One of the best things about meeting Naomi was finally having someone to talk with endlessly about DIY and how to tackle various challenges in our homes. We chat informally all the time, but we also thought it would be fun to bring some of it to the blog — so I picked one of the spaces we’re currently unsure about, and asked Naomi to provide some advice and recommendations in the form of a blog post.
The space I selected is our sunroom. When we toured our house for the first time, the bonus room in the back – which was an addition to the original house – was one of the things that stood out. It has large windows on three of the four walls and two doors, one opening to the back porch and one opening into the kitchen. We call it the “sun room,” but since it’s where we enter from the driveway, it’s also partially a mud room. And because we don’t have a dining room, for big gatherings like hosting 17 friends and family for Thanksgiving, we clear it out and use it as a dining room.
Here’s how it currently looks:
We really like the room – it’s so light and cozy, especially since it’s on a separate thermostat so we can easily turn the heat up and down as needed. We don’t really know exactly what to do with it or how to decorate it, though. Right now it’s just home to the furniture that was in our apartment living room (we got a sectional sofa and new coffee table for our living room when we moved into our house), and we’re not sure how to best make use of the space and also have it set the tone for the rest of the house since it’s the first room you see when you enter. Rather than just stewing over it myself and spending hours looking for inspiration on pinterest, I thought I’d take advantage of Naomi’s creativity and see what she would dream up for the space!
Naomi?
Thanks, Sage! There are few things that I like more than bossily re-decorating other people’s homes.
My first thought is always, “can we paint this a fun color?” and my second thought is usually, “yes.” This isn’t a room that you’ll be spending a lot of time in, so it would be a great place for some bold color that you love but wouldn’t want in a commonly used space, like a living room. In my mock-ups, I’ve picked a bright tone between turquoise and teal, but obviously I won’t be insulted if you go for a different color. I mean, it’s your house.
I know that the closet provides great storage, but that wall is just calling out for a cubby to hold some of the more frequently used items. You can’t exactly install full built-in bench storage because of the baseboard heating, but you could build an attached bench with some storage and a gap underneath for airflow and stashing shoes.
Those drawers would be a really convenient place for things like gloves and canvas shopping totes (which multiply in my house, at least). And I LOVE that door you’ve got! The window lets in even more light to this already bright/beautiful space. All it needs is a coat of paint to cheer it back up.
I was talking this over with Brad’s mother and she came up with a brilliant suggestion for another functional update you could make. (Um, it’s perfectly normal to discuss the floor plan of your friend’s sunroom with your boyfriend’s mother while you are visiting for the holidays, right?) Anyway, she suggested that the little nook under the kitchen window could be built in for something useful, like a washer and dryer. Why lug laundry into the basement if you don’t have to!
You could even build a counter right above the units, and have a space for folding and ironing. I put a plant there to make my drawing look better, but you would probably keep it functional.
For the rest of the space, what I want to recommend is to build in cheery banquet seating like this or this. It would be so nice to have breakfast out here on sunny days!
However, it sounds like what you really need is flexibility, both in the short-term (for your 17-person thanksgiving) and in the long-term (to re-purpose this space into an office or crafting area if other rooms are filled). So my real recommendation would be to keep the couches because you have them and they look great.
But if you wanted to have fun with it, why not make it into a funky space for relaxation? It was Sam who originally thought of a hammock, and that would be super awesome out here. Imagine it strung across the space, with some plants, books, and a small table to set a drink on.
It would be so easy to clear the area just by unclipping the hammock from the walls, so you could use the room for other purposes whenever you wanted. If this were in my house, this is where I would spend every minute of every snowy day.
Well, I hope that sparks at least some ideas for you. I can’t wait to see what you do with this great room!
Everyone, what do you think of these ideas? What would you recommend for Sage’s sunroom?
(Sharing at A Bowl Full of Lemons.)
OMG, those are BRILLIANT ideas! And simple and doable! I am bowled over. I remember the first time I visited the house and was sitting in said sunroom and Sage said, “So, what would you do with this space?” and I said something helpful and insightful like, “Um…maybe paint it? Add a philodendron?” The idea of the cubby and bench (perfect for sitting down to remove muddy boots, store winter gear, etc.) makes me a little weepy with admiration. And the laundry facilities — what a great idea. If this was MY house, which contains three large and frequently muddy dogs, I’d think about swapping the washer/dryer for an elevated dog bath (with a removable counter over it to hide it away when not in use). But Owen and Murphy do not require such amenities, so I’ll save that one for my own fantasy mudroom.
