Our homes, like our lives, are constantly changing especially when we start a family and suddenly our homes are full of baby paraphernalia. Toys, buggies, bottles, nappies, car seats, nappies....nappies....nappies.
Our children have grown a bit and now there are toys everywhere. We need to be near our children so a playroom close to the kitchen would be ideal. Oh, and don’t forget storage, lots of storage with doors on the front so that we can hide everything and return to adult normality when the kids have gone to bed.
Before we know it our 'babies' are nearly as tall as us, and they need somewhere to do their homework. That somewhere needs to be where you can keep an eye on them so that when they are being quite it isn’t because they are on the Xbox or Play Station.
In the next breath, all the stress of the exams is over and now your bright young things are off to Uni have an empty space.
No sooner than your kids have moved to their own place you get a phone call from Mum or Dad saying they are struggling and you need to help them more often, only they live so far away. Perhaps it would be better if they move nearer or better still, can they move in with you?
I am sorry, it has probably only taken you a minute or so to read this, yet I have whizzed through 20 odd years of your life and in that time you are probably still living in the same house.
So how can your home cope with the ebb and flow of family life?
We are all familiar with loft conversions, it is such a perfect space to create one or two small bedrooms or a master bedroom, complete with an en-suite bathroom and dressing room.
Superb insulation by companies such as Kingspan mean that the loft should be cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
If you have a fantastic garden and planning permitting, why not incorporate a Velux Cabrio Balcony a gem of a space saver.
Even a simple Dormer window will create so much more extra ceiling height and bring natural light into the space you are creating. By creating and extra bedroom this now means that you have a spare room for parents but if they can’t manage the stairs and you are lucky enough to have a garage, think about creating an Annex.
Space will be limited so careful planning of an annex is essential. Here are my top 5 things to consider:
Will this self-contained area need to include a kitchen and bathroom?
Drainage – where can clean water come in and dirty water leave?
Waste – are you able to connect to the sewage pipes?
Access – will you need an independent entrance or enter through your own property?
Electric supply – can you run cables from your house into the garage?
Keeping to the original footprint of your home and re-designing space will save a lot of money if you cannot afford to extend your property, it is also a lot quicker to action than extending.
You will need planning permission/consent so before you call your architect, call an experienced Interior Designer who understands space planning to help you fully develop the potential of the space available.
If you have an question please call or email us at Fusion, we'd be delighted to help.
020 8786 0520 | create@fusion-interiordesign.co.uk
Wishing you all the best ,
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