Get What You Need From the House You Have

dforte I removed a soaking tub from my master bath. It was replaced with a double shower. Next, I turned the original stall shower into a laundry closet for a stackable washer and dryer. This change allowed me to use the original first floor laundry into a mud room.

olldbobbi Smart ideabook, almost like :use what you have" decorating.

midmodfan We also removed a soaking tub from the master bath (it was the only tub in the house, but we never used it) and put in a large shower and a stacked washer/ dryer. We opened a storage room to the vestibule and built a wall of cabinets instead- much more spacious layout. And we turned another storage room, off the master bedroom, into a nook for a queen size bed, thus being able to turn the master bedroom into a second living room.

Most important: we got rid of tons of stuff. That's really the cheapest way to shed a lot of 'burdens' (yes, some possessions are burdens!) and make organizing so much easier.

madeleinejs This is one of the best idea books ever, with its message about making do. Most houses that have character and style have gotten that way because the owners looked at their true needs instead of what they think is right or what conforms to perceived norms. I get tired of homes that are out of boxes or for show-- with dining rooms no one uses or picture-perfect, but lifeless guest rooms. Thanks!

calkelley After having a living room we hardly used and a family room open to the kitchen, we put the main TV in the living room. The room had the best sofa, lower ceilings (TV turned way loud to compensate in high ceilinged FR) and the best decorated room is now a room we enjoy all the time!
Now I will always have a flat screen in any LR - we can still use the room formally as well. The FR has now become the game room - pool table, card table, games, etc.
Love the idea of the office/guest bedroom and the living room/wine storage. While those can have an expensive retrofitting (built-in bookcases and Murphy bed, formal, presentable wine storage), the cost is nothing compared to building another room!

olldbobbi midmodfan, I totally agree with you! If one has so much stuff they have to buy more storage stuff, it's time to get rid of some stuff.

tlbeck We have a 120+ year old Townhouse that was a gut rehab job about 10 years ago. The rehabbers added this ridiculously large (and leaky) jacuzzi tub from 12'X13' third floor laundry/bathroom. Now the room functions not only as my very comfortable home office but a craft room as well. It still houses a side by side W/D, a four piece bathroom suite with a walk in closet as well as a custom built in desk sitting in front of a double window and an old kitchen island as my crafting table. Tons of repurosed storage with an industrial vibe rounds out my slice of heaven!

bonnieinflorida I live in a senior citizen apt building where half the 3-room units have exactly the same floor plan as my own while the other half are 'mirror images'. The walls, carpets and kitchen/bath flooring are also exactly the same. And yet when I visit my neighbors' apartments, I'm struck by how different each looks and feels. And as far as I know, mine is the only bedroom with a 1940's Hollywood glamour vibe. The author is right, it's all about adapting what you have to give you what you need.

Lanie Brown Great article, Jean! I appreciate the encouragement to love our homes and define our spaces for our needs.

olldbobbi We have three bedroom for just the two of us, so we put the dog's kennel in one of the spare rooms. When my husband went to visit his parents in Mexico, he told them "the dog has his own room". I'm certain they were thinking "Americans have too much"!!!!

olldroo In my next life I'm coming back as Bobbi's dog!!

amybeadle We removed a wall between two mostly-unused rooms on the lower level of our house and converted the space to a library, complete with a wood-burning stove. It's open and airy, but I still expect it to be very cozy all winter long. The best part about the project was that it forced us to get rid of tons of junk that was taking up valuable space down there.

Barbara Loyd We are ready to scale down and after analyzing what we want, the formal living room and dining room plus one guest room are hardly used. Going smaller makes sense. Thanks for the ideas, the Murphy bed in the office is something we will add.

lorirobinson Loved, loved this! I have been thinking I would move in to my perfect home someday, maybe I'm already there and just don't know it! Time to rethink where I am, and how I can make this house I'm often at odds with, feel more useful! Thanks for the inspiration!

olldbobbi groovygranny, me too! He gets to sleep all day!

Debie Wilson We put one of these beds in our tiny condo and it worked perfect for my youngest son to stay with us for about 10 months after he sold his house and was looking to build his next home. It sleeps just like a "normal" bed and every morning, he would just fold it up and go to work. The bed is in the living room and looks like a cabinet. During the day, you would never know he was staying with us. He used the side hutches as his closet with a hanging bar.


http://bredacomponents.com/shop/murphy-wall-beds/premium-horizontal-murphy-wall-bed-with-top-hutch-and-2-side-hutches.html

debbieafi We are huge sports fans, so we turned our formal dining room into a gameroom with pooltable and the the walls are covered in pictures from our favorite games and other sports memorbilia.

tworicks We turned our unused dining room into a home office, closed off the opening to the kitchen and removed the wall separating the new office from the small foyer to make both areas feel larger. Now we use the room daily.

patricia beharry Had a big laundry room. Took the machines out put them in a closet behind the kitchen, got rid of the dryer (put up a clothes line outside, tropics), I am now writing this from my new computer room/ office.

Amanda Simons Great article. The home we bought two years ago has a lot of great features, but also a lot of things that don't make sense because it was built as a summer cabin and then added onto. (for instance, the master bath is separated from the bathroom by mudroom/office; the kitchen is huge and the eating area very narrow.) I knew when we bought it we would be making some changes, but now the issue is having the time and money. I've done a lot of homework and have finished most of the planning and I've been very careful to use classic and timeless materials so it DOESN'T go out of style in 5 years...

karenemily Love this article. It came at a very good time as we have plenty of room but it simply isn't configured for how we use the house. We don't want to move. Now to search for a professional to help us redesign the space!

therealnester We're moving/downsizing and the home we bought is missing one thing we hoped for--a den/3rd bedroom/office space.
The home *does* have a small addition to the living room which is referred to as a Carolina Room. It's a weird 8'x13' addendum to the living room but with 3' walls on either side of the division. It's not as if there's really any privacy from the living room. That will house our office space.
The home also has a four season room. There are pull down blinds on all three glass sides. With our nice platform queen-sized air mattress the sunroom will become the 3rd bedroom when needed. The room has a glass roof so guests will have privacy with a view of the stars.
I'll post pictures after we move.

pansyollie Love these ideas for repurposing space in our homes. I agree that you need to make your home your own personal haven. But as a realtor I do know that making changes that are too personal and would be expensive to remove can be costly at resale - even 5 years down the road. Removing the only tub from a family sized home may be the change that prevents a family with young children from buying your home. Yes, you can always add a tub back in (if there is space) but families are busy and would be more likely to pass up a home rather than renovate at that time in their lives. The smaller you make the market for your home the harder it will be to sell. I'm just suggesting you do think about down the road and you weigh the advantages over the long term disadvantages.

calkelley I always thought a glass room with blinds would make a great guest room! Hmm, unless you liked it so much, you took it over ...

