Now that you’ve made some headway in your plans for building your custom home, it’s time to decide how you’re going to personalize your home.
Building a custom home is a dream for many people, and when the opportunity comes, there are many decisions to be made. The process might even feel overwhelming. Since you have this amazing opportunity to build your dream home and tailor it to your liking, you want to make sure that you make the best decisions that will give you the most fulfillment once your home is complete. So, how do you do that? Here are some unique home features you should consider incorporating when building a custom home.
Create a Hidden Room
What’s more enchanting than having a secret room? It’s a room that both kids and adults can escape to for some family fun or quiet time. One of the best things about a hidden room is that you can design the space however you like. You can use your hidden room as a movie room, library, bar, or personalize it to suit another activity that your family enjoys. Narrowing down your choices may be challenging if the whole family has a vote. If you work from home, another option is to use your hidden room as a quiet space you can escape to when you need to be productive. The idea of having a special room just for you gives your home a personal touch. And with experienced designers onboard, this kind of room can be easily added to your design.
Include Built-in Shelves
Built-in shelving has become quite popular with custom homes, and it’s one of the cool unique house features you can add to your dream house. It gives you the freedom to design your space with more detail and allows you to be creative in how you incorporate shelving into that space. One of the great things about built-in shelves is that they are created to fit the unique design of your room, so you have the freedom to play around with possibilities. Instead of trying to find shelves that fit into your space, have one built right into the space and see how it adds a unique and personal touch. Experiment with different designs and also consider incorporating built-in tables, bookshelves, or whatever shelving you desire to add to your room. Built-in shelving allows you to keep your room organized and saves money on furniture.
Incorporate a kitchen nook
Nothing says modern kitchen more than a cozy kitchen nook that plays a functional and aesthetic role. A kitchen nook creates a more social environment for family members to interact with one another, share a meal and spend quality time together. Interestingly, it can also add a restaurant-type feel to your eating experience. With more and more families embracing open concept floor plans, a kitchen nook scores high and can blend into this design quite excellently. Additionally, this beloved feature serves as a fancy dining room area connected to your kitchen. Many custom home builders are embracing kitchen nooks because they create a welcoming feel, and with comfortable seating, this feature is a gem and can be used for multiple purposes. Aside from eating, you can use this space to get some paperwork done while casually interacting with family members in the kitchen.
Design a Large Mudroom
Create a dedicated space near the entrance in your home to store outerwear. This is another growing trend for modern homes that has become increasingly popular over the years. Trying to keep your balance while removing muddy boots and winter gear is so yesterday. Custom homes are about convenience and comfort, and mudrooms offer both. Mudrooms are in demand because they allow you to have a designated place in your home to comfortably remove your coats, shoes or other outerwear neatly in your home. A mudroom is a great idea for your new home because it provides a place to store essential items that you need when you leave your home like hats, scarves, coats, purses, shoes. Why store these in your room when you don’t use them indoors? Besides, keeping these things elsewhere in the house increases the likelihood that you’ll forget them when you step out. Create mudroom cubbies for your family members in your new home. They’ll love them.
Choose Innovative Stair Design
A staircase should be more than a functional feature in your home – design it to be a focal point by embracing creative ideas for a captivating staircase. Decide what type of staircase you want for your custom home. You can choose from straight stairs, stairs with a central landing, U-shaped stairs, L-shaped stairs, or other choices. Then, get creative with your stair design and see how you can make it unique! You can get creative with your stairs and use them for additional storage.
Build Upstairs Laundry Room
When you think about where most laundry rooms are located in homes, you’ll quickly realize that they may not be in the most convenient place. Most laundry rooms are either on the main floor of a home or in the basement. However, it is rather inconvenient to haul laundry up and down the stairs if you live in a double or triple-story home. Why not create a laundry room where the dirty clothes are? This makes perfect sense for a modern home. Add a laundry room upstairs to create more convenience on laundry day.
Incorporate a Spa
Why leave your home for some much-needed pampering when you can create the perfect spa in your own bathroom? Modern homes are all about enhancing your living experience. What better way to do this than adding a luxurious spa to your bathroom? Design a master bathroom fit for royalty by installing a soaking tub, walk-in shower, and a sauna as well. Indulge your senses and create a space in your home for relaxation and rejuvenation. Not only do you get to enjoy this while you live in your home, but if you ever decide to sell your custom home, that modern bathroom will definitely give your home a boost in its value.
