Your attic is an oft underutilized area of the home. Part of this is due to the fact that most parents are not overly comfortable having their kids up in the attic and out of sight. This actually could come in handy for you as an adult however. You can convert your attic into a very respectable study. That’s right: a room or whole floor filled with books, leather chairs, and an adults-only type of atmosphere.
This particular design shows built-in shelves that surround the attic window and provide you with more usable floor space for furniture and other ambiance enhancing features. This room is perfect for a home with a tall steeple-shaped roof that provides the attic with height over width, and the room that can be built into the attic is better used with height.
”I consider that a man's brain originally is like a little empty attic, and you have to stock it with such furniture as you choose... “ -Arthur Conan Doyle
Turn an Attic Into a Room
Some basic steps to create an attic study like the picture above will be to insulate the roof and then install drywall to help create a proper room. Have your attic floor reinforced by a professional by inserting more joist supports and laying down a basic floor, whether carpet or a laminate to provide you a canvas for your study’s theme. Being in an attic you are going to want some form of air circulation, the most efficient and universal way to do this is to install a ceiling fan like in the picture. This will allow you to circulate air whether or not there is access to window in your attic.
Choose a Theme
The next step in creating a picturesque study in your attic is to choose your theme. This will allow you to choose the types of materials that will be needed to truly transform your attic into a usable room. Here is a picture an attic study that is built around a specific theme.
This room is designed around the wooden art deco theme and really shines as an example of what kind of room you can achieve in what seems like a limited area like an attic. In this example, you have:
- Built-in shelves
- Hardwood (or laminate) flooring
- Wall paneling to represent a wooden relief
- Track lighting on the ceiling to utilize floor space
The idea of an attic study is to provide yourself with an adult oriented escape that is aesthetically pleasing with a real functionality for you as an adult. These examples are not necessarily simple to execute but provide you as a homeowner a general outline of what is possible with time and effort.
DIY vs. Hiring a Professional
If you are looking for a DIY project that will be rewarding and provide you with a great conversation piece in terms of your home then building an attic study is a surefire way to do so. The project is something that you can either pay to have done or spend several weekends yourself planning and executing in order to end up with a finished product similar to above. Most attics will need to be insulated further as they are not always setup for use as a room, also there will possibly be cause to strengthen the floor to support all of the weight you plan to add in furniture and accessories.
A good use for the attic is a conversion to the study as a study requires the sort of isolation and quiet that the attic would provide you. The attic is ordinarily a blank slate and you can build your dream study without having to perform any demolition and you can then choose materials that may be extremely different than the overall theme of your home. This project is great for a person looking to give their home a room or floor that is an adult sanctuary custom designed for them.
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