Orienting Your Home for Winter

As the days grow colder and the nights longer, we start moving away from alfresco areas and those with great ventilation to others where the heat is captured and well preserved. Good home design recognises that your needs change as the seasons change.

During the warm, dry months, we tend to spend more time outdoors but as the seasons change; either the kitchen becomes the focus of the home, or a living room with a wood fire like in our Huntingdale home design.  With longer nights, we also tend to spend more time in bed with cups of tea in the morning and indulgent breakfasts on the weekends.

Designing a home for year-round living takes into consideration how a home is used throughout the year. Clever storage solutions for seasonal furniture and accessories help to reduce clutter around the home, while neutral colour palates allow accents to either pop or blend, depending on the season and your personality.

How rooms are oriented to the light and garden are also important. Clever garden designs will retain their structure, with colourful flourishes that signal seasonal change. A living room with a view (see our Garden Retreat Home Design) of liquid amber in autumn, for instance, brings interest and awe into an otherwise shaded room and may become the centre of the home during the cooler months.

Home Fires Burn in the Kitchen

With more time spent at home during the cooler months, the kitchen really gets a workout. A great kitchen design will help you access and use appliances and features that seem to disappear during summer. With a clear differentiation between outdoor summer and indoor winter entertaining and dining, our kitchens have evolved to contain more storage.

Most family homes now feature a walk-in-pantry or butler’s pantry to maintain a clean and ordered appearance in beautifully designed kitchens with luxury surfaces and fixtures. The differences are subtle, but bear explanation, as these spaces are critical in orienting your home and kitchen with the seasons.

Walk-in-Pantry

A Walk-in-pantry is typically a small sized room where food, cookware, tableware, appliances and other items related to cooking and entertaining are stored.

Butler’s Pantry

A butler’s pantry is a level up from a walk-in. They have all the features of a walk-in as well as a sink for washing up and more often than not, a bar fridge. It may sit adjacent to the kitchen, keeping benches clear when entertaining.

Mood and Atmosphere

Lighting in living rooms and kitchens can also change the feel of a home, so dimmers or the height of pendants can also play a role in helping to differentiate between seasons and create a warm space.

Looking for more ideas? Call us on 1300 555 382. McDonald Jones Homes can help you to build a house that’s ideal for all seasons.