Design Outdoor Living Space
People value outdoor spaces because it has an element of relaxation and being connected to nature. When the weather is nice, you want to take in as much of it as you can. Enjoy summer weather outdoors by designing an outdoor living space that your entire family can enjoy. This is one of the most popular ideas for new homes because homeowners are recognizing how much value outdoor spaces bring to their homes. Think about adding extra features to your decks like an outdoor kitchen and dining space. A fire pit is another great outdoor feature that allows you to transition from day to evening around a warm fire. This means you can still enjoy the outdoors and get cozy around the fireplace.
Install Skylights or Sun Tunnels
Natural light is always an asset to have in your home. Many people think that they are limited to large bay windows to bring in sunlight. When building the house of your dreams, there is so much you can do to brighten up your indoor space. Some creative ways to capture natural sunlight in your new home include incorporating sun tunnels or skylights. Doing this can invite sunlight into areas of your home that may be dark and gloomy. Sunlight in your home can improve your mood and increase your productivity.
Don’t Forget the Ceiling
Have you ever walked into a room and had your eyes instantly drawn to the ceiling? That’s the power of a beautifully designed ceiling. The reality is that ceilings are often overlooked when designing a home. But what many people don’t realize is that a captivating ceiling can add so much character to a room. A signature of many modern homes is that they incorporate extraordinary ceiling designs in designated areas – you don’t need a different ceiling design for every room. Select key areas you’d like to enhance the entrance to your home, a library, or a great room. Remember that your home is an expression of your personal style and taste. This means that you can create whatever is visually appealing to you. Get creative with the possibilities and consider ideas like an arched ceiling for your entryway.
Add Wine Storage
Are you a wine connoisseur? If you are, installing a wine cellar in your home may be a great way to indulge your passion and infuse a piece of you into your new home. It’s one of the top features of modern homes because it gives your home an air of sophistication and is an excellent place to store your wine. Design your wine cellar based on how much wine you plan to store and incorporate custom coolers and shelves of your choice.
Try a Slide
Looking for a unique way to incorporate an element of fun into your custom home? Make your home the coolest house on the block by adding a slide. Your kids’ friends will love coming over. A slide is a fun feature that kids and adults can enjoy alike. Even if you don’t have small children, bring out your inner child with a slide that takes you back to your playground days. It’s not only a fun feature, a slide can actually be very functional. If you have a laundry room on the lower level of your house, you can use a slide to shoot the laundry down to the basement. It will save you the trouble of having to carry heavy laundry hampers up and down the stairs.
Plan for Outlets Everywhere
When considering outlets for a custom home, many people plan on having enough outlets for their appliances and forget one key fact. One of the hallmarks of modern living is that we are constantly connected to devices. With various members of your household all needing to keep their devices charged, the last thing you want to do is fight over outlets. You need to have convenient locations around the house for everyone to charge their electronic gadgets. Find clever and creative ways to add as many outlets as possible so you don’t have to get up and walk across the room every time you need to plug in a device. Add outlets near seating areas so you can use your gadget as it charges. Plan for outlets in nightstands and other creative places. This way, you can charge your phone or laptop right by your bedside.
Design a First-Floor Master Bedroom
One of the things that many people don’t think about when building a multi-level custom home is that, at some point, climbing up and down the stairs may become difficult to do. This could be due to injury or age. A ground-floor master bedroom is a great option because it offers increased accessibility and is also a perfect option for a guestroom. It also adds a lot of convenience to your home. So, whether you are planning for a ground-floor master bedroom for yourself or want to make things easier for older guests, you can never go wrong with a first-floor master bedroom in our book.
Build a Smart Home
Advanced technology has taken modern living to a whole new level. There are so many features you can add to your home to make your life more convenient. Home automation is quickly becoming a new standard for modern homes because it allows you to adjust features in your homes like air and heating, and lighting by remote control. Capitalize on features like programmable thermostats and Wi-Fi-controlled lights. Advanced technology not only enhances your living experience but boosts your security as well. Lock and unlock doors from your smartphone while you’re away from home. This allows you to better control your home even when you are away, giving you the security and assurance that you are always in control of your home no matter where you are.
Contact Us
This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to custom home ideas. Aria Build is your luxury custom home builder in Toronto and we’re happy to help you get started on your new home. To help get more ideas for your new home, reach out to our team of experts.