Arrow Hill Cottage

TRENDING IN HOME DESIGN & DECOR: INTERIOR WALL CLADDING

While historically it may have been implemented for it’s ease of installation, cost effectiveness and as a durable finish, interior wall cladding is becoming a popular design choice with modern day homeowners as they seek for something other than standard drywall.

Cladding is available in a variety of styles and materials, each with it’s own aesthetic. Read about the most popular styles, the common materials used to create them, and a few important installation tips.

CLADDING VARIATIONS

There are many cladding options available for today’s homeowner. I have compiled a list of what I consider to be the five most popular varieties, complete with a sketch of what each application looks like in cross section and a photo of the actual material used in a space.

BOARD + BATTEN

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Made with a series of boards overlaid with strips of 1x materials over the seams/joints. Plywood can be used in lieu of boards, for a more simple application. Some DIYers prefer to add the 1x strips directly to the wall at a chair rail height, and use paint to achieve the look of paneling.

BEADBOARD

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When factory produced mill-work became available in the Victorian Era, beadboard was a popular choice to clad the walls (and ceilings) of utility spaces such as bathrooms and pantries. These strips of wood are milled with joints that fit together to form one continuous wall covering.

SHIPLAP

Photo by Bekah Russom on Unsplash

Made popular by Chip and Joanna, Shiplap is a decorative cladding treatment where horizontally laid boards interlock. An optional ‘nickel gap’ milled on the top edge of the boards creates a shadow line that highlights the individual boards. The lines of this cladding style are clean and simple, making this a popular choice for traditional and modern homes alike.

V-GROOVE

Photo by Hutomo Abrianto on Unsplash

This cladding was most popularly used in Colonial-era homes and is created by boards that are milled with chamfered (or right angle cut) edges on both sides, which form a ‘v’ when the boards are combined. V-groove cladding is readily available in a variety of wood and synthetic materials.

PLANKS

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Generally, this cladding technique is created by applying salvaged boards of various sizes and colors onto a wall in a collage format. Reclaimed barn wood and shipping palettes are common materials utilized. DIYers love this cladding style for feature walls – to give their spaces a rustic and handmade look.

POPULAR MATERIALS

These cladding options are typically available in three different materials: wood/plywood, salvaged wood, and MDF. Your decision to choose one material over another may be based on a variety of factors including ease of installation/finishing, the size of your project budget, and the space you will be using the cladding in.

WOOD / PLYWOOD

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A wide variety of wood species are utilized to create the cladding material, from budget friendly pine to stunning cedar and redwood. Because wood expands and contracts over time, it important that space is left between boards during installation. Wood is very durable, but can be heavier than other material choices. Plywood sheets with grooves cut to create the appearance of planking are lightweight, easy to install, and very budget friendly.

SALVAGED WOOD

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This material can be gathered from a variety of sources – from old barns to factory floors – and has rustic charm and character. You will want to be sure that salvaged wood has been properly cleaned and dried – to avoid pesky, unwanted insects from being ushered into your space.

Companies such as Plank + Mill offer a salvaged wood product that has been cleaned, kiln dried, and planed thin before being applied to and adhesive backing. These ‘peel and stick’ products are ready to be installed directly on your walls with ease.

MDF

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Medium density fibreboard is becoming a more popular material choice as natural resources become scarce. It is made up of approximately 80% wood fibre material, and a mixture of glue, water, and wax.

This material can be quite budget friendly and is available in a wide variety of sizes and even 4’x8′ sheet applications. It’s downfall is that it can not be used where moisture is a possibility, as it acts like a sponge to soak up water – eventually swelling and crumbling apart. Though there are some companies who offer a water resistant MDF material, it is not readily available.

TIPS FOR INSTALLATION

DIRECTION MATTERS

Generally speaking, vertically laid material will give the illusion of height – while horizontal boards make small spaces seem larger. Keep that in mind when making selections for your space.

