Make the Most of Your Indoor-Outdoor Spaces

Blending your home’s interior with your outdoor space can make both feel larger
Making your home feel expansive without compromising the outdoor space is always a challenge.  How can you maximize the square footage of your living area without reducing your outdoor space? It’s a problem that we at www.luxbuilders.com often confront in the coastal area of Southern California, where many of the lots are small.

This premium location requires a compromise. In order to build a spacious home without losing the indoor-outdoor lifestyle that people come here to enjoy, we recommend an approach that combines flexibility and creativity.

Going with a contractor based in your area will better understand the issues you may be facing, and their proximity helps them work more efficiently. We advise getting recommendations from friends, looking through local home magazines or searching on www.Houzz.com for builders in your area who do work that you can relate to.

Look outside for inspiration. One of the secrets to making your home seem larger is to blur the lines between spaces. This may include stretching upward into the attic space, finding unexpected places for storage or adding custom doors. We can create an integral indoor-outdoor entertaining area by installing bifold, pocket or multiple sliding doors. Here at Lux Builders & Remodeling we often include those kinds of doors to blur the boundaries.

Another helpful tip is to raise the height of your ceiling. This will make the area below feel larger even without adding on. For this custom home in Manhattan Beach, CA we opened the space above the living room to give that airy feel and to allow an abundance of natural light to flow in. Windows that stretch to the top of the wall, as well as a bright white ceiling and walls, also contribute to making the space feel bigger than it is.

If giving up your attic means losing storage, adding a loft or second story above your garage can replace that storage space. That was the case for this homeowner in Torrance, CA. Our client also wanted an easy access to the difficult-to-reach space. In order to do this, we built and installed a lift system above the garage. The system includes both ladder access and a hoist for lifting larger items. We’ve been installing them whenever possible ever since.

Lastly, replacing an exterior wall with one that opens completely makes the transition between your indoor and outdoor space seamless. Finding a way to maximize both the square footage of the living space and the outdoor space in this Manhattan Beach, CA home, which was on a small lot, was crucial for our clients. We created a welcoming indoor-outdoor vibe by installing bifold doors. That change opened the entire exterior wall at the end of the kitchen to the trellis-covered deck and yard beyond, visually expanding the entire space.

We hope that these tips can be helpful in your next home remodeling project.  Each space is different so don’t be afraid to tackle new ideas to better your house.