Loft for living
We have added insulation in the wall and roof. Recessed lights have been installed in the ceiling. We will match the existing pine plank flooring and then finish the entire floor.
John and Evan check the placement of additional collar ties. These will strengthen the structure.
We love how sometimes life brings a project together in unexpected and surprising ways. This renovation is one such instance.
Before we begin working on a project, we consult with our appraiser to make sure our renovations do not exceed the home values in the area. When we bought this house, we knew that the attic space had great potential. The stairs leading to the space are wide and not steep. The ceiling height is great, wide pine planking covers the majority of the deck, and windows on all four walls bring in great daylight.
We asked our appraiser to do an additional consultation with us about renovating the upstairs area. She told us that she had recently seen a similar attic space in the neighborhood that had been converted to a loft and showed us a photo of it. This prompted us to talk with an architect friend about how we could do this too. He told us that he had converted his attic space and invited us to come look at his finished room. Turns out that the photos our appraiser showed us were photos of the architect’s space. What a small world.
His space is fabulous, and we decided to use it as a model for converting the attic into a loft. But, overhauling this area is a big upgrade and was not a part of our original plan, nor our budget. However, seeing that we could add more than 600 square feet of living space in a super cool way persuaded us to take on this challenge.
Prior to our purchasing the house, someone had made a first attempt to capture the space for use by installing board insulation and partitions in some areas. We ripped all this out and then laid out the area so that plenty of attic storage space remains.
A new full bath is now located at the top of the stairs.
The plan takes advantage of the ceiling heights, going from 8 ft. in some areas, and to the peak of the roof in others.
Because of the windows on all four sides, natural light is abundant. Careful consideration has been given to the placement of outlets and lighting fixtures to make sure all areas are properly illuminated.
Like our architect friend’s home, the finished loft will have an industrial look. We will finish the existing pine floors and install black hardware and bath fixtures.
The space will have its own heating and cooling system that can be remotely operated. The thermostat is built in to a hand-held remote.
Altogether, this makes a great living area that can be used in many ways. I imagine it being used as bedroom for two children with a killer play area, as a media room, as a master bedroom or a multipurpose room.