On guest rooms
One of a home’s most vital functions—besides, of course, housing you and yours—is offering a harbor to the loved ones who come to visit. After all, a home is made a home by the population within, and opening your doors to your relatives and friends is one of the finest privileges in life. When the holidays come around and the aunts and uncles and cousins flood in, or when that old college comrades is back in town for a weekend, you want your home to be ready to offer a warm bed and a little respite after travel.
A guest room presents a unique set of design challenges. For one, you want to utilize your space most efficiently—a guest room is, most of the time, not occupied by a guest, but merely waiting for the next one to arrive. In those intervals between company, you’d rather not let that room sit and gather dust, or find itself without any other task to fill. But at the same time, you don’t want it too overrun with other uses that, come time for a visitor, you have to do a whole lot of rearranging to make it suitable for human habitation. Walking that line can be difficult. It’s a delicate balance between comfort and multi-function.
Today, I thought I’d offer some tips on successfully making a multifunctional guest room in your home. With a little attention to detail, you’ll have a space perfect for visitors and your day-to-day use alike!
1. Breaking up your space
The easiest way to set up a multipurpose room is to create a little separation between each area of use. Maybe you’d like your guest suite to double as a sewing room—consider using a rug under the bed to delineate the sleeping area, while keeping your sewing station on the other wall, perhaps separated by a bookcase. Smart use of feature artwork can also help give a single room some division, to create the feel of two spaces in one.
2. Think about storage
There are myriad options for adding extra storage to a room without losing an ounce of comfort! One of the best is under-bed storage, such as built-in drawers beneath the bed. This can allow you to keep your extra items stashed away when guests arrive—plus, it helps your guest room double as a storage room for your odds and ends, like seasonal decorations or more specialty supplies (for crafts or sewing). The under-bed storage featured in the cover photo for this post is a piece from Bassett, one of our vendors—so if you like what you see there, Woodside Home can make it happen!
3. Bring in a desk
A desk is the perfect way to designate a portion of a space as work space. Since a desk occupies a nice chunk of floor area, it’s a great tool for carving out what part of the room can function as a home office or a crafting station. And a desk doesn’t feel out of place in a bedroom setting, so you’ll be able to keep a sense of comfort for your guests, while still getting more use out of the room!
4. Keep it cozy
At the end of the day, a guest room exists to provide a comfortable repast for your visiting friends and family—so you want to make sure you maintain the right amount of cozy feel to help your guest sleep well. Providing a throw blanket and some extra pillows on your guest bed can be the perfect little touch that transforms a multifunctional room into a real safe harbor for your visitors. And while you use the room for other things, between guests, an extra throw blanket won’t detract from the functionality of the space.
Finding balance between making a comfortable guest suite and a room suitable for daily use can still be tricky, even with these tips in mind. In search of a helping hand? Book a call with Woodside Home today—we’re ready to shape the perfect multi-purpose guest space, perfectly tailored to your tastes!
Don’t let your guest room languish—help it embrace its full potential as a sewing room, storage space, or home office! And of course, when your guests come to town, you’ll know you’ll be ready to meet them.