KEEP IT SIMPLE

Add character, not clutter. When determining what style of cladding to use be mindful that multiple styles may not look great together. A vertical beadboard wall will clash with a horizontal shiplap wall nearby, for example. Experts caution that while one style per space is encouraged, a maximum of two styles should be used in each space. A maximum of three styles throughout the entire house is also recommended.

START LEVEL

When installing cladding in plank form, it is vitally important that the first board/plank installed in plumb and level. You may want to have an extra pair of eyes and hands available to help guide that first piece into place. Failing to take the extra time upfront can cause big problems during the rest of the process.

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS HOME DESIGN TREND

I am a texture lover, and interior wall cladding adds a depth that plastering or basic paint is not able to accomplish. The bonus of this trend is that it is fairly DIY friendly, and forgiving. Part of the charm of interior cladding is that it reminds us of older, historic homes – where perfection is not expected.

The exterior of our cottage will feature both standard lap siding and board + batten applications. I imagine we will also use a few accent spots of cladding on the interior, as a way to tie the inside and outside of the house together as a cohesive design.

THOUGHTS ON PERSPECTIVE

I began this week feeling out of sorts

The weather was yucky, the kids had cabin fever (as did the parents for that matter), and I was working feverishly on getting the plan set for Arrow Hill Cottage fine tuned and ready to submit to local contractors for bids. Just all around a stressful time.

I love designing houses – with an absolute PASSION. And to be able to design a home for my family has been very special; But the stress of knowing that it will ultimately be our pocketbook that will be paying for this design? That has taken a bit of the excitement away. This is real life, and we are just average people who need to work within a realistic and manageable budget. Essentially, every decision that I make while fine-tuning the design of the cottage has to be filtered through the bottom line of what it will cost.

And, this week, the filter took away some of the design elements I was really looking forward to implementing

I have been working on these rooms for months now – first as lines on paper, and eventually through 3D visualization. I have written about how 3D modeling can give you a fresh perspective on a space; And this week, I got a new perspective on LIFE as well.

This same week has brought severe darkness to a couple of my friends whom I know through the adoption community.

One, a mother of ten, whose husband has been diagnosed with terminal stage 4 brain cancer, with an estimated 6-18 months to live. Another whose sweet six year old daughter is on life support with a grim prognosis- her little body fighting.

And through it all, both of these ladies have remained SO very faithful to God. Singing His praises and relying on Him for peace, comfort, and guidance. I have so much to learn from them.

While I was fretting about how many windows the living room in my brand new home might have, what type of beautiful flooring I might choose, or which contractor is most qualified to get the job done – these women are wondering how much longer they will have their loved one here on Earth.

This thought hit me like a punch to the gut. Perspective.

Life is always changing and there is no person who can plan their life into perfection. Each of us is dealt circumstances that stretch and shape us. We experience unexpected happy moments and find that some dreams will never be realized. And through it all, we take each day as they come – one at a time.

This process of designing, and eventually building our family home is a blessing. Truly, it is a dream that we have been chasing for many years. But even this we need to take one day at a time. There will be days that will be more difficult than others, and I want to be mindful always to remember that this process is something we have wished for.

I wish to remain grateful in this journey.

SATURDAY SKETCHBOOK: FIREPLACE IDEAS

My husband and I have lived in 3 old houses over the course of our marriage – a 1905 farmhouse, a 1904 American Foursquare, and a 1920’s farmhouse. And although each of these houses have had their own share of character items, not a single one has had a fireplace.

We love the ambiance that a fireplace can add to the spaces it serves, and so for Arrow Hill Cottage we are working one into the design. For ease and safety reasons we are going to be utilizing a gas insert unit. I’m thinking something simple and not too large – maybe a model similar to this.

I have a feeling the firebox insert will be the easy decision to make. The more complicated endeavor will be determining what the fireplace surround should look like! Initially, I had designed in bookcases on either side of the fireplace; but ultimately decided that a larger bedroom closet, and a broom closet were more important for the function of the house; And so the fireplace itself will be positioned on a wall in our living room and serve as a stand-alone feature piece.

