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kayakcove_gw

Could you check my plan: room sizes, flow, etc..

KayakCove
9 years ago

Hi,
I really appreciated your feedback on the plan my family and our architect are putting together. He has incorporated many of your suggestions and added some of he's ideas to the plan below. He wants our approval before he works on the roofline and exterior. We haven't discussed the elevations yet. And I think he has the front porch on there for just a extra visual and not something that we are doing, because it is too small.
Our info: Soon to be empty nesters, want a guest suite for overnight guests or a potential living-in parent. House will sit on 3 wooded acres, with a lake view from the deck area. Hoping to stay around the 2000-2100 sq ft to help stay in our budget.

Some points I am particularly interested in hearing from your are:

  1. Fireplace location on the wall of the great room. Centered on wall or centered with the designated great room furniture group?
  2. Master bathroom tub and linen closet area? We want our bedroom to only hold a king bed, couple of night stands, a chair. All our clothing will be in the closet that will have drawers. So we could use bedroom floor space to enlarge the bath a little if you think this is cramped.
  3. Guest suite closet size & location. GW suggested to put the closet on the kitchen wall. He choose not to do that. What do you think?
  4. Kitchen island: is it too long and not wide enough
  5. Garage: What do you think of the size? Architect decided on the size. We wanted a three stall garage, that is expected in our area. This set-up with 2 & 1 stall is a commonly used lay-out so it does not dominate a small house.
  6. Would increasing the bedroom and bathroom doors be a big deal to increase them to 32"?

Garden Web THANK YOU!!!

Comments (14)

  • kirkhall
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I think it is a nice thought that this home might be for an elderly parent to live in, but in reality, you have the same problem that most do--your accommodations aren't elder-friendly--long narrow hall into the guest bedroom with a narrow door at a 90* angle to get into it. It *is* a reasonable guest suite (though, you could argue guests don't need a large closet because they won't be there long).

    But, it is also strange, imo, to have the guest suite past all of the utility areas.

    Because of your deep overhang on the back, your kitchen is likely to be very dark unless you can get a skylight or 2 into there.

    Do you have an upstairs too, or just a basement?

    Is this lake property far from town? Heavily treed? Close to medical care? Groceries? (ie, do you need more space for food storage than that tiny pantry? Light is how abundant? Is it *really* realistic that an elderly parent might move in?)

  • chemengr
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Do you have elevation drawings?

  • kirkhall
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Kayak answered that in their original post.

  • bird_lover66
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    It looks nice, but I still think the 2nd bedroom area is much too cramped if an elderly person may someday occupy this space.

    For example, for many years my grandmother functioned very well with minimal help but still needed to get around with a walker. That bath and closet would have been very problematic. And I am assuming that you would not want your relative to be with you if s/he needs a wheelchair, because that setup is not going to work at all. :(

    On the plus side, the bedroom is larger. While I assume your relative won't be confined to her room, if the space is a bit larger, then s/he won't be as inclined to occupy the great room every waking moment. While multi-generations can and do occupy cramped spaces by necessity or desire, it is much nicer for all involved if everyone has their own space with sitting area to get away. I'm sure the enlarged private deck will be much appreciated, as well.

    I do like the changes to the master bath area and the kitchen general layout very much; however, I can't read the details of which appliance goe where. You should get some help in the kitchen forum for that.

    Bottom line - as long as you are committed to a full bath and powder room in this area without adding additional square footage, whatever you do is going to be cramped.

    This post was edited by bird_lover66 on Thu, Jul 24, 14 at 9:47

  • KayakCove
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Bird_lover,
    You made some good points about the guest bathroom. I really did not think about it like that. I guess it would make more since to switch it around so it is a hall full bath. That would give me a larger utility/pantry/mudroom/storage space.
    Do you think the master bath tub looks cramped/small?

  • bird_lover66
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Yes, I do think it looks cramped, even though I prefer this overall change. Would you consider deleting that little closet and turning the tub? Whatever overflow doesn't fit into your cabinetry, could go into your walk-in closet on shelves built right next to the door for that purpose.

    Regarding the second bedroom area, I would put a walk-in closet where the bathroom is. Then put the bathroom behind the closet - one very nice large bathroom. :) The bathroom door would be directly across the bedroom door, so it would be easy to access. The currently situated closet would become part of the bathroom.

    Then, claim the powder room and those closets for your laundry room. I would put the pantry in the kitchen probably where the cabinets meet the living room. Your kitchen is a very nice size, and I think you can get a bigger, better pantry without sacrificing too much workspace. When you enter the house with an armful of groceries, you'll just drop them on the island, and then open up the pantry and put them away. You have no "drop" spot for groceries right now.

    If you move the washer and dryer to the current closet and pantry location, you won't have your washer and dryer in sight lines from the living room. Put your built-ins, sink, folding counter/hanging in the former powder room space. You will have to walk through the laundry room from the garage, but if you are organized and not doing laundry for five kids, I think this overall plan feels more spacious and makes up for that. And you can always close it with a door!

    Ok....your walk-in closet is FIFTEEN FEET WIDE! Take three feet of that and make two closets in the foyer! The coat closet should be farthest from the front door, and I personally would build shelves in the second closet for games, hobby items, and general stuff. :) Your master closet will still be 12' feet wide - enough space for hanging on both sides and down the middle.

    One more thing - if your daughter is not adamant about a bathtub, I would put a shower in the hall bath. A shower is much easier to get in and out of when you are weak. Personally, I don't like built-in HARD shower seats, but prefer a nice, teak bench in the shower. :) Like I said, my preference, but a more spacious shower would allow for a rolling shower chair like in hospital baths.