Peter Medvin Great article! So many folks are making do with what they have, just making it better! A better solution than the Murphy Bed (as shown above re the home office) is the Zoom-Room, the electric, remote controlled, retractable Murphy Bed. Because you can use the space in front for a flat screen TV or shelving, it's undetectable and saves even more space than other wall beds. It also works great in your living room. Check it out at www.Zoom-Room.com.

bungalowbabe We've lived in an old bungalow for many years now. It used to have 2 bedrooms and 1 bath on the main level and a finished attic as the third (master) bedroom. Several years ago I got fed up with it and told my husband "remodel or move, your choice". We combined the bath and one main level bedroom into one new eat-in kitchen (reusing the cabinets from the old kitchen); made the old kitchen into a master bedroom; turned the 2nd main level bedroom into 2 bathrooms (guest and master); and split the attic bedroom into 2 bedrooms. We don't have any more square footage, but it's very liveable now.

olldbobbi bungalowbabe, Wow! How did you figure that all out? That's complicated!

Betsy Giannini Design, LLC Previous owners had built a family room addition onto our house and it had a flat roof. We built a roof-top deck onto it. Just love it! It's like being in an open treehouse when the trees are full of leaves. We eat al-fresco all the time.

olldbobbi Betsy, what a great idea! And what a great way to spy on the neighbors.....:)

tkap5 Great article, and I am loving the ideas in the comments!

bungalowbabe Bobbi P: Drawing floorplans is kindof a hobby and I used some houseplan software to help visualize the finished product. And when you're desperate :-) The real plus of the design we ended up with is that the kitchen plumbing and the new bathrooms were all close to the original bath plumbing.

susanwojo This is a great discussion board! My husband I were just looking at our main floor bathroom last night trying to decide how we will renovate. To gain space, we thought about taking out the tub and shower and replacing it with a shower enclosure. However, I wondered if this would impact resale down the road. We would be eliminating the tub on the main floor however there is a tub in the upstairs bathroom. What are your thoughts? Thanks.

tomsgal09 Like so many of you, I ditched the 90's style jet tub for a large master shower and NEVER looked back once. So nice to shower in a spacious place and strangely enough it is easier to clean. In the home I am in the process of buying currently (yes, a downsize for this almost empty nester), I am removing the laundry room and placing the washer and dryer in a corner of the unfinished basement. This will allow me to extend my kitchen a full 7 feet and provide much needed space for cabinets and an eat-in area. So much more valuable to me than a first floor laundry. When the last of the kiddos moves out, I plan to seal off the closet in his room which backs up to the linen closet, extend the linen closet an additional three feet back, and create an second floor laundry. SWEEEET! My new "office without a closet" can easily hold an extra portable closet for the linens, as well as a small pull-out sofa so if one of the kids come back for a visit, I have a place for them to sleep.

Vicki D Our home had a den (4th bedroom??) and family room that shared a wall (think den at the front of the house and family room at the back). The den also had a small closet and a built in desk. Both rooms opened from the foyer. We removed the shared wall, took down both doorways into the foyer and opened up the room to make a large family room. A computer station occupies the area where the closet was and the foyer and "new" space all have new, continuous hardwood floors. This allowed us to redo an ugly brick floor to ceiling fireplace, that was not centered to the space, with a stone fireplace, custom hearth and custom mantel with display niches. We now have an open, well used, room that we love. Phase two entailed widenng the arch between the livingroom and dining room. Since we couldn't totally remove the walls due to the ductwork, we enclosed the ducts in columns with additonal open space on both sides of the columns (very creative on husband's part, if I do say so myself). Oh, we have also removed the wall connecting the "original" family room with the kitchen pending that remodel which will tie into the dining room open concept. Phew...

olldbobbi susanwojo, Wow! Your husband participates! Mine just says he doesn't care, then when I'm done he tells me how much he doesn't like it!!! Where are the bedrooms in your house? If they're upstairs I'd say you're ok with removing the downstairs tub.

deedeelouise We had a teeny tiny family room with a TV off our kitchen which comfortably sat 2-3 people. Yet, our huge formal living room with great views was seldom if ever used. We renovated the living room by redesigning the fireplace to open up to the breakfast area, making it more comfortable with plenty of seating, and converted the old family room into a walk-in pantry and a bar. It's the best design decision we ever made.

olldbobbi deedeelouise, nicely done!

hotknitter I converted guest quarters into my craft room/office. Against everyone's opinion, I removed the kitchen to put in a custom closet, which holds clothes, decorations, my yarn stash, a gift wrapping center, gifts, 4 veritcal files. Also against everyone's opinion, I removed the living room fireplace so I could have floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall bookshelves. Now the space is where I spend most of my time. Yeah for making spaces fully usable rather than leaving them "as is" for future buyers.

susanwojo Bobbi P - Thanks for your comments. I am very fortunate that my husband helps out! 2 bedrooms upstairs and 2 bedrooms downstairs. The master is upstairs.

ltcroucher When we bought our 1974 split level, the main floor had a small master suite on the water view side of the house, with small windows accessing the view. Two smaller bedrooms were on the street side of the house. We opened up the whole space on the water view side essentially tripling the entertainment space, and added a second sliding door to take advantage of the river view. We replaced the two small bedrooms with the master bedroom, bath and walk-in on the street side. Then installed pocket doors so we see the view from our bedroom through the second sliding doors. The laundry was moved from the utility room in the lower level to the same floor as the bedroom, so no more struggling with the laundry basket up the stairs. We added a second bedroom to the one bedroom in the lower level for guests. We did not change the footprint of the house but we certainly tailored it to our needs.

