Apartment Floor Plan Redesign: One Apartment, Two Possibilities
Have you ever walked into a home that looked lovely in photographs, yet felt awkward once you were inside? Perhaps there was nowhere to leave your coat, a door kept getting in the way, or moving between rooms felt less natural than it should. Often, these everyday frustrations have less to do with the furniture or finishes and more to do with the layout.
When something feels awkward at home, it’s natural to try moving the furniture or finding better storage. Sometimes that helps. But if a door blocks the route through a room, service ducts restrict where bathroom fittings can go, or everyone passes through the kitchen while someone is cooking, furniture alone cannot solve the problem.
In this article, we walk through a 68 m² apartment, looking at what makes the existing layout awkward. We then explore two alternatives, showing how the same footprint could support different priorities for work, storage, and shared rooms.
WHY WE START WITH THE LAYOUT
Choosing colours, lighting, and furniture is often the most enjoyable part of planning a home. But before those decisions, we look at the layout: how you move between rooms, where everyday things belong, and whether the space supports the way you want to live. Walls, door openings, and drainage stacks are harder to change later, so it makes sense to consider them first.
We read the floor plan alongside your needs, understanding what works, what gets in the way, and what needs further investigation. Exploring these questions on paper helps you make decisions before committing to building work, materials, or bespoke joinery.
MAKING THE MOST OF 68 m²
At New Wharf Residence in London, we developed two layouts for an existing two bedroom apartment. At 68 square metres, there is enough space for a comfortable two bedroom home. Yet awkward corridors, misplaced storage, and doors opening into busy routes make the original plan feel more restricted than its size suggests.
We began by drawing the existing layout to scale, then explored two alternatives: one with a dedicated office, and another that keeps both bedrooms and the main service locations. The external walls and main bay window remain unchanged in both. We wanted to see how much could improve within the existing footprint, and what each option would offer the people living there.
THE EXISTING PLAN
Let us unlock the front door, step across the threshold, and walk through the existing layout together:
- As you step inside, there is little sense of arrival: just a narrow hallway with nowhere to hang your coat or sit down to take off your shoes.
- Opening the bathroom door gives a direct view of the toilet, leaving little privacy. The bath also feels squeezed into the room, rather than offering a comfortable place to relax.
- In the primary bedroom, a single door opens into a shallow wardrobe that extends beyond the doorway on both sides, making clothes at either end difficult to reach.
- The main bed sits right next to the bedroom entrance, leaving it exposed to views and movement from the busy hallway.
- Stepping into the second bedroom, you find the single bed tucked against one side. The wardrobe is very small, with much of the potential storage space given over to the kitchen on the other side of the wall.
- Looking at the storage across the apartment, you notice small cupboards and leftover alcoves, rather than storage arranged around what each room needs.
- Walking back into the main passage, you find yourself in the middle of the kitchen, where cooking and movement through the apartment compete for space.
- Entering the living room, you realise the dining set occupies space that could otherwise accommodate extra seating for guests.
- Finally, standing in the dining area, you notice how much space this central zone occupies, taking up room that other parts of the apartment could use.
What stands out is how unevenly the space is shared between rooms. None of these issues seems significant on its own, but together they create daily frustrations that rearranging furniture can only partly resolve.
MAKING ROOM FOR WORKING FROM HOME
One question we often hear is how to make room for working from home without letting it take over. A dedicated workspace needs to support quiet focus during the day, yet allow you to disconnect fully when the working day ends.
Achieving this balance within a 68 square metre footprint takes thoughtful spatial planning, so the dining table does not have to double as a permanent workspace.
OPTION 1: A GENEROUS ONE BEDROOM HOME WITH A DEDICATED OFFICE
In Option 1, we trade the second bedroom for a dedicated office for two, creating a more generous home with a clear separation between work and relaxation:
- As you step through the front door, you are greeted by an integrated bench seat and coat storage that give you a proper moment to pause, remove your shoes, and feel at home.
- The bathroom doorway shifts slightly so your first view is of the vanity, with the toilet tucked out of direct sight from the hallway.
- Taking a little space from the bedroom and replacing the hinged door with a sliding pocket door creates room for a generous walk-in shower.
- Entering the primary bedroom, the bed is now tucked out of sight from the hallway, with room for a dedicated dressing table and a clearer space for relaxation.
- Stepping into what used to be the second bedroom, you find a complete office for two with a large window framing green views and a full wall of fitted wardrobes behind the desks.
- Walking along the main path, you find a cosy built-in dining nook where fragmented storage once occupied the space.
- As you turn into the main living space, you see the kitchen has moved out of the hallway and beside the large windows. Its former position frees up space for additional storage along the wall.
