It's so much better! Summerfield always does an amazing job, but this is just beautiful :)

There are so many great features, but the one I want to ask you about is...what is the cat door? Is that to let them in the laundry area...and is that a littter box, under the countertop? That's a great idea. I like the closet access to the laundry, too.

Oh my goodness yes!!!! Now THAT is a house I could imagine myself living in!

Having a door at the front of the house that opens into the master bedroom is still a bit odd (IMHO) but by narrowing the front porch at that end and placing a bit of outdoor furniture in just the right spot, the door into the master bedroom is discretely made far less noticeable and therefore is no longer objectionable to me. And by providing another obvious "front door" opening into the dining area (a public space), the whole front-door problem is pretty well solved. Furthermore, if a future owner wanted a more traditional front entryway, they could easily (and probably for very little cost) close in that corner section of the covered front porch and turn that into a foyer that open out into the living room with a side opening going into the dining area. So, you no longer have to worry overmuch about that issue reducing potential resale value.

It looks like Summerfield also solved all the other "issues" that bothered me and others about your original plan as well: the too too long uninterrupted hallway, the long distance from garage entry way to any convenient spot to set groceries down, the lack of a really nice pantry, the view from kitchen into the 2nd bathroom, etc., etc., etc. And yet, when you compare the two designs, the general placement of the rooms and the way the house will flow is still very, very similar to your original idea.

I am a tiny bit concerned that the pantry may be a bit too narrow to fit a freezer into one end like that. Remember that you'll want to be able to open the freezer door a bit more than 90 degrees and it looks like the side shelves might be in the way. You might need to make the shelves on one side several inches narrower so you can swing the door freezer door open completely. Or, a chest-style freezer (with a lid that lifts UP) might work well in that spot although to get one in/out of the room, the side shelves would have to be made re-moveable.

Overall tho, this is BEAUTIFUL WORK! Summerfield Designs continues to amaze me. She has such a great sense of design. And, best of all, she clearly LISTENS to what the homeowner wants and always seems to find a way to deliver a marvelous design that still allows the homeowner's original ideas to shine thru. Summerfield Designs is obviously a master architect who has somehow managed to avoid developing the over-inflated ego that some architects seem to suffer from. This forum is so lucky to have her participate here.

Makes me wish she had been an active member back when I was drawing up my own plans. After living in my new home for 18 months, I'm still very very happy with it but I do wonder what kinds of tweaks she would have suggested that would have made it even better!

I am so glad you posted this and I look forward to watching your progress as you build. It's going to be an absolutely lovely home!

Again Summerfield has taken an all right plan and made it wonderful.

When we get around to building again, I will also be employing her services to fine tune the final layout.It would be worth every penny.

It looks great! A few questions though. Is there a reason you don't have a tub in the master bath? Also in the kitchen you will have a wide distance between the sink and the cooktop and fridge. Our last home wasn't even that far and it was annoying to have to sink so far away. It looks like you would have plenty of room for a large freestanding island with seating on the living side. I had trouble seeing everything because I couldn't get it to blow up larger but it looks good.

Jamiecrok- That's a good point about the sink. I have that same problem. What about a little prep sink, on the end of the countertop (backing up to the little prep sink by the BBQ) or in that corner? That might be an option. It would make it easier to drain pasta...without walking across the main aisle.

I know a lot of people choose a large shower over a tub, which isn't always used that often. Personally, I'd like a claw foot tub, but that is a nice shower :)

Folks, I haven't had a bath as an adult in about 18 years. If I want to take one, there's a bath in the second bathroom.
Also, I don't have a problem with the distance between the sink, cook-top and fridge. What might be annoying for you isn't for me. Life is not necessarily about convenience, I can live with inconvenience, it makes me the person I am today.

It's not about inconvenience in the kitchen...just a different layout than you had in your original plan. You did have the sink and stove on connecting countertops. Summerfield's kitchen is beautiful, but it can be a challenge, when you're draining a big pan of pasta. My husband always seems to want to take that exact moment to get a glass of water. Now I say...Pasta coming through! LOL

I think the new layout is great. I do agree with some of the others concerns with the kitchen. I think while I still had everything on paper, I might take just the kitchen portion over to the kitchen forum for some feedback. The bones are good, but they might give you a few pointers about specific things and specific cabinets that you had not considered and that isn't in detail on this drawing.

I think lavender_lass had a good idea about a prep sink at the end of the run under the window. If you do the outside prep sink as drawn, you will already have plumbing in this area so it would be a pretty cheap thing to add at this point.

Much improved! It's looking great!

I do have a few thoughts-these totally depend on our lifestyle and so they may not be relevant.

I love the idea of a master vestibule with the bedroom, bath and closets off of it. Is there anyway to make the master closets directly off of the vestibule? Can the saferoom be moved?

It seems as if the main family enterance is off the porte cachee. There is a bench and hooks but I wonder if you would want a larger mudroom/landing area?

Are the views mainly in the front of the house?