I have been tinkering around in Sketchup with a few different options of how to finish the surround, and thought it might be fun to share with you today and take a poll about which is everyone’s favorite. All four options include a chunky wood mantle, which we hope to have milled out of a tree that will need to be removed from our property for the construction of the house. I’ve intentionally left the top of the mantle bare, so that your eye can focus on the fireplace itself – but you’d better believe I will have a TON of fun changing out the decorations to dress it up!

I am sharing multiple images of each fireplace option, so that you can see how it relates to the spaces around it.

OPTION 1: WHITE BRICK + SIMPLE SHIPLAP

This is a really clean look, and pretty straightforward. It is also probably the most cost effective of all the options. If I have one concern about this option, it would be that it may be TOO white – and wouldn’t stand out enough as a focal point in a room that has all white walls and a white ceiling.

OPTION 2: STONE WITH BOARD AND BATTEN

The exterior of the cottage utilizes a bit of cultured stone on the porch column bases, as well as board and batten siding on the gable ends. I thought it might be nice to connect these element to the interior by using the same stone and paneling technique on the fireplace.

OPTION 3: CLASSIC WITH TILE

This is the fireplace finish that first comes to mind when I think about a historic home. It is clean, simple, and stately without much fuss. We have friends who had their tile laid in a herringbone pattern, which gave their fireplace a more contemporary feel and looks great! The portion above the mantle could be accented with a different color of paint, perhaps a bright pop of something dramatic.

OPTION 4: ALL STONE

This option has me a bit worried about the budget – as stone is not cheap! I do like the ‘cottage feel’ that it seems to give the space though! And it definitely draws your eye toward the fireplace as a focal point.

What do you think? Which fireplace option is your favorite? If you have any real-life personal experience about fireplaces – whether it is something not to do, or something you have done and love – please let us know by commenting to this post or on one of our social media locations!

Have a great Saturday everyone!

SPRING DECORATING IDEAS: DESIGN INSPIRATION FROM INSTAGRAM

The calendar says that Spring has officially begun. The weather, however, is painting an entirely different picture. My area of the country is expected to experience record breaking snowfall this coming weekend – we’re talking FEET of snow. I don’t like that idea. Not even a little bit.

As a way to distract my mind, I took to Instagram to find the signs of Spring via home decor. I just love all the creativity I found, and I have to admit that looking at all the Spring pictures did the trick. Now, if I could just walk into one of these scenes over the next couple of weeks and not have to live the reality – that would be great!

Enjoy the decorating inspiration, friends!

@tracey_hiebert

Bunnies! And vintage suitcases! And chippy paint! So many lovely things in one little corner – and the textures are the icing on the decor’ cake!

@thelesliestyle

Have you ever seen a more ‘springy’ room? I’m pretty sure I haven’t! You guys seriously have to check out Leslie’s IG feed and blog. This house is pure magic – every square inch of it. The transformation of this room in particular was enough to make me a follower!

@grayapplemarket

The trellis pattern of these rustic window frames remind me of garden gates. They are for sale, and I can guarantee that if I lived closer I would be visiting the shop and taking a few of these beauties home with me!

@hollyshobby

Tulips are one of the first signs of Spring, and this decor set up has me dreaming of the new life that the season is sure to bring.

@the_pleaseant_farmhouse

Oh, how I could use a moment on this amazing porch. So in love with all of the greenery. And that swing? Yes please!

@onethousandoaks

Guess what guys? This beautiful print is available for free on One Thousand Oak’s blog. Click HERE to grab one – I’m going to! Thanks for the little reminder, Jaclyn!

SATURDAY SKETCHBOOK: MORE SIMPLIFYING?

This week has been a busy one complete with my birthday, the kids starting school after Spring break, yucky weather, and the planning of a luau themed Father/daughter dance. In the midst of it all, we received a cost estimate for the building of Arrow Hill Cottage.