- Across the living room, two comfortable sofas arranged around a coffee table create space to relax and gather. Built-in media joinery and a timber arch connect the living and dining areas.
- Finally, walking up to the kitchen, you find a slim island that adds hidden storage and gently defines the kitchen area without closing it off from the living space. Folding doors can conceal the worktops, creating a calm wall of joinery when the kitchen is not in use.
OPTION 2: KEEPING TWO BEDROOMS AND THE MAIN SERVICE LOCATIONS
In Option 2, we keep both bedrooms and retain the main kitchen and bathroom service locations, improving the layout while limiting the extent of the alterations:
- As you open the front door, you are welcomed by two storage cupboards for coats and cleaning equipment, complemented by a softly curved bench seat.
- The bathroom stays in its existing position, with the doorway retained. A sliding door frees up floor space, while a longer vanity adds useful storage and replacing the cramped bath with a shower makes better use of the room.
- Entering the primary bedroom, you find the awkward single wardrobe door replaced with sliding panels, making clothes at either end easier to reach without a door swinging into the room.
- Turning toward the bed, you see it has moved to the opposite wall, creating a cosy, quiet alcove sheltered from movement and direct views from the hallway.
- Stepping into the second bedroom, you see how shifting one wall slightly creates room for a double bed, a dedicated desk, and a larger wardrobe.
- Walking back through the central hallway, you will notice the awkward storage units opposite the kitchen have been removed, creating a wider walkway and allowing the second bedroom to expand.
- Moving into the kitchen, the main service locations remain in place. Removing the projecting column would open up the connection to the living area, subject to confirming its role within the building. A breakfast bar wraps around the end, adding storage and a place to sit.
- Looking into the family room, you find an intimate seating area, with the dining table positioned along the long wall to keep the centre of the room open.
- Finally, stepping into the former dining area, you find a lounge arranged around the large window, with a sofa, armchair, and coffee table, creating another place to sit and spend time together.
WHICH PLAN SUITS YOUR LIFE?
Option 1 prioritises a dedicated office for two, a more generous dining area, and additional storage, with the kitchen moved beside the windows. This approach gives up the second bedroom and involves more extensive alterations to relocate the kitchen.
Option 2 retains both bedrooms and the main service locations, limiting the extent of the changes. It offers more flexibility for family or overnight guests, while leaving the kitchen on the main circulation route and providing no separate office.
Both solutions show that a more comfortable home does not always require more space. It can begin with a layout that makes better use of what you have, with more useful storage and fewer awkward routes between rooms.
WHY MOVING A WALL IS NEVER JUST MOVING A WALL
Understanding what you need from your home helps us see where the layout could work better. The next step is looking beyond the drawing to the building itself.
In Option 1, moving the kitchen opens up new possibilities for the apartment. The change looks straightforward on paper, but we also need to understand how drainage, water, power, and ventilation could serve the new location, and what the existing structure allows.
Drainage is one of the first things to investigate. Moving a kitchen sink or toilet means checking the route to the existing soil stack, the fall needed for wastewater to drain, and the space within the floor construction. These constraints help determine where fixtures can realistically go.
Changes to walls and columns need the same care. Before removing them, we need to understand their role within the building, with structural advice and calculations where required. Some walls help contain smoke and fire, protecting the hallway people would use to leave in an emergency.
Water supplies, electrical connections, ventilation, and gas where relevant need to be coordinated without compromising sound insulation or the barriers that help prevent fire spreading between homes.
We also consider what these changes mean for privacy and daylight. Moving a bedroom doorway can leave the bed exposed to a busy hallway, while shifting a partition can change how daylight reaches adjoining rooms.
Working through these questions early allows the layout to develop alongside the necessary surveys, technical checks, and permissions, helping avoid costly surprises during construction. A Layout Review establishes a direction; detailed design and coordination then determine how the proposals can be carried through.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOUR HOME
Behind every room that feels good to live in are decisions you may barely notice: where a door opens, how easily you reach your clothes, and how light, movement, and services work together.
The two layouts we explored show how much can change within the same walls. Each makes different choices about storage, privacy, and shared space. Exploring those choices on paper helps you understand what matters most, while practical problems are easier to resolve before construction begins.
The best layouts often look deceptively simple. That simplicity comes from coordinating doors, storage, furniture, and services so the rooms feel natural to use.
COULD YOUR FLOOR PLAN WORK BETTER?
When a floor plan feels awkward, it can be difficult to imagine what could take its place. A Layout Review offers a fresh perspective before you commit to building work, invest in furniture, or decide whether a property could suit you.
We begin with how you want to live, then rework the existing plan to scale, exploring what fits, what gets in the way, and how the space could flow. Whether you are considering a property or rethinking the home you already have, the aim is to help you understand your choices before deciding what to do next.