Thank you! As they say, it takes a village to decorate a sunroom. Is that how that phrase goes? It sure helps that they have such a beautiful room. The light! And those windows: I love the wood tone.
And come to think of it, a whole variety of philodendrons would be PERFECT out there…
2 thoughts since you want to use the area for Thanksgiving-size gatherings: look on Pinterest for doors that cover the washer/dryer when not in use (my favorite setup has doors that open in the middle & then retract/slide back to the sides of the units when in use & look just like any other cabinet when closed) and secondly what about a large table with fold down sides that can be pushed against a wall when you’d rather hang out in the hammock but open up for big meals or for, ummm, DIY crafts projects.
Thanks Mary Ann! I love that you and Naomi got in on the brainstorming together. I assume you’ll also be dropping by the house to execute the amazing vision? 🙂
These mockups are great. What program did you use to make these? A bright, cold wall color would definitely work well in a room with so much daylight. I really like the bench unit idea – I’m also trying to figure out how to integrate coat/shoe/bag storage in our front room, which has no closets.
Thanks, Caitlin! Coat storage is the worst. In our house, we have to cross a room to get to the coat closet, so obviously everything just ends up draped over a chair.
I used the starter edition of Serif DrawPlus to make the images. I’ve been slowly learning it for years. It’s free and pretty powerful once you get used to it. http://www.serif.com/free-graphic-design-software/
Thanks, Naomi. I will check that out.
Also, I have been jealously coveting (can you covet something not-jealously?) Naomi’s drawing program, because it only works on PC and I have a mac. But I found EazyDraw this weekend, which seems like a similar program for mac. I haven’t fully explored it so I can’t completely vouch for it, but just in case you’re a mac person Caitlin!
Also also, if you ever want to brainstorm/mock up some of your awesome new spaces with us, let us know! We’d love to see photos of your new house and hear what you and Owen are thinking!
Okay maybe it’s lame to comment on my own blog not in response to anyone else’s comment, but I just feel the need to say that these ideas are awesome. Thank you Naomi! If I’m being honest, I really just wanted someone to tell me I could paint the sunroom turquoise, and I had a suspicion that you’d deliver. But you came up with so many other creative ideas for how we can use this space better. Time to start looking at paint swatches….
Such a fun idea for a post! I’m kind of jealous….my real life friend who I talk about house stuff with REFUSES to start a blog. So rude 😉 I always vote paint a room teal. And I also vote for not going to the basement to do laundry 🙂
Thanks, Gretchen! It was really fun to do. Your friend DOES sound quite rude 😉 jk. But you should know the way that Sage tricked me into blogging… via the slippery slope of a guest post.
Hey gals! Naomi, these are fantastic ideas! Sorry to be so late to the party – just got dug out from the 34″ of snow we got earlier this week. Wanted to cast my vote for moving the laundry up here, and having a way to camouflage it when you want to entertain more formally. Love the idea of turquoise on the walls! If you keep it on the blue-ish side it will work nicely with that orange-y tile. You will love having a bench near the door with storage for shoes, etc. The coat space: not sure I would close it in that way unless you also put a door on it as well? Not sure the height is the right scale for the rest of the space. Maybe once I see it in the “after shot” I will get it though. Hammock is fun! And finally, as a small-space dweller, I cannot say enough about easy to change-up spaces. In our small cabin, the living room functions as a place to hang out by the wood stove, a dining room, a guest room, and a rehearsal/jam space, just by keeping the furniture multi-purpose (and easy to move around). That’s my 5 cents. 🙂 Best of luck with your renovation. Can’t wait to see what you ultimately do with this space!
You’re never late when leaving such helpful and insightful comments! Good call on the blue-ish tone, because that would TOTALLY bring out the floor color in a good way. Sage I hope you are reading this 🙂 My friend has a kitchen with a similar floor that he painted a light blue, and it worked out so well.
Also good thought on the coat space – it might be imposing if it is so tall! I do think some way to separate the coat-stashing from the other room functions (either by closing it in, or with a door as you suggest) would be good to keep the “mudroom” part from taking over the other functions.
Anyway, thanks for your insights and glad to hear that you are dug out from the snow! We had 32″ at my house, so you’ve got me beat 🙂
I think the upstairs laundry idea is genius. As a bonus, washing machines make excellent mess-free ice chests for parties, so the room could double for entertaining. It’s my favorite life hack: filling the washing machine with ice and your bevvies, then spin cycle the watery ice out at the end of the night for clean up. 🙂
So smart Stephanie! Will you be my official Party Planner from now on?