Chic secondary suites

Since I started posting about my "modernist nest," I have received many emails and comments on this blog, on Facebook and on Rate My Space from people who are interested in returning to the tradition of multi-generational living.

When I was a child, my great-grandparents lived with my grandparents. I have small town roots, so relatives also lived across the street and around the corner. As a result, I am no stranger to being surrounded by kinfolk. For most of my adult life, however, it never occurred to me that I'd live that way again.

For years, I had told my daughter that when I got old and eccentric, I was going to move into her back yard...but I never really meant it, because I was perfectly happy living alone. Then last fall my daughter and SIL decided that they wanted to move back to Fort Worth and started looking at houses here. I was out house-hunting with them one day, and someone revived the standing joke about finding a place with a back yard large enough for me to live in. Suddenly, and for a multitude of reasons, it actually seemed like a brilliant idea for my daughter, SIL and grandsons to take over my mortgage-free main house and for me to use some available cash to build a secondary suite for myself. (These structures are also commonly called accessory suites, mother-in-law's apartments, granny flats and guest houses...or, as my grandsons call mine, "Grammo's Little House.") Within a few weeks, construction had begun...and so far the arrangement has worked out beautifully for all of us.

Recently I ran across an item on the Forbes site about Michael Litchfield’s book In-laws, Outlaws, and Granny Flats published by Taunton Press. The article included photos from the book of some beautiful secondary suites, including a few modernist designs I thought you might like.

From forbes.com
All images from In-laws, Outlaws, and Granny Flats by Michael Litchfield

Northern California apartment with the back hatch of a Porsche 928 as the awning over the door

Treehouse apartment in Seattle, Washington

400-square foot barn converted to secondary suite in Oakland, California

Secluded accessory suite in Berkeley, California

Compared with these beautiful spaces, my small apartment project was done very inexpensively, but these photos show that the in-laws can live in grand modern style if money is no object.

The missing room: Laundry room/walk-in closet

When I did the big reveal of the "modernist nest," there was one room I didn't photograph...the laundry room/walk-in closet. Once I moved in, I decided to make some changes that I thought would result in a more efficient and attractive space, so I was in the middle of those alterations when I showed you my new home. Admittedly, it's the least exciting spot in the house, but several people have asked about the "missing room," so I thought I'd give you a peek.

For those of you new to the blog, several months ago I invited my daughter, son-in-law and two grandsons to move into my primary residence, and I designed a secondary suite for myself behind the main house where a freestanding carport and large workshop originally stood.

The room is 12.5 feet (3.8 meters) long and about 7.5 feet (2.3 meters) wide...the same length and only a foot narrower than my kitchen. One wall houses the washer and dryer in an partitioned nook at one end, as well as a large closet with a pair of bi-fold doors that conceal a broom closet with storage on one end and the hot water heater and air conditioning unit on the other. The opposite side of the room also has a partitioned nook with shelving. The rest is closet space.
I designed the apartment to simplify my life, and one of the things I did that helped streamline chores was to eliminate the traditional bedroom closet and put a clothes rod, shoe bags, handbag hooks and chest of drawers in the laundry room. Now, instead of taking clothes to the bedroom, I get them out of the dryer and simply turn around to hang them or put them in drawers...a handy little time-saver. Out-of-season clothes are stored in decorative plastic bins above the clothes rod.

I originally had a three-tiered chrome cart that I planned to put laundry baskets on, but it turned out that I liked the concept much more than I liked the reality, so I moved the cart to the patio to provide a workspace for grilling and a handy place to stash outdoor toys. To replace the cart in the laundry/closet, my daughter and I built deep pull-out shelves that hold infrequently used items in back and laundry baskets in front. I painted the shelves black for a little interest against the white walls and chose black closet accessories, such as shoe bags and hangers. The DIY project only cost about $50, but it gave me a good bit more storage space and a better system for sorting laundry.

The finished space is much better organized, and it has a less utilitarian look than it did before.

Combination laundry room/closet
with four new pull-out shelves and bins for out-of-season clothes

Close-up of  three Piet Hein grooks hung between
two sets of bi-fold doors (broom closet and a/c closet)

Labeled laundry baskets
 in a much smaller size than I've ever used...
to encourage doing smaller loads
so laundry day isn't a huge chore.

Ironing station on the dryer
for touch-ups when I don't want to set up the board
(I discovered the magnetic ironing pad on Pinterest. It's great!)