olldbobbi hotknitter, you REMOVED the kitchen??? I hate to cook, I am definitely going to try that!

melissabaldwin We had a formal living room with French doors off the entry. It has a fabulous fireplace and we never used the room. We added a bar and two pub tables. The room looks like a pub and we use it all the time. We hung sports photos and there are trophies on shelves and it is a true lounge! We watch sports and have happy hours and when we entertain it creates a fantastic flow around the house. It no longer is an unused room!

olldroo Bobbi, send your husband on an extended overseas trip. Mine would never get involved either, that way if anything went wrong it wasn't his fault. Two years ago he spent 6 months overseas with our daughters and a totally different person came back. He immediately announced the house was to be totally renovated, came up with all his plans to finance it and told me the changes he wanted (all what I had been wanting for years of course). He actually goes shopping on his own looking for ideas and products, wants to build things, has learned how to use a paintbrush (although watching is more painful than watching the paint dry) and has opinions on just everything. It is really weird, I'm honestly waiting for the bubble to burst. If I find out what coloured pills he is on I will let you know.

olldbobbi groovygranny, that is so funny, and COOL!!! Actually in April my husband went to Mexico to visit his family, and while he was gone I painted the living room two colors - beige on top and blue gray on the bottom separated by an off white chair rail. I asked him BEFORE he went and he said the usual "I don't care". Now I find out he DOES care, DOESN'T like it at all and this weekend we will be repainting it gray. WE!!! I did it once, if he doesn't like it he can help, right?

Ok, maybe you can help me with this. We live in a real cow town. There are literally as many cows and horses as people. Hubby wants to do the whole house in a very contemporary design, much like a loft space. How do I make this work? I just cannot see this happening successfully!

olldroo Bobbi - just went onto Google Earth to check out your home town - it is huge by our standards and a country town with Hollywood Street names???? I visualise a country town here with 50 homes (if that), usually early settlers or pre-war where anything really contemporary would stick out like a sore toe and probably wouldn't suit the climate either but where you are, I honestly can't see any style of decorating not working. It is all about you, remember, you are living there. Maybe you will have to compromise a bit when your tastes are obviously so different, but that can be achieved. Sit him down with Houzz, go through rooms selecting the contemporary theme and find things you agree on. Work room at a time or it gets too confusing and see what you can build. Take photos of your rooms too, it is amazing how you can suddenly see things in a different light with a photo. Even changing furniture arrangements can totally change a room. I know there are heaps of homes here you have drooled over - take a step outside the box, maybe a lot of them are achievable for you, more than you realise, you can compromise on expensive furniture and furnishings and still get the same visual result.

Interesting your husband coming from Mexico - mine has Spanish origins ...........hmmmmm............

olldbobbi groovygranny, yes it's a large town but mostly farmland! We have Hollywood street names? I didn't know that! I think we have 85,000 people. California isn't that old, not like the East Coast where all the history is.

Thanks for the encouragement and I think you're right about the picture taking, when I see pictures of rooms on Houzz I can usually tell right away what I would do to fix, but seeing my same space everyday baffles me! And sitting him down with Houzz pics works....in theory! I'll try, wish me luck!

Spanish, like from Spain? Hmmm, maybe you and I are related! Six degress of separation, and all that!

olldroo Bobbi, I take it you don't live in the Mocking Bird Lane area - lol. Good luck with it all, dig up all the patience you can, you just never know. I'm struggling, change is hard at my age, but I find biting my tongue helps a lot too while he is actually in a communicating mood. Some days it is almost like living with Chatty Cathy!!!

Yes it is Spanish as in from Spain, not sure now if it is 3rd or 4th generation.

trasgorshek The only change I've done to the floor plan is converting a coat closet to an over due food pantry. We really needed the extra storage space and never used the coats that were hanging in the closet because we always forgot about them. The change only made sense.

Groovygranny and BobbiP, you guys are cracking me up. My husband is home about 40 days a year so all changes are done by me and always on a very tight budget. I get a kick out of every time he comes home because the house is always different in some way. I sit back and giggle as he try's to point out the changes. I try to leave the finishing touch till he gets home so he can feel like he had a voice in the space. :) I also try to balance the feminine and masculine aspect of the decor so that he will "hopefully" like the space. We kind of just humor each other when it comes to our home. But deep down I think he knows that if he ever says he doesn't like something then I will hand him a paint brush and say "have fun".

olldroo trasgorshek - don't the kindred spirits keep aligning!!! As for humouring each other, isn't that what marriage is all about.

I have decided after years of experience that the perfect kitchen would have two walk in pantries, one for food and one for dishes. Sadly, I just can't fit both into my kitchen but it would reduce the need for many other cupboards, and a kitchen could be reduced way down in size.

C.W.Pottery After failing to ever get anyone to use the formal dining room. I turned it into my office.

Cypress Moon Love the open concept and large windows of the "family room"!

jillybeansisme I designed my current house. I did it for me and my daughter. It is now for sale and while many might not agree with some of my choices -- THERE IS A BUYER FOR EVERY HOME. I've heard one is making an offer this coming weekend on my home. They love the 8' windows in the kitchen, the EZ reach cabinets, the 3 1/2' stone/marble/tile mosaic that is custom made by me and in the kitchen floor. They love the work space in it while it has a small footprint (8' x 8" floor space). They are amazed by the large "L" shaped pantry and that the laundry room has so much storage and a little spot for a sewing machine. The repurposed 4th bedroom became an office/den with a kitchenette and it's own front door. I have a soaking tub and a HUGE shower in the MBR bath . . . the linen closet is 7' long and there's a closet for guests and a closet for the vacuum cleaner. It is a design that lives large and makes sense (and there's room for their classic car collection).

