While it can seem impossible, with the right design ideas, even a busy family can enjoy a peaceful and positive living environment. The key is to find a balance between practicality and comfort, as well as ensuring that each family member has space for play, work, and relaxation. The lounge is often the room where most families the majority of their time, and this can mean that this is the room that suffers in terms of mess and clutter.
To help you ensure that you and your children have a comfortable and welcoming place to spend time together, here are five design ideas for busy family homes.
1. Have a dedicated play area
While some families have a playroom for the children to keep their toys and play their games, the majority end up using their lounge or kitchen. What this means is that toys and playtime take over your organized living space.
To prevent this issue, try to organize a dedicated area for play in your living room or bedroom. If you try this suggestion, remove breakable items and have storage for the toys, which means they can be out of sight when the kids are in bed.
Add soft cushions and blankets too. Doing so will help to make the play area somewhere they can relax with a book or do some coloring to unwind before it’s time to sleep.
2. More design ideas: Maximize storage
To minimize clutter and mess in the living room, invest in as much storage as you can. Toys, magazines, stationery, and other small items can add up to a mess very quickly if they are always lying around.
Shelving, baskets, boxes, cabinets, and coffee tables or footstools with storage underneath will help you to keep surfaces and floors clearer. This should make the home a more peaceful and safer place for your family to spend time together.
3. Choose flexible, easy-care furniture
Many people choose furniture that is the wrong size or configuration for their home, or they hold onto items they had before children came along, which are no longer practical. If this sounds familiar, consider investing in some key furniture pieces that will make your layout more flexible.
A sectional sofa is great for family homes as it can be separated into different sections and reorganized as needed. It is also worth considering wipeable fabrics to make cleaning as easy as possible.
Extendable and foldable tables and chairs are also a great option. They can easily be brought out or put away as needed.
4. As a busy family, choose child-friendly flooring
Carpeting can be difficult to keep clean and holds a lot of dust, so consider replacing a carpet with wood or laminate flooring, which will be easier to maintain. You can then place some washable rugs on the floor to make the room cozier and more comfortable underfoot. That is one of the most straightforward but overlooking decorating ideas.
5. Make space for quality time
Ideally, you should have space for your family to spend time together that is not centered around the TV or computer games. If you can place some comfortable chairs together with warm lighting, you can create a family nook where you can talk about your day and reconnect before bedtime.
What are some other design ideas for a busy family?
Also, do you find it difficult to stay organized in your home? Why or why not?
Great ideas!