SFGate

eztia Am I understanding that you are considering building a floor extending outward from the "dead end" section of the stairs?
If so, the stairs would make a natural dividing line between the two rooms.

I am going to go to Houzz PHOTOS and enter "children's shared room" in the search box. You can do this, too. I will try to find some inspiration photos for you.

decoenthusiaste That little "dead end loft space would make a lovely reading nook with a view, but the extra footage may be better used to expandthe bedroom. You don't give the size of the bedroom, but if you incorporate the hall/loft into it, a separate entry could be created from the end nearest the regular walkway - just a niche wide enough for the door into the room. Can you draw a floorplan and include the closet? That may be where the best extra space is found.

Chambers can you use the closet as part of the room...take out that wall and make the room larger, then add a closet in the center of the room, with maybe pocket doors to close off the two spaces when your step son is with you and opening them when he isn't? You could add a door to the "new" room from the hallway so your step son has his own entrance to his room. Could his room, since he is there only on weekends, be furnished in an interesting way, with maybe a built-in "loft" for his bed and a loveseat under, or a desk under? This, of course, depends on his age; but his room could be smaller, but imaginatively furnished, making him feel welcome when he's there. Another solution is to include the hallway, which I'm assuming is the one on the far side of the opening in the photo, as part of his room. It's hard to describe all this without a drawing of exactly what you have and what you're going for, but I hope what I've written isn't completely unintelligible!

eztia I am back with lots of photos from Houzz! I can attach four at a time. I am sorry they do not enlarge on this post. My search parameters were "Bedrooms - children's shared rooms," "Kids - room dividers," "Kids - shared rooms."

eztia More...

eztia And a few more. Please share your thoughts as you move forward with this project! :)

Ironwood Builders Ez, you always find the coolest stuff! Can't tell but it looks like breaking the existing bedroom into two will require one room to be somewhat smaller to align with the beam and the slot between the windows...or a wall will be built to land on glass..or the entire wall of windows will need to be remodeled, inside and out. Any chance that the area of the balcony..that goes nowhere can added on to? Set new floor joists and add to the balcony area, steal part of the adjacent room to make a closet and change out a window on the balcony to an egress window? I think a local design pro can help you hash this out in person more easily than on houzz. Hit the "find local pros" button and search your zip code, review their profiles and find someone whose design sense matches up with yours!

eztia I find photos for inspiration.
Ironwood gives excellent instructions for building. He is always spot on.
Please let us know your thoughts as you move along with your project.

Benjamin check out some of the kids themed room dividers

Ironwood Builders Thanks ez, you are great too! Never say you are an amateur! I don't get paid for this either!

sofiasmiles i love these thoughts and at the same time it is so hard for me to visualize. the one thing about using only dividers, is that it wouldnt work because of thie age difference. the little one is still in a crib and they go to bed at different time. it really needs to be separate with a door, because of noise and what not. anyways thanks for all the input and we will keep you updated.
IRONWOOD- is there any possibility in any of the two pictures attached below.
the litttle guys crib would be in the smaller space, and older one outside and then when older one is not there the whole space is for little guy.
let me know thanks!

Ironwood Builders Anything you want can be accomplished. I heard the desire for separate areas and came to some conclusions based on the photos. A full floor plan could help me work this through with you....but that is not really the way I work. I try to help with nuts and bolts issues and contract issues, leaving design for the designers and architects here on Houzz. In my real job, I run a construction company and work with designers, architects and engineers...and my own draftsman and my own CAD program to develop and implement what I hope is good design.

I'm here on Houzz to see if their claims that I'll get work by having a good profile and contributing is real. I give the best information I can from photos and some plans...but most drawings are not large enough for me to actually review and comment on. I prefer a CAD file or a 24"X36" set of drawings to be of any service. Site measuring and a knowledge of what is there are crucial for me...I'm really a hands on type and this is a new foray into social media marketing that I'm not sure works. I type ridiculously slowly with lots of errors and it takes me a while to think of what needs to be said or done. I'll revisit some threads 4 or 5 times to figure out what is going on.

Yours is a case in point. I tripped through maybe three times before I saw any solutions. I don't know the age difference between your son and stepson...but that crib won't last long and your stepson will need to feel just as important as his brother...2 or 20...makes no difference. I have two brothers...we shared everything...even a girlfriend once..we were equal, just different. So my advise is make two separate but equal spaces...one can be slightly smaller..but it needs to be cooler. And pretty much off limits to two-year-olds. I hope this helps. If you are in the SF Bay Area...I can be of more service.

sofiasmiles ironwood- thanks so much for taking your time to write back/ i appreciate your feedback,
i agree with the spaces being equal size which was my original goal. without just putting a wall right down the middle i was trying to figure out another solution.
again thanks so much

Ironwood Builders You are very welcome!

mveasey This might be sort of a dumb question, but is this the only space upstairs? Is there a bigger master bedroom that could be divided? Having a toddler in the picture is a little tricky.
What does your older one say? Any wishes? He might love a smaller room, knowing he does not have to "share" and can close the door anytime. Is he the kind of child that does spend a lot of time by himself? Or is the room is technically only used for sleeping, and has his toys downstairs? Maybe you have considered all those things and that's why you are asking houzzers, if that is the case, please disregard this post!

mveasey Is the furnished room in the same house?