When a child goes away to college, gets married, or gets an apartment with a friend, it can be very traumatic. The empty nesters can sometimes struggle. However, keeping the child’s room untouched can feel like a waste of space.
Most parents will even gift the furnishings to the child so that they have some familiarity with their new space. This is the time to consider some fun projects in reclaiming the space as your own.
Maybe you have always wanted a guest room so that your aging parents or visiting friends no longer have to get a hotel room when they come to town? The COVID pandemic forced many people to work from home who never went back to an office setting and you need a home office to conduct business.
I have even assisted clients with turning a spare bedroom into a glorious closet that the homeowner always dreamed of!
I always remind the homeowner that the child will always come back to visit, maybe even with a new family. So, whatever the room converts to, consider a sophisticated design that will function as a sort of hotel room. Even an office could accommodate a Murphy bed that is hidden in a wall unit until needed for sleep.
Keep things clean and simple. Suitcases will be in and out of the room and some closet space will be needed for short term guests. Being in Augusta, keep in mind that Masters Golf renters might be coming. So, keep the theme gender friendly and again, sophisticated.
Here is a bonus room over a garage that I reinvented for a client. All of the six children had gone away to college and were all getting married and having children of their own.
The room served the children well when they were younger. It had fresh, youthful patterns and colors and could accommodate friends when there were sleep overs. But now the children were young adults and returning to visit along with spouses and eventually toddlers of their own.
The new beds and furniture chosen were clean and simple, yet were now Queen size, where two beds used to be. The walls were painted a more neutral color.
The top treatment at the window was removed and a simple drape was installed to open the room up both vertically and horizontally. Easy to launder bedding was added. A crib and dresser, that also acted as a diaper changing station flanked another wall and we added a luggage rack in the closet.
The room can now continue to create memories for the next generation!
