Elements of a Family Friendly Home

Family friendly AND beautiful home design sounds impossible but it can exist. As a mom of four little ones, I get the challenge of wanting your home to be an inviting, calming environment you and your family enjoy being in on a daily basis as well as a place you want to invite others into. But you also don’t want to babysit every surface of your home or not allow your kids to be kids. This is a balance I try to achieve in my own home. It’s also a common challenge many of my clients face and we work through together. Here are a few things we focus on accomplishing in projects with families so everyone can comfortably enjoy the spaces we create.

Open Floor Plans

An open floor plan is something we strive to create for our remodeling or new construction projects if possible. Not only does it create togetherness in a busy household, it also allows young kids to have independence with a watchful eye nearby. Challenges do exist in this type of floor plan such as how to decorate so the areas flow, but also have specific purposes. Another common challenge of wide open spaces is acoustics (did I mention I have 4 little ones?). Adding sound absorbing materials such as vintage rugs, upholstery, and windows coverings can help tremendously.

Performance Fabrics

Speaking of upholstery, you don’t need to have dark fabric, furniture covers or 1970s plastic over every piece in your home. We recommend performance fabric for all of our client’s homes who have children or pets to prevent stains and add an extra level of wear resistance. Also, investing in quality furniture pieces make a huge difference. Kids are hard on furniture, sofas especially get a lot of use in homes with families, so it’s important to ensure it’s made to last and not going to sag or lose its shape in just a couple of years.

Invest Wisely

On that note, I know it’s tempting to buy lesser quality items with plans to replace in the future after the kids are older or have flown the coop. My advice is, if you’re going to invest in your home, spending a little more on quality, foundational items will be worth it in the long run rather than having to spend more in total to replace it sooner than you’d like. Plus you get to enjoy it longer instead of waiting for the next stage to enjoy your home. We typically recommend investing in core, fixed pieces in a space such as items that are fixed, things you sit or stand on, including flooring, and saving on trendier, easier to change out items such as decor and accessories. This rule of thumb is actually something we follow in spaces without children or pets as well.

Focus on Bedrooms

In family homes, its common to forget about the bedrooms while focusing more on the family gathering spaces, but I always like to point out the importance of bedrooms. Many parents are inclined to decorate their kids rooms for them to “grow into” but this is where I tend to disagree. Kids rooms and their interests are bound to change over the years of course, but I like to allow this space to be theirs (with boundaries of course). After all, most kids walls need to be re-painted and items in the room replaced every few years as it is, why not allow it to reflect the stage they’re currently in and give them a space to reflect their individuality?

On the same note, I encourage parents to focus on creating a bedroom for themselves that they enjoy retreating to at the end of the day. Having their own space that they enjoy being in, that is separate from the gathering spaces in a home, is just as important as the kids spaces. Because the primary suite likely doesn’t involve as much wear and tear as the main spaces, you can make all of those design choices you may feel limited on in the rest of the home.

Having a home the entire family feels comfortable in is a huge priority for all of our clients, thus our goal in every design project. Making wise, informed design decisions are key in achieving this, and I’d love to walk along side you for your next home project. Contact us today to start this discussion!