7 Ways to Create Privacy in Your Home

When we think about privacy at home, the first thought that comes to mind is to shut ourselves off from prying and intrusive neighbors. But privacy goes beyond guarding our windows with curtains and our backyards and porches with fences. If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that we need privacy not just from our neighbors but also within our own homes, from our very roommates and family!

The more time we spent locked down within our homes, the more we realized how challenging it can be to maintain the personal boundaries we need, especially when we live in close proximity to others. We’ve all been there – feeling our personal space intruded upon. We’ve all felt the stress and conflict it has brought upon our relationships. We’ve all felt the toll of the lack of privacy on our productivity and mental health, and well-being.

While we’re no longer locked down, thankfully, we still need those private spaces where we can retreat for some calm, quiet, and security, where we can be truly ourselves, with ultimate autonomy. Everybody needs their ‘my space.’ For many of us that continue to work from home many days a week, privacy is almost even mandatory to keep work productivity high.

The problem is, creating privacy at home isn’t as simple as building fences around your private space. It comes with a number of challenges that need overcoming.

Challenges of adding privacy in homes

1. Space limitations

Living in big cities often means living out of a tiny apartment that you’ve to share with flatmates, a partner, pets, or your family. There may not be enough room to create privacy with a solid physical divide, so you may have to resort to some smart space design and organization instead.

2. Lack of natural light

Room dividers are great for creating privacy, but they can cut down the amount of natural light and take away that openness and warmth of your home.

3. Cost

Making renovations or major changes in your home’s layout to make space for privacy can come at a significant cost that not everyone can afford.

4. Need for flexibility

Especially in smaller homes, creating private spaces may come with a need for adapting to different requirements that may change every few months or even weeks.

5. Need for soundproofing

While attaining visual privacy is relatively easier, being able to cut out the noise and achieve sound privacy can be a real challenge.

6. Building code restrictions

Different locations come with different building codes that may limit renovations and modifications in the home layout to provide for your privacy needs.

While the challenges to creating private spaces at home can be tricky, there are a number of smart and creative space solutions that we think can make a world of difference!

How to create private spaces within your home

1. Make the most of your existing furniture

Sometimes, all we need to create a sense of privacy within a space is to re-look at the furniture arrangement and make the most of it! That bookshelf against the wall could do a better job doubling up as a divider between your studio’s living and sleeping spaces. You can also arrange your bed such that its headboard acts as a screen to give you some visual privacy. Arrange your sofa and couch to create a private reading nook in the corner of your living room.

2. Use temporary room dividers and screens

Yes, like those rattan ones we’ve all seen, foldable dividers are an excellent means to create a temporary private space within a larger room. Open them up to create a space of your required shape, and when done, simply fold and stack them against a wall for another time.

If you’re looking for a more modern appeal, you could also consider temporary dividers like this Affluent Flow Divider. Simply assemble the different parts to create a stylish divider to add some privacy to your space. When you want to open up your space instead, just disassemble the divider for later use. Because they’re light and airy, these dividers are great for adding privacy in tight spaces without blocking out all the natural light and openness of the room.

3. Hang curtains from the ceiling

Curtains are one of the simplest and easiest ways to add privacy to any space. Hang them around your bed or work desk to block out the surrounding distractions and create a temporary, personal zone. If you’re sharing a room with a roommate, you can also use a curtain to split the room visually to create some privacy.

4. Set up plants as privacy screens

Plants serve as excellent space dividers when you want to create a sense of privacy without using the obvious screens, curtains, or partitions. They also double up as dynamic décor elements to add that splash of green and a dynamic vibe to your space. Go for a wide-leafed plant like a fiddle leaf fig, Monstera a rubber plant, or gather a bunch of bamboo trees to form a screen barrier. Hanging plants like boxwood, ivy, and ferns are also excellent ways to demarcate private zones without taking away from the quality of your space.

5. Use modular partition walls and dividers

What if you want to create not just a private space but a proper private ‘room’ within a larger room? Say, for example, you want to create a WFH station or a private guest room within your living room.

Modular partitions are the way to go when you want flexible and customizable private rooms at will and without any hassles. These are divider systems that come with a number of smaller units called modules that you can assemble to create a temporary wall and split a larger space into smaller, private zones.

And the best part is, they look like real, actual walls! Modular partitions like this L-Shaped Room Divider even come with a folding door to shut off the space for some solid privacy! When you want your original, open room back, simply take the modules apart and stack them in a corner for reuse.

6. Use acoustic panels for some sound privacy

If you’re looking for a private space that you can truly call ‘yours,’ it may not always be enough to block it out visually. Sound privacy is crucial for that ultimate space exclusivity, especially if you’re looking for a quiet spot to read, think, meditate, or work.

Privacy screens made of acoustic panels can be of immense help here. While it’s a temporary solution that may not give you complete acoustic insulation, you can cut out a major portion of the outside noise to create a private, discreet space within your home. Consider acoustic dividers like this SoundSorb 360 to create a quiet room within your home in seconds. Fold the panels to stack them on one end when you no longer need the space.

7. Use lighting to add privacy

Sometimes, creating a sense of privacy doesn’t necessarily need a physical barrier to block out vision and sound in a space. Even a cozy, intimate vibe can make a part of your home feel private and independent. Consider zoning out your spaces by lighting – for example, use bright overhead light in more public areas and softer, dimmer lighting in private areas you want to allocate for relaxation.

Make sure you get that ‘privacy of your own home’ at home

In an age where we feel our privacy threatened with technology and social media taking over our personal lives, it makes sense that we may want to protect whatever privacy we can afford. Even at home, we need our privacy for individual autonomy – we need a personal space where we feel safe and free from judgment. So what if we don’t have the luxury of a private room? With these innovative solutions and workarounds, everybody can feel entitled to their private space they can safely call their own.

Are you looking to create a private room within a larger room or split a room into two private zones? We can help! We have a range of temporary walls and room dividers that can add privacy to your home instantly.