Creating Nests in Unexpected Places
Modern and open goes cozy with sunken tubs, dropped ceilings, well-placed furniture placement and fabric
When you create nests in your home, they don't always have to be in a bedroom, around a comfy couch or somewhere you would naturally curl up. The natural human instinct to carve nests into our environment extends to anywhere in your home. Take a look at these examples of how designers and homeowners are creating nests in unexpected spaces.
More: The Building Blocks of a Home Nest
More: The Building Blocks of a Home Nest
A bathroom is the perfect space to create a nest. Sinking a tub into the floor instead of the typical raised height allows the occupant to soak safely enclosed and surrounded while still maintaining a vista through the window and across the room.
This bath offers a different kind of nest with high sides, three walls enclosing the space tightly and a beautiful vista out floor-to-ceiling windows. The high tub sides allow the bather to feel enclosed and nested, while the vista allows her to feel like she is on the pinnacle of a hill.
New homes don't typically have the same little nooks and crannies that make such perfect nests in older homes. However, they often have slightly larger cutouts of spaces with lower ceiling heights. Little carved-out areas of space in modern homes are perfect opportunities for creating mini-rooms. This office space is closely surrounded on three sides, with a lower ceiling, while maintaining a vista out the window — a perfect nest!
More: Crafty Ways With Creative Spaces
More: Crafty Ways With Creative Spaces
This modern home has a long, rectangular space with a lowered ceiling. It is the perfect size to place a dining table. Notice the vista out the window and across the room (one for each side of the table) while the floating quarter wall creates a boundary to enclose the open side of the table.
Your furniture choice can help turn a large, lofty space into a cozy nest. The choice of a long, white curved sofa delineates the walkway from the living space and makes this little corner of the room feel intimate and safe.
Kitchens are naturally cozy, warm family hubs so it makes sense to give them a nest feel to enhance their coziness. The sloped ceiling gives this kitchen the feeling of intimacy and creates a vista across the room with the angle of the slope. See more of this Tribeca loft
A sloped ceiling doesn't have to be grand and imposing. A slight slope in an attic room creates the perfect nest for a guest twin bed. A few personal details and this nest truly feels like home.
Fabric is another great way to define the boundaries of a nest. By lowering the ceiling with a swoop of light fabric, the space feels intimate and cozy without feeling boxed in.
Furniture placement also can make all the difference in the way a room feels. In this kitchen, most of the cabinets and appliances are stationary and cannot be easily moved. However, to create a nest-like environment, a simple metal table is added to one side. The table offers additional counter and prep space, but also encloses the kitchen somewhat to create a nest-like space. The ceiling beam in this kitchen also helps delineate the kitchen from the rest of the house. This is a great way to have an open living area without sacrificing nesting spaces.
What kind of nests will you create in your home today? Will you add a fabric canopy to your living room? Will you add series of over-sized spindles to mimic a four-poster bed? Maybe your change will be as simple as adding a table to create a cozy, protected space bordered on three sides instead of two. If you have created nesting spaces in your home, please share a photo below. I'd love to see it!
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