The estimate was higher than we thought/ hoped it might be. I want to be completely transparent with this process for all of you. Designing a house and having it built is going to be full of ups and downs, and in documenting them I hope to encourage anyone who is following a similar path.

I want my readers to understand that the process is not a straight path from point A to point B, but that each step will eventually lead to a final finished home.

Craig and I are not complicated people, we have said all along that we want our house to be simple. Big enough for now, when we are raising 5 growing children under it’s roof – but not so large that it becomes a burden when we are empty-nesters.

When we first got the dollar figure, I will admit that we were a bit flustered once again. Not long ago, when we were told VERY preliminary costs to build, I had done a huge reduction in the size and complication of the design. We thought that these bold moves would get the number down to a more comfortable level. And surely, they did reduce the overall cost – just not enough.

Even though the bank may loan us the full amount that this contractor is estimating, we aren’t comfortable with what that would mean in terms of monthly payments.

We do not intend to be house poor. When you have a family, there are so many situations needing monetary attention that could potentially arise. If all of our monthly income is tied up in a house, it would definitely add more stress during those times.

And so, we are at a cross roads once again. I am taking a look at the design to see where we could save and have identified a couple of areas that could be revised to be more cost effective if need-be. We will also be taking a close look at this post, and heeding our own advice. Even though we are friends with our preferred contractor, it is important to get second (and maybe third) opinions/quotes on cost.

In the end, I am confident we will be living in the house of our dreams – but that house might be a little different than what we had first imagined going into the process. And that is okay.

5 REASONS THE HOME DESIGN PROCESS SHOULD INCLUDE 3D MODELING

I have written before that I wholeheartedly believe that homes should be designed in both plan (2D) form and in the third dimension. Years ago architects and designers – in order to understand all aspects of space- would make physical 3d models. Physical models involve a considerable amount of time and attention to detail, and any little change to the design can add hours to the process. For that reason, designers would create rough models while working on concepts and save the detailed models for the very end stages of design.

Designers today have the benefit of technology on their side. Specialized software allows us to work in the third dimension through the entire design process. There are many 3D programs available for use, each with their own set of advantages. I personally use Sketchup, which I find to be extremely user friendly and powerful at the same time. One of the major bonuses of this program is that it is available FREE for personal use! In the future, I plan to offer tutorials here on the website – teaching easy steps to get started using Sketchup! In the meantime, I am offering the top five benefits of implementing 3D modeling during the home design process.

1: UNDERSTANDING THE FLOOR PLAN

Many people struggle to make sense of floor plans. Because we naturally don’t see walls cut through, or view furniture from above, a floor plan is difficult for the mind to process. It literally feels like a second language to some. Designers are trained to read these documents – but because their clients are not, frustration can arise when using a floor plan as a point of discussion.

standard floor plan view of Arrow Hill Cottage

By adding the third dimension, we are able to more fully understand how walls relate to one another, and also determine sight lines from one room to the next. This is not only helpful for the designer, but also for the client that they may be sharing the information with.

three dimensional floor plan

2: ADDITION OF DEPTH + DIMENSION

Construction documents are very useful for the crew who will ultimately build the house – these people are used to reading and understanding a plan set, and know how to transfer the information into a three dimensional built form. But the average person who sees a two dimensional drawing can not bring their mind to see beyond the flat image.

This is the front of Arrow Hill Cottage, as seen in a flat elevation drawing. From this view, it appears that the cottage is very long, and without depth.

Seeing the same design in three dimensional form gives you additional information – and as you can see, the garage is actually pulled back from the face of the porch by nearly 30′, giving it much less importance and prominence than what the elevation drawing would have you believe.

In this instance, the 3D model combined the information from BOTH the floor plan and the elevation into one image, making it easier to understand.

3: SCALE COMPARISON

Have you ever been in a space and found it to be either uncomfortably large or so small that it was not functional? The scale of a space is an important element that can be overlooked easily when working only in 2D.

