How narrow is too narrow for a snug??

[GF79]

So we've a (1st world) dilemma. 2 kids and 2 adults in a 4 bed house (3 big beds a boxroom which is also a permanent office for WFH husband) but it feels like we're outgrowing the space.

We LOVE the location, proximity to schools, local friends and neighbours etc and for other reasons would really rather not move if we can help it. The only option we have is a side extension, which could give us a cloakroom/WC, utility, snug and lower ground floor office, which would free up the much needed 4th bedroom and get a lot of stuff out of other rooms. BUT the maximum internal width would be 1.7m. I think this would be fine for the utility and for the cloakroom/WC but would it feel too pokey for a snug? It would have a sloping ceiling and skylight too...Im thinking of a comfy chair/sofa bed (a double would fit it mainly used as a sofa), some plants, possibly a flat screen TV and guitars mounted on the wall. Is this a ridiculous idea?!

If anyone has managed to make a decent room of a similar width I'd love to hear from you/see pics! Or if anyone has seen/done similar and would advise against it, I'd also love to hear from you! We don't want to spend a fortune to feel like we've an extra cupboard (as handy as that would be 😂).

Can you get a room out in the garden and move the office out there?

Or convert the attic into a large bedroom, 2 small bedrooms or one bedroom, and one office.

i would not move if you are happy in
the area, you have the space you just need to rearrange or get rid of the home office.

Sorry I should've said, we've already converted the attic (main bedroom and en suite) and considered a garden office but this would still leave the issue of a hallways full of coats and shoes/random bits like ironing board/airers etc in a bedroom,hence us thinking it would be a bonus to have a cloakroom and utility too. It's just we' feel we'd also need to get another living space to justify this, if that makes sense?!

We've got a 1930s semi and we converted the loft into 2 smallish double bedrooms and a shower room. We use the box bedroom as a permanent office.

We extended 2.1 m out to the side as well, that gave us a big eat in kitchen (previously a galley), a utility room and a downstairs loo. We have coat hooks and shoe storage in the understairs cupboard.

So we have living room, dining room, large eat in kitchen, utility room and loo downstairs (plus understairs storage for coats, bags and shoes). 2 good doubles, family bathroom and box bed 5 (currently used as an office) on floor 1, and 2 small double bedrooms and a shower room on floor 2.

I don't think our 2.1 m extension would be wide enough for a snug, but I guess we could repurpose our dining room as a second living room if we wanted.

I think it would be too small for the purpose you want.

How long would it be and where would the door come in as these will make a big difference to how the space feels and furniture arrangement.

Do you have a floor plan?

With current building costs it feels like a big expense to not gain a huge amount but obviously that partly depends on the layout of the rest of the house in terms of how transformative it would be.

Hi, your house sounds v similar to ours! Though we knocked our dining room and kitchen through so the utility would be on the side and our loft is one whole-floor bedroom with shower, not 2. Silly question, the 2.1m extension, is that the internal or external measurements? My 1.7 is the internal wall...our box room is 1.98 wide (currently and office bit has been a single bedroom before) and we've tried to imagine knocking 28cm off that and wondering if a sofa bed and wall mounted TV would feel ok for an extra little living space but I know once the walls are up spaces can feel very different 😂

Yes this was my concern. I've scribbled a rough floorplan which I'll try and attach later but I was thinking a door off the hallway, just on the left as you come in to the cloakroom and a pocket door off the cloakroom to a small WC (the WC being on the external wall of this section), then on the adjacent wall a pocket door into the snug, meaning we could maximise the space inside. The utility would come off the kitchen which is at the back of the house. The office would be underneath the utility (the land slopes down to a garden so we're over 4 storeys) and so be accessible from outside.

We've been quoted a basic rate of 30k plus VAT before fixtures and fittings (by the builder who's done most of the other big jobs here). This was similar to stamp duty and moving costs when we considered moving so didn't seem like a massive amount but as you say, if it's not transformative then it's still a big expense!

Instead of a snug could you have a lovely boot room? Then block off the front room again as your snug, and open up the kitchen more and have sofa and tv ?

