As 2021 marches on, we find ourselves being asked to help homeowners create their own escape room—a retreat from juggling the challenges of worklife balance. This pandemic serves to remind us how important our home is to our daily well-being.

Envisioning how to renovate and develop areas where we spend so much time into the sanctuaries that support our lives is an easy task for IMPACT Design Resources. This wine and bourbon room was an addition to an already generous playground in the basement of this beautiful home. Designing great wine storage solutions is a combination of style, function, and location. Lining the walls with the stained knotty alder cabinets certainly helps create a state of mind needed to escape. The glow of light coming from the backlit onyx countertops eases the viewing of wine bottle labels resting properly on our uniquely modern peg display. You don’t have to produce a vineyard to indulge in your own wine collection year-round. A home should always be filled with cheer; simply finding time to relax can go a long way toward finding balance. There will be lots of getaways and memories made in this space.


It is equally essential for us to rebalance from time to time, to adjust to what is going on in our lives. Working from home used to be a rare perk, an escape from the dayto-day. Now companies are mandating it. The occasional need to send an email from your laptop while sitting in the living room quickly shifted into establishing a dedicated workspace. Homeowners are searching for larger work surfaces, a comfy chair, and ample storage space. Zoom meetings have given us an intimate window into the private lives of our coworkers and a glimpse into the professional lives of our loved ones. This recently formed workspace offers the homeowners an area with a focus centering on function and aesthetics. The cabinet doors conceal the flexible storage area while displaying themselves on center stage.



What is something that feels like therapy but is not therapy? A client recently expressed that her closet was becoming her escape room while her kids learn at home during a crisis.

Because our routines and refuges have been upended, our safe havens have turned up in the most wonderful places. Albert Einstein said, “The monotony and solitude of a quiet life stimulates the creative mind.” Downtime can provide the space we need to think through a situation or work through our feelings, or just let us rest.

A sought-after mix of organization and luxury is a goal that we at IMPACT Design Resources strive for. Where is your next escape going to be? It could be closer than you think!

SANDI BARNES is a senior designer at IMPACT DESIGN RESOURCES. Contact Sandi at 704-677-5338, visit IMPACTDESIGNRESOURCES.COM, or check out their SouthEnd showroom