I was told by the first builder of my next house that I need to design it for resale value. He's since been fired. I designed it for my needs and most anyone would love it even though I had to downsize. Live for you . . . somebody will always see promise in your house if they want to buy it.

missmeghan702 I love this discussion! I live in Las Vegas... land of the unused formal living room. I have one now and it just collects my pretty furniture, where I've sat with people maybe a half dozen times. We plan to buy a single level house in about a year, and I've been able to narrow my search down to a couple of neighborhoods - but much to my dismay almost all of them have a formal living room. I found a house I love but it has a huge formal dining/living room.... so lying in bed one night I re-imagined the space, I think I could turn the formal living room into an enclosed (either with doors or an archway) office/craft area with a sitting area for reading, then use the former formal dining room to add a large pantry and possibly expand the kitchen by a few feet. The possibilities are endless!

alliebean In the original floorplan of our home, what was considered the 'formal' dining room off the kitchen was way too small for our needs. The eat-in portion of the kitchen is small and we have family over for dinner and casually entertain quite a bit. With a family room in the basement I knew we didn't need two living rooms upstairs so our dining room is now in what was considered the 'formal living room,' and the original dining room has bookcases and a desk along one wall for my office. We also hope to remove the half wall between it and the kitchen to make a peninsula with seating and turn the small eat-in corner of the kitchen into much needed cabinet and countertop space. Love the idea of using the space you have!

olldbobbi I think unless you entertain extensively, or your name is J.R. Ewing, formal dining rooms need to do double duty. A nice armoir that actually opens up to a desk and a wooden lateral file cabinet would blend nicely, and the file cabinet can act as a buffet.

resqchick1 Please tell me where I can find that dog wallpaper?? I am a dog finatic. I have to have it!

calkelley trasgorshek - did you mean 'over due food' pantry or 'over due pantry' for food? hee hee.

I would hate to get rid of my living room. I do like that when guests come into the house, they see a nice room they can sit in and talk in (which happens often as it's set up for that). But by putting the main TV in it, you ensure it will be used all the time by family - plus it has the nicest couches (and awesome view) and we enjoy that all the time.

I wish I had thought of (or could have afforded) putting a pool table in the family room of my last house - it has been a great addition. But the large back wall that extended 16ft high was the place my now 15 year old used for 13 years as a place to throw balls against - he's a baseball nut and it did improve his reflexes (did break a few picture glass but we moved it all). Talk about using the house for what fits you! I like having the family room now that we play in - as a family!

calkelley Grrrrr - nobody goes near my huge spa tub! Could care little what else was in the master bath besides that! Glass of wine, lap top computer (battery only!!!) on Netflix, outside lights on - 'don't disturb mom' sign needed!

olldroo Oh, no, Calkelly - getting away from it all does NOT include a laptop. Proper book only for true relaxation.

pattymazur Our formal living room became our main family tv room, opened the kitchen up into the unused dining room and gained so much usable space. We also divided an unusable lower level family room into an office, large craft closet, and two coat closets with a foyer that never existed before. I stopped worrying about the next buyer years ago. Never thought I'd be in this house so long, glad I made it my own now!

patscats2 Very neat ideas. Love the Murphy beds tucked away in the walls of an office. That's so cool.

calkelley groovygranny - just discovered Downton Abbey. Have had many a relaxing bath trying to get caught up to the present season!

olldroo Calkelley - OH YES!!! Love it too. We are a series behind you, just waiting for the next one to start. It was funny, when it was launched here they raved about how big it was in the States, which is meant to impress us, but the funny thing was everyone I spoke to there had never heard of it.

My problem is I'm too inclined to nod off in the bath so a cheap paperback is all I go with when it usually ends up underwater.

tcufrog I completely agree. I convinced my dh to turn the room the former owner used as a formal sitting room/pool table room into the playroom. Sure the front room that guests see is overrun with toys but it's used all the time and I can keep an eye on the boys while they are playing.

mrsben Haven't switched things around in our current home however in a small bungalow we once owned had (plaster not gyprock) walls coming down around me a week before Christmas. We enlarged the kitchen which in return eliminated the adjoining Dining Room and also involved a relocation of our stairs to a finished basement that achieved a visually open concept. As the front entrance was seldom used (it was a corner lot with a driveway/entrance on the side) the large vestabule and hallway was downsized to enlarge one of the three bedrooms. When we did move, we successfully sold the house by ourselves the first day so tweaking the original layout and assigning spaces for different tasks actually paid off.

christina love the window wall divider in the first picture, what a great way to separate space without making it feel closed in. I live in a house that at one time was a schoolhouse, converted to a living space in the 1930s, so the space is cozy. We use the living room quite a bit, especially since our only television (or conversation-killer, as I call it) lives in the basement family room, far away from kitchen activities. The den on the first floor is a library, also well used, and one of the guest rooms has an area set up for planting winter seedlings for the garden.

mmsalg I agree with so many things in this article. Put some money into the home you have and create a few custom pieces or aan area that'll work better for you. Great inspiration.

marcie
http://custm.co/hz/16

Deb Joshi "All they did was miss out on the opportunity of enjoying something they truly loved." That is sincerely sums up about most people I know even myself. Great article thank you.

Future plans are to turn small kitchen into study and upstairs sitting room into the kitchen and dinning room. Also the attic into the master bedroom bedroom.

laurahauser i removed a bedroom next to the master to make a large master that now houses all my clothes and an office area. I love it!

mallorie I love this ideabook! Also love your comment about the room for your dog Olldbobbi. We also have 3 bedrooms and use one for our marine aquarium... we call it the fishroom!

pariscafe When our home was destroyed by flood water we had to have it rebuilt. We kept the same footprint but reconfigured the house. We took out the formal lounge and dining and made all four bedrooms large . We created an airy spacious loung/dining and kitchen which opens onto a large deck. The single living area works better for us and family members can retreat to their own areas of the house when they need to. We also raised the house with two rooms downstairs now. We loved out old ome but love this version more.

carolincarolina This is a great idea book. Our house has a huge laundry room that is always a mess, and a tiny pantry. I love to cook, hate to do laundry. After reading this article I am looking at how to put a stacking w/d in the pantry and turn the laundry into a food & butlers pantry with an extra dishwasher for entertaining.

Golden Rule Creative Remodel Great post, with lots of ways to get homeowners thinking "outside the box". One point I find debatable is the idea that something will necessarily be out of style in 5 years. While I agree that 5 years is a good benchmark for deciding whether to "design for the masses", I believe there are usually ways to find an evergreen solution that pleases everyone and still looks great after 5 years.

olldroo Golden Rule, if you decorate to your own personal tastes and needs then things really don't go out of style because they are part of you and the person you are. Sure some products need updating from time to time, like flat screen TVs, and the low slung lounge needs replacing when old knees can no longer get out of it, but the basic style is still there because it comes from within. Slavishly following trends is when things go out in 5 years.

