Could we carve a whole new room out of a set of stairs?

Sori:

The house we bought is over 100 years old, and while it has been updated over the years, it still has some relics from way back. There was a maid’s staircase, a secondary, narrow set of stairs off the kitchen that led to the maid’s quarters in the attic. Though I may dream of having a live-in maid one day, we prioritized other things on our wish list. First, I didn’t have any good wall space for seforim shelves. Additionally, I work from home, so I also needed a spot to set up a desk for myself.

Esti:

When Sori called me in to help her configure her new house, I saw that her goals would require some creative thinking. Behind her wall of kitchen cabinets, between the kitchen and dining room, was the maid’s staircase. Below it, there were stairs down to the basement. The previous owners had closed off the maid’s staircase with cabinets, so there was only access to the basement staircase. We moved the basement stairs to a back area of the house. Then, we opened the wall from the side of the dining room and created a tiny study and office in place of the two sets of stairs.

Windows of Opportunity

We put in big French doors so that even when we close the doors it doesn’t feel too claustrophobic. I usually leave the doors open unless I need the quiet.

Biggest Splurge

We added transom windows above the French doors for additional light and style. Though the windows themselves weren’t a huge splurge, it took our contractor an entire week to install them, so the cost of the labor was quite unexpectedly expensive.

Breath of Fresh Air

When we opened that space, we saw that there had already been a window there. But it was an older style and could not be opened. Knowing that the room would be so small, we decided to replace it with a new window so we could enjoy having it open sometimes.

Now I Know

It was such a small room that we thought we could get away with less lighting, but we ended up calling in an electrician recently to add more to it. Its use as a study and office makes good lighting essential.

You’d Never Know

We reconfigured furniture that we had custom-made for our former home study. This was a big save and very convenient.

Unexpected Benefit

Moving the basement steps to the back of the house, near the back door, makes the unfinished basement less of a part of the house, which we prefer.

Exceeded Your Expectations

This space is so narrow that I wasn’t sure if it would end up really working well. But it functions perfectly for what we needed and we are so happy we did it.

(Originally featured in Family First, Issue 963)