Multigenerational homes
Study space Furniture Planning for Multigenerational homes
Specify the occupied size, operating clearance and route into the building before choosing furniture by catalogue dimensions.
Explore the ideas
Compare the options
- Set the brief
- Use templates at the size of the actual furniture. Include seated users, open drawers and reclined positions where relevant.
- Compare
- Decide which items need to move independently and which benefit from built-in anchoring.
- Before buying
- Confirm that the largest pieces can turn at the entrance, lift lobby and corridor, or specify assembly in place.
Worked example
Imagine choosing a desk and bookcase for a learner who alternates between handwriting, a laptop and large art sheets. The desk looks spacious on a product page.
Tape the opened sheet and seated positions on the floor, including chair movement and bookcase doors. Choose a surface that supports the active task, and keep the tallest storage outside the natural light path.
How to test it
Overlay the furniture in its stored and in-use positions, then check both against the measured plan.
Apply it to this space
- Layout
- Provide separate work surfaces or staggered orientations to limit distraction and screen visibility.
- Detail
- Use adjustable task lights, closed supply storage and durable writable surfaces.
- Trade-off
- A shared study encourages help but can make focused work harder.
- Test homework and reading at once
- Check power, chair fit and lighting
The Elixir portfolio
Details worth a closer look
