Living and working in the same environment isn?t for everyone; it takes a certain kind of person and a special space. Many who have tried it found that they live better, work smarter and play harder, but only if they can balance the space for all three. Here are some smart homes laid out for the division with bookshelves, plenty of work tables and ?rooms? separated by invisible walls. Philly Loft or Sweet, Sweet Treasure Chest? Stephen Loidolt and Shauna Alterio hide away in their 2,300 square-foot one-bedroom and bath Philadelphia loft, aka an old tire factory. Being creative is what they do best, and decorating with second, third or fourth-time-around thrift, antique and Craigslist items are the inspiration for their living space. Stephen and Shauna?s source of pride is the built-in bookshelves they made from old scrap lumber. The creative couple has two workrooms, both neat, resourceful and yet comfortably shabby-chic. They run their blog and business, Etsy Shop: Something?s Hiding in Here from home. We just love their goofy, laidback style. They buy whatever they love, like rows of vintage globes, maps and an assortment of funny deer figurines. Funeral Parlor-Turned-Sports HQ Heading over to the North Side of Chicago, the Extreme Sports brand?s owner lives and runs his headquarters/showroom in this renovated 6,000-square foot ex-funeral parlor and machine shop. Together with his workspace are a dining room and kitchen,

study, office and a master bedroom and bath. And in just this one picture are three separate areas to sit, a project taken on by Chicago?s well-known interior design company, Morlen Sinoway . Web Guru?s Paradise Sam Rosen parks his bike alongside his books in the two adjoining lofts that he calls home and work. Sam lives with his dog, Eli. He?s a web designer (Sam, not Eli) for clients like Xerox and the University of Chicago, as well as a blogger for the Post Family blog and One Design Company . Sam began his work-from-home habits at the young age of seven. He self-published a book of poetry and debuted it in one of the city?s well-known book stores, selling 20 copies as a result of the book signing. One Man?s Trash? For a photographer and event designer, this Greenwich Village townhouse was the couple?s second unusual transformation they were finally able to call ?home.? Before they moved in, the disastrous commercial rental space had trash stacked nearly to the top of the 13-foot ceilings. The filthy pileup even covered all the windows. But it was the height of the ceilings, despite the mess, which sold the space immediately. Their first renovation was a Manhattan loft that was formerly a wig factory/bordello. Please bookmark and share

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Cool & Cozy Live/ Work Spaces