Could you provide more info about who will live here, why you chose this particular layout, and how you expect it to work with your daily activities to help us comment more intelligently?

I can't read the dimensions or the fine print. It looks like the bottom is south? There are lots of windows; what climate are you in?

Anne

This house will be for my husband and I, our cat and our future ~ 3 children. I have some mobility issues, so there will be an elevator (in the hallway just past the mudroom). Also, there is a "nap room" on the main floor to serve as a main floor bedroom to nap kids if I don't feel like going upstairs. We have huge extended families and have 20+ people over for dinner often, so the house is being designed to hopefully accommodate this.

It is on a south - east facing lot in the Pacific Northwest. Yes, the bottom is roughly south facing.

Hopefully this bigger image is easier to see. Thanks in Advance for any input!!

I really like a lot of aspects of this plan (the open spaces, wide hallways). There are several door swings and positions that I would fix. Also, I would add a small high window in your powder room by your main entry. I would also combine the bathrooms for your nap room and play room. Is there really a reason why you need 2 separate back to back bathrooms? I would reconfigure your kitchen island as well. If most of the cooking is going to take place at the island, you'll always have to walk around the island to reach the perimeter cabinets. Not sure what you'll have there, but I'd imagine that you'll have to access those things since you don't have a whole ton of food storage on your island. Also, I'm not a huge fan of windowless rooms, and the center of your house has a collection of them--butler's pantry, office, 2 bathrooms. You will always have to have artifical lights on in those spaces to make them functional, and I just so prefer natural light. Is there a 2d floor plan, elevations?

Good luck!

It's still too small to read the dimensions. It needs to be about twice that size for decent resolution.

When I clicked on the image, I got a Yahoo sign up page. Yahoo members may get something different.

You might want to rethink having the laundry room right across from the room you plan to have little ones napping in. You will like a big playroom. I agree about combining the back to back bathrooms.

How do you envision the use of the rec room? It's so very far away from the rest of the house - are your future kids going to use it, for pool tables, games, etc.? Or is it your TV room? You should think how you would be able to keep an eye on the kids while you're cooking supper, for instance . . . .

Thanks for the input!
GoBruno: We didn't notice that the powder room has no window! Thanks! The bathrooms are separate so that the nap room can also serve as a spare bedroom. I was thinking that a guest wouldn't like sharing their bathroom with the entire family. Also, we're thinking that this space could later become a main floor master suite. The kitchen design will most likely be completely reconfigured, but in the same location and the same size.

Littlebug: The rec room is planned to be a party space. It might serve as a media room also. The idea is that when large gatherings happen, this whole space opens up as a "fun wing". The bar then would serve as "party central", with walls opening to outside. However, this area can be shut down and ignored when not in use. Does this make sense?

Here's a link to the upstairs and to a, hopefully, larger view of a portion of the main:

Here is a link that might be useful:

Re: proximity of nap room to laundry

My little ones could sleep through a bomb going off, so that wouldn't bother them. My sister's kids are more accustomed to quiet and the least little noise will wake them. IMO, it's all in what you get them accustomed to from the beginning.

It's a pretty cool design. The remote rec room will be nice once they reach the teenage years. I love the library and the morning kitchen.

The kitchen seems nonfunctional. You also have seven bathrooms and no formal dining. With that many people over, you might want to consider more table seating somewhere.

I've never seen a house with a butler's pantry that is an entire kitchen unto itself, nor one with no DR to serve. (Perhaps you keep Kosher?)

I don't understand something here. You say you have mobility difficulties. This is a very large, spread-out house with a LOT of hallways and multiple bathrooms. Where will your live-in help stay?

Would you build so much space *before* you have any children?

Chisue, I also did not understand the lack of a formal dining room due to the OP stating that they sometimes have up to 20 people over for dinners.

And it is interesting that the house is so large and spread out with the OP having mobility difficulties.

I am curious to know what you have estimated this plan to cost to build. It looks very very expensive to me . . . what part of the country are you located in?