SERVING SALEM
A place for Everything
Optimizing your home’s space: Creating specialized spaces
As the needs of today’s families are ever-changing, the use and design of their home is also evolving to keep pace. More and more we are seeing new trends when it comes to specialized spaces in the home.
Kids Centers
Transitioning from school and activities to home life
Managing the mountains of school supplies and sports equipment that come through the door with the kids at the end of the day (and often don’t make it much further into the house) can be a daunting challenge. Solution? Homeowners are expanding on the concept of the mud room to create “staging areas” for the kids, complete with personal areas for each child in the family for the storage of bags, coats, boots and more. Some parents are even providing lockers for each youngster to help keep the clutter – and school supplies in particular – contained and close at hand for the morning departure. Add counter space for activities and craft projects, complete with built-in sinks and you’ve got a multi-functional space that keeps kids organized and the household running that much more smoothly.
Extending for an extended family
Grandparent suites accommodate changing lifestyles
As people are living longer, it has become more and more common for grandparents to live in their kids homes. An emerging design as a result, is the integration of the lifestyles of these new/older householders into the existing fabric of the home. Today’s version of the self-contained in-law suite provides for ease of use by older residents without sacrificing design values. Remodeling to provide for free-flowing ground floor plans with “comfort height” amenities, independent HVAC systems and state-of-the-art electronic communication all combine to create spaces conducive to independent living while maintaining a close connection to the rest of the family.
Sweet retreat
Master suites meld the functional with the indulgent
Heads of households are also creating special places of their own where recharging to take charge of the day means spaces that meld practicality with pleasure. In the new master suite, privacy and sanctuary are affordable luxuries, with features like wet bars, parlors, fireplaces, jetted tubs and steam showers joining forces with expansive boutique style walk-in closets, adjoining studies, dual sinks and separate bath, shower and dressing facilities to ensure that daily chores and necessities are equally graciously accommodated.
Storage solutions
Organization key to making specialized spaces work
The common theme in the success of these and other purpose-built spaces is in the way they address the ongoing challenge of storage. Those closets in the master suite conceal a host of shelves, rods, drawers and cubbies in which to neatly tuck and fold away every conceivable garment and accessory. Master baths offer cleverly concealed cabinets for endless quantities of essential bath items. Grandparent suites keep counters and closet shelves beneath arm-stretch distance. And that locker-room/mud room space for the kids quite simply has to have a shelf, a cupboard, a nook, a hook and a cranny for every conceivable shape and size of object.
Integrating extensive (and stylish) storage is becoming a core component of the most successful remodeling schemes. Tailoring storage to the functions of specialized spaces is the key to this new approach of organizing and enjoying everyday life.