Who didn’t love hide-and-seek as a kid? Truth be told, lots of adults get into the game, too, as evidenced by the uptick in hidden doors and spaces in new builds these days. Joe Garcia, owner of G&G Custom Homes, has witnessed the phenomenon firsthand.  

“Almost every house these days, people want to incorporate a hidden door into a hidden space,” says Garcia. Though the idea isn’t new, the concept has evolved over time. In the past, homeowners often asked to create bookshelf doors that look like a bookshelf but actually open into a hidden room. Another common request was hidden doors that lead to bunkrooms or game rooms for kids. Now, however, adults are relishing the fun and are asking their architects to design cool, unique spaces just for themselves. For instance, Garcia is currently building a house that includes an upstairs office with a hidden door that opens to a circular staircase leading to a bourbon room. 

“The great thing with that bourbon room is that down below in the bar area, there’s a door that looks like a wine rack that’s built into the wall,” says Garcia. “You open that, and it goes into the bourbon room so it’s a dual hidden space!” 

Oftentimes homeowners see a hidden door in a Home-A-Rama show home or online somewhere and they decide they would like to incorporate one into their next build. So, Garcia sits down with them and lets the creative juices start flowing.  

“We come up with what room to hide and what type of door to do, whether it’s a bookshelf door, a flat panel door, a wine rack door, or a shiplap door,” says Garcia. To open them, you simply push in. There is no handle; they are on a pivot hinge.  

A lot of folks like blending these doors in with the surroundings of the walls. He recently did one where from the hallway, you see only wood paneling with no inkling that a door exists that leads to a bathroom.  

“The whole idea with that design was to enable one spouse to get up in the morning, shut the bathroom door, get ready, then sneak out through the hall and not have to walk back through the bedroom to disturb their spouse,” says Garcia, who has found that in almost every house, homeowners want to do something hidden—even inside of pantry kitchens. 

“I’ve done ones where it looks like it’s a kitchen cabinet with tall doors and then it opens into a pantry,” says Garcia.  

The hidden doors have even become somewhat of a game for those touring Home-A-Rama and other home shows. At last year’s event, Garcia had some kids giddily share that they had found the hidden bathroom door. 

“I told them, ‘Great! There’s still two more to find!” says Garcia, who also had created one in the downstairs bar and another in the basement leading to storage. 

“When we first started doing hidden doors and spaces, people said, ‘We want that Scooby-Doo bookshelf that opens up and you go into a space!’” says Garcia. “Now they request creative unusual spaces all throughout the house.” 

Create your ideal hidden space in your ideal custom home, it all starts with a conversation. Connect with Garcia and the team at G&G Custom Homes to learn more.  

Connect with the G&G team today to get your custom home conversation started.

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