How to Make a Baltimore Home Feel Larger Without Moving Walls.

Today’s post comes from Shannon Healey, an Interior Designer with VIEW Interiors in Baltimore, Maryland.

Shannon has over 25 years of experience in both Residential and Commercial Office Interior Design and Construction. She spent the past 14 years working for a large design/build contractor, so she deeply understands the design and construction process.

Shannon and I discussed how to make a Baltimore home feel more spacious without the expense of moving walls.

Here are her Thoughts on Walls:

The open plan idea for homes central living spaces has been a strong movement for the better part of two decades. Its benefits for families with young children, or those who entertain regularly, are obvious. The opportunity to get more natural light indoors is also a big seller of this concept.

But let’s talk costs, both in terms of budgets and sanity.

Removing entire walls is expensive. The construction requires more demo, burying new structural members and bracing, complete ceiling retexturing and painting, and often, flooring.

What you gain in visual you lose in acoustics. Being able to see across a large room when your children are young, becomes not wanting to hear all of their music and lively phone conversations when they are teens. Preserving some walls might just preserve your sanity and your salary.

Openings can be made in existing walls that allow for improved daylight and lines of sight. You can design an opening in a wall that works in between existing vertical, structural columns. This eliminates the need for expensive wood or steel horizontal beams to be buried in your ceiling. These openings can be filled with glass or doors, giving you the flexibility to reduce sound transmission, while still increasing the daylight in your home.

Creating openings in walls also helps to connect spaces without losing valuable wall space. A counter with cabinets below can be designed to open a kitchen to a living or dining room. This gives you more storage at that location, as well as a new dining and gathering destination.

Glassed openings that are created in walls above standing height let daylight further into a home and still provide for acoustic separation. Furniture and artwork are easily be added below. Maintaining original walls also gives homeowners a great opportunity to add personality to a home.

Keep your eye on your budget and your treasured humans – create an opening and let that wall stay put.

If you have been considering any interior design work, contact Shannon. She has the history and expertise to help!

Shannon Healey, VIEW Interiors: 408-839-6416. Email: shannon@view-interiors.com

Website: VIEW Interiors