Three things - First, the first plan requires that anyone progressing from the great room to the dining room either go through the kitchen or back out through the front hall. Not a good idea. Second, the "Sagecrest" and "Bloomsbury Park" plans have one of those, you should excuse me for saying so, horrible open spaces with columns and no walls right off the entry hall that they call a dining room, but that is really an affront to all of the time-tested hierarchies of space. To all of you who have such an arrangement, I apologize. And third, since you don't like the open plan you now have, you may be overcorrecting by looking for a completely enclosed room, which only works if the room is very large. Consider instead a room that connects to the kitchen through a door in a solid wall, perhaps with a pass-through window that can be closed at dinnertime. Then instead of a solid wall on the more public entry, a pair of half-height walls with columns, flanking a wide doorway into the dining room. That way, you avoid the rabbit warren of closed rooms, you establish a distinct separation between rooms, you keep an open view, and you don't have to make the rooms too big for your needs or for the proportions of your house. If you want to accommodate both your immediate family and larger groups, consider building a library-dining room, with bookshelves and cabinetry that can also house china and flatware, and a table with many leaves that will function as a library table and dinner table for the few, and expand to accommodate the many. The library aspect can keep it from looking abandoned and unused when you aren't entertaining.

Lilac, welcome to the group. If that doorway is 70 inches WIDE, that will be too wide for a tension rod to span. However, you might think about getting a SHOWER ROD, WHICH IS ABOUT 6 FEET LONG, and a diameter of more than one inch. You could even put a sexy shower curtain on that rod and also hang the canvas drop cloths on the same rod. Shower hooks are great, or even the set of shower rings. I have used the 9 strand 100 pound stainless steel picture hanging wire to hang curtains. In my case, I bought a 100 foot roll of it, but you can get it in lengths. OR, you might go to a place like RESTORE which is a Habitat for Humanity resale place. They have many many doors that came off closets, like the bifold shutter doors. I've found many nice doors that way. If you cannot screw them to the woodwork, and you want to take any purchased items with you when you go, think about attaching the doors to a bookcase or entertainment center at the side so you can open/close the bifolds. It is possible, depending on the size of the room and the location of that wide doorway in it, that you could position an entertainment center in front of the opening, and leave only enough space to have a 28 inch entry to your bedroom. I'm assuming that closing the passage to the kitchen from the dining room will still give you another entry to your kitchen? Quite an interesting question, and you can definitely make your choice attractive. Also note, I use the regular canvas painter drop cloths, available in all sizes, very washable and quite durable, as slip cover for my furniture, bird cages, curtains, pillow covers, bed throws, and I can paint on them and make them tough and hard for small rugs at the doors. Very washable, very durable, and the cheapest thing you can buy. Sort of the color of oatmeal denim, and as durable as a canvas bag.

I'm having a hard time picturing cabinets without doors. . . My laundry room is pretty darn plain compared to most I've seen on here but I just have a white shelf above the washer and dryer and have a basket that holds my goodies. I also have a sink with a cabinet covering that. (has a door) I'd say if you have a lot of stuff and have the money then go with the doors. All that's in my basket is a small container of Charlie's Soap, Charlie's all purpose cleaner, shaklee ... gosh, I forget the name of it..(brightner stuff!)and my iron. I store cat litter below in the cabinet and other odds and ends. I think cabinets are more attractive but for the money it wasn't as important to me. Let us know what you decide!

Our home is ‘open concept’ and yes it does make the home feel bigger when entertaining. The down side is that like yourself, my kitchen opens to the family room. It drives me nuts when I am sitting there trying to watch my 55” tv and anyone is in the kitchen…simple conversation becomes annoying while trying to hear the tv, the exhaust does not help, then they start up the dishwasher and if they really want to stick it to me they turn on the little tv that sits atop the fridge! In these respects I really miss a separate family room. Your new dining room looks almost similar in size to the living room…have you considered making that your family room..then you have a ‘great’ room for entertaining and a more private family room – with a more appropriately placed bathroom. My guess is that the room sizes are not appropriate or you would have thought of this…but just a thought….<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />