Dual Purpose Rooms
Dual purpose rooms. Do those words give you nightmares? Don’t let them. With some simple tips you can pull off a room that functions well as both.
We have family come and stay with us often so my husband’s office had to work as a bedroom for guests as well. I knew that to pull this off I had to do two main things.
Create zones
Use multipurpose furniture
I had an old office set that I pieced together to form a bookshelf/ desk combo for my husband, and it just happened to fit against the odd slanted wall in the room. Luckly, the desk has a pull-out drawer that he can put his laptop on. When he is done working his laptop and all his paperwork can just slide inside and the office mess is gone. This piece also has a great area underneath for storing office equipment like a printer and paper, etc. The top portion of the desk did not originally come with the bottom piece but they are not attached so I put the one with beautiful sliding doors in this room. It gives the room an old library feel that I love. Someday I would like to get a streamlined, handsome leather office chair that might look better when everything is put away, but for now my husband likes the one he has. Anyway, when you plan your space remember to find a desk where the day’s work can be hidden away if need be.
In the corner I added another old piece. This leather chair has been my reading chair for at least 15 years. It is worn and comfortable and it is the perfect place for a break from work or a guest to hang out.
Across the back wall I added a day bed that acts as a couch during the day. At night, if there is a guest, it has a trundle so it can sleep two cousins or friends or whoever we have around. In your room you might want to use a day bed too, but there are other options like pullout couches and amazing murphy beds that easily go from bookshelves to beds in the touch of a single finger.
Knox Black Metal Daybed with Revive Pop-Up Trundle at Living Spaces.
If the zones are spread out, the room works and does not feel crowded or confused. You might notice that in our office/ guest room the sleeping area is defined by a fun antelope print rug for a whimsical touch. Rugs are a great way to help define the spaces.
Another thing you might notice is that everything in the room serves more than one purpose or works for both needs. In dual purpose rooms you must be creative with storage. For example, next to my comfy reading chair are two large baskets that hold all kinds of office supplies, but stacked they also serve as a side table for the chair. The desk has tons of smart storage so that the closet is left for guests to hang clothes if needed.
As far as the design style for a dual-purpose space, it is important to keep it consistent. Decorate the space in a way that you would feel comfortable working or sleeping in the room. Most likely your diploma is not what a guest wants to see. Try landscapes or calming art. Remember that if you are doing video calls that you want the area behind you to look professional. I created a gallery wall of soft landscapes and old back and white photos. If you would like to create a gallery wall in your space I have an post on that here.
Try to keep your color palette agreeable (neutrals are best) and limit “stuff” so it does not become cluttered. In our room we went with soft grays and muted art and I tried to keep furniture and tchotchkes to a minimum. Remember everything needs to serve a purpose in the room otherwise to will get overly crowded.
Lamps for both task lighting and your guests is important. So much of my room is made of oldies but goodies. I got my lamps at Kirkland's years and years ago and the standing lamp came from Hobby Lobby almost as long ago.
This room is really a great example of a curated space. It developed from a need to use what I had, but sometimes that works best because you use things you love. The room doesn’t look too new and is full of memories. I love how this room turned out, and how I was able to use things I loved with a few new fun additions like the antelope rug and the cute pom-pom curtains to make it a welcome space for work and for guests.