Other idea

It was a style popular in the 80s. They were $$$$

For quite some time you could not give away bookcase headboards with lights in the bridge on Craigslist.

Thanks for the feedback @BeverlyFLADeziner. Do you think all these look dated - I could live with your second photo - the first and third photos you attached do look dated to me. I’m asking a lot of a very small bedroom. 🥹

To me it blocks off access to the flat surface to place your book, water, or tablet down so not very user friendly.

It all depends on how you assemble the items together and if what you assemble functions in the room.

I don't have the number of books I used to have. Those I kept are behind doors because it's a chore to make them look good on display.

I don't like lots of tchotchkes on display because they have to be curated to look good and it's just more to dust. But you do you.

Is there a room that could be used as a study or home office?

@BeverlyFLADeziner Thanks again. Interestingly this is a study that I need to convert to a bedroom for parents. Torn on the bed - was thinking something comfortable and flexible (can also serve as sofa) but after living in the space for a while parents nap a lot so it kind of made sense to keep it a bed instead of constantly changing. Some more helpful photos?

Oh - you can see how each wall has an issue. Goal - bed (against window) with storage on either side, wall opposite bed to house tv and wardrobe (currently empty) and take down those built ins (🥲) to allow two chairs. I may be asking too much!

A bedroom for parents needs their input . Are they now going to live with you or is this their space in their house or just visiting ? I like a night tsble I can put my book and my glasses on when I go to sleep pretty hard to do that there . Do your parents have aton of books they need displayed ? Or are you trying to get some of yours somehere. I need info. BTW I do like wide night table if they fit in a space great for some extra storage . I do not find a queen bed fits well in asmall square room at 63" wide and 36" wide light stands thta would be all that fits on an 11' wall.and you do not have that space anywhere since the bathroom has to be accessible and where does the door on the right go?

Thanks @Patricia Colwell Consulting. I let out a deep sigh when I read your first sentence 😄. Their input would be “nothing’s wrong with our own bedroom in own house” - but so as to not complicate the answer - they really just need/want a place to hang clothes, night stand, tv, and a place to sit when not in the bed. Currently, they spend months at a time with me - up to three or four - with maybe a month break to go back to their own home - then back to mine for up to another 3 months. Repeat. (parents in mid 80s and need the caregiving oversight). So functionally, that room could be a guest room during the weeks they are not there.

I have a 60 inch bed now and two small nightstands that fit a lamp, book, glass of water and phone charger. I was interested in bookcases on either side because as a caregiver I need access to the variety of equipment (nebulizer, pacemaker, blood sugar monitors). The door on right goes to a sunroom they access to eat breakfast sometimes.

I do agree a full bed would fit best and they wouldn’t mind. They sleep like spoons.

Only one can sit - tightly - near that right door - when not in the bed. The builtins are quite nice but may have to go. Maybe there’s a nightstand with closed storage underneath??

Is it possible to temporarily close off the second door so the bed can be positioned on the wall directly across from the built ins? This way the built ins can stay and house the TV.

There should be room to put chairs with small table between them in front of the windows.

Does the room need to fit a closet, armoire or clothes rack?

Yes it is possible @Design Fan. That door is just easy access to an adjoining sun room they use as their living room, but it can be accessed through the living room - a short walk. Not steps - but a little walk. And yes, the room does need to fit a closet - it has nothing of that sort now. The thought would be this could go against the wall opposite that window and use that entire wall. I like your idea functionally - esp having two seats by the window. Aesthetically it may be an issue with the bed covering part of the door but like I said I’m not sure I can have it all in this room. Thanks! Something to think about.

What wsea said. The setup in that photo isn’t good. A low bookcase or low cabinet where the top is the bedside table, with a lamp and place for book or glass of water, or a pullout shelf could work.

I agree. Could something much more attractive than this work? Note the pull out tray. The bedside surface would then be more accessible and useful?

I've done a lot of caregiving. You need surface space, and they need to easily reach something in bed without having to make U turn with their arm to dive back into a bookcase.

Get a large nightstand or a small dresser, or a table, to put next to their bed. If you want shelves to house belongings above, install wall hung shelves above whatever you use as the surface night table.

You need to think about not cramming too much into the space. Wide walkways really help reduce the risk of falls.

Instead of blocking the door to their living room, can you take it off of the hinges and make this room feel more like a large bedroom / sitting room combo? Would that enable you to skip the seating part of this room and instead have the living room space be the seating area?

Thanks @Kendrah. Great idea about wall shelves above a small chest. And you’re right about making it easier for them to access items on their tables. Last year the door off the hinges could’ve worked. My mom mostly, but my dad sometimes tend to wander. I had to set up google cameras to monitor when they would leaving via the entrance to the room. That door to their living room (also a sunroom that leads to a patio and the main living room) gives them too much opportunity to walk around - it’s now alarmed and locked at night.

@Cee Bee I'm so sorry you are dealing with this level of caregiving in your home for both parents. Wandering is really a hard issue to deal with and I feel for you.

If the door has a handle on it, would either of them try to open it? Is it smart to cover, remove, alter the door in some way that they don't try to use it?

Could you temporarily put a board over it, paint it the same color as the wall, and then put their bed against that wall? It would create a solid wall in that room for the bed and keep your parents from wandering into the sunroom / living room.

I'm also wondering if there is a way to only remove the end section of the builts and install a rod and door in that area for closet space. Don't know if there is enough depth.

If I may? Who watches over them when not IN YOUR CARE, AT YOUR HOME?

