The perfect floor plan
Michael Lamb
6 years ago
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One Devoted Dame
6 years agolast modified: 6 years ago
Naf_Naf
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoRelated Discussions
Good sizes for kids rooms?
Comments (31)cpartist: Their current bedroom is about 14x16 and they share it just fine. This is where that small dining table that barely seats 4 would go to be used as a game table. The food storage wouldn't be in their bedroom. I did state that what is CURRENTLY their bedroom would be changed into a multi-purpose room for pantry, play and school. It wouldn't exactly be a bedroom then, right? Overnight guests? They haven't had a sleepover yet and if they do want one in the future (post-remodel) the kids can all sleep in the school/playroom in the wide open floor space, or in the living room which is about 1/4 the square footage of our 1400 square foot house. There's also plenty of space outside for campouts if they wanted to sleep outside with their friends. Yes, a 5x8 space will easily fit a dresser and even a vanity. A bedroom door is only 2 feet wide which still leaves up to 3 feet on either side of the door. Not too many dressers come wider than 5 feet long or 20 inches deep and a vanity table can easily be something that folds up on the wall kind of like the top part of an old fashioned secretary desk. Their rooms are mainly for sleeping, changing and the rare bit of alone time they need. Our kids prefer to be with other family members most of the time. If you walk through any Ikea store or look at tiny house plans you'll see how easily space can be maximized, especially when you have high ceilings. For us, more space means less family time and that's what we enjoy the most. Our favorite people to be with are each other. Growing up, I NEVER had my own room. Neither did any of my siblings. Try 8 kids in a 3 bedroom house and neither of those kid rooms larger than 10x12. It is actually doable. We don't want our kids to feel they can hibernate in their rooms all the time as they get older. I watched my nieces and nephews do that during their teen years. Not okay with us as it disrupts the family unity. Occasional alone or study time in their rooms is fine but not spending their entire day in there every day. No, we're not controlling. We just show our kids that THEY are the priority, not other things in our lives. They give their input with any planned projects, especially one that is for them. I know a room without a closet can't legally be called a bedroom and that's another reason for no closets. Not legally a bedroom and it's not as expensive to build and it can be customized with modular storage systems tailored to each child's interests and changed as they grow. Once they move out, the rooms can more easily be repurposed if we want since there won't be built-in closets to work around....See MoreChange of plans...literally
Comments (30)Marcolo, Thanks for checking in again and yes I did draw the subways in excel, but only a few, then I copied and pasted. I like your idea of double doors on the pantry. No, I do not have that many pots and pans, however, I remembered when I ordered cabinets for our current house that the larger three drawer cabinets were referred to as pot and pan drawers which was the only point I was trying to get across. I guess it would have made more sense to label them for what I would put in them but I just didn't think of it at the time. I love having all drawers in the lower cabinets and use them for tupperware, baking dishes, etc. which is even more important since there aren't that many wall cabinets due to all the windows we've added. I plan to keep pretty everyday dishes in the dish hutch along with drinking glasses and some serving bowls. I'll keep plastic lunch plates and kids cups in the drawers below, along with silverware. I actually changed the drawer base to the right of the main sink to a four drawer base for plastic wrap, cookie cutters, etc. Pots and pans will go on either side of the range, along with baking dishes. The blind corners would be used for the crock pot, blender, fry daddy etc. I see what you mean about the trash, and with a family of five we fill ours up daily. We would have a garbage disposal on the main sink so most scrapings would go there. I had the prep sink at the end of the island closest to the fridge, but it was pointed out earlier that I was blocking landing space for fridge items, so it was moved to the center. If I moved the trash to the opposite side it could serve the clean up area and then add one to the coffeebar to serve that area and the breakfast table? For the coffee bar I was considering a pot filler. I thought this would be a creative way to get water to that area for filling the coffee pot but not have to put in a third sink. Plus I like the idea of just swinging it out and running water directly into the water reservoir on the coffee pot. I think the built in units are not in my budget. I have a $130 Cuisinart. LOL. Mugs, filters, etc would go in a drawer here. The glass fronted uppers would be used to showcase a few chunky pieces of pottery. Honestly, I think I'll have more cabinet space than I'll ever use. For the range hood I would really like copper, along with a copper farm sink and undermount prep sink. Of course, copper range hoods are out of my price "range"(ha-ha) , so I am considering having one made by covering a plywood frame with copper sheathing and then having a wide piece of moulding from the cabinet manufacturer along the bottom. Lots to think about. I love hearing everyone's ideas though, since we hope to be in this home for a long time....See MoreMore layout help - what if I could do anything?
Comments (30)sena01, In the picture just above, the microwave upper is 18" deep, and the counter below (with the sink) is 30". We're are considering putting the microwave in the pantry area (see the other thread) and I don't really like it because the microwave door opens the wrong way. That's a spot for a family that doesn't use the microwave very much, and we do. But, that's the one spot that's already got deep-enough cabinets at the right height for a microwave. My wife, shorter than I am, would prefer it lower than 18" above the countertop, too. (off-topic rant:) I am fine with the interior size of my OTR microwave now, and it only protrudes from the (12") upper cabinets by 3.5" (including the door but not the handle). It seems like, after removing any ventilation & lighting capacity, a "full size" microwave with 1100 W of power should easily fit in a 13" upper cabinet, maybe with the door protruding an inch. Why are they all so deep? The shallowest 1100W MW that AjMadison sells is 14.75" - and there's only one! In the 13-14" depth range the most power you can have is 900W. Along the same lines, a microwave-drawer should fit in a 18" cabinet, and they all require 21-22". Is there somebody out there trying to microwave 20# turkeys or something? Three dinner plates at once? I don't get it....See MoreLooking for floor plan feedback 5,000 ft 2 story
Comments (24)Wow, such great suggestions by everyone, thank you so much! We are in WI where the winters are painfully long, the front of the house faces south so the sunroom on the side is my answer to needing a quiet space I can sit in the sun in the winter months. If the rear faced South, we would have just made a typical sunroom off of the back dinette. We also have a wide lot so I liked the idea of building the width of the house. We have two little ones, so part of the jack n Jill will be for a few times a year guest room. I do worry about the annoyance of the double locks on the bathroom and am open to ideas to improve. I figured though for two weeks a year, not a huge deal. The master bath/bed is my least favorite as well. I can't figure out how to get a good design with the master on the left but I would love if it could be done. The second staircase makes things challenging anyway I've tried it. If anyone can make this work well, I would love to see it. I do like the last post's MBath idea a lot - much less wasted space. I am very open to getting rid of the seating area and private entrance (husbands idea). Yes, we are trying to do a laundry chute too :) We did think long about all bedrooms up but at the end of the day, we are youngish, 30s, and like going "up" to bed, having more privacy from the living areas and being closer to the kids. I also liked the security of sleeping with windows open on the second floor. I know that doesn't seem to be the trend these days. The wall between the kitchen and dining room hall houses the fridge, so that would be tough to remove. The last thing we are really stuck on is whether to make the dinette bump out a hearth room or a screened porch. Love the screened in porch for 4 mos here but it will shade the already north facing dinette in the winter and I really want light spaces....See More
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