Sorry hard to imagine the layout do this might be way off.

Do a mock up in your current living room. Move the sofa so that it's the same distance from the tv and from the opposite wall as it would be in your snug.

I suppose my main concern would be what size sofa could you fit in? You want something a reasonable size to be comfortable, I'd draw out a plan and add a sofa with the dimensions you want.

So about 5ft 6? My sofa is longer than that- it also sounds like an awkward shape- how long would it be?

What would the space be used for. Is the plan for the kids to watch TV there or game? Or for guests.

I want to say no it's too small- but the benefit of a cloakroom/utility would be great

I think it would feel like a corridor.

Armchairs are more flexible than sofas and can be arranged more easily if you have an awkward space.

IME once kids get to teenage years they'll disappear to their rooms no matter what's downstairs so the need for more living space doesn't last long. Then they leave for uni!

It sounds like it’s too small, I don’t think it sounds an inviting room to spend time in, so might only get used when you have a guest, which seems like a waste. Can you increase the size of the office so there is room for a blow up or sofa bed? Increase the storage of a boot room/utility room to free up space in the existing space.

I’d turn the space into a boot room. We have two separate spaces, a utility / laundry room room with drying rack, ceiling rail above it and dehumidifier. Worktops for folding all the clothes. Washer dryer.
Next to it is the boot room with three clothes rails for all the coats / school bags / sports bags with shoes on the bottom , shelves and boxes for all the sports kit. It keeps all the clutter and kit out of the hallway and makes a massive difference to our family organisation.

I don't think the snug would work. Storage and an office and the upstairs box room becomes a snug for the DC.

TBH it sounds like a ruthless declutter would work wonders.

The cost of moving is surely around the cost of the extension.

I'd contact 'Love it or List it'. They might have some brilliant ideas you haven't thought of.

Without a floor plan, its difficult to understand the layout. So you want the snug as a music/room with plants for 1 maybe 2 people to sit in? Is that correct? Personally, I'd prefer a larger utility, walk in larder, or more storage etc. How low is the sloping ceiling?

In laws have a snug about 2m wide at the narrowest section. There is a step into it and they have no door- just an archway. They have a floor to ceiling window, so you feel like you are in the garden and it really makes the space feel bigger.

Remember that any door, be it on the snug, utility, toilet etc takes up 1m2 of floor space in the room. Consider doors opening outwards, into the hall to save space within a small room, or a sliding door.

My parents have a small snug. Not sure of the precise dimensions but width wise it fits a two seater sofa and that is it. It’s fine as an extra space. My dad goes in to watch sport whilst my mum watches soaps in the living room. It’s a one person space though - two max if they’re being cosy

If, with the placement of the door, you could fit a small sofa bed (like this) across the 170 width, you would have more flexibility around the length of the room to fit another small chair, however it would be a bit of a squash if all 4 of you wanted to be in the room wanting to watch the tv at the same time. I’d allow for a decent width shelf behind the sofa in this case to allow for a lamp, charging phones, keeping books (false teeth 😆) etc for when you are using it as a guest bed.

We have a Halo Little Professor Chair which is a really well proportioned small piece of furniture and there are loads of copies of the style in furniture shops.

Have you considered how to heat the room? If you could do underfloor heating, it would save the wall space needed for a radiator.

I wonder if something bespoke to the room would work, I'm always seen reading nooks on Facebook, they look wonderful. Wonder if you could essentially block up half the room with a raised platform with like a mattress with lots of cushions etc, walls lined with books, tv on the wall. A proper little hidey hole?

Do you actually need the extra living space? It sounds like you need the storage more, so I'd be more inclined to do a generous utility and boot room set up.

Something like this? With a TV on the opposite wall assuming it's a tv room youre after.

I’d look at getting a pull out bed built in like in a caravan or boat. Friend has this and then it’s bench seating most of the time…

and pocket doors

Thank you. Yes we could do that but I feel like as much as if love all the coats and shoes out of the hallway, I'd rather we had an extra living space too!

This is a great idea, thanks!!