I agree that the sightlines from the front door could be better. I would want to rework the stairs/closets/guest room entry in that part of the house, so that the guest room doesn't open right into the foyer. I'd look for a way to have a straight staircase--they're cheaper and more space efficient. Could there be a straight staircase where the closets are, and then you could reorganize the other rooms in the space that's left? It would leave a bigger space in the loft too. Regarding the knee-wall: I'd rather have the option of hanging something on that wall in the mudroom (a mirror or a piece of art). If it were my house and we did put the knee wall in, I'd make sure there wasn't a sprayer on the sink, because I could absolutely see a kid waiting in the mudroom ready to spray the kid coming up the stairs. Also-- if you don't put in the knee wall, and you do put a door between the mudroom and the rest of the house, it will act as an airlock for cold air in the winter. Otherwise, every time someone goes in or out, there will be a draft through the whole house. Also, consider the sightlines that kneewall opens up. It would mean that when you walk into the house you see the door to the nursery/office, and whenever the kids bring home friends who go downstairs to play, they'll see into your mudroom. If you're going to have the long sightline available, I think you should make sure there's something attractive on the other end. Maybe you could move the nursery door, and put a really nice piece of art there? But that doesn't fix the view into the mudroom.... All my feedback aside, I really like the house you've designed-- it will be a lovely place to live! This post was edited by zone4newby on Fri, May 17, 13 at 11:15

Thanks for the feedback. You guys pointed out the exact areas that give me the greatest concern - foyer and storage. The foyer design includes many compromises that were necessary to the purposes of keeping cost down as well as limitations of modular design. Any of the changes suggested above would require an additional module which represents a step function change in cost (unlike traditional stick built). The original idea was to have a closet in front of the stairs somewhere. This was not possible due to my wife's instances on a "bump out" to the front elevation. The downstairs study is meant to be flexible and serve as potential second master for our respective parents who are getting older. Also, if we decide to have a third baby, my wife would be required to be on bed-rest so having a full bath / bedroom downstairs is helpful. @Chibimimi - great suggestions. At this point the back hall will have to serve as the area for mops/brooms, etc.

There are some lovely details to your plans, and I love the elevations! With a home of that size I would make each bedroom with an ensuite bathroom including the boys rooms. It will make a difference for resale down the road. Upstairs you have 2 bathrooms not attached to bedrooms. I would lose the half bath and make duplicate baths where the Jack and Jill is now. or, keep the half bath and add the second ensuite. The extra cost for 2 baths with those bedroom is minimal compared to the overall cost of the home. The bath in your daughter's room is huge. Bigger is not always better. (I have had big bathrooms and a big house and sometimes the bigger rooms feel like a hike to get across! Especially the distance to the toilet in the middle of the night. The toilet should be closer to the bed in case there is a middle of the night in the dark trip to there) As the mother of a teen daughter, I would recommend a double vanity/sink, huge counter space and expansive well lit mirror that will accommodate a gaggle of teen girls putting makeup on and doing hair to get ready to go out or just because. That will make a bigger difference than all the floor space in there :)The only reason I would make that attached bathroom that big is if I thought I would use that room and have the kids doubling up in the other bedrooms there when smaller so you are all close. I would move the closets in your daughter's room to between her room and the other bedroom for sound proofing. That would allow some reworking of the bathroom. Noise proofing between rooms will go a long way to peace between teens who are playing music or games. Downstairs, where does the dining room table go? I would swap the entry closet with the half bath that is right by the front door. This moves that half bath right across from another bath, and it might be more clear one can be eliminated. Or keep both for big parties. The closet by the front door it too far as is. Awkward for guests to be arriving while other guests are exiting the bathroom right there! If guests come with purses or coats, where will they drop them? Maybe you already planned a bench in the entry area? If there is a long hallway that is interior and will be dark, I really like a window with direct eyesight as you walk down the hall. Such a window in your daughter's room such that if her bedroom door is open, you see out it if you are going down the hall. But it would give her more privacy if you had her bedroom door off to the left and the end of the hall could be a closet or lit shelves or niche. There is also an opportunity for a window at the end of the hall on the extra bedroom past the game room. If that is a guest room, not to be too paranoid, but would you want a guest up there with your kids so far from you? Is there supposed to be a door on that room? It can be made so the bathroom is outside of the room. It is far enough down a hall it is private if not attached. I would consider adding a closet to the "den" downstairs as a better guest room/bedroom alternative/extra storage space, and adding a door there. In general I try to avoid long halls since they are wasted space. I would add more closets overall such as to the game room. You can't have too many closets :) The mud room layout is inconvenient. You have to come in and go around the wall. I would have it be a bigger room without that dividing wall that is easier to maneuver and drop armfulls of stuff off (coats, backpacks etc). Folks here can give you more specifics. Overall, You have a very nice plan. There are just some nitpicky details I would change if it were mine :) But it is not mine, it is yours. So read all of the comments. Ignore the ones that are not right for you. And keep making changes til it feels right to you incorporating the comments that you agree with! As others said, you need thick skin to post here. So hopefully you will get some helpful ideas from all of the comments! :) :) I hope no one scares you away. I will look forward to seeing in progress and finished photos of your home! lafdr

Thanks for all the hints, guys. We like the corner sink now-as I mention above, the view is great and I’ve spent a lot of years watching kids climb the tree outside while doing dishes. Willing to reconsider though. I share your though about the front door and the stools-except we never actually use that door. We always come in through the kitchen door, which will be a mud room after the remodel. I mean, we use the front door when we have trick or treaters and solicitors. I really think of the mud room as our entry. We will use the front door ourselves to go to the porch but don’t see it as a main entry generally though hopefully it will look pretty :). That being said, we’d love to expand our kitchen more in a useable way. We are pretty constrained in space in this part of the house, unless we switch the kitchen to the dining room area which I think would cause all sorts of other expensive changes.