Floor Plan Help - blank slate

13 years ago

I am planning a kitchen extension for my cape cod style home. We are a family of four, 2 parents, 2 daughters. We also have a dog. My plan has already been submitted to the town for a permit, but I have one last chance to make changes. We are hoping to have a great room type kitchen as our house does not have a family room. This is a blank slate of the maximum space we can build. The space is 28 feet long by 18 wide, narrowing to 16 feet wide behind my garage. Here is a rough sketch:

"A" indicates our current plumbing (in the wall) for upstairs bath

"B" indicates an option to open a doorway to living room

Dining room door can be moved left, but not right. Our foyer is beyond the basement stairs.

View along 28' wall is nice and I am planning alot of windows. View along 16' wall is not as nice and I am not planning on windows on this wall.

In this space, we must have:

-kitchen with large sink, gas range, 36wx30d fridge,

-island (preferably with seating)

-dining table for 4 -6 people

-half bath

-coat closet (only one in house)

-sitting area (love seat?) with space for flat screen tv

-exit to garage in the far corner as indicated

Also would like:

-pantry

-desk

-bench with coat hooks

I have dwelled on this plan for months and I appreciate any ideas you can give me before I have to finalize my plans for construction. I have also posted the same to the kitchen forum. I find GW to be so helpful. Thank you

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Comments (4)

Susan
13 years ago
well right off the bat i think i'd like to see a bathroom and entry from the garage into the kitchen. add the living room door into that the space and you'll have a nice big transition/entry space.
besides that, is there a view you'd prefer to see from the kitchen on the deck side? or to the right side of the house?
can we see the front of the house?
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Susan
13 years ago
wish i could edit!
anyway, i see the dining area near the patio, top of u shape kitchen along that 16' wall (which with no view could give you tons of cabinet space) and the sink and prep along the view wall.
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chibimimi
13 years ago
Can you move the door to the garage so it's centered on the wall? Otherwise you're losing a lot of valuable closet or cabinet space to the right (where it opens into what I imagine will be the kitchen area.

You could put the half-bath and either coat closet or pantry facing each other across this entryway. The rest of the right-hand wall could be a run of cabinets and appliances, with an island between this area and the rest of the kitchen.

Alternatively, you could tuck the 1/2 bath into the nook created by the dining room/garage bump-out; the coat closet could go between the dining room and basement doors.

Check to see what your local code is on separating the 1/2 bath from the kitchen. Some places require two doors between them -- in other words, the bath cannot open off the kitchen.

I would definitely add the door to the living room, but make sure it's at least 2 or 2 1/2' feet from the back wall of the living room. Putting it in the corner will make furniture placement awkward.

TV can either be between the living room and deck doors, or in the corner between the deck door and the back wall.

It's really nice if you can work a dog-feeding station into the lower cabinets -- a cabinet that has either a tambour door or a hideaway door.
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dilly_ny
Original Author
13 years ago
Fallingwaters - Yes, I would like a garage entrance, preferably in the far right corner. It's a small garage and I want to keep the stairs along the exterior wall in case we someday downsize our SUZ and get a small car that can fit in this one car garage. As for the view, I prefer the back view and view off the deck. On the right / garage side, I only have a narrow walkway and no view. The rough sketch I have above is just about my whole downstairs. My front door is in the center of the house with stairs leading up in front of my basement stairs; a cape cod style home. I will link to my draft blue print. I feel there is room for improvement in terms of space allocation and I am open to reducing the side of the working kitchen if it improves flow and space functionalilty.

Chibimimi - I could move the door to garage, but it is better in some ways to keep it in that corner, as discussed above. Yet, I am open to all ideas that make the overall layout better. I also invision the kitchen on the garage side. Yes, I could put the half bath in the DR / garage corner. I think the code would allow it since my current half bath is designed in this manner. Yes, a spot for my dog would be ideal, especially since she sleeps in a crate at night. I will look at tambour doors, I am not familiar with this.

Thanks for your feedback. GW is wonderful! Here is a link to my cross post on the kitchen forum:

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg091217106684.html?14

Here is a link that might be useful:
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Floor Plan Help - blank slate

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Susan

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