The Functional Home: A Practical Guide to Planning Intentional Living Spaces

Discover how to design a home that works beautifully for the way your family actually lives. Make your home work for you!

The Functional Home delivers expert-level insight made approachable and easy to follow, without the high price tag of hiring a home design specialist. Professional designer and social media star Julie Jones (@juliejones_designs) spills all her secrets and hands you the tools to rethink your rooms, plan smart layouts, and create a home that feels both functional and inviting—no matter its size, shape, or style.

From understanding the “language” of space to mastering the flow of furniture, lighting, and décor, Julie breaks down the fundamentals of interior space planning so you can design your own rooms with confidence. She helps you see your home through a technical lens—how people move, interact, and live within a space—so every square foot works harder and smarter for you and your family.

In this useful and beautiful illustrated guide, you’ll discover:

Simple guidance for planning layouts that improve comfort, accessibility, and visual balance in every room.
Room-by-room design strategies for kitchens, bathrooms, living areas, bedrooms, home offices, and more.
Expert insight into human scale and flow, with real-world examples that explain why dimensions and clearances matter.
Detailed kitchen and bath design advice, two of the most challenging and high-impact spaces in any home.
Tips for new builds and remodels, plus tools for drawing to scale and mapping your own personalized floor plan.
Metric equivalents for every measurement, in case you need them.

By the end, you’ll understand how to look at your home the way a designer does—balancing beauty, function, and practicality. The Functional Home empowers you to make smart design decisions that create safe, comfortable, and thoughtfully arranged spaces that truly fit your life.

Julie Jones (@juliejones_designs) is a CID (Certified Interior Designer in the state of CA) with 18 years of experience in residential design. Julie attended two different CIDA-accredited colleges to attain her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design in 2008. She then worked as a residential interior designer, primarily designing kitchens, bathrooms, and new construction. As a result of sharing her work on social media in 2021, Julie started a new career path in 2022. Taking her real-world experience with her, Julie Jones® Designs was born as a virtual interior design service. Since then, she has been able to hire talented space planners, designers, drafters, and assistants for her rapidly expanding business. As Julie continues to gain popularity on social media by providing interior design and space planning advice, she strives to challenge the norms of the interior design industry by making it more accessible and affordable without compromising on quality. Discover more about Julie on her website juliejonesdesigns.com and @juliejones_designs on Instagram.