Summertime In The Hamptons Can Be A Lot Of Bunk

The effervescent enthusiasm on the 1:48 p.m. out of Penn Station on Memorial Day Friday is palpable.

Scores of under 35s with gorgeous complexions and a thousand “likes” in their dialogue are chattering so fast that their valley girl/boy accents amount to a splattering machine gun. Shoehorned in between giant rolling bags are discussions focused around shared cars, shared parties, shared meal planning and of most concern, shared sleeping arrangements.

Many also appear to be friends of friends whose parents have a house. This electronically plugged-in generation of children/adults optimistically hedge for a space to weekend far from the canyons of Manhattan. As I witness this ebullient ritual that only seems to crescendo as the years march on, I hear in the back of my mind the advice proffered me when I built a house: “Remember the weekends, deep in summer, when droves of friends will arrive. And prepare!”

After observing the deluge, I recommend considering a conversion of the attic space or a carving out of the unused basement space to add a charming dormitory or bunk room. Given that the East End always attracts weddings, bar mitzvahs, milestone birthday parties, family reunions and holiday throngs, the construction of a bunk room can be a welcome addition to your already cramped summer capacity.

First, of course, you need to take into account your space, particularly the window and door placement and access to a bathroom. I suggest single mattresses, 38-inches-by-75-inches, to maximize space. And if the room allows, one queen-size bed that can function for a couple so that the dorm room can also convert to a couple’s guest room.

Whether the beds are placed with the length of the mattresses against the wall (galley style) or the heads of the mattresses against the wall (camp style) depends on the space. Some bunk spaces actually lend themselves to an “L-” shaped configuration as well.

A small side table with a drawer and a shelf placed between the beds is useful for a glass of water, a cellphone or book. This side table need be no more than 27 inches wide as this allows a cozy but adequate amount of walking space between the mattresses.

The beds can either have built-in drawers beneath them or drawers on roller wheels that slide in and out to conveniently store overnight clothing when the visitors are in residence or extra blankets and duvets when visitors are not there.

Usually a bunk room is spare on wall space but a communal chest of drawers is always useful. I have numbered the bunks and then coordinated those numbers with the numbers on the drawers—a clever decorative element. Also, hooks at each bed are a must to hang coats and other clothing.

A wall mounted sconce, swing arm or suspended light fixture centered on the head of the bed is a wonderful provision, especially if there is a light-mounted switch or a wall-mounted switch for each individual fixture. This permits the lone night reader to bury him or herself in the current popular novel without disturbing the whole crew.

Another charming element can be the privacy curtain, which can be pulled over the galley-style bunk configuration, lending a train’s sleeping car ambience. For the camp-style configuration, a privacy curtain can be drawn around a ceiling-mounted track with light curtains helping to separate the cubicles.

To accommodate even more sleeping spaces, double bunks can be either built in or purchased. Do make sure that the ceilings are at least 9 feet 6 inches high or a sense of claustrophobia will make the space unappealing. Stable ladders leaned up to the upper bunk, plus guard rails on the upper bunk, are essential for younger children and tipsy adults.

And remember that the upper bunks are a challenge to make and remake, so keep that in mind before your double bunk enthusiasm overtakes you.

In decorating the rooms, I have enjoyed taking cues from the architecture of the space itself. Carving a bunk room out of the eaves of a house begs for a wooded attic-style approach with rafters and plank boards, the romantic idiom of choice.

Older attics once employed homasote—an inexpensive, quite pebbly, sheeting material which is seldom used now. Its beams were covered over with simple lathing. When painted over, as done by the talented designer Liz Stewart, the effect is pure nostalgia.

When carving the space out of basements, I have used rough wall planks to give a texture that rigid sheetrock cannot even compete with. For one project, I used inexpensive rough-cut lumber, painted it blue for the first coat and then gave a final coat in white. I begged the gifted painter to be sloppy, letting the blue peek through. His border collie jumped up on the walls and walked all over the boards while wet, giving a wonderful spontaneous aged quality to the room. You never know when brilliance will bound in, sometimes in the guise of man’s best friend.

On the East End, a clean nautical approach might be just the ship-shape cue to a bunk room filled with charm. High gloss white over neatly sanded wood trimmed in mahogany and splashed with a few patriotic red and navy stripes always gets the heart palpitating.

Rope stanchions to hem in the rowdies and a polished brass bell to wake up the critters might be taking it a bit too far. But these kind of details can make for memories you can’t deprive someone of in the future.

Finally, for the basement dormitories, I prefer wall-to-wall carpeting for sound deadening, coziness and to cheer up the lack of windows. But for the quirky, gabled attic spaces, I recommend a thick coat of durable porch paint on the floors (unless your attic sports beautiful wood).

Another tip: Hand hooked scatter rugs at each bunk skim off the sand before the campers snuggle into bed.

With the throngs amassing at your threshold, a charming bunk room—carved out of some unused space down below or up in the rafters—might be the perfect solution for a long, crowded summer.