Tag Archives: Design
Bedroom Design: 4 Ideas for a Multipurpose Guest Room
Post by Tracy Kaler.
A multipurpose room might seem like a design decision from days of yore, but more and more people –– particularly in urban areas –– are living in less square footage. That comes as no surprise since doubling up on functionality is practical for both space and budget.
A space that can be easily re-adapted is the guest room, particularly one that is used only several times per year (such as when your old college roommate comes to visit).
Here are four ways to make alternate use of your guest room after your guests have checked out.
1. The Guest Room/Nursery
If needed, use your guest room as a nursery and when Aunt Brenda comes for a visit, move the baby into your room for the weekend. This inviting dual-purpose space is lovely enough for a newborn, or your most discriminating in-law.
2. The Guest Room/Office
One of the most practical solutions for a multipurpose room is a guest room and office in one. This modern take on a traditional layout –– with a temporary wall separating the spaces –– works beautifully and enables one person to catch some sleep while another is hard at work. The room also functions well as a home office. This design is perfect for a city apartment guest room.
3. The Craft Room/Guest Room
Clever built-ins and a sewing machine turn an extra sleep space into a project area. The uncluttered approach leaves guests plenty of room to sprawl. Pleasant and practical for work, play, or rest, this versatile guest room receives a good amount of natural light through the double window and skylight.
4. The Guest Room/Children’s Room
These clever built-in bunk beds are ideal for kids or teens. This cabin could very well be a second home, in which case you could move the children into your room (perhaps on folding cots) when you have overnight company. This space is also convenient for a family of four if you have a couple with children come for a stay.
Bedroom Design: A Guide for Choosing Bedside Lamps
Post by Tracy Kaler.
Shopping for bedside lamps? Selecting lighting for your bedroom may seem like an easy task, but there’s a lot to think about, particularly if you often read in bed. Aesthetically, lamps should compliment the décor; choose a ceramic mid-century light for a retro bedroom, and pick a faceted crystal base for a more traditional feel. But regardless of style you’ll want your lamps to do their job, so here are a few tips to shed some light when shopping for bedside lamps.
Choose the right height
Most designers will agree that a bedside lamp’s height is most important for optimal use. As a rule, the bottom of the shade should just about align with your chin while sitting in bed. This, of course, is partially based on the correct height of your bedside table, which is ideal if it is even with your mattress.
Keep the shade light
Dark shades provide little light, and in a bedroom, will only darken your space. (Control natural light with window treatments as needed.) Stick with a white, ivory or other soft, neutral shade –– fabric and paper usually work best to provide the right amount of brightness, as well as a classic look.
Bulbs matter
To control the amount of light, a two-bulb lamp will work well. Your lamp can have one bulb for reading and one for overall ambient light. If a lamp has a single socket, try a three-way bulb so the amount of light will vary from dim to bright.
Think about the switch
When shopping for lamps, look at the control or switch. Will this be easy for you to turn on and off from bed? You might opt for a lamp with a switch on the cord, which may require less reaching as you drift off to sleep.
Bedroom Design: Living Big in a Small Bedroom
Post by Tracy Kaler.
“Small rooms or dwellings discipline the mind; large ones weaken it.”—Leonardo da Vinci
Don’t fret if you lack square footage in your bedroom. Small spaces are no less significant than their larger siblings and still manage to be stylish and chic. Compact rooms are often loaded with personality and give you the opportunity to get creative and explore your inner decorator, so take advantage and don’t feel deprived.
Moreover, a bedroom tends to be especially romantic and peaceful, no matter its size. Whether you prefer traditional or eclectic décor, antiques or modern furnishings (think an Eames lounge chair in your singular empty corner), neutral or bold color accents, bear in mind that an uncluttered design will probably suit any small space best.
Here are four tiny yet delightful bedrooms. Rooms like these make it easy to catch a restful sleep, relax with a favorite read, or just sit back and take it all in.
You’ll be in the mood to snuggle in this simple yet elegant, cottage-inspired bedroom. The all-white paneling lends a casual feel, while the poofy duvet makes the bed inviting. Looking at this photo, don’t you want to curl up with a good book?
Chinese red textiles and a Persian rug add a boost of color to an otherwise neutral room. A black chinoiserie screen makes for a lovely backdrop behind the leather headboard while crisp linens give this bed a luxury hotel feel.
This practical twin bedroom with built-in storage is functional and sleek. The convenient swing-arm sconce allows reading in bed, while the Louis Ghost chair from Philippe Starck breathes a touch of whimsy into the room.
Neatly carved out of a pocket-sized room, this space-saving design works beautifully. Patchwork bedding and knotty pine floors give the room a rustic cabin-like feel. The nautical artwork and ceiling fan enhance the miniature sleeping quarters. This nook could be the ideal child’s room or guest quarters.
Things We Like: Sleeping In The Trees
Post by Kyle St. Romain.
