Another ARG masterpiece! ;)
(Apologies for the possible double post; my first one seems to have disappeared?)
Location: the mountains of NC, at the foot of a mountain; nice views in all directions and best views to the south/southeast. About 10 acres of “rolling” hills, about 30 acres of STEEP slopes.
Residents: very active couple planning to retire in a few years, no pets
Some backstory: this is a home Doug designed for my parents, who are purchasing 39 acres behind my own home/land for an aging-in-place, family-compound-type situation. I have frequently lurked in and appreciated the forums here for years (particularly for our kitchen renovation), and I immediately thought of Doug when their plans to build began to coalesce.
The land itself runs up the mountainside to a false ridge, and we have multiple small creeks, old logging roads, and waterfalls to enjoy; lots of windows and outdoor living space were high on our list. We wanted to minimize the footprint for both cost and future upkeep yet keep the main floor and common areas graciously sized for gatherings. My parents frequently host gatherings and overnight guests, and my husband and I have young children and will be at their home often, if not almost daily. We requested that all halls be designed for accessibility in case of future mobility issues. Since the best site is on a gentle slope (though Doug might say not so gentle!), we decided to go down with the guest bedrooms instead of up.
We had a few slightly unusual requests, such as ample space in the laundry room for a sewing space and a gigantic family-heirloom sink. We are hobby-farming, outdoorsy nursery folk and leave all shoes, coats, etc. by the door, hence the request for a large mudroom. We cook every day, and often together, so a large kitchen was a necessity. We are not fancy-foyer people; in fact, in the twenty years since my parents built their current home, no one can remember a single person ever using the front door. I thought Doug came up with a rather elegant design to maximize the mudroom yet keep a guest entry for those who don’t need the mudroom. We have an (over?) abundance of rock on the property, so we asked Doug to include some rockwork on the exterior and in the landscape so that my dad can build some rock walls (a hobby of his).
The kitchen is far from planned, and I will certainly post it in the Kitchens forum down the road. I do think we’ll be adding a sink near or in the mudroom. Also--perhaps a dumbwaiter in the laundry room would be nice?
I’m grateful in advance for any feedback you wish to share! Though I don’t get to lurk on the forums as much as I used to, I have learned so much here. Apologies in advance if the images don't load!
Comments (13)
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Reveal of draft (bethohio3, ARG)
Comments (27)I’ve been following your houseplan threads as we are also working with ARG and I love seeing the evolution of other people’s plans. Congratulations on reaching a preliminary plan--and a fantastic one at that! I must say one of the things I've been most impressed about with Doug (besides his obvious skill) is his openness to posting plans on the forum. It’s a rare architect who has enough humility and confidence to handle scrutiny with grace and to not only tolerate, but welcome, constructive suggestions! So here are my two cents to the items you're deliberating over: -Bedroom: I wouldn’t rotate the bed (keeps line of sight towards your huge windows, not your closet) but I would increase the dimension from 12 to 14’ feet—that will give you the perfect amount of breathing room on either side of the bed. -I’d prefer access to the spa from the bathroom. -Laundry: I’d either put in the game closet location or (my preference) in your master closet (enlarge it)— it’s so easy to undress and throw clothes in the bins right there, and when you launder, you take them right out of the dryer and into your closet shelves/hangers—no carting any laundry around! I have a sis-n-law with four W/D (yes 4—she has ten kids) in her house and the one she uses hands-down the most is the set in her master closet. -I’m a sucker for front porches that are deep enough to be functional (furniture wise... less than 7' deep gets tough)—huge for resale. -I’d choose a huge walk-in shower over tub & medium-size shower ANY DAY (I take a bath about 4 times a year, so give me a rockstar shower for the other 361 days of the year!) -A kitchen on the back feels more intuitive to me, and I like the shortest route possible from garage to kitchen when carting in groceries. And if it’s on the back, you have more flexibility to configure a walk-in pantry out of the utility area (I am a kitchen and pantry hog though….so pantry space may not be as big a priority to you). That said, putting it on the front, hides it from view at the entryway. Tough call. Either way, I love that you have a great view out both the front and back of the house from your kitchen! Hooray for such a well thought-out plan. My favorite parts are the two studies that communicate with each other and your huge family room—17x23 is my dream size (even love the furniture configuration sketched in! Love the dining window seat too!...See MoreOur future farmhouse - another ARG work
