To truly understand that small can be as beautiful and functional as a large space, you have to step inside Essy Kyarikunda’s home. It is a masterclass in balance, where the entire living area feels intuitively “just right.” The genius of the design lies not in what it contains, but in how each element serves a purpose. A kitchen island is both a prep station and a dining table; a sofa defines the living area without dominating it.
Here, function is woven so seamlessly into the form that the space feels curated, not crowded. Nothing is extraneous, yet nothing is missing. It is a testament to the idea that a home’s comfort comes not from its square footage, but from the thoughtful harmony of its parts.
Many people believe a big house is the only way to live a comfortable and successful life. Kyarikunda was originally one of them when she set out to build her home.
She designed her home with separate rooms, each divided by walls; a small kitchen, a dining area, and a living room all closed off from one another.
“The original plan I chose was very common,” she explains. “It had a small, closed-off kitchen, a spot just for a dining table, and a formal living room with a large sofa set.”
This common layout, however, used space in a very inefficient way. The walls that were meant to create different rooms actually made the home feel tight and cramped. “There was no easy room to walk through; I was always squeezing around furniture,” she remembers. “The rooms always looked cluttered and messy, without any feeling of calm.”
It took a fire that damaged her kitchen, to change her space. It allowed her to completely rethink her home’s design. She decided to move away from the old-fashioned layout and embrace a modern, open floor plan. This was not just a small change; it was a complete new vision for her home, turning it from a series of small, boxy rooms into one continuous, flowing space.
Collecting great design ideas
The plan for her new home did not come from a single magazine. Instead, it was built from a collection of smart ideas she gathered during her stays in different countries. Her travels showed her clever solutions for living comfortably in smaller areas.
From a stylish rental apartment in Dubai, she learnt the value of a kitchen island that does more than one job. This single item worked as a counter for preparing food, a table for eating meals, and a central point for the whole living area.
“The island was brilliant because it combined uses,” Kyarikunda notes. “It meant I did not need a separate dining table, which saved a lot of floor space. Also, the stools could be pushed completely under the counter when not needed, keeping the area looking clean and open.”
Later, while staying in an apartment in Kenya, she saw another smart idea; using simple chairs placed against a wall instead of big, bulky sofas that curve into the room. This choice showed that you can still have comfortable seating without letting the furniture take over the entire space, keeping the room feeling light and easy to move through.
Opening up
Kyarikunda chose the open floor plan because she understood how it affects how we see and feel in a space. “The biggest advantage is how it changes the feeling of the room’s size,” she says.
“Without walls blocking the view, your eyes can move freely across the whole area. This makes your brain think the space is much larger than it truly is.”
Beyond just looking bigger, the open plan creates a more connected and social way of living. For someone who likes a neat and tidy home, the layout makes it easy to keep an eye on everything from one spot. It also makes life more sociable.
“There is no longer a hard separation between the person cooking and the guests relaxing,” she explains.
“I can talk with visitors in the living room while I am cooking in the kitchen, or I can watch my favourite TV shows from the kitchen counter. The space encourages people to be together instead of being stuck in separate rooms.”
Key ingredients for an open home
Making an open design work well is not as simple as just taking down walls. It requires a thoughtful plan where every detail works together. Kyarikunda focused on several important areas to make her home both beautiful and functional.
A careful colour plan
Her first step was to choose a simple and elegant colour scheme. She picked soft and rich colours such as warm whites, soft golds, and pops of turquoise, for her cabinets and main furniture. This choice does two important things; the light colours help bounce light around the room, making it brighter, and using the same colours throughout helps all the different areas feel like one connected space, which makes it seem larger. The overall feeling is both open and luxurious.
Layered lighting
Kyarikunda sees lighting as a crucial tool, not just something practical. Her plan has two parts. To use as much sunlight as possible, she made her windows and doors bigger. These larger openings now act as big light sources, filling the home with daylight and making the inside feel connected to the outdoors. For nighttime, she created a detailed plan with eight different lights.
“Some of my furniture is dark, which is nice, but without enough light the room could feel dark and small at night,” she says. “I use a mix of overall light, light for specific tasks, and accent lights to make sure the whole space feels warm, bright, and open even after the sun goes down.”
Furniture arrangement
In an open room, the furniture creates areas for different activities without using walls. Kyarikunda chose every piece for its size, shape, and where it would be placed.
She passed on a beautiful, curved sofa because it would have broken up the space, and instead chose a straighter one that sits neatly against the wall. This smart choice helps mark the living area while keeping the floor open, allowing for a coffee table and, most importantly, creating clear and easy walking paths so the room never feels difficult to move through.
A trick for the eyes
As a final touch, Kyarikunda plans to add a very large mirror that stretches from the floor to the ceiling.
This is a classic and effective trick in design.
By placing the mirror across from a large window or door, it will make the room look like it goes on further, reflecting both the light from outside and the view, creating a convincing and beautiful illusion of a much bigger and deeper space.
Clutter
Kyarikunda is very strict about avoiding clutter. In one open room, every item that is left out is visible.
To manage this, she has plenty of hidden storage, especially in the kitchen, where cabinets hold anything that would make the space look messy. This effort to keep things tidy not only makes the home feel organised but also makes it feel more airy and spacious, allowing the room itself to feel calm and open.