If you want to connect with nature on a higher level or if you just want to feel like a kid again, a tree house might be just what you need. I never realized how prolific tree houses were until I started watching a new show called Tree House Masters on Animal Planet. You’d think there would only be a couple episodes, max, to squeeze out of what has to be a very niche market. However, there are actually a lot more tree houses out there than you may have realized. There is even a tree house community in Costa Rica. Very cool!
For those of us without the tree, the space, the budget, or the willingness to take the extra step of building a home in the trees, there are lots of other ways you can create the feel of a tree house in your own home. Check out what has been questioned as as the best kids bedroom design ever. Spoiler alert, it looks like a tree house! There are lots of other examples of children’s bedrooms that have been transformed into indoor tree houses too, have a look here.
If you prefer the experience without the hassle of building and owning your own tree house, or designing your home to look like one, there is a tree house hotel in Sweden. Can you imagine falling asleep to the gentle sway of the tree and sounds of the wind rustling through the leaves, and then wake up feeling refreshed to one of the most breathtaking views ever? Sounds amazing to me.
While tree houses aren’t for everyone, they certainly do make you wonder about the different ways people live. Personally, I don’t think I could live in one as my main residence due to size constraints. I also have enough frustration navigating the numerous elevators to get out of a modern high rise. That said, a tree house would make a very cool guest house, home office, or simply a relaxing get away —definitely something to think about.
Things We Like: Barn Doors in the Bedroom
Post by Kyle St. Romain.
Continuing through my bathroom remodel, which continues to surprise me in terms of how complicated and expensive redoing a small bathroom can be, I wanted to share with you a little design feature that I am going to incorporate into my master bedroom/bathroom: the barn door.
My bathroom renovation brings up a lot of design challenges, particularly because it is a small space and the plumbing for the toilet and shower cannot be changed. The way my bathroom was originally planned, the entry door (entered through the bedroom) opened inwards. While this layout made it easy to go between the two rooms, it took up too much of the precious space inside the bathroom. Worse yet, the door opened across the shower door, which meant that you had to enter the bathroom and close the door behind you before you could enter the shower. Talk about an inconvenience!
My first thought to remedy this problem was to have a pocket door installed; however, there were some major negatives to this approach. Since building code prohibits many condominium dwellers from installing any flammable materials, like wood, inside the wall, I would have had to get a custom pocket doorframe fabricated from metal (read: expensive). If the cost of the pocket door frame itself wasn’t enough to deter me from the idea, I would have also had to relocate light switches and electrical outlets installed on the inside of that wall (read: more expensive). Thankfully, my designer had a great idea: install a barn door on the outside of the bathroom. Brilliant!
I scoured the web to learn everything I could about barn doors. What I learned is that no two barn doors are alike, and its really an excersize in creativity and personal taste. One big thing I did read up on before finalizing my decision was the pros and cons of using a barn door vs. a pocket door. Below are some quick bullet points of what I learned:
- Noise. Barn doors and pocket doors both do not provide as much noise insulation than regular doors, and barn doors offer the least due to the gaps between the door and the wall. If you’re using a barn door or a pocket door for a room next to a high traffic area in your home, you may want to consider other options. My bathroom is tucked away in the back corner of my apartment, inside the bedroom, so noise issues weren’t a big concern for me here.
- Cost. Barn doors can be more expensive than pocketed doors due to increased cost of the door and the track hardware it glides across. There are some really clever DIY solutions for making a barn door on the cheap, but I wanted something that would really stand out and enhance both the bedroom and the bathroom. Plus, a metal frame pocket door was going to be much more expensive than its wooden counterpart, so the price difference really wasn’t that much for me.
- Design. Barn doors are more in-your-face than pocket doors, and some people are not fond of seeing the exposed track system on the outside of their wall. This is more of a personal preference, and I actually like the rustic style. That said, barn doors come in all shapes, sizes, and colors – so there is a lot of flexibility in finding a door that suits your décor.
- Other considerations. With a barn door, you will also need an empty space on the wall adjacent to your doorway for the barn door to slide over when the door is open. This can be tricky in smaller rooms, and the space needs to be a bit wider than the doorway itself. You’ll also want to reframe your doorway or just have drywall edges if you’re using a barn door. This helps create a slicker look and makes it look like the barn door was meant to be there, not just an afterthought.
Feeling a bit more educated about barn doors, I headed over to Houzz to browse the galleries for some inspiration. One thing I noticed that really made certain barn doors stand out from the others was the use of reclaimed, or at least distressed, wood. Reclaimed barn doors can be very expensive though, and I wouldn’t have been saving much money vs. going with a pocket door. Thankfully, I found a local carpenter who takes apart old barns as a hobby and turns them into reclaimed treasures. I met with him, and we agreed that he would build me a custom barn door at a reasonable price. I think the fact that the door would be going into a reclaimed building (the building used to be, and still is to a certain extent, an old train station). I’m still waiting on my door to be finished, but am very excited about getting it! You can expect to see some photos when the project is complete.
