10 Family-friendly Remodel Projects to Consider

Creating a home with family-friendly renovations can be functional without sacrificing the style or the look of your home. Whether you are designing a dining room, kitchen, living room, kids' bedroom, etc., it is important to create a space that allows your family members to grow freely and carefully considers safety and durability.

Figuring out ways to create an environment that's both family-friendly and polished can be difficult on your own. Expert designers from all over the nation use universal design elements to create timeless, safe spaces that are still sippy cup-approved to accommodate your entire household! Including universal design features in your home will create a comfortable space that caters to all your family's needs regardless of age, ability, or other future limitations that could arise. To transition to a more family-friendly home, we have compiled a list of 10 remodel projects that will amaze you and your family as they are functional, safe, and efficient!

1. Open The Floor Plan

Accommodating a growing family can be as simple as opening up the floor plan in your home. An open floor plan is the conjoining of two rooms into one larger open room, such as a dining room and family room. It essentially removes any barriers, such as a wall or door, to open the room completely up to create more space to move around. Accessible floor plans are perfect for growing or multi-generational families in providing the necessary space for strollers, walkers, or other device aids for getting around. Not to mention those who love to entertain. The spaciousness makes it easy to keep an eye on the kids and allows for sufficient square footage for your family's needs. While these floor plans have several benefits, an obvious one is it will be a great place to gather and make memories!

2. Slip-Resistant Flooring

Universal design remodeling carefully considers ways to minimize hazards in a home that may cause potential risks. The most common location for slips and trips is at home, where you spend much of your time. Slipping can result in minor to rather extensive foot, hip, or leg injuries. When considering floor features in your home, it is important to consider slip-resistant qualities to ensure accommodation for all ages. This is vital not only for your household members but also for family and friends that visit. Wet areas like the bathrooms, laundry room, and kitchen carry even more of a potential slip risk. Be sure to talk to your remodel designer about flooring options they recommend that have traction and are made specifically for wet areas to help minimize slip hazards throughout your entire home.

3. Create A Dedicated Space For Play And Work!

When it comes to playtime for the kids, the perfect way to promote creativity from your children is to design a room that is practical and suited for them. Vibrant paint colors, ambient lighting, easy-to-clean flooring, and storage solutions for toys and books are all great ways to create the perfect playroom setup. Primary paint colors such as hues of yellows, oranges, and reds are great energizing colors to increase activity and mood. Ambient lighting can also make a huge difference for setting the tone in the space. Choose lighting options with dimmable features that will be ideal for creating a calming environment when needed and for nap time schedules. Another important aspect to consider with a kid's playroom/work area is installing easy-to-clean flooring resistant to stains. Luxury vinyl plank flooring has become increasingly popular over the past few years due to being easy to clean and maintain. Its durability and no grout lines to maintain make it a great choice that is both kid and pet-friendly while still being aesthetically pleasing. Another key element to include in the room design is incorporating storage options for toys and books. This can be accomplished with built-in cabinetry and/or shelving to fit your specific storage needs while maximizing the available space. These ideas are all great ways to have a kid-friendly area that encourages imagination and development. As your kids grow, these design details can be easily modified to turn the playroom into a kid's hangout space or workstation for homework.

On the contrary, the adults in the household also need a dedicated space! Creating an in-home office with cabinetry for extra storage space is efficient for remote work, paying bills, or other hobbies like crafting or reading. This space is separate from the hustle and bustle of the household, which will increase productivity, focus, and self-discipline. An in-home office is always a good idea as it is the perfect blend of a work-life balance as you can be available to your family/friends and work at any time.

4. Adding A Beverage Area Or Butler's Pantry

Anyone who has little children running around knows the craziness of breakfast or dinner time can be. Installing a butler/scullery pantry or having a dedicated beverage/snack area is the best way to hide all the clutter and mess from cooking. A scullery is a separate, smaller-sized, fully functional kitchen that is distinctly separate, providing additional space for meal prep, cleaning dishes, and more. A butler pantry is typically more modest in size and function than a scullery but can still be a storage space for smaller appliances, dishes, and beverages. Including a scullery or butler's pantry in your home remodeling project depends on the available spacing in your home.

Limited on space? An alternative way to reduce traffic in your kitchen is by having a dedicated beverage and snack area that is easily accessible and away from the cooking area. Having a beverage fridge or snack bar at the end of the cabinet run is ideal for those with limited unused wall space, as it will still help minimize children or guests from being in the main cooking area. No matter which dedicated space you choose to include in your home renovation plans, it will surely increase the safety and flow in your main kitchen area by reducing congestion.

5. New Kitchen Countertops

When selecting the ideal countertop for your Phoenix kitchen remodeling project, it is important to consider a durable surface that is easy to clean and maintain to fit your lifestyle. Your little one will inevitably make a mess or two, so your kitchen will need materials that won't easily absorb pigments and spills. Quartz counters are one of the top requests from Phoenix homeowners when remodeling a kitchen or bathroom. Its resistance to water, spills, bacteria, etc., combined with its high level of durability and resistance to scratching, makes it hard to choose an alternative that can be beat for family-friendly households.

Once you've decided on your countertop material, you'll have a few edge details to select from. It's recommended to steer clear of sharp-edge details for those with little ones. To soften the edges on the countertops, many homeowners opt for a “bullnose” edge as they are safe and will be easier to avoid accidental chipping damage to your countertop!

When designing an accessible kitchen that meets the needs of multi-generations within the home, another consideration would be installing island tops at lower levels to increase safety, accessibility, and independence. Incorporating this universal design element benefits everyone in the home, including children, those in wheelchairs, and even aging parents. Countertops that are bar height level can be unsafe and uncomfortable to reach for children or those with limited or diminishing mobility. Typical countertops are positioned at a height of 36”; to increase accessibility, they can be installed at 34”, and workspace countertops should be installed at 28-34”. Ideally, this should be determined early in the design phase as this can dictate the location of appliances and cabinet layout for optimal efficiencies.

