Barnaby is the concept home that has translated data-driven consumer insights into a beacon for flexible design focused on people. Designed in direct response to insights derived from the America at Home Study, the first independent and objective study surveying a nationally representative sample of 7,000 consumers created to uncover how people felt about and were living in their homes and communities while 90 percent of the country was sheltering in place. The study found lasting evidence of behavioral changes made in how people live, and plan to in the future.
People have realized that their homes can do more and that better design matters. Designed for a hypothetical older Millennial family where one parent works from home and the other works outside the home, it is a 2,600-square-foot, two-story home with 4 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, and 2 home office spaces:
- Guest Entry. An extended vestibule, private guest suite, and outdoor access to an oversized porch makes guests comfortable and safe.
- Owner’s Entry. Flexible and safe: Laundry and secondary fridge, large drop zone and optional shower room for essential and frontline workers.
- Kitchen: Oriented to allow sight lines into the main living area, full of natural light, flexible eating and prep spaces, and unique “swiss army knife” storage and shelving, including unique kid-friendly cubbies, single-surface backsplash, and touchless faucet.
- Family gathering space, comprised of the Great Room, Dining Room and Kitchen creates the hub of the home with plenty of space for the family to work and play together or separately.
- Flex Space. On the main floor, spaces can adapt and flex for school room, playroom, or creative space and even includes an optional door to the Guest Entry Vestibule for use as a home office space as well as an option to split the room into two separate rooms each with their own door.
- Hidden flex space. A secret room hidden off the primary bedroom can be a yoga studio, meditation room, or comfy, private space for conversation or a good book.
- Flexible Bedrooms. Designed without built-in closets it allows people to define how they use the space: from nursery to kid’s room to office space.
- Family Bath. Nice enough to get the kids out of the primary suite bath with sinks and cabinets at different heights (no more footstools!), and room for parents to more easily bath young ones.
- Two Office Spaces. With neither a bedroom and with one on each level, families can work in peace and focus.
- Two Covered Outdoor Spaces. One off of the guest suite and one off of the family room. There is also access to the bathroom within the owner’s entry that is separate from having to enter the main living area to accommodate guest use when entertaining in the outdoor space.
- Garage. Ready for a quick conversion to allow people to choose how they utilize the space.
- Sustainability. Barnaby achieved a HERS rating of 55. Looking beyond energy efficiency, the design team applied a holistic approach to sustainability—from selecting exterior finish materials readily available in the region to staging the home with locally produced furniture. For more information, review the Sustainability FAQ and HERS Certificate.
Past pandemics left their marks in how we live in our homes, and in five or ten years we will be able to credit this point in time with helping us to design homes that better serve our needs. Though we may see the idea of a dedicated home office fade, we may expect the desire for a flexible space that works as an office, a playroom or other uses at the same time will not. Design decisions that make a home more comfortable, easier for a family to live every-day life and bring value to their investment are here to stay.
