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Please help me make changes to my plans!

14 years ago

Ok so this build is coming faster than I expected and I need to get my butt in gear and decide what I want. I have been going over and over these plans for months and have made some changes but I'd like to get all of your suggestions on changes that you would make to the original plans.

The front of the house is going to be extended by 3 or 4 feet where the bedrooms are and the garage will be extended as well. We wanted the make the house a little more interesting and we liked the idea of having a covered porch. We can add the extra space to either the garage or the kitchen on that side of the house.

I do not want the u-shaped kitchen so I would like to take away the cabinets on the left side of the kitchen and add an island instead...maybe with a breakfast bar. I could make the laundry room smaller and add more space to the kitchen there too.

I'm not crazy about the bathrooms either. We were thinking about eliminating the shower and replacing the tub with a large tiled shower, we already have a bath in the other bathroom, I don't think that we need two. We will also be adding a bathroom in the basement.

I used to have a walk-in closet in my bedroom and I loved it. I really don't like the closets in the master bedroom on these plans, I hate that they take up a whole wall. I wish that I could find a way to make a walk-in closet instead. If we eliminated the shower, the bedroom would be bigger to accomodate a walk-in but where?

So, can anyone offer suggestions? This all seems so overwhelming right now. I need an outsiders opinion after looking at these plans for so long!

Emma

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Comments (3)

debrak_2008
14 years ago
The master bath in the original plan looks way to cramped. I vote for plan #1.
calantha
14 years ago
I think the last two drawings both have some nice features. The choice depends on what's important to you.

The next to last one has a nice big shower, and has the separate his and hers closets, which can help keep the peace. It also has no sight-lines to the "business" areas of the bathroom. I'd probably almost never close the bathroom door :) And you could probably fit a double-sink vanity if you want it. BUT, there's a potential traffic problem in that little passage between bedroom and bathroom, and the closets aren't very big. Realistically you'll use 2 ft. of the width for hanging clothes, so you won't have much hanging space on the perpendicular wall.

I think the last drawing maximizes the space. If you really prefer a shower rather than a tub/shower combo, I think you can fit one in there. Figure a 30" vanity, 30" for the toilet, and you've still got 3.5 feet. I would center a narrower window over the toilet. If privacy is a concern, mount it higher on the wall, or use frosted glass, or get one of those "bottom-up" pleated shades.

In either of those plans, I would keep the window on the side wall of the bedroom. I think it's wonderful to have windows on two sides, not just one. If that's where the head of your bed will be, consider having a short, wide window (maybe three or four small windows together?) mounted higher in the wall so it's above the headboard. Then plant an ornamental tree with 2 or 3 season interest that you'll see out that window. (OK, that's for a different forum.)
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I am thinking about your idea of making the dining room into a guest bedroom next to a full bath, then using the bedroom/office next to the kitchen to expand the kitchen, change the window there into a back door, and change the master bedroom closet space for some of the office space. That is what you wanted to do, right? First, over in the dining area, the bathroom needs to be enlarged to add a tub or shower. That space must come from the pantry area, I guess. Just extend the half-bath wall until it hits the outside wall and remove the wall between the bath and the pantry, and there is your full bathroom space. Add a bathroom window, now that you have an outside wall, if you can. Now this small third bedroom will need a closet, to be a legal bedroom. Your best bet for that is to use the wall adjacent to the garage. The door to the bedroom will be a mirror image of the door to the bathroom, on the other side of the wall that separates them. This way, the bedroom does not really share a wall with the garage, it is the closet that will be colder in the winter and hotter in the summer. I have no idea how small that bedroom becomes, since you do not have any dimensions listed in the diagram I used. The rooms are really too small to add unnecessary doorways. You don't have to have the third bedroom have a separate entrance into the bathroom. The bathroom door is just outside the bedroom door, and that is the best you can do with the space that you have. After all, there is not a master bath in this house, why have a guest bedroom with a private entrance to a bath? What do you think, is the guest room usable?
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desertsteph
14 years ago
I like the last drawing of the mstr bath the best. i think it gives you the most closet space too. you might want to calculate it out vs the separate closets to see.

in the last one you should be able to get a long vanity w/2 sinks (maybe) on the wall adjacent to the closet. put the toilet in the far left corner and run the shower up to it along the left wall. you could have a partial half wall at the beginning - by the door, then the glass door and a half wall on the end by the toilet. glass over the half walls. that would let a lot of light into it. put a tall skinny window over the toilet with a good WT or frost the glass - at least the lower half. depends on what's outside of it etc.
i'd also figure out at least 2 versions of placing furniture in the bedroom and place windows around that. the side window will be good for cross ventilation I think.

in the kitchen - you might be able to change that to a 3x3 (or 3 x 4) island. I doubt it could be any bigger tho. you could probably push the kit into the laundry space by a foot or so. put the w/d on the right wall between the 2 doors opening. a laundry sink behind 1 door and a closet behind the other. if no laundry sink going in then maybe hooks for jackets and coats behind one door.

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