6. The Ideal Layout For Your Phoenix Kitchen Remodel

Selecting a kitchen layout is crucial to ensure ease, comfort, and accessibility for your family. Depending on the space available and how many cooks you'll have in the kitchen, a few layouts are worth exploring.

• Galley Kitchen – This layout is for longer, more narrow spaces with cabinetry and countertops on both sides of one single walkway through the kitchen. This layout does offer less storage space than the other options and can feel crowded with two people working in the kitchen simultaneously due to the narrow layout. On the plus side, though, with a defined and more compact working triangle, all your kitchen necessities are easily accessible without much movement.
• L-Shape Kitchen – Ideal for families that prefer an open floor plan. Typically, it has two open ends for traffic in the kitchen to flow freely. A great option for a corner space. This layout will have minimal traffic as well. With a more open layout, you'll need to pay special attention to appliance locations when creating your triangle of working areas to not lose efficiency from being too overly spread out.
• U-Shape Kitchen – Efficiently utilizes three walls in the shape of a "U" for cabinetry, giving your layout ample storage and countertop space for meal prep. This layout offers more flexibility with the design, as an island or peninsula can easily be included to customize the space. On the downside, without the help of an expert kitchen remodel designer, it can be challenging to combat more wasted corner space than the other layout options.

Whether your kitchen layout is a galley, L-shape, or U-shape, a key component to making your kitchen family-friendly is the cabinetry. Paying special attention to the lower-level cabinets that all household members can safely reach, you'll want to integrate ways to safely store heavier items that are more difficult to lift from elevated heights. Additionally, you'll want to include spacious drawers to eliminate kneeling and attempting to reach items in the back of cupboards.

7. Built-in Custom TV Wall

To eliminate the breaking or falling of any expensive electronic equipment or injuries that may occur from it, we suggest mounting your TV on the wall and storing any other necessary AV equipment in a custom media wall. Utilizing wall-mounted brackets that fit your television's size and weight specifications are a much safer option when creating your perfect entertainment area. There are several media wall design elements to make this area look elegant and sleek while still being a safe area for your kids and pets to be around! A few options are custom-built cabinetry to maximize storage space for toys or games, concealed cabling to avoid tripping and seeing unwanted cables, and open shelving to display favorite photos, plants, and décor! Before you get started on your renovation, TWD has a valuable custom media wall project guide with helpful tips that you'll want to explore first!

8. Incorporate Family-Friendly Elements Into Your Phoenix Bathroom Remodel

Universal bathroom design elements can support all stages life. When thinking of your next bathroom remodel, consider these features for family-friendly bathroom remodeling projects.

• Single handle faucets are easier to operate for children and aging members while providing a safe water temperature between hot and cold. Being one-hand operable is beneficial for those with arthritis or limited motion as well.
• Adding a pull-out step in your bathroom cabinet- great for teaching your kiddos independence when it comes to hygiene and brushing their teeth as they learn to do it on their own.
• Handheld showerhead option on a slide bar is a beneficial addition to your shower as it can be raised, lowered, and directed exactly where the water is needed to suit all family members. Not to mention, having a handheld is more convenient to use from a seated position in the shower.
• Low or zero-threshold shower designs offer barrier-free entrance to your shower, making it easier and safer to bath. You'll want to use an experienced bathroom designer for your shower remodel to maximize your available space and incorporate materials that offer slip-resistant properties as well.
• Grab bars should be carefully placed next to your shower or tub entrance and any other area where extra stability might be needed. These bars can offer support, lessen fatigue when standing, and can assist with balance. Ask your general contractor about decorative grab bars that double as towel bars to compliment your shower design.
• Comfort height toilets provide the best overall support for adult members of your household, as they are more comfortable to stand up from and put less pressure on your lower back. A typical toilet stands 15” from ground to seat, while a comfort height is 17 – 19”.Incorporating universal design elements ensures that your home is accommodating for the young and aging members of the household.

9. Expansive & Safety Minded Shower Remodel

Many modern-day remodels replace the shower/tub combo with a spacious walk-in shower design. Whether working in a tight space or having room to fill, walk-in showers are a great idea to consider! Some of the benefits of creating a walk-in shower in your home are their added accessibility, easy-to-clean layout, the open concept that allows your space to feel larger, and it's an elegant modern addition to your home. Adults who need to bathe infants, young children, or even pets will have the necessary space while also being able to accommodate family members in wheelchairs or using walking aids to shower safely.

10. Include A Shower Bench

Many Phoenix homeowners often ask for a shower bench or seating option when planning your shower remodeling project. Shower benches cater to the universal design principle of creating a safe and accessible showering experience. They can also be used as a storage space for shampoos or extra products to keep your necessities within reach. Several types of shower seating assist people with varying levels of mobility. Built-in shower benches, folding shower seats, teak shower benches, or tub bench transfer seats are all options worth considering. The expert bathroom designers at TWD can help you to choose the shower seat that suits your needs best.

Interested In Learning More About Renovationing Your Home?

For many Phoenix homeowners who have growing families, the thoughts of home remodeling can be stressful and overwhelming! Let the expert designers at Todd Whittaker Drywall Inc. (also known as TWD) take away all the pressure by designing and remodeling your home to be family-friendly yet sophisticated. Visit them online at www.twdaz.com to request your free initial in-home or design showroom consultation today. While you're online, click their Gallery for more inspiring design ideas for your home.