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Dream home (Just throwing ideas out there)
We have lived in our house for almost 4 years now. It's a nice two-bedroom ranch, about 1600 square feet, with a nice basement that has a lot of potential (including one finished room). However, we knew when we bought it it wouldn't be our forever home and now with Isaiah, it's starting to feel cramped. We'll probably stay here for another 2-3 years but we are starting to look a little at houses and have been seriously contemplating building.
Some land is for sale a few miles from us that is really nice, already has a well, 1.3 acres for a decent price, etc. We are thinking of buying it now while interest rates are still pretty low and then building on it in a few years. We haven't talked to our realtor yet - just something we've mulled over the past few days.
Anyway, I've been looking at house plans online and trying to get an idea of what we'd like. We know we want 4 bedrooms, an upstairs laundry room, open layout, and a decently-sized mudroom that we could keep the dog crates and shoes/coats/etc. in. Even though it's new we want it to be a little unique and have some character. Probably around 2500 square feet.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the outside look of this house but the layout is awkward for me a little, especially with the keeping room. What would I do with that? Plus there isn't a large mud room. I do love all the closet space upstairs and the layout of the master suite though.http://www.dreamhomesource.com/house-plans/dhs/dhsw38719.html
I don't like the outside of this one as much but I really like the floor plan. Plus it has a three-car garage which I really like. We would probably use the study as either an office/guest bedroom or maybe even a play room. http://www.dreamhomesource.com/house-plans/dhs/dhsw67196.html
Any thoughts?
Re: Dream home (Just throwing ideas out there)
What's a keeping room?
I like the outside of that first one though.
I don't like the interior layout of either.
The second one, I don't like walking through the kitchen to get to the dining area.
And I don't like all the bathrooms being together. I would prefer the master on a separate floor or wing (that is once we are out of the baby stage)
We are planning on popping out our roof and building a kid suite upstairs in a few years and I love the idea of having their bedrooms separate from ours.
Both houses have my new construction pet peeve - ugly back elevations. Especially #2.
I think I prefer the layout of the second one.
Now will someone please tell me what the *** is a keeping room?
we all fall down sometimes
brass and ballet flats
And I'm not a big fan of master suites on the first floor, or any bedrooms, really. I feel like we have less privacy when guests are over (even though we keep our bedroom doors shut).
No idea what a keeping room is, but I've seen them in house plans lately.
I didn't think about walking through the kitchen to get to the dining area but it doesn't really bother me.
Yeah, but I wonder if that depends on how the layout of the land is. We are looking at a relatively flat piece, so probably not a walk-out basement.
On the first one I'd use the keeping room as my breakfast nook but then you have that space between the kitchen and then family room and I'm not sure what you would do with that. I do like the outside on the first one better.
If you brought some ideas to a builder they would probably be able to tweak the plans to something you like better. It might not hurt calling a couple of builders to see what they think about that and if it would cost a lot extra.
eta: This is what I would do on the first one. I'd do a large rectangular island since angled islands feel dated to me. Getting rid of those weird wing walls between the family room and kitchen would help as well. Then I would use the keeping room as my breakfast nook.
drool
http://www.dreamhomesource.com/house-plans/dhs/styles/contemporary-house-plans/dhsw52331.html
My house has a keeping room, as do most of the houses in my neighborhood. It's a little 7x10 room off of the living room, and it shares a wall with the fireplace. My house was built in the 30s, and was meant to be heated mainly by the fireplace. The idea is that the keeping room is so small, it will stay warm after the fire goes out, even once the rest of the house has gotten cold.
I don't know why you'd build one into a new house.
Baby Boxer is coming! 5.23.12
www.focushunting.com
we all fall down sometimes
brass and ballet flats
Oooh, kdoodle, I like that plan. I had originally thought of using the keeping room as a breakfast nook too but couldn't figure out how that would work. I like the changes.
I'd still want to make a bigger mud room area though.
Winged, for some reason your link doesn't work for me.
ETA: I got it.
I know. I went back to drool and it didn't work for me either.
Go to the contemporary homes and then to the first one.
As a designer, just a couple things for you to keep in mind and consider.
~Any of those plans can be altered to accomodate your ideas.
~By forever home, do you intend to stay there through retirement? Or downgrade once this kids are grown? I ask this because if you plan to stay, you should consider making it as accessible as possible. I know a lot of people don't like the master suite on the first floor, but if you plan to stay forever, you should consider the fact that there may come a time in your life that climbing those stairs every day could be a challenge. Same issue with the laundry room.
edit: you don't have to make them on the first floor now, but having a space such as an office or something that could later be converted if you needed it, isn't a bad idea to consider and plan ahead.
~Benjamin Franklin
DS dx with celiac disease 5/28/10
In the second floorplan, you'd have to walk through the mudroom to get to the only bathroom on the first floor. I wouldn't like that for guests.
Winged, if I'm looking at the right house, I love it too.
This is how I feel. I'm even cool with one bathroom in our next house but that's an absolute deal breaker for my H. He claims it's for me and my obsession with our powder room. But I just want a teeny space to hang out in. It doesn't have to have a toilet.
we all fall down sometimes
brass and ballet flats
I like the first plan better. LOVE the covered porch. You could bump back the powder room to eliminate the garage storage area and double the size of your mud room. It's kind of a long walk from the garage to the kitchen with groceries, though.
I think I would use the keeping room as a play room to house all the kids' toys. You could keep the family room "nicer" looking, and be more relaxed about the look of the keeping room.
The only thing that annoys me about both plans is having to walk all the way through the master bath to get to the closet. But that could easily be changed. (BTW, I currently have 2.5 baths and that is already too many. I can't imagine cleaning a 3rd full bath on the regular.)
After thinking about it for a while, I've thought of what I could do with that keeping room. We have a lot of books, plus a piano (mine) and some guitars (H's) we display. I like the idea of having a music/reading room. I am thinking double French doors would work - that way we could open it up for company or keep it closed off. The family room would be more casual anyway; it's just how we roll.
I feel better about that effin' keeping room now. It was really throwing me off. I actually like the layout of the house except for that, but adding the French doors would work for us.
I don't think the front elevations are different enough to be a deal breaker. I think the upstairs of the second looks like a rabbit warren- all hallway.
The "keeping room" is actually what would be called a "morning room" in Edwardian parlance- basically a smallish sitting room. It would be where a mother might have close friends or children visit in leiu of using the more formal parlor/reception room.
In this set up, they have given you an open floor plan that gives you the standard LR/FR set up open to each other. It's a great floorplan for large scale entertaining, but not so great when you want a tidy child/teen-free space in which to collect your thoughts. My house has a large great room, sans FR/LR. It's limiting if DH or DS are watching TV and I don't want to. When I expand my kitchen, I'll be putting a small sitting room for myself off of it.
I love the idea of an upstairs laundry, but too many of my friends have had problems with leaks to go there.