When we began looking for houses in Alabama as we were considering moving from Tennessee, the pattern became apparent quickly:

We were not going to be able find a house in Alabama comparable to what we had in Tennessee within our budget:

About 2,000 square feet; consisting of 4 bedrooms, plus a bonus room.

Instead, it was either downsize to 3 bedrooms and lose the bonus room, or… double our budget and the sqare footage. No in-between.

Since my wife and I have both been working from home full-time since 2020, we had to get creative when we bought our home in Alabama.

She set up shop in a corner of the dining room while I claimed a corner of our bedroom.

This meant for the past year and a half, anytime I needed a coffee break or eat lunch, I would have to hope it lined up with my wife not being on a call.

It worked, but it definitely inspired my wife to say: “We need to have somebody build me my own office… but I want it to be like a sunroom too.”

We got quotes from a few different contractors, but the one who won our vote was “Zack of All Trades“, who is based a few miles from us in the neighboring town of Valley Head.

The finished product has certainly exceeded our expectations. I love how it feels like a constistent extension of our existing 29 year-old home, yet it provides a unique space.

It doesn’t at all feel like a 2nd living room, nor a den, or even a bonus room.

Instead, it’s the perfect hybrid of a true office, a dance/music studio, and a game room… all with an amazing view of the mountains.

And since we had Zack tear out the old deck and replace it with this new room, he built us a smaller, more simpler deck with a staircase leading to it.

We love our new room! It added about 250 square feet to our home, but it has totally reinvented our living space.