8 Inviting Split-Level House Ideas

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As a design editor, I can admire nearly any sort of residence, even when it doesn’t align with my private model. An antique-filled Philadelphia row home? Bring on the historical past. A brand new-build with Nineteen Seventies aptitude? Groovy. A cedar-clad cabin in Japan? Take me there, please. I hate hating on any sort of structure, which is why I shocked myself after I began my very own home hunt and began praying to the real-estate Gods: Please don’t let me find yourself in a split-level residence. 

The space the place I stay in has split-levels to spare. Some days on Zillow, all I see are chopped-up properties with their boxy exteriors, small entryways, closed-off kitchens, worn carpets, and popcorn ceilings. The factor is, on paper, I do know they’re not so unhealthy. The staggered ranges assist separate noisy areas from personal ones, there’s usually higher pure gentle on the decrease ranges in comparison with most basements, and the quick staircases mean you can see into adjoining rooms, creating the phantasm that the small footprint is a bit bigger than it truly is. Maybe it wasn’t that I used to be fiercely in opposition to split-levels, however simply that I hadn’t seen sufficient examples of well-designed ones. So, I went trying, and was pleasantly shocked by what I discovered. 

Paint the Exterior a Rich Color

Let’s begin with the outside, as a result of that’s the place my fears start. Most of the split-level facades I’ve seen intensify the uneven look by slapping on varied supplies (brick, shingles, tongue-and-groove). It seems, if you happen to paint the whole lot in the identical moody paint shade, it might look fairly fashionable. This L.A. home, which was renovated by the structure agency Part Office, is painted in Behr’s Russian Olive. 

Stick to Fun Tile and Colorful Art within the Entry

With most split-levels, you don’t get a grand entrance the place you possibly can arrange a console desk or shoe cabinets. Usually, upon strolling by the entrance door, you’re instantly greeted by a staircase. It’s not precisely a heat welcome. But this Bloomington, Indiana, residence modified how I considered the abrupt transition. The owners, Anna and Aaron, didn’t attempt to squeeze in conventional entryway furnishings. Instead they went the minimal route, sticking with a graphic Block Shop tile, a Nelson Bubble pendant, and enormous artwork by Dennis Foster. A entrance door with a frosted glass panel helps brighten issues up much more. 

Bring in Old World Texture

In her own home, Emily Nicoara eliminated the cap trim and curved the drywall of the partition that separates her entryway and residing space. The curves mimic the silhouette of a chandelier that hangs above, as does the brand new scalloped handrail. 

Another drawback with split-levels is that they’ll really feel caught within the period they had been constructed (often the Nineteen Sixties or ’70s). To flip the script, Nicoara launched an Old World really feel by changing the bi-fold closet with an vintage hutch, lining the brand new wooden steps with classic runners, and draping a seventeenth century tapestry on the wall. 

Cozy-Up the Railings with Wood

Stairs, stairs, and extra stairs is commonly what you’re if you’re inside a split-level home. So why not make all these steps one thing value ? The ones on this California residence aren’t essentially a brand new addition, however they’re a very good purpose to heat issues up with pure wooden if you happen to’re re-doing the banisters. 

Create Some Headroom

Like Nicoara, designer Elisa Baran added a layer of softness to her split-level by limewashing the whole lot. But what actually turned issues round on this 1,500 sq. foot home was blowing out the attic house, giving the newly open-concept kitchen a 20-foot-high ceiling.

Don’t Crowd a Low Kitchen with Upper Cabinets

Stepping down right into a kitchen with a sloped roofline, you’d count on issues to really feel dreary and cramped. Landed Interiors acquired forward of the issue. Designating all of the storage to decrease cupboards retains the room feeling ethereal, plus it made approach for an epic tiled wall. 

Layer Shades of Wood and White

Not all split-levels can have water views, however they’ll all match this Rockport, Maine, residence’s coziness with a linen slip-covered sofa, rice paper pendant, fluffy sheepskin throw, and white-painted paneled ceiling. Studio Eastman didn’t neglect the Nineteen Fifties residence roots, although, including retro lounge chairs for good measure.

Tile the Risers

There’s no forgetting all these steps you’ve acquired to take to get from level A to level B, so that you would possibly as effectively flip them into a press release. The renovating couple behind Chante Mer, a rental in Australia, clad their risers in stone tiles from Terra Nova. This split-level isn’t run-of-the-mill anymore.