THE SACRIFICE I HAD TO MAKE
By Lana
Ever had to make a BIG decision? One which keeps you up at night... I remember Bon once saying she knew she'd made the right design decision once she could sleep at night.
Every reno has its BIG decisions and my forever home certainly had its fair share! Some decisions feel really easy and others really do keep you up at night.
As I've said before, I'd been planning my home reno for years... well before Three Birds Renovations was born. From a design perspective I was being told by everyone (architects, friends, real estate agents, relatives) that a house of my size had to include at least 4 bedrooms!
BUT, I had other ideas that were fueled after we finished our third reno. In that project we created our first ever VOID and from that moment on, I knew my house needed one too. But where to put it? Whilst a void can be the star of the show, it's also a thief. It steals floor space and at my house, we lost a whole bedroom... the former master suite where I'd been putting my head down every night for 15 years. Let's face it, I was emotionally attached to that room.
So here's what I learnt. A winning design demands sacrifice. If you're not prepared to sacrifice something, the result will be an overloaded look with too many ideas fighting to be seen. It was clear to me that we had to sacrifice a bedroom for the air space it was occupying. So we threw the original master suite under the bus, cut out the floor and voila... our void was born.
And now that the reno is complete, do I have any regrets? No way. The void and accompanying staircase are my #1 most loved design decisions in the house.
And if we ever decide to sell? Like in 20 years time... we can always reinstate a wall in the upstairs office or middle living space to create that elusive fourth bedroom, but for now... and for a long time that's not something I'm worried about.
Are you trying to make one of these big decisions now? Not sure what to sacrifice? I'd love to hear about it in the comments section below xo.