Many tiny houses and park model homes feature a loft. The loft space adds more useable square footage without increasing the length and width of your home. The loft usually features a pretty low ceiling, so you can’t usually stand up in it, but you can generally sit comfortably. What are the best ways to make use of your loft space?
In this post, we go over some ideas. We recommend that you try to decide how you want to use your loft before you choose a park model home floor plan. That way, you can pick a layout that features a lot space that is ideally suited to your particular plans.
- Bedroom
One of the most popular uses for tiny house loft space is as a bedroom. You can usually fit a queen-size bed or larger in a tiny house loft. Alternately, you could fit a couple of twin-size mattresses.
In many cases, you will end up with plenty of additional space around the bed(s). You can either leave this space open, or you could put in some useful furnishings, such as a dresser, nightstands, etc. Note that this is not always the case in smaller tiny homes, but it is one of the benefits of choosing a park model house, as these types of homes are usually a bit wider.
If you have a double loft design like the one pictured above, you could even designate each loft as one child’s bedroom, if the kids will be using the loft for their rooms, rather than the downstairs bedroom.
Keep in mind that if the loft features a railing, privacy is minimal, since it is open to the floor below. But you can opt for a wall there instead of a railing if you prefer. The wall can include windows in case you want to maintain some connection between the loft and the main living space while still preserving privacy.
- Storage
Another of the most common ways to use the loft space in a tiny house is to turn it into a storage area.
If you use your loft for storage, make sure that you plan the layout ahead of time. Try to create a walkway through the loft so that you can still reach everything, rather than filling up the space completely. Place items that you need to access more regularly close to the walkway.
This is another loft use where we recommend perhaps going with a wall instead of a railing. This will help make your tiny house appear more tidy by keeping piles of boxes and other items in storage out of view from below.
3. Hobby space
While not as common as the ideas above, another great way to use your loft in your park model home is as a space for your hobbies.
For example, you could turn the loft into a game room, craft room, music room, an area for indoor gardening, or so forth.
And if you have a dual loft, you could dedicate each loft to a separate hobby. Or, you could use one loft as a hobby room, and the other as a bedroom or storage room, etc. There are so many different ways you can customize your use of loft space.
- Home office
Another idea for what you can do with your loft space is to convert it into a home office or study area.
You may need to put some creativity into seating options if a low ceiling requires you to sit on the floor. But a low table would work fine as a desk for your laptop.
While a home office in the loft is a great idea for adults, it is arguably an especially good one for kids.
Children who are studying up in the loft have more space and privacy than they would if they were sitting at the kitchen table or in the living room to work. This can make it easier to concentrate.
But at the same time, kids in the loft are not completely cut off from a parent who might be downstairs working in the kitchen or doing other tasks in the main living area.
That means that if they have questions or need help with anything while they are working on their homework, they can call down to their parent and get some assistance.
- Home entertainment center
In most park model homes, the living room features the entertainment center. But some people may choose to not have an entertainment center in the living room for whatever reason, and prefer to put one upstairs in the loft.
- Flex room
Can’t decide whether to make your tiny house loft a hobby room, a study room, a storage area, or some other type of room?
Instead of committing to just one idea, you could instead just make the loft your flex space. Maybe one day, you will use it to work on your hobbies, and another, you will use it as your home office. Perhaps you will temporarily use part of it for storage, and then move that stuff out of there when you find it a different home.
This is one of the benefits of a loft—it is such a versatile space, and you can always make adjustments to fit your needs.
If you are ready to explore the possibilities of a tiny house with a loft, please give us a call. Tell us about how you want to use your loft, and we can recommend park model homes that feature the perfect upstairs layout for your needs.