Golden Rule Creative Remodel That's true, @olldroo... however, if a client comes to me and says "we'll be moving in 5 years", as a professional I have to be very careful about the advice I give, because future sale-ability of the house is a known issue.
When a client knows they'll be in a house indefinitely, I agree 100%.. do what makes you happy.
One of the goals of good remodeling design should be to bridge these two considerations and get the best of both worlds.

appytrails Living in a one bathroom home worked when we all had to get ready and leave at different times. Once my husband and I retired and were both home during the day, I realized a 2nd bathroom was needed. There was no extra room, except for a closet that ran the length of the bedroom. Taking a few feet from the other side of the wall, where a linen closet was in the other bathroom, we created a powder room that works for us. It's footprint is 5 x 4, but with a large window, it doesn't feel as small as it is, and I'm pleased with how it turned out.

olldroo Golden Rule, talking two totally different markets here, resale-ability is helpful here but not essential as in 5 years so much can change, it really depends on what the buyers want and they generally buy at the lower end for price just to enter the market, and the higher end for location, amenities, schools and other conveniences. The lower end are just glad to be able to get a home and the higher end seem to have the money to do whatever they like. Those in the middle will choose size, layout and design of the house and location over a colour scheme and work to putting their own stamp on the house. Things that can't be changed are important, not the kitchen countertop. There just isn't the high expectation here that you seem to get.

Golden Rule Creative Remodel It's a great point, @olldroo. I think for me, at the end of the day, the important thing is to understand what each individual family is trying to accomplish. We work for clients across a wide spectrum, in all the categories you mentioned; but I don't think of anyone in terms of category. I just try to understand what their most important outcome is, and hopefully advise them on the best strategy based on our first hand experience with other successful projects in our marketplace.

astraea My house is a mid-50s ranch, and just over 10 years ago, someone bought & totally remodeled it. They opened up a lot of walls & raised the ceilings, for a great open-concept look, but one casualty (in my mind), was the loss of general purpose storage space on the main level. What I think had been a hall closet, was turned into a laundry area .. washer & dryer, no sink. I decided to relocate the laundry to the basement utility room, where I could add a sink & some hanging space, and turned that closet back into storage space. I’ve even “reclaimed” some space in the new laundry room, by replacing the conventional hot water heater, with a wall-mounted tankless one.

kitter I don't get it. Are we the only family in America that actually eats in our dining room, every day, every meal, also does homework there, etc.? It is the center of our house.
Also, why do people need a "living room" & a "family room"?
There are no unused rooms in our house (although no one spends much time in the furnace room:).

Kimberly Hicks Fantastic ideabook. When I purchased my 60s home, I remodeled it for ME. I am the one living here and if I have to sell it, someone else will either do what they want or not. I did not do a master tub. I did a steam shower and a heated bathroom floor (in Dallas!). I turned a bedroom into a closet (and it is heaven!). Everyone who has seen it says it is amazing. Ultimately, it makes ME happy.

The other great thing I did was de-clutter. I got rid of half my belongings. I'm not done. :)

minimumjoe I live in a faux Victorian bungalow. The interior design is a blend of minimalism and mid-century. When we painted the laundry in "tickled pink" two real estate agents pointed out the resale "issue." As this article points out, that "issue" is real only if you sell.

The house is also "improved" so that it's value would be out of range (per sq ft) with others in the neighborhood. We don't have a tub in the MBath, nor do we have a double vanity.

We have "daylight" led lighting throughout. In each room, there is something for other people to dislike. We take that as something of a virtue. We love it. We want to stay here. And now we couldn't afford to move anyway!

gerrycabc Thanks to everyone who commented on this extremely useful article.
I do have a question. In a guest room, is it best to have two twin-sized beds, or the usual queen-sized bed?

frenchdecor kitter it makes as two. We have small kitchen and don't extend it eliminating dining room because first, I prefer to dine in the "restaurant" instead of in "restaurant kitchen", second, we have very often gathering.
The best remodeling I did is removed built in closets and replaced with PAX wardrobes 236 cm high from IKEA. I designed them as I needed and wanted, all inserts (shelves, drawers, organizers, pull out pants rack...) are optional and width's are 0.5-0.75 and 1.0 meter, combine as many as you need. Additionally it doesn't cost a fortune as custom closets and it gives you flexibility in furniture arrangement. In child's room we did it stationary in 12"x 60" niche adding around wide crown molding up to the ceiling, it added sound barrier between room and bathroom.
Second big project was adding a shower in the basement cutting some space from laundry. My husband is a builder and we needed wardrobe in the laundry for his work clothes and take shower right away nearby. Many houses are not designed with "not white collar" workers living in them in mind: construction, road workers, movers, trades, farmers and on and on. No matter how many people need home offices nova days, "dirty" jobs are in demand always.

nancysterling A few years ago I got tired of hearing my husband complain that he never goes in the living room. I confess I did go in often, but just to water my orchids which thrive in the front windows. So I bit the built, removed my big coffee table and an extra chair and put in a pool table! I am happy I did. We added a light-- which was part of the problem that it was so dark. We still have a sitting area, but it is much smaller. But I am happy to see a room that is used rather than one that even the kids didn't understand.

judypiegza I did three things to my "new" house. I removed the mud room to double the size of the kitchen, and I placed the washer & dryer into the closet that was in the office. Moving the furniture around in the office gave me a place to fold. The space in the basement where the laundry was became the spot to wash the dogs, so now when they shake it off, I don't care!

astraea @gerrycabc - The types of sleep furniture really depends on the kind of guests you anticipate staying over. Are they couples, multiple grandchildren, a couple of single friends who like coming at the same time?

INSIDEOUT Modern and Traditional Great ideas from all! We added an outdoor living room complete with sconces and chandelier, TV, etc with a sundeck above. Great living spaces without adding to the taxable square footage!

digsblues Thanks for the tip on the PAX wardrobe, frenchdecor!

