At your service
Meet the people ready to help with your dilemmas
Kaitlin
Has plenty of reno advice from her own home remodel
Ellen Offers tips and tricks to make life at home a little easier
Alison
The go-to for all things DIY, with tons of wisdom to impart
Anna
Our style guru has the answers to all your questions
Amelia
Has her finger on the pulse of all things kitchen and bathroom
Emily
Real Homes’ resident colour expert is a lover of bold hues
Q
I’m thinking of converting my loft. Should I get a dormer? A That depends, first and foremost, on the size of your loft. If you’ve got plenty of space to achieve your conversion goals with your existing footprint, rooflights should serve you just fine. But if you could use more space, then dormers are one of the easiest ways to get it, since they add headroom, thus creating more functional floor space (say, for that en suite you’ve been dreaming about). You’ll also want to take into account your roof style and the layout of your loft. Dormers can be harder to add if you live in a more modern home with a trussed roof, or if you’ve got an awkwardly placed chimney stack. Of course, budget is also a factor. Dormers are more expensive than rooflights and take more time to install, so consider both before making your decision.