Loft Design: Clever Storage
We’re discussing clever storage as part of this series on Loft Design. Previously we looked at creating cozy zones using furniture, lighting and textiles, and considered the gifts and challenges of all that open space in Loft Design: Open Floor Plan. What most lofts don’t offer is built-in storage, and if there’s one thing that every modern family needs, it’s storage for their personal items.
Revisiting our San Francisco SOMA loft, here’s how you can address that need to hide away the relics and tools of daily life. To create a beautiful place to store and display china, books, and collectibles, a rolling curved bookcase shown below wraps around the loft’s spiral staircase, making it feel like a real treat to use the stairs. We painted the interior casework with lovely high-gloss orange paint, and the exterior facing the living room in a faded metallic stencil pattern for a sophisticated look.
Kimball Starr Interior Design / photo by Joe Fletcher
The entire height of the bookcase is attached with a piano hinge and swings back and forth on hidden floor casters, providing access to interior shelving and maximizing the floor space. The small recessed alcove repeats the orange color for a sense of harmony and rhythm, and the shape of the wall echoes the shape of the bookcase.
Because a loft is so open, there often isn’t a separate laundry facility. It makes sense to place your laundry nearby or in your loft’s kitchen, for the best use of plumbing and electrical facilities, but how do you conceal the mess and contain the noise?
Kimball Starr Interior Design / photo by Joe Fletcher
The washer dryer storage solution shown above was another moveable wall concealed as a column. Similar to the bookcase whose shape it repeats, this faux column slides on casters to reveal a stacked washer and dryer unit right next to the kitchen, complete with interior shelves for storing laundry supplies. What could be more convenient?
When you live in a loft, another challenge is how to make your overnight guests feel at home with their own private sleeping area. Join us next week for the final installment of Loft Design, where we’ll share an expert design solution on how to create a guest bedroom within a one-bedroom loft.
Kimball Starr Interior Design is a San Francisco award winning loft design firm that provides contemporary interior design for residential and commercial interiors.
