This is part of a series of "Ask Valet" blogs featuring tips for your home from the design team at Valet Custom Cabinets & Closets.

We asked a few designers at Valet Custom Cabinets & Closets what they felt all guest rooms should have to ensure the comfort of their overnight guests. Here’s what they had to say:

Many literature-lovers are transitioning to e-readers and tablets (even I use them occasionally), but physical books retain their allure. There’s something about sitting down with one—the smell of the ink, the crisp sound of a turning page, the physical weight in your hand. Clients in San Jose know what I’m talking about. You folks ranked in the top 20 most well-read cities in the US, and you’ve got all sorts of intriguing bookstores. I’m partial to Recycle myself, although I hear great things about Hicklebee’s from parents.

Today Menlo Park is at the heart of a new California migration, both from inside the state and from outside. It attracts new people to the area all the time--people in tech, in equity, in finance, and in capital.

The problem that some of these transplants have is the housing market. With home prices so much higher than in other areas of the country, new residents often end up settling smaller lots with older homes and less square footage than their previous home. Then they have a choice: do a teardown and rebuild, or do a redesign. Many of these houses are smaller, and can’t fit modern needs. So in order to get the space modern buyers require, they are choosing either to build a new house or plan a significant remodel for what they have. With the average price for a home sale in Menlo Park at around 2.1 million dollars, the key is getting the most out of your land.

Our featured project this month was designed by Ward Wildanger, a senior designer at Valet Custom Cabinets & Closets. He is a recent finalist in the “Garage” category for his project “The Dream Garage” in this year’s National Top Shelf Design Awards presented at the 2015 Cabinets & Closets Conference and Expo in Schaumburg, IL. Ward brings over 25 years of design and engineering expertise to his work, and it shows in his projects, like this one in Los Gatos. Chris wanted a room that would do double-duty as a guest room and sewing room.