Creating a Space that You Can Love for Longer

One of our kitchen renovations

In our last blog post, I talked about some of the design trends we're excited about for 2022. While trends are certainly fun and can lead to great designs, people often find that hopelessly tend-chasing can lead to having homes that don’t work for them. Stuck in a cycle of slightly outdated styles, they can become frustrated and even hate the spaces that they live in. If it is time for your home to get a good update, how do you avoid this pitfall and make your home the best tool to serve you and your family? How do you make a space that lasts longer than the trend cycle? Here we’ll discuss a few ideas, methods, and tricks for making your home into something you can love for longer. 

Cater your home to your situation.

I’ve often seen that instead of trying to make their home serve their lifestyle, people can try and make their lifestyle fit their home. This creates heaps of unnecessary lifestyle tension. For example, unless you have the devotion of a Navy Seal, an all-white living room will be the bane of your cleaning existence when living with kiddos. (I should know, I’m one of five siblings!).

 If you find yourself battling against your house, ask yourself: what role ought my home serve? What unique problems must I accommodate? How does my family use the spaces that we have? Every household is slightly different, and all have different needs. Do you entertain a lot? You may need a much larger dining area. If minimalism would stress you out because of its constant maintenance, then make space for your trinkets! Do you have a lot of stuff? Accommodate with plenty of storage. If you have very young kids, make space for their things and design using products that won’t break. A feature that you’d love and use every single day may simply be a waste of space for someone else, and something someone else adores may simply not be worth the investment for you. Make the improvements personal!

Also, keep your future in consideration. If you’re going to be in your home in 5 or 10 years from now, what will you need then? Predicting future needs is a great way to keep your home from being a burden. 

Find out how do you want your home to feel.

Home is a sanctuary by nature, and how that space makes you feel is incredibly important to how you function inside it. Find out how you want your home to feel, and work towards that goal as a design foundation. Do you want your home to feel relaxed and laid back? Eclectic and exciting? Warm and cozy? Ask yourself: What styles and pieces will make it feel that way? How can I organize our home to serve us in this way? This may take some research and window shopping (or Pinterest board inspiration). If you are genuinely stuck or don’t know where to start, at Vatter we have our wonderful designer, Caitlin, who works with our clients to help them build their dream spaces. If you do choose to work with us, you get a professional who can help you to solidify those goals, then help you work towards them.

Storage, storage, storage!

86% of homeowners call garage storage highly desirable, and over a third call it a “must-have”. 83% of buyers call for walk-in pantries. What does this mean? Make space for storage!

  Though it may not be the most glamorous part of a renovation, creating plenty of storage will benefit your home in the long run. By creating a cleaner, more streamlined space that doesn't require constant maintenance, the functionality of your home increases drastically. And when your home is functional, it's much easier to love. 

Marie Kondo and Timelessness

To counteract the trend-following interior design culture, many people want their homes to feel timeless. But what does timeless look like? The foundational points are to aim for neutral colors and functional spaces. But even in that definition, there is so much room for change and variation. How do we go further?

Let's rephrase the question from “What is timeless?” to “What I going to love for a long time?”. Personalize your timelessness! If you are going to love it, then it truly is timeless. If you have ever seen Marie Kondo, you can use her cleaning method to this effect. Does this spark joy? If it does, go for it! If not, why get it? This method is rather broad, but it is pretty helpful with making design decisions. Choosing a style you enjoy will make you love your home much longer than choosing a current style. This helps to avoid the pitfall of simply buying something because it’s “on trend”, which leads to the item being hated in a few years. And if you do really enjoy a current trend, then choose it and love it. Nearly anything can be timeless if you know you can love it for a long time. (Except for carpeted bathrooms. I don’t think those were ever timeless. Eugh.) 

Don't fear the funky.

I know this point sounds funny right after I talked about timelessness, but hear me out. If you love the funky pieces, then go for it! If that’s what you’re going to love, then those pieces are going to be the things that ultimately stand the test of time. If you really want something bold in your home but are scared you won’t love it for a long time, go for something that you can more easily change. Cabinet pulls are more easily changed than cabinets, paintings are more easily changed than paint, and rugs are more easily changed than flooring. Go bold with the small things, and you can still get the funky, unique flair without committing to love it forever. You can still spice up and change spaces that you plan to love for a long time, and sometimes that change makes it easier to do so.

Ultimately, much of this advice centers around choosing what you will love, not what some Parisian designer tells you will look good. Take inspiration from others, of course, but ultimately choose things that function for you and your family. Built around what you need, and build for what you love.

Are you looking for a contractor to renovate or add on to your home? Get a quote from us to jumpstart your process!