At any rate? Yes, you are asking too much of the room and probably too much of yourself, which is another topic entirely.

They need room to move and not fall

Clothes? I'm sorry, but you LIMIT the clothes. They aren't out running around every day, you have a washer and dryer. Few if anyone ses them daily, but you. Nobody knows what they wore on Tuesday in any given week.

There is NO 11 x 11 space that can effectively be living room and bedroom. Day time tv means they watch wherever you watch! Or you use another spot in your home. They can lie down for a nap and watch in here.

The built in is up to you......

Remove the out swing door to the powder room, entirely . A curtain panel hung on a rod and rings is all they need, if that. They've been married for eons.

Look at IKEA...for free standing options, consignment even for an armoire. Dad isn't needing a coat and tie, right?

I speak from experience. At this age? Health and mobility turn on a DIME. It will probably be , unfortunately ......a short lived scenario. Just a guess : )

You lock the patio door, and you hide the key.

All BELOW are on Wayfair, and inexpensive "closet",,,,,( where the built in is?

Night stands need not match.......the larger is more important as are drawers on that side of the bed

You really need to give us the exact inches for every door, wall, window, the built in etc

ikea WOULD allow a bunch of options.....so that too.

It depends what you may own that you can use, or what you want to spend, and bear in mind the time frame which may at some point prove unmanageable. : (

I reiterate what is they love about the space they have a home and how are they cared for there/ Do they have alzheimers or just are old I am 78 and require no help from our kids at all. I think the closer you get this space to what they are used to will be the best for them . If dementia is the issue the best is to not create confusion if possible .

@Kendrah and @Jan Moyer All great points. Thinking some more, I do have flexibility on that door and it’s the overnight hours that’s the concern. It can definitely be open during the day. Thanks for the empathy. All these details to sort through. I agree I’m asking too much. I can forget the seating in that room - the adjoining sunroom will serve that purpose. And yes, ask away @Jan Moyer! Thanks for that mockup! When they are not with me, I am with them - in their own home. I bring them back to their home because I know they looove to be here. And you’re right - besides their doc appts and maybe an outing or two, no one sees them but me. I pack too many clothes only because they were “dressers” back in the day, and it brings smiles on their faces when they have on their outfits, with the matching xyz. Idiotic? But like you say, that’s another topic! Love the wayfair options. Ok - some great practical advice for the room and for me. Stay tuned for a future (updated) post asking for the sunroom set up help! Thank you!

Unless I've missed something in the above exchanges, it looks like you already have a built-in in the room so I worked around that.

This is so hard! And you are a great daughter. I especially appreciate that you spend the energy and take the space to pack them clothes they like -- this is so respectful and caring.

What if you disable the door to the sunroom and put the bed against that wall; take out a few of the shelves on the built-in and put the TV there. Wardrobe with hanger space on the lower wall (with the door to the hallway), and good-sized bed tables on either side of the bed, that have enough room for medical supplies, etc.

Do you have other closet space elsewhere in the house where you can put some additional clothes, so they don't have to cram everything in this little room? And I say "little" but it's absolutely lovely, with the blue wainscoting and the beautiful windows.

Thanks @lisedv and @EmilyR. I do have the builtins but I think it’s too narrow to serve as a place to hang clothes. It was a study so the prior owners had it full of books. As I think about it Emily, I would like my parents to feel like they easily access that sunroom as a getaway space, family room, another place to enjoy a meal and watch tv - so closing it off and putting a bed there would block that space off. It is more of an issue overnight but I can lock the door at night.

We don't know the climate, we haven't seen the sun room ! Put it one here now! Don't make a separate thread. they are the same parents, in the same house with the same you. Where do they shower! ? There's another bath on this floor and it's yours?

I truly do not mean to be nosy or dispiriting in any way. I am sure they are attached to their home.......

The "wandering" can mean a type of vascular dementia, not necessarily Alzeheimers, especially since diabetes seems to be involved. Your effort to keep them happy is admirable, I did it for a time myself....just don't beat yourself when the GIVE UP makes more sense for them, and for you. You haven't yet gotten to the fall in the night, one needs ER and the other can't be safely left alone. It can become a quagmire of epic proportion and it can happen in a blink........ that I know for fact. We plan, and God laughs. That is fact.

Both of mine went to a lovely assisted living near me. It was a godsend for them and ditto for me though my visits there every. single. day. Their care was wonderful, mom had dementia and found a dear friend. Just don't ask how many calls came here when my day fell and they waited until six am to wake me....let me know he fell,but was only a major skin tear. Gird your loins. Clothing storage is the least of it.

Thanks @Jan Moyer. Wow. Glad to hear you found wonderful care. That must’ve been such a relief. My loins are girded, knotted, twisted, braided…lol. And the questions are not nosy at all - these details matter! I can’t believe I had to rethink a knife block on a counter vs a knife drawer with a lock after waking up to banging and finding my mom in the kitchen with a broom in one hand and a knife in the other trying bust out the windows to save us from a fire. (There was no fire. She has vascular dementia post a massive stroke.) That powder room will be expanded to add a shower - taking space from kitchen so this doesn’t affect the study space. It’s the only bathroom on the floor so rare guests go the basement or second floor. You’re right. Clothing storage is the least of it!! Arrgh! Hope the photo of sunroom posts. Houzz ins giving me some issues now.

As long as you can make it safe, and it sounds like you have a good plan for this, I think creating a suite out of the office + sunroom is the best idea. It's going to be really nice, and will eliminate a lot of the stress around trying to fit everything in to an 11x11 space.

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