If you could have the home of your dreams…
On a recent Instagram post, I posed this question…
“If you could have the home of your dreams, what would you absolutely need to include?”
Wow, did you respond.
And guess what?
It wasn’t exactly what I thought the answers would be.
Here is a breakdown of the top 3 answers areas and why I think they are so important.
Storage
Let’s face it. We all have a number of items we would rather not see on an everyday basis. In older homes, this can be a sticking point. The small 60’s bungalow or even that 80’s bilevel may only have a single common linen closet for a 3 bedroom house. Not cool (and also shows who was designing homes for the most part * cough* men).
With new home designs, it’s one of the main items we review while creating a custom home design. I suggest a dedicated linen closet, a broom closet and whenever possible, pantry storage for those bulk Costco runs. Another way we can add storage is by extending the height of your cabinets past the typical 7′ height. Kitchen designs with dedicated recycling and garbage areas are also big added bonuses. A place for all things makes my heart happy.
Cleaning
So this one sort of surprised me, sort of didn’t. One item we overlooked when we built our own home(yes, designers also miss things in their own spaces) was the number and location of electrical outlets. In our case, it was on our deck space. We didn’t add any plugs and for the life of me I can’t figure out why. Now, it is a common item to review with clients as we are planning the flow and functionality of their space.
The other big wish readers shared was the need for vac pans. Imagine a busy house of 4 with 2 dogs and 2 cats? Uhm, yeah I can totally get the need for this! These are simple additions that can make a world of difference for families and keep you from spending your entire weekend chasing the collected dust bunnies.
Destination spaces
Now let’s talk about those areas I like to call destination spaces. These are those areas where you are particularly drawn to spend time in. The two that readers put out there were covered decks and spa-like bathrooms. Both are regular requests when I’m working on custom home plans.
The benefits of a covered area are that it can extend your living spaces to the outdoors while still giving you a bit of shelter from the elements. In our home, we have a covered area that is our go-to place in our somewhat short Saskatchewan Summers. It also works dual duty for outside relaxing space and a BBQ space for cooking. In our case, it has become an oasis for us and I don’t think we’d ever design another house without one.
Spa-like bathrooms are also high on the wish list for both renovation and custom home clients. Now, the trick is to determine what is most important to you. Some people it is a large steam shower, others it is a tub for long soaks. Either way, there are so many ways to get the space you want but it all comes back to your particular needs.
I’d love to hear more about what you’d put in your dream home! Send me a message and let me know what you just can’t live without.
Until next time,