Exquisite August 16

Someone
HOMESSPACE
Loft Lifestyle
Whether the term ‘loft’ is a marketing
gimmick for selling real estate at a higher
price or simply functional usable space,
decorate it for your benefit
BY CHARLOTTE MILLE
recently discovered a bad smell coming from
the ceiling. When contractors came to take a look they
discovered a dead pigeon and false ceiling hiding a vast
amount of attic space. It was a bonus in disguise. Not
only did the home owner gain lots of square feet that add to
the price of his home he also realised he could enjoy loft living
by designing and extending space.
If you’re lucky enough to have an attic or high ceiling space
that is untouched, you have options for making better use of it.
Converting loft space can not only provide much needed extra
space, whether it be an additional living room, home office
or bedroom and bathroom, but when done well can provide
financial rewards, should you ever sell your property.
The term Loft has shifted meaning over the years. It used to
mean one big unfinished or semi-finished volume, converted
from former industrial space. Then in the 1990s, developers
started building “lofts.” Whether it’s an industrial rehab or new
construction, what you get with a newish “loft” depends on
where you are, but it’s loosely a way of saying: “This condo is
very, very hip.” In many real estate projects across the globe,
a loft has taken on meaning as a tall, narrow shoebox with a
mezzanine for the bed.
Lofts originally were cheap places for poor artists to live and
work. The neglected infrastructure of industrial cities provided
basic shelter for artists after World War II. By the beginning of
the 1960s, many lofts were finished living spaces rather than
substandard artist’s shacks. Today, lofts usually function as
both work and living space.
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