Thinking Outside the Box

My cute friend Mel suggested that I share what I've learned through this remodeling process, as well as things I'd do differently. I have a confession to make, I love change. Since I was a kid playing Barbie's, I've liked changing furniture around. I'm not that different now, only the scale of the furniture is much larger and more likely to cause back injuries. There have been many changes throughout this process, beginning with narrowing down the remodel plans, and more recently, rethinking the way I use my new space to function best for our family and the way we entertain.

The plan for my remodel changed from my original, ridiculous idea that was too huge and expensive. Narrowing down the plans forced me to think about how I wanted the spaces in my home to function. Instead of doing an addition off the back of my house, and enlarging the family room, I decided that I'd prefer a space off the front of my home. This decision was based on the fact that, one, I like my cozy family room and the size of the back yard, and two, my front yard was large and my house had no windows to the front. My original desire was to gain a cold storage space and exercise/bedroom below ground and a bigger, usable porch, and front office/library space.

The new addition houses a wall of bookshelves that I love, but I realized that the desk at the front of the house, was too far away from me when I was cooking. The kids ended up doing homework in the dining room next to the kitchen, but there was still the mess of the desk at the front of the house. I had my piano in my old living room and a sitting room next to our new, double-sided fire place. My dining room table was new and originally intended for the original remodel plan, where I'd move the dining room to my old living room. The table worked without the extension leafs, but as soon they were added for big family dinners, it was difficult to maneuver around the dining room.

A few months ago, I decided to think outside of the box and make my existing dining room into the office/study area. Its still a work in progress, but the space works much better for containing messy mail and homework, and keeps the front two rooms better organized. My old living room became the dining room with a sitting area near the fireplace and window seat. I used soft chairs and benches to make the room more comfortable and approachable, not just a dining space. The new addition now has the piano and a cozy seating area. Its great for quietly reading, piano practice or guitar playing. When we've had family party's, with the table extended (shown in the photo), we can play two separate games of "Ticket To Ride" and still visit with one another. Plus, people actually walk into the new space. It may be unconventional, but it works well for our family and the way we live.

New Dining Space in former Living Room


Former Dining Room, still a work in progress, but now functions as an office/study space with our computer desk, study/game table, and a second desk for craft projects, etc.


View from dining space into the new library/sitting room/music room area. The space is used more often with this arrangement.


Another view of the dining area from the entry way, with both extensions in the table. You can see how much more space we have to sit around the table for dining or game playing.