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It looks messy because it doesn't make any sense. The "loft" is just a passageway with furniture in it, but the area in front of the bedrooms is wasted space. You enter the master bedroom via the closet, the office is tiny, the water closet you'd have to stand on the bidet to close the door. The office is just a closet. The look on the outside with balconies might be nice, will the balcony ever be used?

Seek local professional guidance. I am guessing the downstairs could use some help too.

Is this proposed construction located in Dubai? I've seen this type of arrangement in the Emirates.

Give us a general location and we can provide more effective input.

The part that bothers me most about the upstairs is the tv room configuration and the entrance to the master bedroom.

I would ask my architect to find a way to make the home office immediately adjacent to the master bedroom. If it works for you, a short hall within the master suite with a closet on each side and the bathroom on the end is great. I would want views of the backyard from the tv room. The bathrooms need a little work.

I like the downstairs.

At least your maid has a bedroom window; might she want it facing toward the back or outside rather than facing the main walkway, for privacy? I'd flip her entire quarters so the kitchenette is at the front, more public area and her bedroom is at the more private back. That puts her front door closer to your kitchen door too, so less steps for her coming and going from work :)

If that's the maids kitchen..it looks like she has to go outside to get to it ?!

Lol missed that snaggy, good call!

Well the little kitchen is for the maid but also has a barbecue grill. Some of our dishes has to be cooked outside because it has strong smell and require sand sometimes.

I agree with Lindsey on many things. Coming and going from work ;) is very funny. That is the closest work ever.

i like the idea of a decorative cement but since it is so hot here i am afraid it might block the wind.

The kitchen area to the back is to give the living room, dining and kitchen views on the pool.

The entry is something like this. I am thinking now if it is not a waste of space but then to replace it with what?

Lol happy maid, happy life to riff on an American saying.

I've seen photos of African houses with deep, covered front porticos. Basically most of the entryway that you show would be outside the front door. The wall with the door in it would be pushed further in, close to where the powder room is located. This gives you a shaded walkway leading up to the front door rather than a large interior foyer.

yes i have though of that but having lived my entire life in Europe and Miami I wanted something different and more modern. I am so far from my goal :(

Well I don't know the qualifications of the architect with whom you're working, but I will say that it seems like what you're looking for is a stretch for him or her. So my suggestion would be either to find an architect who can design what you want, or stick with this architect's strengths.

There's often a reason why local building customs take hold so what works in Miami or Europe might not work in your part of Africa, or you might end up with a home for which there is no market if you sell.

yop you are right. I will communicate all that to him to see what he comes up with. Apparently i am too demanding.

Not too demanding! Just keep this guy's limits front of mind :)

That long narrow corridor between house & service quarters...do such spaces not quickly fill up with unsightly stuff necessary to household function? Garbage cans, washing machines & drying clothes...and the lavandera, beverage deliveries, brooms &rakes, bicycles, kids toys, even the dog's space and a few chickens, etc? Even private resting space for service people & their various visitors or delivery people who always chat for a few minutes? (And your own little kids, probably.) My parents lived in Philippines for awhile and a semi-outdoors service area seemed to me a critical part of the function of their household. Theirs was partly covered to protect from rain...probably not a problem for you...and it was partly shaded by an overhead trellis structure with a vine. Doesn't look to me like your architect has put much thought into making the service areas of your home truly useful and at least sorta tidy. Would transom windows work to provide some ventilation for the service bath & bedroom while permitting doors to be shut?

Also, won't you want some natural light in your stairway, maybe using a narrow window placed high on the landing wall?

And will wet swimmers track across the living room to reach bathroom facilities? What about visiting swimmers who need to change & leave their dayclothes? Could an outside stairway to the decks you envision on the rear possibly serve those functions?

Hello

below are the 2 floors with dimensions. The service quarter is a separate file. My architect has updated the 2nd floor file.

The ground floor

Thank you for your input.

