maybe I don't have the 'vision' today but I wouldn't wanna give up that nice bdrm with bath tucked away back there. you need an area for peace and relaxation.

and the mudroom, pantry etc is all over on the other side...

Could you post your original house plan again so I don't have to go search for it? I think I know what wall you mean, but I'm not sure.

Where would you put the bedroom and bath?

You beat me posting this thread! I had a brainstorm the other day and have been working on my house design all day. I'll post later. I think dh wants to go to his parent's right now. I understand completely about other people losing interest. My friends are all saying stuff like "why don't you just start already, instead of changing it all the time?"

Well, because it just isn't what I want yet. That's why. :P lol

Marti- LOL! I totally agree! :)

I'm looking forward to seeing your new plan. I sometimes think you and Jay and I should start a support group (LOL) but at least we'll know we put a LOT of thought into these plans!

Steph- I know it's hard to follow without a plan, but I'm just throwing ideas out, right now.

I really started thinking about this, from the post on what rooms we really use. Everyone seems to want a bigger kitchen area and more storage...and that's what I want, too. My best view is also out both sides of the bedroom (of course) so making that area the kitchen, would be so much better, than having it on the other side of the house. The downside is that I have no idea what to do with the rest of the house (or at least not much of one). Time to start drawing...again. Better to change it now, though, than after I get the workers here!

I guess that post was responsible for my rethinking too. It will be tomorrow before I can post mine. We just got home and I have a splitting headache so I'm going to bed.

Honey, I'mm going to point out something to you that should override any difference in views.

And that is, WHAT DIRECTION IS SOUTH.
You have a cold cold climate with a lot of cold months. You need to focus on orienting your house to the south as much as possible, and then you can build in your views by altering what is visible from each room.

It might be possible to move the kitchen more forward, to the front of the house. Then the dining room would be in the middle, and your kitchen would have about two walls with windows. BUT, I'm loving what you have there now.
I also think that with the hot tub off the side as you have it planned now, alongside the master, you will be needing the lovely views there. And besides, you have that nice porch on the back, where there is a view. You have to leave the master bath where it is.

Remember that there is no one perfect plan, but there is one which gives you the best of all options. I think that what you have now is the best of all worlds. It's going to be lovely.

ML- South light is important, but as much as I like my other house plan(s)...they all face south for the light, but don't take advantage of the best views. I wanted to keep the house close to the original plan, but I'm wondering what it would be like to repurpose some of the rooms to open up to the views.

The living room is mainly used in the evening and to watch TV, so it doesn't really need a view, but the kitchen/dining room/porch would. So, I'm thinking about opening up the wall between the 'now' living room/bedroom and making it a big country kitchen, with the 'hot tub' area a porch. The porch (enclosed that can open with screens) would be part mudroom (in winter) and lots of plants, with a small seating area and a place for crafts/storage. This way, I can let the kitties in, or keep them out, depending on how we're using the room :)

The 'now' kitchen/dining area would be the new living room (which is 13' x 22') and plenty of room for seating and TV. I'm still working on the bedrooms and baths, but I'm thinking about a study/spare bedroom, behind the living room (with french doors) with the laundry closer to the bedrooms.

I'll try to get something drawn up on graph papaer and post it, to give you all a better idea what I'm thinking about...thanks again :)

Good. I am a visual person so that will help me. But where is the master bedroom going to be?

That's a good question! LOL Actually, I'm thinking about putting it where I had the pantry/mudroom and porch..maybe a few feet wider. It's still just an idea, but I'm liking the bigger kitchen work area, the living room has more seating and the main bathroom is closer to the back door. We'll see how things work out, on paper :)

lavender lass, I fully understand what you are going through. It's hard when close friends or family don't want to be "bothered" with trying to think outside the box and give us some inputs. Especially if you (like me) have helped some of the same people in the past with the same thing!

I am also still struggling with some things about my kitchen, pantry, and laundry area. I feel that when there is a struggle, then things aren't quite right yet. Some of the things we can change, but it's tough when structural decisions have already been made and it would take a much larger bank account than we have to make changes.

I suppose it is unrealistic to achieve the perfect kitchen, but gee, we have to work in it, so it has to at least be done with liveable compromises. I find if the space isn't good I give up the fight and don't cook much.

In our case, an extra bedroom that is not being used much would be a big waste, so we aren't putting one in. We decided that every inch of our house needs to be used on a frequent basis, or it wasn't worth the space it took.If you do not feel you need that bedroom, but would truly love and enjoy a larger kitchen, I say go for it. There are always air matresses and sleeper couches for guests.

sandy

I'm having a MUCH harder time with this 'revised' plan, than I expected. I know what I want and pretty much where I want it, but it's a challenge to make it fit in the space! LOL

Here's sort of what I was thinking of...at least some of the spaces. The left side of the plan has a country kitchen, half bath, clutter room (love that) greenhouse, freezer, pantry, and even a broom closet. The rest of the plan is not what I'm doing, but it is a nice plan, and it's been around for a long time. I like that there's tons of storage, but you don't need roller skates to get around the kitchen. Any comments?