Comments (42)"but I think the chimney walked across to the other side of the roof... :)" Huhhh??? Oh geez! Well, just so everyone knows, in a 42 year career I've never had a mistake on a drawing, only discrepancies....."Hey ARG, we're out at the site and framing up the walls now and there appears to be a discrepancy in your window dimensions. Could you please turn to sheet A-3?......?" It sounds so much better that way. So we have a discrepancy in the rear elevation as it relates to the flue location.....again, just so everyone knows....See MoreAnother ARG home
Comments (23)This was a fun project for a fun couple. I know this forum looks for the perfect house (for another remote, a SINGULAR comment by one poster was "But where's the dog going to sleep?"....LOL) but orienting to the road is going to be ok. After all something has to face that way and I didn't want it to be a garage! Forgot to show it on the site plan but there's a substantial line of trees along the road as well as a stand of Norway Spruces across the road so those combined with the 8' porch roof will help. And we explored putting the sunroom to the east but it's location won out. I do find it interesting that I'm the only practicing professional here (I'm not counting RES and Virgil as they're either semi or fully retired) that routinely puts his ongoing design projects here. There's probably been 20 over the last two years. It's a little tough at times but we've taken away constructive comments for each one so its a positive thing. But a fun project that I enjoyed....See MorePrices and where to buy inset cabinetry
Comments (119)The windows MAKE this room. House Beautiful had an article on overly large islands. As in, why? and how to clean them and how your kids will be far away from you on the other side. and so on. So the moral is that bigger isn't better, and you must find the "tipping point" where spacious and functional become bloated and unwieldy. An overly large pantry, a built-in coffee/beverage set-up, a desk with shelves for cookbooks - these things make sense. Large for the sake of being large or because you have the bucks for it - will never pay off in the long run. Either in resale, function, or aesthetics. Yes ... don't just draw cabinets and cabinets and cabinets for the sake of wanting a big kitchen. Inventory what you have to store /what tasks you want to complete ... and assign a job to every cabinet you include. Ideally you will move into your new house and NOT stop to say, "Now where will I store this item?" You'll already have assigned a spot to everything. Noor, you have been very gracious in accepting all the feedback here. I think you are gong to build an amazing house with your willingness to grow and evolve. Absolutely, and your prize will be a kitchen that'll suit you well. Even at wholesale prices, you do NOT want to know the cost of the stone bill. The cabinet bill was 95K, frameless modern, with aluminum doors at the top. I wanna know ... in a train wreck kinda way. And the ability to have a single cook You're focused on large family cooking, but you'll also find yourself working alone in this space sometimes. You want your kitchen to work both ways. I wasn't privvy to that end figure and it became a battleground, with a divorce ensuing. One of the nicest spaces I've designed, but so much bad energy in there. So not worth it....See More
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5 years agolast modified: 5 years ago
Architectrunnerguy
5 years agoOk, I normally like to follow up on these a little sooner with a word to process but when it rains it pours...LOL!
As I said above, this is a house for Carrie's parents although she took the lead. She actually met over a cup of coffee with another owner I worked with....little did they know I was sitting in the next booth hearing everything!
Ok, Her father had built one or two houses (forgot the number) with his own design and he thought that went well but Carrie thought it was worth talking to someone else about design so we had a conversation first and then later we had a conversation with Carrie and her parents.
After that her father seemed on board and I went ahead.
They owned a parcel (the one below on the road) with a 39 acre parcel owned by someone else behind it to the south. Both have VERY steep slopes.
Here's a photo of part of it
In looking at the parcel there appeared to be one general spot that would spare some trees and it was favored by Carrie and her parents. I did three studies of how best to get up there with probable house and garage locations:
The four of us had another discussion all about the pros and cons of each.And then, lo and behold, in the middle of this, the guy that owned the 39 acre parcel to the south who Carrie thought would never sell, suddenly displayed an interest in parting with his parcel.....with that unexpected twist this project now felt like a game of "Surviver"! I half expected to hear Jeff Probst come on the line! They don't teach this stuff in design school!
Anyway, the deal went through but it wasn't all that bad as very steep slopes where all to the south anyway, so we moved the house location about 200' south and I reworked the driveway which over the entire length, actually got a little less steep.
I came up a "big idea" sketch. I like to draw these 'big idea" sketches small and freehanded so I can keep the big picture in mind undistracted by precision. This one is about 6" tall.
And then fine tuned it up all the while keeping tabs on the size:
And I did a quick 3D model and looked at some screened in porch configurations:
Challenging project but fun. And Carrie's parents are blessed to have such a caring daughter. And a great family to work with.
293summer
5 years ago
PROVirgil Carter Fine Art
5 years ago
Architectrunnerguy