We have a college student friend living with us temporarily until she finishes school. I put her in a bonus room that has no closet, and installed a clothes rod on the wall. It looks very tacky. I got estimates to build a closet and a custom wardrobe, and they were very high, especially since this is a short term situation. I'm going to check out Ikea today!

betsyruss Bathroom remodels

sartarehare Honestly, I feel mildly offended. I live in a 620 sq foot house with my husband and 5 year old child. We've been looking for a new house for months. I've spent 7 years trying to make my space work. Sometimes it just doesn't. With 5 tiny rooms (including the smallest bathroom you've ever seen), there isn't any other way to do any re-arranging or space saving. My house was a squeeze for me and my husband when we bought it. Now, we really have outgrown it.
And I don't even own an Iphone. Or a new car, etc.

maggiemay When I was searching to buy a townhouse I found this one I bought because it had a small dinner room at the front to use as my new office/library. This place has another large table space between the kitchen and living room for everyday use and for holiday dinners. We keep this office/library very neat since it's seen from the front windows. On the back wall has a bookcase with books, photos, and covered containers and baskets for office supplies that once housed a TV and sound system. Of course, it has been painted with new window treatments. I love having my computer by the windows to view all the creatures and all the comings and goings. Gone are the days of unused space!



Mona From several ideas from houzz designers, we set out to rebuild a very small bathroom. We took a door where the vanity now sits and moved a wall over 2' into the overlarge laundry room to fit a new walk-in shower. A nice surprise was the increase size vanity we were able to put in Here is our new bathroom. Thank you Houzz designers and would-be designer for your wonderful ideas!

kaz2 gerrycabc have you seen those beds that can be single ones or zipped together to make a king size. Here's a link to the idea...http://www.factory-beds-direct.co.uk/all-about-zip-and-links

multiplemom22000 We took our existing kitchen, dining room and sun room and incorporated all the space into one big entertaining kitchen space. It made our 1970's house have the open and airy feel of the new builds. Best redecorating decision ever!

sfgreenberg Our home had a very small bathroom, the only one in the house. We incorporated the broom closet from the kitchen into the bathroom which gave us space to put a pedestal sink and medicine chest. We put in a built in cabinet with shelves up to the ceiling and a two door cupboard on the bottom that created a seating area and found storage for broom, etc. in a hall closet. This created more room to move around and the needed storage.

lorellehen We have a large formal dining room that we rarely use as such. We have used the room to house a large pool table, with a ping-pong table topper, bed risers to elevate the ping-pong top to craft table height for quilting, upholstery and school projects and small removable tables so that my husband can teach his chess classes at home. A room that was once used 2 - 4 times per year is now used several times a week, and during chess camp, is used for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. We still have large family dinners there (it can seat 12 at the table, as long as you don't mind sitting with a leather pool pocket in your lap!) We have also re-purposed an unused bedroom for long term storage (Christmas decorations, food storage, and out -of-rotation decorating supplies). This change freed up room in our 2 car garage for my husband's extensive wood shop hobby. With careful planning, we are still able to park 2 cars in the garage during inclement weather. This "hobby" has allowed us to gut and remodel our master bathroom ourselves, including designing and building beautiful cherry cabinetry. We view the labels on the rooms of our houses on the builder's plans as suggestions and modify their uses as needed.

ellie59 Great article!!! I will retire in two years and have made many changes to main floor but still need to solve one: changed formal areas (living & dining) into music, office & library (have a small antique grand piano). Open concept family, kitchen, breakfast stays same, opened space under stairs for ample storage. Purchased beautiful walnut drop leaf dining table, seats 10, for breakfast room. Will only be used 3-4 times a year. Opened all 3 rooms facing back yard with glass doors. I would like ideas on finding space for a mud room area. Laundry area is behind bi-folds in breakfast area. The drop zone looks great. Can that be modified for my house?

Sharon Erickson We made the attic space off the spare bedroom a toy room for the grandkids. The secret door difinately adds to the appeal.

stargazer51 @digsblues -- also try ClosetMaid. We're doing a whole house remodel and ClosetMaid seems to give the most bang for the buck. It also allows for 18-19" drawers which are much more functional.

Here it is Sunday at 1:00PM and all I've done today is read Houzz updates! It's so much fun to hear what others are doing to adapt their houses to their own lifestyles. I didn't feel too guilty reading the purging/decluttering articles because I cleaned the refrigerator yesterday.

We're adapting our 2000 sf ranch to our needs as well. It's on top of a hill with a nice view out the back. I moved the kitchen to the front and made the former kitchen/family room into dining/family room with windows all across the back wall to take in the view. I removed the wall between the kitchen and dining room so the kitchen is open to the view and the rooms flow into each other.

I cut the long, front dining/living room in half for the kitchen with a library instead of a formal living room. It will be have bookshelves on one wall and a fireplace and have the ability to be completely shut off from the rest of the house for quiet reading. It can also be used as another guest room when needed.

I stole space from an adjoining bedroom for a second closet in the master bedroom and will have just a large shower, no tub in the master bath. We'll still have a shower over tub in the hall bath. I was about just a shower in there too but thought it would be better for when grandchildren are here. It's tough to weigh easy access for older guests with tub for little ones.

I'm thinking a Murphy bed is in our future too so one of the guest bedrooms can do double duty. Now I have to go back to Houzz kitchen pictures so I can figure out what kind of lights I want over the island.

jorey We built our house with a large great room and a smallish library on the main floor, choosing not to put in a formal living or dining room. we love reading!

summilux My mother spends extended stays in our house. To help her feel at home during her stays we dedicated our small bedroom as her space. Previously we had used our convertible sofa in our TV room for sleeping. Our sofabed is fine for limited use but not for using weeks at a time. Rather than buy another sofabed with the uncertainty of that being a real solution, I made a partition in our upstairs craftsroom which effectively gives us another bedroom. The worktable that formerly occupied that space is in my wife's office.

sfgreenberg So jealous of all of you with the space you have to work with. My house is very small but I am not retired so it seems silly to move into something bigger. Guess I just have to be a bit more creative : )

stargazer51 Sharon, love the secret door and I'm 61!

ellie59 Thanks for you comments. As I said, I will retire soon and wanted a master bath that met my needs. I never liked the tiny toilet ROOM. So I moved the toilet into the main bathroom area. I took the 5 x 2.5 toilet space and installed a steam shower with body sprays and rain shower, built in a linen closet with laundry shoot just above laundry on first (don't have to lug laundry downstairs), installed an air jet tub to sooth my arthritis, installed a taller toilet, and divided the 5 ft. vanity into a single bowl sink and a sitdown makeup space.

ellie59 The attic hideaway is a super idea

lalmstedt Great ideas here. Thanks for all the comments. We are in the process of making some changes to the home I have lived in for 37 years. First we put a Murphy Bed in a bed room that is a desk when the bed is up.I am a garden writer and I am calling this my garden room. We painted it yellow and green and it opens onto a balcony. When I get the accessories in I will post a picture.