{{!gwi}}

I'm still working on my house plan, but I thought I'd show you what I was trying to incorporate, as well as the views, the good light for plants, existing load bearing walls and rooflines...not easy, but fun! Let me know if anyone has a brilliant idea, or any idea, for that matter :)

As soon as I have a plan, I'll post it!

That is an interesting plan. I just hate when floor plans don't have all the measurements on them. I assume that the kitchen there is 14 wide by about 7? That's kind of small for more than one person to work in at the same time.

But I do see what you are trying to get with the kitchen open to the seating area with FP and way it all works together with the greenhouse and clutterroom and half bath. Sometimes it's just hard to make what you want fit into an existing space. At least that's the conclusion I've finally come to with my space.

Marti- It is a small kitchen, but I love the way it's open to the fireplace and has the greenhouse and clutter room nearby. The more I play around with this, I'm beginning to think the fireplace area is just too dark for the dining table. I like a lot of windows in the dining area (like your plan) and I'd also like a banquette, for seating on one side.

It would also be nice to be able to include the sewing area in this space and be able to keep the kitties out, when necessary. I use the dining room table, when I'm laying out patterns and I think it's easy to combine sewing storage (bottom) with dish storage (top) in hutches.

So, what about making the fireplace area a keeping room/seating area and putting the dining room/sewing area off the kitchen, more like a porch? Let me see if I can sketch something, after work. Thanks for the help :)

I like that it is open to the FP room too, and I even like the sink in the peninsula so you can watch tv or talk to people at the bar while you wash dishes or prep food. I think I spend more time in front of the sink than anywhere else.

In that plan above, the dining room seems a bit far from the kitchen. I love your idea about the sewing stuff on the bottom of the hutch. I cut out on the dining table too. The only problem is that it is a bit low and after awhile my back hurts.

Marti- Good point about the table...maybe it would be better to use the island, since it will be a little taller.

You know, if I put a cozy, keeping room chair on either side of the fireplace (maybe with a little ottoman) that would be a great place, to sit by the fire. Maybe a couple of smaller wingbacks, in a plaid fabric, with a window seat in the big window and a table with a few chairs, pulled up to it. Then, I could add leaves to the table and use the wingback chairs, when we had company.

Hmm....If I do that, maybe I could put the laundry/clutter room off the kitchen. It would give me more wall space for the kitchen area, which is the problem I'm having with my layout. It's a nice view, but if I added a screened porch off the back, that would be a GREAT view! LOL

The other thing is that I'd like to add a fireplace in the living room, but I also want a comfy place to watch TV (which we do in the winter, with friends/family). There's not too much to do, when it's dark at 5:30 and there's three feet of snow on the ground...so it's nice to have movie night :)

Well, after much sketching and measuring...I've decided this plan will never be as cool, or fit us as well, as the other one. At least I know I explored all my options :)

So, after much review, here is the plan with the master bathroom, rather than the half bath. If we can add a few feet to the back of that part of the house, my husband likes this one much better...and I can see his point. If we don't get the upstairs bathroom in, everyone who visits will be trying to take a shower, when we are! LOL

The laundry should be on the window wall and the freezer where the laundry is, but hopefully you get the idea. I'm sure we can find a woodstove small enough to fit in the space and while the larger keeping room is nice...I really like the banquette in the dining area.

The greenhouse is still off the mud room and can share a sink hookup with the pantry. The entire time I was trying to rework the plan, this is the one I kept thinking about...so I guess like anything else, you just have to follow your heart and do what makes you happy! Maybe not the best view, but that's what gardening is for, right? A pergola over the banquette window, some wisteria and a few climbing roses, a couple of fruit trees...what's not to love about that view? :)

{{!gwi}}

LL not the same as a banquet and pergola. BUT it might give you an idea of how it could look. This was our last house and there was a small porch out the end of the kitchen. The bushes were Lilacs and were gorgeous when in bloom. They were a little sparse in this picture as we had to kind of butcher them to get the hot tub to the deck.

Good you explored all your options. I went through the same as you when choosing th floor plan for this house. And what I would do to that floor plan to get what I wanted. There was always something I had to give into and it has been just fine.

I am sure your remodel will be so precious to you and your family.

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden view

Shades- What a pretty room and a great view! It looks like a perfect place to sit and enjoy a cup of tea :)

Thanks for the encouragement on the farmhouse remodel, too!

I like that plan best too LL. Love that seating area in the kitchen. I think that would be my favorite place.

Marti- I think that will be one of my favorite places, too. I went over to the farmhouse last night and walked around...and I just couldn't picture it any other way. This plan seems to work the best, with the house. I just don't want to push it, into being something it's not. Does that make sense?

Perfect sense. It's already got the bones to be a beauty.

I really like that one also. I like the 2 tables also. if you have a big family meal (like holiday) you will have enough room for everyone - and be close to each other even if at different tables!