Volume can only fully be understood with the addition of the third dimension. When designing in 3D you can easily determine the differences of how a room would look and feel with a flat ceiling versus a ceiling with a vault. In rooms with sloped ceilings, it is considerably easier to understand the amount of headroom available. Consider our boy’s bedroom design. This is a very unique space with a ceiling that slopes from 11 feet in the center, all the way down to the floor. In order to determine where to place the boy’s beds so that they wouldn’t knock their heads on the ceiling in the middle of the night, I turned to 3D modeling.

Once the Sketchup model of their room was complete, I was able to show these images to the boys – and they could literally imagine themselves IN the room. Huge smiles all around! It is really comforting to know that after all the work, they will enjoy the final product.

4: PRECISION IN PROBLEM SOLVING

There are many little details that can be missed when working only with two dimensional drawings. I find that adding the third dimension is especially helpful when I am fine tuning the design. For example, When I was looking at the cubbies in our future mudroom, I wasn’t sure which height would work best for the individual shelves and hooks. I measured items in our existing home to get a general idea of what would be most functional, but when I put those dimensions into the 3D model, I realized that the heights of the shelves competed with the height of the nearby trim, creating an awkward look.

With a bit of tweaking to the dimensions, the design is now visually appealing.

5: VISUALIZING THE FINISH PRODUCT SELECTIONS

Many of today’s 3D modeling programs, including Sketchup, have the capability to render in a semi-realistic way. Designers can add material selections, such as wood floors or a subway tile back splash. They also offer the ability to add furnishings and accessories. These extra capabilities allow designers to create views of what the final product may look like, before the builder ever lifts a hammer.

When designing the living room of the cottage, I could tell that the space would benefit from the use of a sectional sofa. I was able to use Sketchup to find an amazing couch that fit perfectly. When the time comes to furnish the room, I can simply purchase the exact piece that I used in the design, or find an item with similar dimensions. Retailers are beginning to see this as a benefit, and have begun offering their furniture in three dimensional form, for designers to use in their mock ups – with the hope that their clients will purchase the exact pieces once they visualize how they could look in the room.

If these five reasons have convinced you that adding 3D modeling to your home design process is beneficial, I hope you will join me in the future as I share tutorials on how YOU can get started. And, as always, if you need help in visualizing the space you can ask for a Makeover Takeover!

AROUND HERE: MARCH 2018

Around here we have been…

WISHING Spring weather would arrive! We have had small warm ups; but after each warm up came a large temp drop or inches of snow a few days later. There are rumors going around that another storm is on it’s way, and that the first half of April is expected to be colder than average. It is frustrating, but we know that warmer days are on their way.

In the meantime, the kids have been making the best of things – creating snowmen and ice skating on puddles that had melted – and frozen again.

the kids with ‘Jeff’ the snowman

ice skating on a frozen puddle

GOOFING AROUND. This long, drawn out time indoors has given us a touch of cabin fever – and we aren’t afraid to let our true crazy shine!

Yes, we are weird sometimes… and we like it like that!

EXCITED about {L} turning seven years old! He is our little athlete – one who is constantly on the go. {L} is always ready for an adventure, and can add humor to just about any situation. He loves hamburgers, super heroes, and Imaginext toys.

some of his birthday gifts

With his big smile, and handsome brown eyes – we know he will turn heads some day; But for now, he has his mommy’s heart – and is quick to proclaim that he is the ‘baby boy’ of the family. For always.

such a handsome 7 year old!

CREATING all sorts of projects at school. The kids seem to be coming home with a new project every other day. In an effort to keep the clutter down, I have been documenting these projects by taking photos of each child holding their work. At some point, I want to get all the pictures arranged in photo books – one for each kid.

It has been fun watching them pose with their creations. They are so proud!

