A Professional Guide to Designing a Home that Adapts to Each New Life Stage
I firmly believe that your home & office should serve you and not the other way around. With careful planning, you can create a space that fits now and can evolve as your go through each new phase of life and work. For example, a built-in when you have young children can be great to hold all the toys and when they're teenagers, it will house the board games you play together as a family. Then when they've moved out it can hold the memorabilia of their childhood or store items for your new hobby that fills your spare time. The same can be true for a well-designed office space that can be flexible to suit evolving needs.
Step #1: Make the Plan Your Top Priority
Bringing in an interior designer is key to talk you through all of the options when renovating or building new to ensure your home and office serves you well for where you are now and where you see yourself in 5 and 10 years' time. The planning stage takes a long time so that all of the details are captured, tweaked and just right for your needs. If you fail to plan, the plan will fail and the last thing you need is for an added point of frustration that you deal with every single day.
Step #2: Draw Functionality into Your Design
There are numerous ways to build functionality into your home and office with placement of cabinetry, custom built-ins, hidden storage spaces, electrical outlets, lighting placement and more. And while it may take some more effort during a renovation, it's absolutely worth it to ensure your space is efficient for your needs.
Step #3: Spend Your Money on Superior Finishes
I know you work hard to earn your money, and you want it to be spent well. Key places that have high-traffic, support heavy weight and work hard for you should be where you invest a larger part of your budget. While some items don't require the same amount to serve their purpose well. Everything wants to be beautiful and add value to your space, but I don't believe you need to spend top dollar on every single item in your project to achieve the desired end result.
Your life evolves over time and often more frequently than you anticipate. When we plan to have a space the serves you well in your home and work life, you can reap the benefits for years and year to come. There are places to splurge so you get the best bang for your buck and others where we can be more conservative. You don't have to lose out on the overall value of your selections! With my help, your home and office will serve you well for years to come.
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Blessings,
Marcie Dennis
