17 Ways to Design a Home for Work and Play

When Alabama architects Richard and Lynielle Long embarked on a home remodel, they made space for both their family of four and their growing business. Here’s how they did it.

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April 18, 2016

By: Julie Cole Miller

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Photo By: Van Chaplin; Styling By: Jan Gautro

Striking a Balance

After selling their previous house in a historic Birmingham neighborhood, architects Lynielle and Richard Long hoped to find a serene spot nestled in the woods for their expanding family. A split-level rancher in the suburb of Vestavia Hills fit the bill, but it needed a lot of work. Combining their expertise, the couple transformed the tired 1970s property into a family-friendly home for themselves and their two kids. Plus, they made space to set up their own firm, Long and Long Design.

Love Where You Live

The wooded setting was what sold them on the house. The screened porch blends the house into the setting.

Create Space to Play

The Longs’ home makes space for both noise and quiet, introversion and extroversion, work and life. A teepee on the screened porch serves as a designated play space for the kids where they can let their imaginations wander.

Choose Contrasts

The decking is left natural, while the rafters are stained to match the doors and windows of the house. Contrasts such as this are repeated throughout the Longs’ design. The architects opted for a simple ceiling fan without a light kit, hanging string lights along the perimeter for soft illumination at night.

Embrace the Landscape

The Longs designed the screened deck to extend the living area into the woods, so they can be outside year-round. The light and airy space juxtaposes diagonal and linear strips of wood for visual interest and features a metal roof.

Choose Art You Love

“Richard has an affinity for water,” Lynielle says. “And we both like being outside.” As a result, much of the artwork they gravitate toward has environmental themes, such as the giclée of a tranquil stream above the console. Lynielle replaced two small table lamps that obscured the artwork with one large floor lamp, which anchors the space.

Blend Well

The Longs chipped off the old brick façade of the 1970s fireplace and designed a layered mantel with echoes of midcentury modern master architect Carlo Scarpa. Once a darkly paneled and carpeted room, the den now blends into the kitchen. Art supplies live high up here — they’re easily accessible by all but little hands.

Let the Light In

Light was seriously lacking in the old house, so the architects added sets of French doors flanking the fireplace. Both sets of doors lead to the screened deck. Contrasts of light and dark, rough and smooth, define the space.

Leave Room to Grow

In the girl’s room, a crib mattress nests under the bed just in case she rolls too far over in the night. The bed is one half of a bunk set, and its mate is in her brother’s room. One day when the children are older, the bunks will be reunited.

Add Handmade Touches

For each child’s first birthday, Lynielle made pennant flags that spell out their names and “Happy Birthday” along the panels. The reverse side is blank, featuring only the pattern of the fabrics. For each birthday, she turns them around, but during the remainder of the year they decorate the bedrooms.

Consider Safety

In the boy's bedroom, interlocking foam tiles protect the hardwood floors and offer a safe, comfortable place to play.

Make Space for Quiet

The living room is the area that Richard considers the introverted area of the house: This is where the family goes for quiet moments: listening to or playing music, reading or pausing for a minute of reflection. It adjoins the dining room, which is painted a dark gray for a cozy feel. “Our goal is to have an art collection,” says Richard, “so we wanted a color that would fade into the background and let the art stand out.” Simple but glossy moldings and creamy walls are set off by the rich textures of leather, jute and wood in the living room.

Involve Kids in the Kitchen

A new wall of cabinetry in the kitchen offers pantry space from floor to ceiling and even houses a microwave. “Everything’s on pull-out drawers,” says Lynielle, who enjoys sharing bits of fresh ingredients with the children while she’s cooking. “That way, they play with their kitchenette and feel included in the meal prep while I work.” New hardwood flooring features a mix of plank sizes.

Always Add Storage

“I wanted storage above the hood since you can never have too much,” says Lynielle, who included just two sets of glass doors for glassware and china storage. A wall of marble tile set in a herringbone pattern is easily wiped down and adds subtle dimension. The countertops utilize two tones of quartz: “Blizzard White” on the counters and “London Fog” on the island.

Open Up and Out

The original kitchen was smaller, darker and enclosed. The Longs removed the wall separating the kitchen and den, extended the space out by two feet, and added a series of windows to open it up. The ceilings are the standard 8 feet high, but floor-to-ceiling cabinetry and long, linear shapes lend a sense of more height. They cut new doorways and covered up old doors here, completely reworking the space for a clean and contemporary kitchen.

Don’t Be Afraid to Go Dark

The window muntins and sashes are painted Sherwin Williams “Sealskin” — almost black — which draws the eye and frames the view of the woods outside. The deep, stainless steel sink features a Blanco faucet.

Think in Zones

The basement includes zones for playing and working. The husband and wife team removed dropped ceilings, painted the cinder-block walls and installed carpet floor tiles — which can be removed and washed or replaced — and layered with rugs to soften the space.