PREPARING for Easter. As Christians, this is the most important holiday we celebrate each year. Without Jesus dying for our sins, and raising from the dead three days later – we would be lost and condemned. We are so thankful for the grace of our Lord and Savior.

the kids on Palm Sunday

Each year our church acts out a Passion Drama – with scenes including the crucifixion. It is sobering to experience, and difficult to watch at times; But we attend as a family, as we feel it is important for even our young children to understand the true meaning of Easter.

This is just a glimpse at what our family has been up to. If you’d like a closer look, be sure to check out our weekly ‘mini vlogs’ on our YouTube channel ARROW HILL FAMILY. Be well everyone!

READER SHOWCASE: HEATHER + JEREMY’S HOME

I am so excited about today’s Reader Showcase feature! This series is where I have the opportunity to share the homes and home projects that my readers have tackled. I am constantly amazed at the talent and varied styles that each person has to offer!

I follow Heather on Instagram and am so inspired by her lovely home and how polished, yet casual, her spaces seem to look. She really has a lovely aesthetic.

Heather, please tell me a little bit about your home:

We live in a traditional builder grade brick home that is about 20 years old. We purchased it a year and a half ago and have been slowly tackling projects ever since! The house is sited in a small, historic town in Louisiana – nestled in a subdivision. The half acre parcel of land is beautifully landscaped, with a peaceful creek nearby, plenty of trees, and wildlife.

What is your personal design style?

My personal design style is a combination of modern and traditional farmhouse. I love to mix the old with new. Joanna Gaines has definitely been a primary source of inspiration. In fact, my husband often calls me ‘Little JoJo’. We live on a pretty tight budget, so the majority of our home decor is thrift-ed or DIYed. My husband and I love going to flea markets, thrift stores, trade shows, and antique stores to look for vintage pieces to add to our home. I think what I love most about vintage decor is that it is ‘one of a kind’. Each piece is unique and has so much character. There may be another item very similar, but it won’t have the same nicks, cracks, patina and history behind it.

Explain your favorite remodel projects. What was done to each space?

LIVING ROOM

My favorite remodel project has been our living room transformation. My husband and I DIYed everything in this space. When we purchased the home, all of the details were very traditional and dated. The fireplace had black marble with a fluted mantel. There were built-ins on both sides of the fireplace. The walls were painted a tan color, and a ceiling fan hung above the sofa.

The first step in our living room renovation was to tear out the built-ins. Though the storage was good, the materials they were constructed of were very cheap. My original plan was to tear out the built-ins and replace them with furniture pieces; However, once we pulled them out, we realized there were no floors underneath! The oak floors in the room have a honey color stain. Having the floors completely refinished or replaced was not in the budget. I had to come up with something that would cover the areas without flooring, and so we decided to do a built in bench seat on one side of the fireplace and I found a perfectly sized piece of furniture for the other side.

We then installed faux shiplap on the fireplace wall. This was a good option for this wall because it covered all of the sheetrock blemishes where the built-ins were.

When we set to work on the fireplace itself, we started by replacing the black marble tiles. I really wanted to add a hearth, and since we had never laid brick before, we felt it was best to contract it out. We learned an important lesson during that process – always get more than one quote! Of the two quotes to lay the hearth, one was 4 times more expensive than the other!

The mantel was very decorative with lots of moldings and fluted columns down the side. Again, this was not my style.

fireplace surround before

I wanted a simple, rustic look and found an old reclaimed pine board to use as a mantle instead. To finish off the living room space, we replaced the ceiling fan with the Edison Bulb chandelier from World Market. We also added drop cloths as window treatments to soften up the room – another in-expensive and easy DIY project!

fireplace after

FOYER

The foyer was actually the very first project we ever tackled in our house. I think it was a great starter project for us, since it was a small space. It was still a design challenge though, as the room was originally painted with purple and metallic gold stripes!

foyer before: a bold choice!

As you can imagine, it would have been incredibly difficult to paint over the bold pattern, and so we decided to cover the walls with something instead. After much research, we ultimately decided to use a faux shiplap in the space. It looks just like the real thing, but it is actually panel boards that are cut with lines every 6 inches.

