Architecture is something that will always be so interesting to the Australian Heritage Homes team. Yes, it’s our business, but there’s something so cool and unique about how often the trends change – and conversely – what remains the same. You will always see what are referred to as “classic” homes and “classic” layouts, but you’ll also see an increased interest in what’s “contemporary”, and even, how that’s defined.
While we like to think that there are no rules related to building your dream home, there technically are a few. Don’t worry, they’re: building something that you’re going to love in ten years, build something that allows you the creative freedom within said ten years to make changes and build something that you’d be proud to pass along to a future generation within your family or a future prospective buyer.
All of those things hint towards the topic of this blog post – an idea that, yes, is contemporary, but can have a lasting effect, especially if you’re someone who is a part of a larger family. We’re talking about open concept living.
We’ve briefly discussed it before here on the AHH blog, and we’ve also talked about indoor-outdoor living, a la alfresco. But here is a reminder about some of the benefits:
- You’re going to see a lot more light in every room if they’re all connected. We’re not talking about bedrooms or bathrooms, rather the social areas found on the main floor of your home. You can’t say enough nice things about additional light – the social benefits, the curb appeal, the emotional benefits. It’s a win-win-win.
- The layout of open concept living makes changes and updates much easier. You get this great, blank canvas within which you can move items or even full rooms around as often as you’d like. Consider it your workout for the day (or weekend, let’s be honest…)
- Everyone, and everything is accessible, which makes this truly ideal for entertaining. You can watch the rugby match and still make sure that the pasta sauce isn’t bubbling over. You can also keep an eye on any of the smaller members of your family.
Those are the benefits, but what should you keep in mind?
Here’s the great part of this article… honestly, not that much. You’ll want to know that you’ve committed to an expansive part of your property (and some of the core real estate) being open and without privacy, so that is one consideration. You’ll also want to make sure that you work with the best-of-the-best (ahem) so that all codes are followed, e.g., beams for support, outlets in all the right places, you get the idea. This is an architectural concept that is supposed to make things easier and when you work with teams like ours, that is exactly what will happen. It’s a personal choice, but one that you should definitely take into consideration when buying or building your next dream home.