If there’s one thing we’ve all learnt from the pandemic, it’s that staring at the same four walls all day long can get pretty boring.
This has led to a quest for spaces within the home that can be repurposed quickly and easily, allowing us to do a wider range of activities without leaving home when required.
It’s also led to recognition that it’s far too easy to blur the lines between work and play, which isn’t always a good thing. After all, how can you feel like your work day is done if you’re eating dinner at the same table where your home office is situated?
Photo credit: https://www.homedit.com/under-staircase-desk/
With a little bit of ingenuity, it’s surprising how you can find little nooks around the house. Underneath a set of stairs is a space that can be used as a study nook for work or study, and you may even be able to add a door or curtain so you can hide it away at the end of the day.
Another popular workaround for a dedicated work space is the inside of a wardrobe. This solution has the added advantage of being able to close the doors at the end of the day. A perfect way to separated your work and personal lives!
With the rise in video, why not have a specific space with good natural light where you can style an attractive background? Shut the door for privacy and have a collapsible desk so that when you’re done the space can be used as a yoga room.
Don’t have the luxury of a spare room? Consider using moveable dividers in bigger rooms to create more intimate spaces. The room can be used for work, study or exercise purposes during the day. Then at night equipment can be moved into a corner, hidden by the dividers, and the bigger room repurposed as a larger living/dining space.
Another great idea is to create an outdoor living space. Being able to get outside and relax is definitely a welcome change if you have access to an external area. Even a comfy chair and a few plants on a tiny balcony can be very relaxing. A well-designed outdoor space can be used for family meals, exercise or just a place to escape the same four walls when you need to.
Finally, if you’re in the process of designing a new home, talk to your architect about incorporating multi-purpose spaces. Our homes have gotten much bigger in recent years, so a lot of the areas within it are unused for a large part of the day.
With some creativity and clever design, you can build a house that feels twice as big by incorporating the ability to use spaces in more than one way throughout the day.