We painted both the walls and trim in White Dove by Benjamin Moore – which really gave it a fresh look, and even increased it’s perceived size! The space turned out better than we ever expected and completing it gave us the motivation to tackle other, larger home improvement projects.

What would you like readers to know about designing and styling a home? Do you have any tips to share?

Most importantly, have fun! Be creative and play around with different styles without being afraid to break the rules to create a style all your own!

Another tip I have is that if you don’t have a ton of money to style your home, start with ‘shopping your space’. You don’t always need new decor – sometimes you just need new combinations in different rooms. Think of ways that you can re-purpose or up-cycle what you already have. If you use your imagination and think outside of the box, you can create some pretty amazing things. I’ve picked up many items from the Dollar Tree that I have transformed into beautiful decor just by getting a little creative.

Do you have any remodeling / decorating plans for the future?

We are slowly going room by room making this house into our dream home. So far we’ve completed the foyer, living room, and our oldest son’s bedroom. It’s been a slow process, but my husband and I both enjoy doing it. It gives you such a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment when you are able to complete a project.

The room that I am most looking forward to renovating is my kitchen! While it’s not horrible, it just isn’t the kitchen of my dreams. I can’t wait to add a farmhouse sink, subway tile, quartz counter-tops and all of the other farmhouse elements.

current kitchen: I hope they keep the paver floors!!!

Other projects that we hope to complete soon include painting the dark red exterior brick of our house to white. I would also love to makeover our master bedroom, and freshen up the laundry room by stenciling the floor tiles, among other things. If only there were more hours in a day!

Thank you so much Heather and Jeremy for sharing your wonderful home with us! I encourage all of my readers to subscribe to Heather’s Instagram account HERE so that you can follow along while she and Jeremy continue to remodel and make their house into a home that reflects their personality and style. Heather also has an amazing blog, Beauty for Ashes, where you can find plenty of home design inspiration and instruction. Go check it out!

Now it’s your turn! Have you been adding personal touches on your home? Maybe the entire house isn’t finished, but you are particularly proud of one room – I would love to see, and share with my readers!

If you are a blog subscriber, you are eligible! Simply email photos and a brief description to angela@arrowhillcottage.com for your chance to be featured!

SHARED BOY BEDROOM IDEAS

Read on for ideas on how we are designing our future home to incorporate a shared boy bedroom for our three sons. These ideas can be useful for anyone whose children share a bedroom.

As a family on the journey toward minimalism, it only makes sense that the design of our future house, Arrow Hill Cottage, would reflect our desires. Because of this, we have been striving to build the least amount of square footage necessary for our large family to feel comfortable. One minimalist technique we are implementing is shared bedrooms for our children.

I wrote about the design of the shared boy bedroom in a previous post, when things were still very conceptual. Since that time, I have worked on structural drawings, determined window sizes, and fine tuned the overall floor plan. At this point, I feel fairly confident about what will be built.

The upper floor of our cottage will have three total rooms. A shared bathroom off of the hallway, plus a bedroom for each gender. One for the girls and one for the boys.

Our three boys are currently 11, 9 and 7 years old. They share a room in our rental house and enjoy it. However, we know that as they age they will be looking for more privacy and personalized space. Because of this, I designed their room so that it can grow with them.

THE ROOM LAYOUT

This is the floor plan of the room. Overall, from edge to edge it is 28’0 wide x 13’9″ deep. The room is vaulted at a high point of 11’5″. The ceiling slopes from the vault all the way down to the floor.

Generally speaking, the room is divided into two different zones. The center core area will be common space, shared between all of the boys. In the image above it is the space with the large window and the grown man figure ‘for scale’.

In the lower sloping portion of the room, along the outer edge, will be private sleeping nooks. One for each boy. The nooks for our younger two boys will feature twin mattresses, while our oldest son will have space for a queen sized bed.