    I'm curious to see your final plan. Although I can offer my opinion, I'm not the one living in it and the plan should work for "you and your family."

    Good luck!

  • KayakCove
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Bird,
    Your comments are very helpful. I am going to see about changing it.
    Thank you!

  • KayakCove
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have a updated house plan from the architect.

    - The laundry, mudroom, bathroom area does not look right.

    HELP

  • robin0919
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Looks fine to me. What do you see that you don't like? Also, you won't need a half bath, that will save on costs.

  • Aims
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I like having the pantry in the kitchen. Before, it just seemed really far away.

    What exactly do you not like about that laundry and bath area? I think having that hallway bath right there is good too because it will be usable by the person staying in the guest room but also for people chilling out in the living room. You'll save money on plumbing/fixtures, etc by not having that half bath.

    With the master bath...I would strongly recommend a pocket door on the entry or having a door that opens towards the bedroom. I know it's a minor thing that you may have already addressed. My old sink was near the entry and if the door is opened to the inside, the user has to move when they are standing there. It is annoying! I thought before that the tub placement looked a little crammed in there. Better now, but it doesn't look like you have much room for storage in there now besides under your sinks. Can you take a teeny-weeny bit of space away from the water closet to further expand that storage area by the tub? And maybe an "over john" in your water closet as well? Not having storage right there in your bathroom might be frustrating later on.

    This post was edited by aimless07 on Mon, Aug 4, 14 at 13:19

  • kirkhall
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Is this really an architect? The doors are all funky (and backwards/not the best choices).

    Yes, I would do a pocket door from hallway to laundry/mudroom. I would swap swing of garage to mudroom door so as it opens you see the mudroom cubbies, not the laundry machines.

    Does the bathroom say it is 7 feet wide by 12 long? If so, consider turning the toilet/shower. Move the linen closet to near the vanity. You can get a larger shower this way.

    Your bathroom toilet room should also consider a pocket door.

  • mrspete
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Front entry hall looks better with the nice-sized closet. Why one large closet and one small closet? I wonder about the possibility of one closet and a small table upon which guests could set their keys and purses. Or, for balance, two small closets and a table between them.

    I would center the office French doors -- having them off-center is a little wonky. Or consider pocket doors (which can still be French doors) so that they don't interfere with the front door.

    The doors in the master bath don't "line up", and this is something that will bother you once the house is built. It'll look odd. The question arose, is the maser bath small and cramped? No. It is large and cramped. It's overly compartmentalized and has three doors in a small space. The tub is going to feel "crammed" into its spot between two walls, and the toilet closet is taking up space in an odd location there in the middle of the room (and its door creates a barrier when it's open). You have so much space for the bathroom/closet, but I don't think it looks like a comfortable layout.

    Nice windows throughout.

    I like the kitchen and its relationship to both the dining room and the great room.

    If you move the washer and dryer to the opposite wall -- so that they're sharing a wall with the bathroom and are adjacent to the sink -- it'll be a money-saver. Why? Because you'll be containing all your water needs in one wall, while the other wall will be just storage and folding area. It means the plumber will only have to work on one wall, and it means that you'll contain the possibilities of future leaks to one wall.

    The secondary bath looks much more usable than the previous incarnation, but it'll be difficult to reach that closet -- you'd have to scrunch by the toilet, and that's not the easiest thing for an elderly person. I'd do away with that linen closet and make it a really nice, big shower; this will allow for a seat, which will be very welcome for an elderly person. You do need storage, so I'd suggest stealing some from the very wide laundry room -- you could have a very large linen closet located next to the sink, which would be more accessible.

    If you do have an elderly parent living with you, that small closet won't be nearly enough space. It's drawn as a walk-in, but a 3 1/2' deep walk-in is really a deep reach-in.

    The long hallway to the bedroom is problematic. First, it'll be dark and uninviting. I'd definitely go with motion-triggered lights. Second, depending upon mobility, the length of the hallway might be a problem. My grandmother did very well with her walker (which is much more common than a wheelchair) and was fine when she was walking straight on a flat surface, but the turn would've been difficult for her.

    Also thinking of the hallway, I'd consider putting a pocket door onto the laundry room. This door is likely to remain open 95% of the time (being closed only when you want the noise to be contained) . . . and if the door is open, it'll block this hallway.

    You have loads of wasted space under those switchback stairs. I'd want a small door, which could open into the corner of the great room. This could be wonderful holiday storage.

    Overall thoughts: I like the main living areas, but I think the functional areas -- the laundry, the baths and closets, and so forth -- could use some tweaking. These things are one of the main reasons people build: They're what makes a house comfortable.

  • bird_lover66
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    The hall bath needs tweaking, but it is going to be so nice and spacious! I would put the counter and sink on the same wall as your laundry room, and if you don't mind seeing the washer and dryer, it would be cheaper to put them on the same wall. That wall is 7'2" long, so you would have room for a sink and small closet. The door should be about even with the bedroom door. And I agree that you need a pocket door from the hall to the laundry room.

  • stefsims
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Nice. Is this a lake house? It seems that there is a lot of effort to get to the deck (go through the dining room, through the covered porch, to the deck) if you're grilling out there, that's a long way back to the kitchen. Also, have you thought of another entrance into the home from the single garage or is that like an in-bedroom near it? Again, that seems like a task to get to the main area of the house.