help to adjust a room that is too long and make it visually close to the "golden" proportions.
“Dissolution” of furniture in a common color.
The use of low objects for furnishing, so as not to stumble on the dominant vertical. So you create a feeling of spaciousness, the absence of "clutter" in a small apartment.
Hall in Khrushchev: “There is a way out!”
The problem of the crushing small space of the hallway denotes itself as a complete measure right from the threshold. It’s not possible to push the walls physically. But it’s worth applying design tricks that will make the corridor more pleasant, convenient, comfortable:
A mirror on a long wall visually expands the space. Let this be just an optical illusion, but it allows you to get the desired effect.
A device around the perimeter under the ceiling of shelves, where in wicker baskets, colorful boxes or cases “under the office” small things, books, past-year study books, and hobby materials will be stored.
Depending on the position of the front door, the device of a high sliding wardrobe using the end part of the corridor. Even small in depth, it will allow to store many seasonal things for storage. Cabinet doors, following the general style of the apartment, it is better to make mirrored or use ready-made shutter doors, painted to match the walls or in contrast.
The last version of the doors is applicable when using different styles, goes well with plaster, wallpaper, concrete.Today, a non-trivial solution to the problem of quickly entering a new apartment is to refuse to thoroughly finish wall surfaces: concrete walls are covered with a suitable paint or protective transparent composition, revealing its texture.
The fewer doors open into the hallway, the more convenient. It is better to abandon some of them, leaving the opening open.
Full bedroom: two options
In the design process of the Khrushchev, consisting of two full rooms, special attention should be paid to the bedroom, as - This is the only impassable room, an enclosed space where there is the opportunity to be alone with yourself. To make it more convenient, you will have to be puzzled by the minimal but necessary redevelopment: allocation of the dressing room from the total area and transfer of the doorway.
The bedroom in Khrushchev is a room with a width of only 2.8-2.9 m. In the case where it is decided to occupy the dressing room opposite the window (a large storage compartment, where even an ironing board and a vacuum cleaner can easily hide), the only option for the bed , with an approach from both sides, there remains an abutment of the headboard to the longitudinal wall opposite the door. Having drawn all the dimensions on the plan, “moving” the painted furniture, you will understand exactly where the door to this private room should be.
It is not recommended to place a TV in the bedroom. Loud sounds, flickering shots excite the human nervous system, upset the psychophysiological balance, which leads to insomnia and lack of night rest. It’s better to create a calm atmosphere in the recreation area, and move the TV panel to the living room.
In a one-room corner Khrushchev, where there are two window openings, redevelopment can be more serious. If technical standards allow, try to separate the part of the room with a light partition wall, install the door, creating a small bedroom, and tear down the wall between the kitchen and the room, combining the space and get an almost square kitchen-living room with a small niche for cooking.
Kitchen for a small company
In the ordinary kitchen of Khrushchev, 2 people can hardly fit.Therefore, if you decide to combine it with the living room, then equip the wall, perpendicular to the window, with the necessary appliances built into the kitchen, and transfer the large dining table, where the whole family will comfortably fit, to the adjoining room, endowing it with an additional dining function. The bottom row of kitchen modules can be continued along the wall opposite the kitchen window, choosing a shorter size range. By cutting a triangular sink in the corner, you get an enlarged L-shaped working area. The top row of cabinets above it will successfully replace the narrow open shelves. From below, it is easy to screw holders with hooks on them, which will house the entire collection of tea cups, a collection of shoulder blades, nimbuses, scissors, and peelers.
An example of an apartment interior
Make the most of vertical surfaces to unload the kitchen worktop. Magnetic strips for knives instead of a desktop box, can holders with spices, brackets for paper towels, baskets with appliances and detergents - a huge number of objects can be removed from a horizontal surface, preparing a place for culinary creativity.
Do not decorate the kitchen window opening with curtains.
One and a half apartment design idea
Much more practical and convenient when cleaning roller blinds or a variety of blinds. They do not clutter up the opening, do not interfere with the penetration of light. Gluing the Khrushchev’s windows towards the sun even more will help sticking on the slopes of mirror strips cut exactly to the width of the slope. This technique allows you to visually expand the window opening, due to the reflection effect, make it "invisible." This design trick will visually slightly increase the area of a small kitchen.
