I think a cozied-up great room and master bedroom CAN be okay ... or it can be BAD. I say the devil is in the details. Thoughts ... and I realize I'm echoing parts of other people's posts above: - If you're placing the headboard against a wall shared with an entertainment center, you're almost certainly making a mistake. On the other hand, if the headboard is on the far side of the room and the "edge" of the great room is a pathway, you're probably okay. I mean, consider these two quick diagrams; one is clearly less of a noise issue than the other:- If you're saying this concept is okay for you because you're a couple and mainly keep the same hours ... I say you're walking on thin ice. Your life can change; maybe you'll house a grandchild or a sibling (even just temporarily). Maybe you'll sell the house, and this won't suit the new buyer. Don't count on your current lifestyle (which may change) supporting a questionable design decision. - When you're talking about whether to bunch-up your bedrooms or whether to separate them, don't forget natural light. If you separate your bedrooms (at least in a one-story house), you're almost certainly condemning yourself to a closed up living room without enough windows. Since you're likely to be awake in your living room /great room /whatever you call it ... and asleep in your bedroom ... do think about how your bedroom placement affects light. - I have no problem with a master bedroom opening off the kitchen ... preferably with a bit of a hallway (to increase privacy). Such a placement usually means the master is close to the garage entrance, and isn't it convenient to come home and be able to go straight to your room to put away your shoes /etc.? - Depending upon your stage of life, consider placing those bedrooms in such a way that your secondary bedrooms can be "closed off" from the rest of the house. Once you're an empty nester, you'll like not paying for those rooms to be heated /cooled.

The best way to approach this is to first have an accurate diagram of your entire floorplan with dimensions of everything. The last thing you want to do is to spend a great deal of $$$ adding onto your home with a dysfunctional layout that will reduce the value of your property. I've seen additions that turn a functional floorplan into something that is not at all functional and you don't want to go there. None of us can give you any advice with the information provided other than seek out an architect. You could get better advice with the floorplan and its dimensions including doorways and windows and closet areas.

Lindsay- No, we are not working with an architect. That is not in the budget. The state I live in doesn’t require a licensed architect to build. We found a plan that we liked online and worked with a drafter to amend it some to connect the laundry to the closet. The Positions of the rooms haven’t changed from the original plan. The window in the closet is a transom not a full window. We actually had a window in the middle of the wall in our last walk in and it was just fine. We had more than enough room. There really is no way to make the plan perfect without working with an architect, but that’s not going to happen. :( My last house also didn’t have the laundry on an outside wall. I would love to have worked with an architect, unfortunately we didn’t. Thank u and please if u see anything else let me know. I have a list to take to the builder for tweaks. Hoping to break ground soon. A S - that is my issue with this plan. No full wall for the bed. I’m open for layout changes as we haven’t started the build yet. This was the best that we found that worked for us after I squashed the two story that we liked, but I didn’t like the flow of the interior. This plan is very similar to the house we just sold, but the laundry was on the other side of the house on that one and I really think that’s whats making the master weird. bpath- I will take a look at that idea. Here is what the original plan looked like.

I don't want my clothes hanging near the toilet or the shower/tub. One for a very obvious reason, and the other because , no matter how well a bathroom is ventilated, there is always the threat of moisture that could affect the clothing. Humidity happens everywhere, which creates moisture or water vapor in the air. For small confined spaces, humidity and moisture has the potential to create a muggy, stuffy environment which could create many problems inside your closet if you don’t take preventative measures beforehand.Unfortunately, most closets are a breeding ground for mold and mildew if you aren’t careful. Because of most closets being in a small confined space, it also restricts airflow which causes humidity to be trapped inside.When this happens, it could create a musty smell and even cause mold and mildew to grow on your shelves, garments, linens, and other spaces inside your closet.