Design Dilemma: Creating A Multifunctional Space (Playroom, Piano Room, Office, and Entry - Oh My!)
Several weeks ago, I called for “design dilemma” submissions on Instagram and boy did I get some good ones! I wish I could solve them all, but alas, I could only choose one to conquer here on the blog just like I would for an e-design client. I know we’re all spending a ton of time at home these days and it’s more important than ever to make sure our homes are working well for the way we live in them.
That’s why Rebecca’s submission stuck out to me - she needed to create a space for her family of five that served a bunch of purposes and could “flex” when needed. I’m sure many of you are in a similar boat, so I thought this challenging space would be a good one to tackle!
Here’s part of what she shared with me in her submission email:
“This is our living room. It's the first room that people see when they walk in. It has so much potential, but I am stuck in trying to make it work. It needs to be a small playroom for kids’ toys, along with holding our antique baby grand piano, which I inherited. We also need to make some space for a desk/homework station for my husband and two older daughters to share.
Right now the room is a blank slate because we just replaced the carpet with the new vinyl plank flooring. I'd love to get suggestions for storage cabinets/bookshelves with some cabinets. I also need some rugs for the play area and under the piano for sound proofing, and some seating for the desk and if we want to sit around the piano to listen and sing along.”
Now let’s take a peek at the current state of the space. Note that these were taken just after the new flooring was installed, and in her words, “it doesn’t always look this junky, I promise!” In my mind, the worse the before, the better the after, so no worries, Rebecca! :)
Before Photos:
It’s a GREAT space and really does have so much potential! The room is long and narrow, which makes it conducive to serving multiple purposes like Rebecca needs.
I approached this design dilemma like I would any e-design project - I started with the space plan. To me, this is just as important as choosing the furniture and decor because it solves for functionality and how you live in a room. The arrangement of the room and setting it up well matter! Rebecca sent over a hand drawn floor plan that I digitized so I could work with the room’s actual dimensions and include to-scale furniture pieces.
Here’s the space plan I came up with:
My goal was to create several different zones and make the space flexible enough so that it could be rearranged as needed depending on what their family needs:
Office/workspace: Two desks and chairs tucked away in the “nook” by the front door offer space for Rebecca’s daughters and husband to get homework done/play or work, respectively.
Entryway: A console table with mirror above and a coat rack offer a functional and pretty drop zone for guests as they enter the home.
Main living/play space: A large, 9’x12’ area rug defines the living and play space, as well as offers sound proofing for the piano. They don’t need a true living room seating setup in this room, so I just included two accent chairs for folks to hang out and listen to the piano. This could also be a loveseat if they prefer. I left a lot of open floor space here so the girls can play freely and have room to run around - figuratively, of course, right?!
I also included several pieces of furniture that have both open and closed storage. That way, they can hide away the “less pretty” items and keep other items, like their printer, readily available.
All right! Ready to see the design I came up with?
First, a disclaimer: these design boards show simplified versions of the room from different angles. The idea is to show you what the furniture and decor will look like all together in a realistic room-like setup. It’s not perfectly to scale (that’s what the floor plan is for!), but it helps you visualize the space! If you’ve worked with me as a client, these should look familiar!
The Design Boards:
(Sources are listed below the boards and at the end of the post!)
Natural Wood and Metal Sideboard | Large Scale Abstract Landscape Art (40”x55”) | Oversized Frame (40”x55'“) | White Table Lamp
Black Metal Rolling Desks | Plug In Sconces | Faux Leather Chairs
Design Details:
It’s so fun to see the space plan come to life! Rebecca sent over a Pinterest board full of inspiration to showcase her style, so I used those images to come up with what I’m calling an “industrial-modern-eclectic” space. There’s a mix of warm wood tones, black and brass metals, and pops of color in the textiles and art that bring life to this room. It feels fun and casual (appropriate for a playroom), but still “fancy” enough to house a baby grand piano.
The two chairs with a small table in-between offer some seating for folks listening to the piano or for parents to sit in while hanging with the kids as they play. As I mentioned before, a small loveseat would do the trick in this spot too as seating!
Another challenge of this space that I haven’t mentioned yet is that it has an angled, vaulted ceiling that goes from 9’ to 20’ high. While high ceilings can be awesome, they can also be challenging to work with, and I wanted to make sure this room felt cozy with the dramatic change in ceiling height. The way I did that was to draw an imaginary height line around the room using curtains and a big piece of art that makes it feel like the height hovers around 9’, but also has the airiness of the vaulted portion of the ceiling.
I’m suggesting mounting black curtain rods with neutral curtains above the two large picture windows and hanging an oversized print in a black frame at the far end of the room. This will immediately catch visitors’ eyes as they walk in. Combining that large art print with a substantial sideboard below it balance out the size of the piano and also fill the space without crowding it. It also ads tons of concealed storage for puzzles, games, and other toys!
Now shifting over to the desk area…
I included two desks on casters here to give ultimate flexibility on setup. I figure there might be times when it makes sense to shift the position of these in the “nook,” so it’ll be nice to be able to just roll them to a different area in those cases. They can use the desk chairs as extra seating in the living area when they want to as well!
Also, depending on what they need or want to display, they can use the wall space in the desk area to hang a cork board, some framed art, or other office organization items.
All in all, I think this design checks a lot of boxes on function and style, and is budget-friendly to boot. Hopefully it solves Rebecca’s design dilemma! I’m excited for her to take a look at everything and use it as a jumping off point to get started on creating a room that serves her family well. Maybe she’ll even snap some photos I can share so we can see the “After” once it’s all put together!
Furniture and Decor Source List:
Below you’ll find the sources for the furniture and decor found in this design. (If you’re on a feed reader or seeing this in your email, you’ll need to click over to the website to see the images below!) You can also find them listed under the design boards above. If something caught your eye, scroll on down and find the link to the item - everything is available to purchase online.
*Affiliate links used, which means Mix & Match Design Company earns a small commission from your purchase at no cost to you.
