Need help with reusing the sunroom and ideas for opening up kitchen
11 days ago
We are trying to renovate our old house in bay area by ourselves with some assistance.
Seeing guidance on two design questions .
1)We are looking to convert our 370 sqft sunroom into living space. How can we achieve this conversion? The sunroom is a step-down area from the dining room. We are seeking an economical way to repurpose this area, possibly transforming it into a family room and bedroom .PS
2)We are thinking of opening up the kitchen and close the door and window in the kitchen to the sunroom. We may have to provide a pillar to support the current beam ,when we open up the kitchen. Is it advisable to do that ?
Attaching sun room room photo , Kitchen photo ,Living dining photo.
Third photo shows living room ,small kitchen behind the wall ,dining room and sunroom behind the dining room.
Thank you so much for your time.
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11 days agoRelated Discussions
Laminate flooring in a sun-room
Comments (33)jane ny, I was in a similar situation last year. For me the sequence was paint first, then flooring, then baseboards, But it looks like you may have baseboards already installed. Painting first worked for me because I did it myself and there were spatters on the subloor before I was finished. You might want to check on whether your subfloor is indeed covered with plywood, because you may need an underlayment before installing your floor, depending on what you choose. Best to check where you buy the flooring. With some help from a friend who knew what he was doing and owns a Skill Saw, I installed a plywood underlayment in less than two hours. I too wanted tile with a slate or similar look, but the room was already over budget (long story) and I chose to spend my money on high end French doors because the floor could always be changed later. I got some advice from the flooring forum while deciding. You can always post a message there before you proceed. We narrowed floor choices down to either loose-laid sheet vinyl or vinyl tiles. My friend chose the tiles because the color and pattern seemed to fit well in the sunroom/porch. The original intention was to keep those tiles for about a year while I shop for tile and find a good tile installer. But the floor has held up well, despite some abuse like beach sand, rain coming in when some airhead (...See MoreNew Home Construction (Budget Decisions 3rd Car garage vs SunRoom Bump
Comments (30)I go with the sunroom, too, and here's why. You can build a shed for cheap at some point, and until then you'll probably keep one car inthe driveway, and all the bikes and basketballs in the garage along with the yard and snow tools. The sunroom will make a great playroom while the little ones are little. I've seen that sunroom with nothing in it but a low-pile play rug and Lego. Or balls. Or plastic hockey sticks. Or those big Little Tykes (slide, trikes, trains) Or Hot Wheels. Or dollhouses. Or art projects (easy-to-clean tile floor). Usually just one or two of those. But a great playspace, near you but not, outdoors but not. After they are done with those types of toys, it can be dining space and added living space. You don't need the shed until Boy #1 gets a car. Oops, didn't mean to scare ya lol! Upstairs, I wonder if you can steal some space from the game room to make a reach-in closet for Bedroom 2, and use its walk-in closet to expand the bathroom. 5 boys will need more counterspace, more drawer storage, and (I can't believe I'm saying this, I'm usually a 1-sink gal) 2 sinks. Downstairs, consider eliminating the study closet and adding a shower to the powder room....See MoreHelp Requested - Furniture + Colors for Open Living Room / Sunroom
Comments (2)Painting the whole house gray in a northern climate seems contrary to the warm, livable space you're trying to create. On dull, rainy, snowy days it may not be what you're looking for. With your beautiful, warm-colored floor I would look for a color that is warm in a light tone. You certainly don't want beige, but more something along the lines of a warm white tone. Gray has been so overused that it's quickly becoming dated, and the new trend now is color, so you might want to rethink your choice. I would look for beautiful rugs in warm colors (Oriental rugs are considered neutral and can be used with any style of furniture) and base your furniture choices and accent colors on that. You need to decide on your furniture layout before buying anything and measure the areas where you want your couch to go, for instance, so that you don't buy one that's too large for your space. Pay attention to the depth which on modern couches is often ridiculously deep (like 48 inches) and look for ones that are more along the lines of 35 to 36 inches. Buy leather only if you love it (and please DO NOT pick dark brown or black leather that goes with absolutely nothing in the room). Pick light, warm tones that will marry well with beautiful rugs and pillows. A warm-colored beige is a good option. One couch and two chairs, with the chairs in a different style (although the heights should pretty well match) would be a good start. A glass and metal coffee table would make your space look larger, and then you can have wood side tables (which don't have to match each other but should be close in height). This gives you the basics and you can then buy pillows based on the rug colors, and you'll want to add books and paintings to finish the look. Large plants are always a good accent; small plants should be grouped together if used at all since they have little impact in a large space....See MoreNeed help with inspiration (and functionality) for sunroom
Comments (13)What a cute space! I agree, lots of potential. It must be pleasant to sit there in the early evening and get a pulse of the neighbourhood. Is there any room in the garage for the strollers and wagon? That's where I parked mine. Otherwise, could you confine them all to one wall and perhaps use a curtain (or a screen) to hide them? (Your lights gave me the curtain idea.) As @AnnKH mentioned, those daily necessities aren't forever and I wouldn't invest much in storage solutions for them. Here's an Apartment Therapy feature on stylish shoe storage for entries. You know your family's habits best: would closed storage work or is open easier/better? A bookcase might be all you need for the shoes. Bookcases are usually 12 inches deep. (What size are your largest shoes?) Find an inexpensive vintage one with style you like or buy an inexpensive new one at Ikea and transform it to your liking. Not sure if the chairs are too big for the space but they don't look that comfy to me....See More
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seema_samOriginal Author