If you’re in the design stage of your timber frame home, this is a perfect opportunity to incorporate a guest suite in your plans. Whether you’re planning a dedicated guest suite or a multipurpose area that functions as an office, studio or den, planning this area in your initial blueprints can be a cost effective and efficient solution. Today, a guest room is more than just a tiny room relegated to a corner of a house. Plan your guest suite to provide your visitors with a place to get away from the hubbub of the family and allow you and your guest breathing space from too much togetherness.
Plan Your Guest Suite to Ensure Convenience And Comfort
In today’s changing world, your guest suite may become long-term living quarters in many situations. Adult children move back home for a number of reasons. Rather than moving to an assisted living facility, you may decide that aging parents would be better off living with you. There are lots of scenarios in which you may find yourself with long-term as well as short-term house guests.
Your guest suite may become much more than just a room for a week’s visit, so you should make it as inviting and comfortable as you can. An ensuite bathroom is very important for both your guests and the rest of your family. A dedicated guest bathroom really gives your visitor a sense of privacy and allows the rest of the family to maintain their typical schedule and routine.
A room that’s large enough to accommodate more than just a bed goes a long way to put your guests at ease. Long-term guests have a place to pursue their own activities. A comfortable chair in which to read, a desk for a computer or writing, and a small space to pursue a hobby add a bit of size to a room, but it can easily be incorporated into your design.
Integrate large, airy windows in your guest room. Consider the views from different areas of your building plot when designing your guest suite. Try to incorporate a beautiful view, or plan on landscaping that will make it a treat to look out that guest room window.
If your guest suite can be placed in a separate wing from the other bedrooms, you’re really creating a sense of privacy. This autonomy is very important to adults who will be sharing a home for an extended period.
If there’s any chance that your guests may be elderly or have disabilities, it’s important that their room is easily accessible. Your guest suite should be on the main floor, so stairs won’t be a problem. Other considerations, such as wheelchair accessibility or grab bars, should be included when designing for folks with physical limitations.
Your Timber Frame Home Is A Perfect Foil For A Guest Suite
Since interior walls are seldom load bearing in a timber frame home, it’s a natural for creating custom spaces. You can carve out space for a full bath, sitting area and sleeping area with partition walls, partial walls and artful furniture layouts.
You can even use a pod design to segregate the areas of a room. A pod is a room, or partial room, that isn’t attached to any of the main walls of the area. Unattached, it floats within the space to define and delineate the different functions of the room.
Partition walls are inexpensive to erect and easy to alter as the needs of the family changes. If you float these walls over your flooring and beneath the ceiling, you have an area that can be easily modified without extensive remodeling.
Don’t Forget Color And Style
When you’re ready to decorate your guest suite, boutique hotel amenities can add a lot of decorating punch without putting a huge hole in your budget. A few touches and thoughtful additions will make your visitor’s stay as nice as any posh hotel.
Choose soothing colors that convey a sense of calm and serenity. Gold, soft blue, gray with brown all evoke a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere. Choose soft tones that blend, and pick a contrast for a punch of color to add life to a focal point.
Use a variety of textures to add visual interest. A soft patterned rug under the seating area, a generous scattering of throw pillows on the bed and a warm knit throw draped at the end of the bed add color and texture. Carry the feel through to the bathroom with thick towels and scatter rugs.
Choose appropriate lighting for the different areas of the suite. A nightstand light or wall-mounted sconces adjacent to the bed provide task lighting for reading in bed.
Provide illumination near the chair with either a floor light or a lamp on a side table. If the room has a desk, a table lamp is a must.
The bathroom should have proper task lighting at the vanity. Separate overhead and shower lighting provides additional illumination to the room.
Whether you’re including it in your initial building plans or adding it to your existing home, your guest suite can be a wonderful addition to your timber frame home. Make your guest suite an area that you would be comfortable in, and it’s sure to be a hit with all your guests.