The corridor will not have anything as such because we have storage room and closets around the place. And for kids there is a 9'8" x 68' as garden that can be use for anything (especially playing). I would definitely think about having a little decorative roof to protect tat corridor from the rain. I wanted to leave it open in order to have a lot of air floating due to the heavy sun most of times.

Yes we actually has planned transom windows to keep the the room ventilated. And definitely for the light in the stairs. How come he didn't even mentioned it?

Well for some security reasons i think it might be better avoid any direct access to the house apart from the main doors

Those are very good points. But my question Which living room though is most inconvenient and not private?

Thank you very much for your help.

I have a concern. How do you think we can rearrange the master bedroom so that i can have a walk in closet width of 9'8". like in this picture

Why do you want a closet that is so wide? Personally, had I the choice to start fresh, I would do almost anything to get separate HIS closet and HERS closet....like make the bedroom itself smaller or steal space from the twin bedroom.

The master bedroom entrance is indeed better in the 2nd version your architect planned, but the furniture arrangement shown doesn't seem realistic. Where is tv? where are kids games and videos and music and all that stuff? Actual furniture area isn't so large after hallway areas are considered, so perhaps bump a storage unit into the office area, or even a banquet for a game table.

Well i just like large closets. One side for HIS and the other foR HERS . For the family room upstairs we were thinking about a projector screen that will roll from ceiling or i am not too sure though. I don't even know the cost. If i can find find space to just to put game table and all it would be good.

Below are 3 other versions from my architect. Which do you guys prefer?

I tried getting the measurements, but the notations are so small I can't read, but I put together a concept for the downstairs right front corner to make the half bath/powder room more private and added a front entry closet (since you like closets). Of course, I had to steal some space from that front lounge area, but with the heat you are describing, probably more for aesthetics than actual use? Especially with the pool in the backyard area where most "lounging" outside will take place. Plus there is minimal access to that area.

layouts · More Info

We have a nice size walk-in closet; one side is for hers and the other for hers.

I would treat the home as a whole, looking at all areas and how you want them to function and flow.

-the entry hall is very large, I would want to decrease square footage since it's not a room you're actually living in

-might the home office work better on the first floor, possibly where the terrace is, away from the bedrooms? It looks to me like most of the outdoor living will be done in the back around the pool, so would you have a need for the terrace in front?

-considering the pool area, a half bath located closer would be more convenient for wet swimmers, as another poster had mentioned

-is the half bath near the maids room to be shared or is it her own? Sorry, I'm a bit confused on that.

-I see a space marked for laundry, will there be an actual room there? If so, that will be quite a path through the house to gather and put away clothes.

-maybe relocating the stairs could be an option, powder room moved there in its place, even exterior door, garage entrance making it a back hall/utility room with an entrance to kitchen as well

-the back wall in the kitchen may benefit from a window as could the bathrooms upstairs

-depending on ages of your children, a door to a second story balcony would worry me

best of luck!

Thank you very much for your input.

- the entry is large indeed but i don't really know how to treat it.

- In our culture you have guests all the time mostly unwanted who like to look around so that little terrace is made for them so that they do not get to see the whole entirely. That is why it is put right at the entrance. And they will use the WC next to the maid so i will bring that WC in front. The same WC will be used by servie (gardener, security guards, house cleaner...)

- Good idea for the half bath

- Yes the laundry is there but it is an open space because there is no machine. (don't get confused. We have our ways. :) )

- I am open to any idea about relocating the stairs.

Thank you again

I have thought about relocating the stairs or reconfiguring them, but it is a challenge for both floors. The only thing that might be beneficial is sliding the whole set up closer to the center of the layout. This might give you room to do a storage from outside to under the stairs or add storage from the garage. Just despends on the configuration. It would use some of the unused space on both floors. I like seeing a pretty staircase from the entry as long as it doesn't face the entry (bad Feng Shui) so you could have the lower say 4' with open railings in the cable style to go with your overall décor. Might have architect play with that. It can have structural implications, so architect and structural engineer have to be involved in that decision.

Well the only problem is that the stairs has to be behind a door. Because there is AC in the living room and without door all the AC will go upstairs and then the living dinning will be lesser cold.