Once “Khrushchevs” were the salvation of millions of people who received instead of falling apart wooden barracks a separate living space. Today, these small-sized apartments, where it is difficult for a person taller than 170 cm to turn around, are increasingly becoming the housing of a newly created family, an undergraduate student or a young specialist. And then the main question arises: how to think over the design of the Khrushchev? How to draw up a project, choose decoration and decorative materials in order to correctly use the available small square meters and get a space in which it will be convenient to live?
Content
Distinctive features of the apartment of the Khrushchev era
Khrushchev can be easily identified by characteristic signs:
These "achievements" of Soviet housing construction differ in the materials of the main structures: brick and block. Brick-built options have a slightly larger floor area, an acceptable ceiling height, and are better suited for normal living. But to design the interior, to design Khrushchevs of any size, adapting it to the needs of all the inhabitants, is a complex, fascinating process, where you should take into account every centimeter of space so that it works as a plus. The more difficult the task assigned to the designer, the more interesting it is to solve, coming up with design and decoration moves to make a small room ergonomic, voluminous, optimally suited to a specific person.
First steps and general tips
How to use design tools to improve every room in Khrushchev? We’ll go through all the premises of the Khrushchev’s heritage and decide on a starting point, decide where to start developing the Khrushchev’s design: determining the modern style, taste preferences, counting finances or redevelopment.
Decorating techniques that solve the problem of limited space:
Hall in Khrushchev: “There is a way out!”
The problem of the crushing small space of the hallway denotes itself as a complete measure right from the threshold. It’s not possible to push the walls physically. But it’s worth applying design tricks that will make the corridor more pleasant, convenient, comfortable:
The last version of the doors is applicable when using different styles, goes well with plaster, wallpaper, concrete.Today, a non-trivial solution to the problem of quickly entering a new apartment is to refuse to thoroughly finish wall surfaces: concrete walls are covered with a suitable paint or protective transparent composition, revealing its texture.
Full bedroom: two options
In the design process of the Khrushchev, consisting of two full rooms, special attention should be paid to the bedroom, as - This is the only impassable room, an enclosed space where there is the opportunity to be alone with yourself. To make it more convenient, you will have to be puzzled by the minimal but necessary redevelopment: allocation of the dressing room from the total area and transfer of the doorway.
The bedroom in Khrushchev is a room with a width of only 2.8-2.9 m. In the case where it is decided to occupy the dressing room opposite the window (a large storage compartment, where even an ironing board and a vacuum cleaner can easily hide), the only option for the bed , with an approach from both sides, there remains an abutment of the headboard to the longitudinal wall opposite the door. Having drawn all the dimensions on the plan, “moving” the painted furniture, you will understand exactly where the door to this private room should be.
In a one-room corner Khrushchev, where there are two window openings, redevelopment can be more serious. If technical standards allow, try to separate the part of the room with a light partition wall, install the door, creating a small bedroom, and tear down the wall between the kitchen and the room, combining the space and get an almost square kitchen-living room with a small niche for cooking.
Kitchen for a small company
In the ordinary kitchen of Khrushchev, 2 people can hardly fit.Therefore, if you decide to combine it with the living room, then equip the wall, perpendicular to the window, with the necessary appliances built into the kitchen, and transfer the large dining table, where the whole family will comfortably fit, to the adjoining room, endowing it with an additional dining function. The bottom row of kitchen modules can be continued along the wall opposite the kitchen window, choosing a shorter size range. By cutting a triangular sink in the corner, you get an enlarged L-shaped working area. The top row of cabinets above it will successfully replace the narrow open shelves. From below, it is easy to screw holders with hooks on them, which will house the entire collection of tea cups, a collection of shoulder blades, nimbuses, scissors, and peelers.
Make the most of vertical surfaces to unload the kitchen worktop. Magnetic strips for knives instead of a desktop box, can holders with spices, brackets for paper towels, baskets with appliances and detergents - a huge number of objects can be removed from a horizontal surface, preparing a place for culinary creativity.
Much more practical and convenient when cleaning roller blinds or a variety of blinds. They do not clutter up the opening, do not interfere with the penetration of light. Gluing the Khrushchev’s windows towards the sun even more will help sticking on the slopes of mirror strips cut exactly to the width of the slope. This technique allows you to visually expand the window opening, due to the reflection effect, make it "invisible." This design trick will visually slightly increase the area of a small kitchen.