Designing for Function and Beauty

How do you make your home a reflection of you and how you love to live? There is often a battle between form and function in a space. Does something have to either be beautiful or functional? Why can’t it be both?

When beginning to renovate, the options are endless. However, the outcome should be wrapped around how the inhabitants of the space will use and love it. Renovation should be an invitation to dream about how every square inch of your space will evoke ease, comfort, and fluidity. We deal with a chaotic world every day when we step out of our homes, and our return should feel like an embrace and reprieve from that chaos. 

The most important question you can ask yourself at the onset of a renovation or design project is this: “What part of my day in my home brings me the most joy?” Is it your morning coffee? Family dinners around the table? Those glorious moments to yourself after the kids go to bed? When you begin with joy, building the renovation and design around those moments becomes the focal point of the whole project. I believe in creating something as livable as it is beautiful. Design should feel as effortless as your best sweater: perfectly comfortable and wrapped in warmth.

I love the challenge of taking a space and transforming it to serve multiple functions. Why not have your home as beautiful as it can possibly be while serving the needs of your family? The workhorse zones of the home — laundry rooms, mudrooms, and kitchens — are often the last to be renovated, especially if you are living in the home during the renovation. The thought of having to squeeze in all the function, and also make it pleasant to look at is just too overwhelming. We would rather close the door and forget it exists. However, there can be so much beauty in a space that meets your functional needs, is constructed of quality materials, and has thoughtful finishes. Inevitably, you are going to spend time there, so why not make it a pleasant experience?

Here’s some additional great news: Your points of joy are entirely yours and no one else’s. Turning a formal dining room into a sitting room and losing the entertaining space would seem crazy to some. However, when prioritizing moments of connection with your partner at the end of the day, with vintage vinyl melodies in the air, suddenly that space makes entirely more sense. You only ate in the dining room twice a year anyway, and now you use it every day, for the best part of your day. Its function and joy factors just rocketed through the roof.

When you decide to renovate or redesign a space, the world is truly your oyster. Instead of instantly getting overwhelmed, I’m going to invite you to let the joyful moments in your life be your guide. Decide what is most important to you and your family, and make that space functional and beautiful first. Envision yourself using these spaces in your home, and picturing what would bring you the most joy. Ultimately, there are no rules, and the joy your space brings is the best place to start.

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Laura Gransberry is an interior designer specializing in home renovations and restoration in the Santa Barbara area. She can be reached at laura@lauragransberry.com, and on Instagram @lauragransberrydesign. Visit lauragransberry.com to learn more.