@LisaKoback We are building the La meilleure vie plan by David Wiggins also and we are looking for a basement plan with steel beams and I-joist instead of the wooden laminated beams that Wiggins provided for us. Would you be willing to share steel beam size and I-joist dimensions? Or your basement page of print only? Thanks so much. jamesmelson34@gmail.com James

OP - I'm no architect, but we did once build a house on a sloping block with views. It was not a simple process because of the slope, I can tell you! It can be complicated putting a two-dimensional floor plan on a three-dimensional slope. So just bear that in mind. We in fact used an architect because there was no way a standardized plan would have worked in our specific location (it really was a very steep slope). Things that had to be taken into account included that doggone slope, and the views of course, but also orientation. The house was planned so that the windows and main rooms - dining, living, kitchen, more or less lined up with the trajectory of the sun, and were bright and well lit throughout the day. The kitchen which faced east, got the morning sun, the rest of the living areas got sun a bit later. Our back deck faced west, which meant blazing late afternoon sun - fortunately, the deck got reasonable shade from the forest behind us, or we'd have fried. The house also took advantage of the sea breezes coming up the slope in the afternoon, so great cross breezes which meant less (actually in our case no) A/C. Just things for you to bear in mind. You want to benefit as much as you can from all aspects of your location, not just the view.

Hello everyone, looks like we have fallen in love with this design as well. We went through a new custom build back in the summer (2022) in Perry, GA (and that job transfer fell through so purchase didn’t work out) of this home. We thought it was a true one-off custom until finally found that this home was in fact buildable and ran across the plans for it on Southern Living/Ginn. Anyways, like most on here, I would love a photo dump to us if possible, as well as plan changes that you made for ideas, ccovert@zfgoffroad.com, I truly appreciate any sharing! I know I just started following two Instagram builds from a couple very helpful folks on here too (beautiful homes!), and appreciate the insights shared so far! One question, on the second floor, did anyone finish a third bed/bath from the spaces that the stock plans show? If so, would you mind sharing that and how it turned out?

Ok I'm going to play devil's advocate. Wow, I was not expecting all the comments with issues regarding this plan, but I have welcomed them! Some things you all have pointed out have made complete sense and I didn't even notice the other things you all mentioned. Here are some of the reasons we like this floor plan, and some some ideas that we have about changing some things: The floor plan is just bad. I asked above and will ask again. Have you considered working with a talented architect to design a house that truly works for you and will also make you happy every time you walk into the house? With this house you will need to fit your needs to the house whereas if you work with a person of design talent, you will wind up with a house that fits itself to your needs. - This floor plan has exactly the number of bedrooms and bathrooms we need. We need a master bedroom, one bedroom for each of our two children, one guest room, three full baths, one half bath, a formal dining room, an island with counter space for barstools, a breakfast nook, a walk in pantry, an office, a laundry room, a mud room, and storage space. Are you sure you need a formal dining room, an island with counter space and a breakfast nook? Do you entertain that often that you need three separate eating areas? I'm asking you to think in terms of your actual lifestyle and not your fantasy of what you'll do if you have the "ideal" house. The truth is if you don't entertain frequently for example, the dining room will remain empty most of the time collecting dust. Only you can answer what the reality is. Additionally if you do entertain, that dining room is way too small as is the breakfast nook. Also you need one of the bedrooms to be a guest room. Is it possible to make the extra bedroom a combo bedroom/office for the times you do have guests? Of course if you work from home, or family comes to visit for weeks at a time, that idea won't work. My studio is upstairs and I love that it's away from the tumult of the rest of the house. - We have two children, so a jack and jill bathroom seems to fit so that they don't each have their own bathroom. A hall bathroom is still a better choice versus a jack and jill bathroom. - My husband would prefer his office to be in the back of the house with access to the back yard and in close proximity to the living room. See my comment above. - We would add pocket doors to the entrance to the jack and jill bath from the two bedrooms. Pocket doors are fine for rooms that don't get used frequently. They are not a good choice for a room (bathroom) that will be used multiple times a day. - The location of the dining room does not necessarily both us. But the fact it's too small should bother you. - I am not a fan of the fireplace being where it currently is and would like to move in order to have french doors on the wall where the fireplace currently sits. So where would you put the fireplace? Have you thought how you'd arrange furniture in that room? - I am okay with how you get to the master bedroom, but I would be open to a different a route as well. So you're ok with walking through the kitchen every time you need to go to your bedroom? When I was growing up the only bedroom off the kitchen was for help. In fact since we never had full time help, my mother turned that bedroom into her office.