CENTRAL ‘COMMON’ SPACE

This is the view of the room as you walk into it from the hallway. The center space is about 8′ wide, but seems much more spacious because of the vaulted ceiling. I plan to keep this portion of the room very simple and neutral style-wise, with furnishings that can grow with the boys.

As you can see in the right of this image, the younger boys sleeping nooks are a bit more open to the center space. The larger nook is more private and is tucked behind the wall on the left.

On one wall of the common space, I envision a large dresser painted in a bright color. Above it, I would like to add a gallery of photos of the boys and some fun art pieces – such as this, this and this.

Because the ceiling slopes all the way to the floor, I want it to be covered in a durable material. Perhaps whitewashed pine boards, for example. This application could add texture and visual interest as well as provide a durable surface.

Looking back toward the bedroom entrance, you can see the closet door to the right. This one closet and the dresser will be shared by all the boys for their clothing. I imagine as they grow they will eventually be in generally the same size, at least for shirts and socks. This will help cut down on the amount of items they will need to store.

PRIVATE SLEEPING NOOKS

Although this is a shared boy bedroom, I wanted to be sure to incorporate a semi-private are for each boy to retreat to when he needs space from his brothers.

In their individual bed nooks, each boy has plenty of storage and places to display his personal belongings. The beds will be positioned not far from the floor, similar to platform beds – but I would like to at the very least allow for a 6 inch rolling drawer under each bed. Will perhaps try to tackle something similar to this DIY.

Each nook will have it’s own little lamp, as well as shallow shelving built into the wall studs. Barn-wood accents on the back of each of the shelves would add some warmth and extra character to the space. The partial height built in between the younger boy’s nooks will provide more storage, while the post will be the perfect spot to hang up their musical instruments. In this way, the instruments can also serve as room decor.

I imagine that each of the boys will put some personal touches in their own little nooks – with bedding, books, and accessories.

LARGER, PRIVATE NOOK

On the other side of the room is the larger sleeping nook. It will be given to our oldest son starting out. Once he moves out of the house, it will be passed down to the next in line – age wise.

As I mentioned before, this space is large enough for a queen sized bed. I appreciate this aspect while looking into the future, when our kids are all grown up with families of their own. We can see this room serving as a very nice family guest suite.

There is room for a small dresser and some art on the side wall.

SHARED BOY BEDROOM THOUGHTS

I know that some of you reading this will be skeptical about three teenage boys sharing a room. I totally understand that, and will admit that I am a tad nervous myself. However, each family uses their house so differently. For us, the bedrooms have always been used as a place to read and sleep.

In our home we allow the kids to have musical instruments, books, and perhaps a few toys in their rooms. We do not, however, allow electronic devices (computers, tvs, phones, etc). By doing so, we hope that the shared boy bedroom will serve it’s intended purpose as a relaxing space. And, if they need to get their energy out, they can always go shoot a few hoops in the basement rec room!

We are all super happy with how the room is coming together conceptually and the boys, of course, can’t wait to see it built!

PIN THIS SHARED BOY BEDROOM

100TH BLOG POST!

Ten months ago I started this blogging journey with my first post. I was excited, and very very nervous.

It began as a way to document the design process of our family’s future home – Arrow Hill Cottage – and as time went along I realized that I loved educating my readers about all sorts of aspects of home design, decorating and upkeep. In October, I organized the website into three major post categories: DESIGN your home, LOVE your home, and IMPROVE your home.

I have had the joy of featuring reader’s homes – and helping with their design dilemmas through the Makeover Takeover series. The connection I have made with my audience has been one of the most amazing and unexpected benefits of this journey so far.

I’ve learned some tough lessons, and made some mistakes. I’m still learning how to be a blogger – but I’m excited to continue doing what I’m doing here, in my own little corner of the internet.

We will find out soon if we will be able to build our cottage this Spring/Summer – and in anticipation I have been doing a lot of work behind the scenes in preparation. I have a ton of content just ready to hit the blog!

To be sharing this journey with all of you is a privilege. Thank you for encouraging me through 100 posts!