We have a formal living room that was only used at Christmas, a dinning room that was too small for our growing family, and a kitchen that is too small for two cooks. (I recently remarried and my new husband loves to cook.) We will start construction in March by moving the kitchen into the dinning room and the dinning room into the former family room and the old formal living room will become our 'Great Room'. Almost have all the necessary decisions made and have found the ideas and discussions on Houzz invaluable.

shelley yoshimoto I am so excited for everyone who is repurposing their homes. Kudos to us all! As a sawmill owner, my husband and I built custom doors and truss systems for the homes of others and ours has remained ho hum for far too long. Work has slowed, now it's our turn. As for first floor laundry rooms...why does anyone build a home with the laundry downstairs where the bedrooms are upstairs? Love the upstairs laundry idea. We are growing our kitchen into the dining, moving the dining to the LR where the fireplace is. Moving the living room into an adjacent underused guest room and eliminating a few walls between for an open floor plan. Bloom where you are planted!

shelley yoshimoto I am so excited for everyone who is repurposing their homes. Kudos to us all! As a sawmill owner, my husband and I built custom doors and truss systems for the homes of others and ours has remained ho hum for far too long. Work has slowed, now it's our turn. As for first floor laundry rooms...why does anyone build a home with the laundry downstairs where the bedrooms are upstairs? Love the upstairs laundry idea. We are growing our kitchen into the dining, moving the dining to the LR where the fireplace is. Moving the living room into an adjacent underused guest room and eliminating a few walls between for an open floor plan. Bloom where you are planted!

raulporter Thank you for the obvious [to me anyway]"PUT RESALE FEARS IN PERSPECTIVE!" we often joke that the only people we could sell our house to is ourselves. Converted a basement apt to a home brewery, have a built in dog wash that will accommodate a wolfhound, and spent $7000 having our three acres fenced, who would buy this house?, someone that loves good beer and dogs. Sound like great neighbors to us.

Josie Aune Our 1985 house is constantly being renovated as our needs change. We also took out a soaking tub! Must have been popular in the 80's. and put in a huge dual tile shower. Everyone in our family is musical and artistic - our kitchen/family room and dining room have been opened up and become the family hub by the fire. We turned the formal living room which is out of the way and huge with tall ceilings and sunken floor into the music room. Every instrument you can think of including drums and piano are in this room. Also a big flat screen for video games and movies. The art work and tapestries and area rugs are ALL about music. The furniture is all sturdy leather recliners and couches with a large tufted leather chest that is a seat and a great storage place for smaller musical things like guitar pedals, harmonicas, headphones and other percussion items. Family and extended family all have such a blast on the holidays jamming in there and nobody just sits there and just looks around like people do in formal living rooms! The other thing I like about this arrangement is that it is far enough away from the great room/family room that you can go in there and talk if you want and though you can still here the music it is now in the background and you can still hear each other! It really is the favourite room for everyone-creativity is alive in there!

lsausele We turned our dining room into a sitting room attached to the kitchen. We call it the "Starbucks room" and the space went from being awkward and not used much to being the #1 place people gather, whether its me home alone with the dog, the family in the evening, or when friends gather - entire parties stay in the space. We moved our DR furniture in front of the fireplace in the former family room and opened the wall - and now instead of "just" being for eating, the table is used all the time for work/projects etc. Emboldened, we are now going to turn our formal LR into a home office.

Michelle Lynch I finished my basement, adding 2 more bedrooms, full bath and family room. This gave me the ability to turn a bedroom off the kitchen (strange, I know) on the main floor into a dining room. My eat-in kitchen was then available to be filled with cabinetry and countertop space, doubling it's size. I turned my 3 bedroom, 1 bath house into a 4 bedroom, 2 bath... also adding family room, dining room and huge kitchen. I now love my 50s rambler!

Nicole Waldrop My husband knocked down the wall between our living room & "parlor room" (so mid-century). Now we have a large bi-level living room. The parlor room floor level is 6" lower than the floors in the rest of the house. We love entertaining in this open room and can spread out and have two conversation areas - my husband and his friends sit in the raised side to watch the game and my girlfriends and I sit in the lowered area with wine to chat, but we can still all converse with each other.

A. Peltier Interiors Really creative ideas, especially for my clients in LA, where space is a premium. I also love the dog wallpaper in the laundry room. It has been one of my favorites for a long time!

Heather Braun We are exactly in this dilemma right now. Household dynamics are changing (we have just become empty nesters, but my parents live with us) and I really need to rethink how we use our space. We need space for a second fridge, it's time to change up the kitchen organization, and we may be playing musical bedrooms. It is time for a serious look at how we use our space, and this idea book is timely.

design intervention we just downsized from a 20 acre, 3000 sq. ft. ranch house to a 900 sq.ft.,1963 beach house with one bedroom. We are converting the original bedroom (w/out a view) to a master closet and making the dining room ( w./ a fabulous view ) into the bedroom with sliding pocket wall. Also adding a screened in 'sleeping' porch on the deck which has unused, equal sq. footage to the house.....

stargazer51 @design -- pictures???

chavey We took over 1/2 the basement for a "walk-in" closet! Our 1929 Bungalow has tiny closets in the two upstairs Bedrooms. I love my new HUGE Closet!

