Back when my house needed therapy...(can you relate?)

This week I thought it would be fun to talk about how the rooms in your house get along--both with each other and with you.  

If your rooms flow one to the next, and feel fantastic to spend time in, then that is wonderful. Congrats! You have a relationship that many would envy! 

But, if your rooms are small, halting spaces that are disjointed and closed off from one another-- and you feel frustrated and cramped when in them-- then it may be time to think about how we can improve this very important relationship in your life. :)

One solution for a home that feels cramped is to investigate ways to open up interior views from one room to the next. Long sight lines, especially diagonal ones, give the feeling of more space without changing the footprint of the rooms involved at all. 

Before I did this for a living, in my own house a small front hall had frustrated me for years.  I had a feeling that the room's original layout had been tampered with because it just felt wrong. 

Instead of a graceful, Victorian-era entrance, it seemed like a pokey space-- an afterthought with very little elbow room and no charm at all. 

Sure enough, after closer inspection, we realized that the wall was not original but probably had been added in the 1970's...(by the way, this discovery was more exciting for me than if I had won the lottery. There was a lot of jumping up and down and clapping as I took these pictures back in 2005. :) True story).

The small doorway that had been added, with its low header and cramped feeling, completely blocked the view of one of the nicest architectural features of our home--the staircase--and made both spaces feel so much smaller. 

SO, you know that wall had to go! 

With the wall removed, the dining room and front hall were able to relate to each other once again and share light, space, and a feeling of openness--all hallmarks of a healthy relationship. 

As you can see, nothing has changed in the dimensions of these spaces, but your perception of the amount of space that there is, is very, very different.

Widening doorways, opening portions of walls for interior "windows," or removing portions of walls altogether are all great ways to help your home live larger (with the help of a knowledgable contractor and designer, of course!). Certainly this is more involved than just moving a few pieces of furniture, but if you are frustrated by what feels like a cramped abode, then this option is far less expensive than adding on.

Remember, no room in your home ever acts alone, but interacts and converses with the other areas around it, and what kind of dialog they have has a huge impact on how your house feels to you.  Encouraging a good relationship between the rooms in your house can make your house live so much larger than the number of square feet between your walls!  

I didn't have a chance to show these to you yet...(An 80's Kitchen--BEFORE & AFTER PT 2!)

Last week, I shared the results of a fabulous kitchen renovation we recently completed--so fun!

And THIS WEEK, I cannot wait to share the adjacent family room space that now is a part of the newly redesigned kitchen!

This is how the space looked before renovation:

And the same angle now...

The space seemed pretty dark before, and was closed off from the kitchen, making both spaces seem smaller...

But now, with the dividing wall gone, light and space is shared, nice loooonggg sight lines are created, and both rooms feel so much lighter and more spacious. :)

We removed the wet bar you see at the bottom right below...

which allowed for a more updated look with open shelves (a perfect toy storage area for their little ones!).

We found a loveseat and ottoman to compliment the chairs and sofa they already had, creating a nice seating area and lounge for TV watching...

and finished the space with bright, colorful accents to give a pop to the neutral colors of the walls and upholstered pieces. The accessories, which have a modern and eclectic feel, blend the traditional items, such as their beautiful rug, with more contemporary pieces like the original art that they love. 

It is wonderful to see how much the spaces have changed, and know that my clients will enjoy spending time together here as a family, throughout the seasons, for many years to come! :)

Mid Century Addition

Erin gives a tour of an addition she designed for a noteworthy mid century home, using universal design principles. 💕

An 80's Kitchen? Yep. (BEFORE & AFTER)

There is nothing I love more than a good BEFORE shot...

This one is from my client's house when it was on the market back in 2016-- just before they bought it, and a few months before we started the whole house renovation that would make it feel like their home:

Here is what it looks like now, after rethinking the space, opening it up to the adjacent family room & dining room, and reconfiguring the kitchen layout so it works SO much better for modern family living: 

As you can tell from this shot, this makes me pretty happy... (I do LOVE what I do!!)

Lots to be happy about in here! A new LARGE island perfect for food prep and entertaining, 

Gorgeous new cabinets, lighting, appliances, countertops, tile work...

And a beautiful new eating area, allowing for cozy family dinners.

At this end of the kitchen, the room felt like a dead end before, and the overall flow of the downstairs was choppy. To fix this we created a new doorway to the dining room--so now there is more of a feeling of openness, flow & connection between the all of the spaces on the first floor.

Take a look at the BEFORE shot here: 

And heereeee is the new--although you can't see around the corner in this shot, the doorway is right where that arrow is! :)

CAN'T WAIT!! NEXT WEEK I will show you the photos of the family room space... :)

You are not alone if you have a room like this...

Erin discusses how to tell if you have a room that is "expired," and the simple steps to take to fix it if you do.