If it was me, I would keep looking. Both plans have a door directly from the garage to the kitchen with no space for a coat closet, shoes, umbrellas, etc.

I don't think an enormous mud room with lockers, etc. is necessary, but having lived in a house without a real space to enter from the garage, I'm not a fan.

If I had to choose one of these, it would be the first one. The kitchen plan is slightly better and it includes a walk-in pantry.

I prefer the first one - modifying a few things.

I definitely hear you on the mud room. It's something we've discussed. I think we'll try and modify it to include a small mud room.

A few other things:

1. On the second plan, I would plan on adding a study to the left of the foyer and then adding some square footage to reconfigure the master bath on the left side of the house. I would then probably make the room to the right of the foyer the dining room. The dining room shown on the floor plan would then be pretty much split into two rooms - one for a large walk in pantry and the other for a laundry room. I could then make a walk through from the kitchen to the dining room where the old laundry room was situated. Like this idea or see problems with it?

2. Do you like or dislike the vaulted kitchen in the second plan with the open railing above?

3. On both plans, I would remove the wet bar area between the kitchen and great room so it is completely open.

4. How do you feel about positioning the fireplace on either the interior wall opposite the kitchen or the back wall? I can't decide which I prefer. Part of me thinks the interior wall because I like the back wall having so many windows, and also because the interior wall might be a large blank canvas to cover without the fireplace as a focal point. But then I like the idea of having the fireplace on the back wall with French doors flanking it on both sides.

This is just some of the stuff I've been tossing around inside my head...just looking for some feedback from others....thanks!

I thought I replied earlier but didnt see it posted. I like the eplans one.

1. I would add a mudroom through the garage and perhaps swap the pantry out near the breakfast nook and a combined mudroom/utility room.

2. Never been a fan of open great rooms (IMHO wasted space; noise travels upstairs and heating); use the space upstairs instead and ensure bedrooms have a direct access to a bathroom.

I agree you need to take the things you like and simplify them from these plans. To me a formal living space is wasted space. I would like to see a better entrance from the garage that dumps into a hall or laundry/mudroom hybrid. You could take the garage storage space in first plan an incorporate mudroom/pantry/laundry space. With an architectural background roof lines like this drive me crazy. Seems that dimensions were not thought out and they let the peaks end wherever they please.

I know the first plan is everything that current suburbia is and is hard to vary much if you are in a subdivision of like homes.

Second plan I would make the living room the dining and turn the laundry into a butlers pantry and wall off the current dining and turn that into a pantry/laundry/mudroom. Also the bathroom layouts are awkward upstairs (one super narrow and the other oddly large but tiny wc shower room) GL.....you will be amazed at how much different your final plan will be from your first.

stitz crew, thank you for the suggestions. My thoughts are very similar to yours. I was really leaning towards the second plan with some modifications, but it seems like several like the first plan better. With the second plan, I am concerned about the breakfast area. It doesn't look like there would really be enough room to have a table there with the French doors and the island on the other side. I just really liked the idea of a vaulted kitchen. And like you said, if I use the current dining room for a pantry/mud room I think I could make both of them large and spacious.

I know that many don't like two story rooms and think they're wasted space, but we do like them. With the first plan, I'm worried that the great room would not have enough depth. It's listed at 17'8, but the bridge above looks like it would probably take several feet, so the vaulted area might be only 14' deep. I could push the rear of the house back, but that would add some square footage and I don't have a whole lot of wiggle room. I really like the size of the great room in the first plan.

This post was edited by dreamer16 on Tue, Dec 17, 13 at 15:53