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Home Lifestyle How to design your dream home with a family in mind

How to design your dream home with a family in mind

by uma

Designing your own home is exciting, but how can you make it suitable for a family as well as yourself? Peter Boast, Managing Director of the kids’ safety equipment retailer Safetots, brings you some tips.

Deciding to design your dream home is a big step to take with your partner and/ or family, and there are so many choices to make along the way about what you want your property to look like. One of the most important things to consider, is how you are going to design your dream home with family in mind, whether that be space for the children you already have, or space for children you’re planning to have in the future.

Here, we will offer some advice on how you can make sure that the house you’re planning is suitable for your little ones as well as you.

Leave room to grow

You might plan out an amount of space for your kids when they are very young, but keep in mind that they will definitely need more room as they grow older. Not to mention, if you’re planning on adding to your family in the future, then you’ll need a bit of extra room in your property to accommodate for this. So, when you’re planning things out ensure that you are leaving enough space for your family to grow and develop into the future.

It’s common for couples to stick to only including three bedrooms in their home builds, but it’s always worth adding a fourth or even fifth bedroom if you’re unsure about the number of children you’ll have, as these rooms can always be used to host guests too. This way, you won’t be left with too few rooms, and it will give the property more longevity for your family.

Think about safety

It’s easy to get carried away in thinking about how beautiful your newly designed home can look, but if you’re going to be living with children, or having them in the future, then you’ll need to take safety into account too. You should be adding finishing touches to your house, such as covers on plug sockets and stairgates to ensure that your little ones don’t take a tumble down the stairs when they’re exploring. 

As well as this, you can also take into account their safety when designing the house. Avoid spiral staircases or ones where it’s easy to trip and fall, as well as narrow and winding passages that might not have enough space for an energetic child to navigate safely. 

You should also take a look at the street and surrounding area before you decide to build on a plot — is it safe for young families, or does it have fast traffic, or corners that are hard to see around? If there are other self-build houses in the area, ask the current homeowners what measures they took to ensure their builds were appropriate for children, and ask if the area is a safe one before you commit.

Add privacy to the home

Not only will you need to make sure that your kids can stay safe in the house, but everyone in the family will need some privacy, and this will be particularly important when your kids become teenagers. And even when the kids are younger, you and your partner will want a little bit of privacy from them so you can have some time to yourselves. 

You can incorporate some privacy into your new home by building alcoves for reading and relaxing, as well as secluded spots where you can take a break from the kids or perhaps even supervise them from the corner and feel like you have a quiet moment as well as making sure they are playing nicely.

Outdoor living spaces

Rather than just focusing on the inside of your building project, also consider the outside and how it might be used as extra living space for you and your growing family. A patio or deck is often the perfect way to extend your living space from your house into your garden, and you can add some furniture to make it welcoming, as well as some potted plants and decorations. You might even want to add something more exciting like a pool or space for a hot tub. 

Whatever feature you choose, making the most of your outdoor space can really make a difference in opening up your home and making it seem bigger. It will give your kids more room to play, and offer you a space where you can entertain, relax, and even supervise the little ones from your seat.

Use these tips to create your dream family home and make sure that your self-build project is the ideal space for your children, as well as you and your partner. Remember to take your time over planning the property’s design, and get everything in order before you begin construction.

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