Building a bunk room: How to make the most of a communal guest space
Baggage-toting guests are part of life in the Lowcountry.
Who doesn’t want to share the beauty of the South Carolina coast with the people they love? Without proper planning, though, it becomes all too easy for communal spaces to go from cozy to crowded. With foresight and a great design team, there are plenty of custom and creative ways to save space — and your couch — when hosting friends and family for the long-haul.
Designing a communal space for your guests benefits them, just as much as it benefits you, during their stay.
Dedicating a space to visitors in your home turns your guests’ experience into an effortless escape from the hustle and bustle of the “real world”. No one enjoys walking on eggshells in another person’s house. Including and designing a guest space ensures that lodgers don’t ever feel like they are in your way, even when they are in your home.
The days of shoving your desk into a room with a full-size bed and calling it a “guest room/office” are over. Today, with the prevalence of homeschool and work-from-home practices, a dedicated home office is essential. This will definitely make you and your guests much more comfortable. There’s no reason to forego any of your living space to accommodate guests.
Planning an intentional communal guest area in your new build is a great way to ensure that you and your out-of-town guests are completely comfortable during their stay.
No one wants to feel like an inconvenience. No matter how accommodating the host or hostess, a lack of space can leave guests feeling like they are in the way of your day-to-day routine.
A dedicated guest area adds on to the features typically found in a guest bedroom but also includes a comfortable space for seating, souvenir storage, and the ability for guests to move around comfortably in their own area. Guest quarters are a great way to help your guests make themselves at home in your home.
While most agree that a guest space would be nice, many people building a custom home worry about the amount of space necessary to plan and provide for guests. Thankfully, all you need to make your friends and family feel relaxed and welcome in your home is a skilled design team with creative solutions — no extra space required.
It turns out, a bunk room is a great way to add to your boarders’ comfort and the overall charm without adding furniture or square footage to your new home. Incorporating bunks, built-in storage, and a seating area into your custom home’s communal guest space allows guests to have privacy and an area to call their own, while using the same amount of space it would take to build a typical (and often constricted) guestroom.
Adding fixtures and lighting to the bunks elevate the space. These little touches help guests feel welcome and wanted. Use fixtures of the same finish in other areas of the space to keep guest quarters cohesive and intentionally inviting. Our team incorporated beautiful brass fixtures into both the built-in shelving units and behind-the-barndoor bunkroom of this beautiful home to subtly invite guests to help themselves in both spaces.
Adding storage under the beds makes it easy to provide extra linens and bedding for guests without taking up crucial closet space. Ladders to the top bunk, while often adorable, are not always the best solution for guests of a certain age or physical ability. A space-friendly solution to this problem is to incorporate an entrance to the top bunk via a stairway.
We often associate bunk beds with childhood rather than a relaxing refuge for guests.
After a few days in a typical guestroom, the space can often become a chaotic and messy chamber full of laundry, bags, shoes, and souvenirs.
When it comes to any other at-home activities, storage needs, or places to spend time, visitors often find their options are limited. Designing a guest space is imperative to give guests a section of your home solely dedicated to them and their life while staying with you.
The space saved on furniture and bedding in a bunkroom becomes immediately apparent to guests lucky enough to vacation with you. Be careful, though — making a guest space this cute and comfortable may have guests begging to return month after month. Contact us today and let our design team help you create a beautiful and spacious guest area full of the Lowcountry luxury you and your guests deserve!
