So much positive energy emerged from the stay-at-home precautions of 2020 and 2021. Getting a refresher course in what home means to them, millions decided that the home they were accustomed to was no longer quite good enough. In so many ways, we see that people raised the bar for home, and the passion going now into making home an even better fit, more considerate of how we really want to live, is resulting in a burst of ideas that we thought would interest you.
The Spa Comes Home
Turning your home’s bathroom into a spa is not at all unreasonable, and it is not as extravagant a decision as it might sound at first. Let’s start by recognizing that this is not an abrupt decision. Since the 1970s, bathrooms in America have grown larger and more accommodating. They had a long way to go, because bathrooms started with the expectation that this was a very private space where people wanted to spend as little time as possible.
That’s far from the role that the bathroom rapidly came to play. A place of relaxation. A retreat and a refuge. Whether from hard work outdoors, a nine-to-five office grind, a labyrinth of errands to keep the household operating, or a transportation service for the children’s after-school activities, homeowners found their bathrooms a place they looked forward to enjoying and spending a little more time.
The fixtures, treatments, colors, and amenities available to give your home a spa experience are abundant, imaginative, and oh so refreshing.
A Multifunction Island
Kitchen islands have been around a while, and yet even the most accomplished home chefs are still astonished what a difference that kitchen island can make. What we see coming in 2023 is that people will get more out of the kitchen island by putting more into it than storage space.
When dishwashers, microwave and convection ovens, wine coolers – and even the recycling pull-out – are built into the kitchen island, all of them become handier and the rest of the kitchen feels as if it got bigger.
Where We Come and Go
Homes in the north and the northeast – and farms everywhere – provide a place to make the transition from outside to inside. It’s where you hang your jacket and sit down to get out of your shoes. On farms, it was usually the back porch; then a lavatory was added for washing up after work in the field; then a heater, and so forth. We wish there were a more attractive name, yet this space for making the transition is called the mud room in the northeast, and even city homes often devote a space for it.
Calling it the “drop zone” is a trend we see today, and this accommodating space can include shoe racks, closets, and a spot for sitting to make the change. Often the laundry room is located here, or maybe a miniature “branch office” of the laundry room. Part of the brilliance of the “mud room” was that outdoor wear went no farther. Today, there are a lot fewer farmers and yet a lot more athletes – joggers, yogis, and gym enthusiasts are glad to take a page from the farmers book about leaving those workout duds at the door.
Let these ideas be just the beginning. We are astonished and gratified at the imagination and drive that people devote today to making their home a better fit than ever. We are privileged to play a part in making a new experience out of coming home.