sfgreenberg What a great idea to make a huge closet in the basement. My basement is partially finished but I love the idea of a huge closet. After I finish the living room, the basement is next on the agenda. I know I am putting too much money into my little house for the neighborhood but I am committed. This is the last place I hope to live until I need assisted care so it might as well be wonderful. So far I've taken out all the concrete and replaced it with winding flagstone paths and patio, thinned out the landscaping, got rid of most if not all of the knob and tube wire (who knows what is going on in the walls), redid the kitchen with cherry cabinets, exotic granite, stainless etc (now if I only cooked!), all new bathroom, bedroom finished except for a new overhead light, living room is next (built in shelves and cabinets, new furniture, putting in a picture rail because I have coved ceilings). I've been in this house 27 years and now all the remodeling I did then needs to be redone or spruced up. It is never ending.

judygilpin Love the idea of Murphy beds for more useable spaces. Afterall, how many times do we actually use the guest bedroom. May as well use it for an office or studio for the majority of the time.

zindor I was thrilled to finally read the advice, "Put Resale Fears in Perspective." When I first purchased my house, I painted the rooms off-white and beige, considering resale value. After far too many years of being unhappy with beige, I finally painted each room a different shade of blue, selecting shades that made me blissfully happy. That was the first step in ridding myself of the fear that I might have difficulty selling my house if I make changes. I finally realized that my current happiness matters more than the happiness of a buyer in the undefined future. My happiness with my house has increased with each significant change I've made to personalize my space. Now, I don't think I'll ever sell it.

laurielynntrigg Use the understair storage closet as a desk unit space, shelving space or even mud room depending on where your stairway is. Most can even have a bottom drawer that pulls out to a twin trundle bed for a guest! Often wasted space that those boxes can go into the attic.

tainc I've converted the formal living room to an office/library. The seldom used guest bedroom which is miniscule anyway is used as a den/tv room. In order to add more outdoor space, we added a deck which is relatively narrow to meet the zoning restrictions but continues along the entire back of the house. It also acts as an extension of my garden. Also, we don't save stuff. Having moved cross country twice in three years (from NY to SF and back), we've learned the value of declutter. My only vice is books. I have only one set of dishes and one set of glasses but about 1000 books.

appytrails When my daughter moved out, my husband and I considered what her bedroom could be used for. We have a 3 bedroom home. The other bedroom was a guest/computer room, and we realized what we really needed was a clean, dry storage area, something our unfinished, exterior access basement did not provide. So her room is now a giant closet (actually not that huge considering some of the master closets I've seen) but there's a place for hanging clothes, folded clothes, linens and even vacuum, brooms and mops.
It really added to our being more comfortable in our home to make that decision, and I guess that's a major factor in any choice.

pebblebeachcottage As someone who is planning some changes to her home, I found this article gave me some insights to consider. Thank you!

fredericklc What a bunch of awesome ideas! Seven years ago my husband and I refurnished, painted, and updated all of our rooms, one by one, as we could afford it. I kept only what I loved and gave the rest away. My biggest problem is that I am a horrible pack rat; my husband is less of one (maybe a pack mouse, lol). "Stuff" has piled back up, and being 7 years older we don't have the energy that we did then. I work 12 hour night shifts that keep me pretty worn out; and I recently suffered a 20% pay cut due to downsizing at work. So, having anyone else come in and do any work for us is not feasible at this time. However, this posting has been eye-opening for me and helped me to refocus on how great our house looked when spruced up and pared down. Hopefully, I can keep this motivation and remember that Rome wasn't built in a day. Watch out drawers and closets, here I come! Well....maybe tomorrow!

dmiller1010 I have a very small back porch, I am considering doing a sunroom, or pulling the living area out to the space and add beautiful windows, the back is all pool, with nice lighting and landscaping. The porch takes away from a very nice area.
I wish I had photo's available, the back of the home is all windows.

qofmiwok Instead of moving, I turned half of my home office into a painting studio. My grand piano where the dining room is supposed to be. We have a workout room in one guest room, and my husband's hobby room is in another. And my treadmill desk is in the corner of my bedroom. I guess the kitchen and living room are the only rooms we use "normally."

o3lissao I have to say this article renewed my faith in humanity. A stretch? Well maybe, but I am happy to see so many regular people (aka not those people discovered by the bath crashes host on DIY network) seeing the potential of their spaces. I rent right now and I am looking around trying to buy my first home. My boyfriend and I discovered a nice home in the historic district of our town that has some updated touches but could use a little love and personality. I've been watching DIY network ravenously but so many of their designs seem out of reach or unrealistic. Seeing what people have done on here gives me hope and inspiration. I keep looking at pics posted on here thinking "I never would have thought of that!"

The house we are looking at is the first I have really felt has potential. Everything else for sale in my price range is a boring split foyer. A bunch of square rooms all sitting next to each other. And it seems like everyone in this town is scared to death to update. I really want to keep an open mind and see what a home could be instead of taking it for what it is.

sartarehare You're brave, o3lissao. My first home was a total gut remodel (1927) and we've worked tirelessly for 7 years and still haven't finished. Now we're purchasing our second home. No gutting, just a few updates (1962)- still a lot of work. It's hard to know how much renovating and remodeling entails until you've actually gone through it, especially with a first home. It often means living in a space with "potential" far longer than you'd like. It can be very worth it, though. I totally understand falling in love with old spaces because that is really all I would ever be interested in purchasing myself. Having lived in everything from brand new modern apartments with everything easy at hand to poorly insulated but beautiful victorians, I'd probably take the older building with it's charm and problems any day of the week. But yes, you've gotta have the will for it. Keep dreaming that one day, your space can be both form and function. Good luck to you and best wishes!

therealnester o3lissao, you go! I lived in boring homes for years because I didn't have confidence in myself and design choices. Once I decided that right or wrong my home should reflect me...well, everything changed for the better. I enjoy my home more, am flattered by the compliments and praise on my choices, and truly feel that my home is my sanctuary. There aren't many choices you make that can't be undone or lived with and chalked up as an experience at least. :

clwhip In case this hasn't been mentioned yet, I found the dog wallpaper from the laundry room image: http://www.osborneandlittle.com/products-and-collections/wallcoverings/autumn-2008/walk-in-the-park-wallpapers/best-in-show