Part 1 – Wong Residence, Texas

James Scott

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Here’s my first attempt. Simple, open, easy to move about I think. I’m a little concerned about the functionality of the kitchen. I may propose switching the dining and kitchens spaces.

All of the orange is proposed mill work and shelving.

James Scott

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Oops, might need a door on the bathroom..

John Brown

James,
I like the general disposition of the spaces in your concept. The kitchen does seem a bit out of proportion – particularly in comparison to the living room area.

Jim

I like James’ plan with a couple changes. I would get rid of the big sliding doors, and put a door where the middle window into the back yard is, leave the wall ‘tween the kitchen and dining room where it was originaly (I think it’s a loadbearing wall) put pocket doors in it to seperate kitchen and dining room, then turn the dinning room to make the living room larger. One other thing I would do would rebuild the staircase to a 7/12 which would move it closer to the front door a bit. And then I would find some pictures on what it may have looked like orginaly and spend some money on millwork so that the first thing someone sees when they entered would be a grand staircase.

BradW

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The entry door has been reversed, a glass wall exists between the study and entry opening up and modernizing the entry. The kitchen has an opening to the dining room which optionally can be closed. A new door has been added to replace the small window at the back. (I would consider making the door in the living room simply a window but have left it for now in this first draft).

BradW

Now that I have has a second look I am not happy with the front entrance..I do like having the dining and living area across the back but a fireplace would be nice…have to give it some more thought

John Brown

Brad,
I like the idea of the kitchen at the front. Not my first thought but it is nice to have the living and dining across the back. I agree with the front entrance. It seems incongruous with the sense I have of what it would be like to come up to the house from the street.

BradW

John – One of the reasons for the ktichen at the front was the client’s wish to have some privacy for the kitchen. If the kitchen is in the back corner it becomes more difficult to separate it from the other rooms. Also, I completely agree with you that this home is more traditional and another revision will reflect that.

One final thing, I agree with Jim regarding the stairs but I am going to leave them in place. We are already getting into tear down and rebuild territory with this house (I probably would given permission)…One thing most people do not realize it how much older homes are out of square and level. This requires effort, time and skill to restore before anything else can be done properly and is a big reason why renovations take a long time.

BradW

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Here the entrance is much more traditional. The bathroom and closet are private. A big change is now traffic flow around the stairs is only on one side. The study and the space around the basement stairs is awkward but hey that leaves something to work on :).

Terri

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i turned the basement stair access so that the circulation to these steps was less intrusive on the living area and back garden doors.

There’s some separation between kitchen and living with a gas fireplace. The study incorporates two built-in shelves for the book collection. I used french glass doors here to try and incorporate a little more traditional element. Most of the main living space is open to the back. The dining room table still affords an angled view to the back, as well as a front view.

Terri

Brad,
I see that our plans (your latest) have similar layouts with the main rooms in the same corners. That down staircase does present a problem, I agree.

John Brown

Terri and Brad,

You have both recognized what I think are the essential issues with the existing house – the asymmetry of the spaces on either side of the stair that makes the rooms at the top of the plan too tight and the ones at the bottom too wide; the extra space at the end of the stair (on the down side) that is difficult to use; and the length of the house front to back (difficult to not have excessive space in the center.

I am grappling with them right now for tomorrow’s segment and it is difficult to avoid a result with a kitchen that is too big and a living space that is too small.

Grace

I think I would put the living room at the bottom of the plan; french doors and some millwork could close off the street-side section when needed, but, when open, the whole space would be living room, opening into the garden.

the entry would be flanked by closet(on the living room side) and small powder room (on the other side). The remaining little area on the streetside would fit a reading chair; bookcases would box in the window.

the rest of the top side of the plan would be kitchen and dining room.

(have an updated paintbrush–now just have to figure out how to open the demo plan into it)

James Scott

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Here are a few revisions.

A little more space for dining and living. A study/library. A washroom convenient to the front door as well as accessible but buffered from the rest of the main floor.

The kitchen is big, but I feel functional and closed from the dining space. It would be nice to punch a window into the dining room to add light.

Lots of storage as well as a closet at the front entry. I would have to take advise from others whether the closet was necessary or not.

I hope this addresses some of the issues.

John Brown

James,
I agree that the kitchen may still be too big but I like this plan. Would you consider having some kind of opening between the living and kitchen as well, perhaps by the stair?

James Scott

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Great minds?…just as I had sent the previous draft I thought the very same thing.

How’s this?

Jim

Nice plan James. What about pocket doors between the kitchen and dining room. And getting rid of some of the cupboards in the kitchen and putting a “breakfast nook” by the middle window?

It’s just me, but I can’t see people having their breakfast in the dining room.

John Brown

James,
I think this works much better.I think Jim also makes a good point. One could either add a table OR open up the wall slightly (as you did with the living room) and make the dining room feel slightly less orphaned without having the kitchen be totally open.

James Scott

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Sorry, I’m at home now so I’ll make revisions tomorrow.

John and Jim – Yes to some seating along the south kitchen wall. Or the access from the kitchen to the dining can be moved as well to include some sort of nook or eckbank. I haven’t placed a door on the basement stairs at this point, something to be discussed.

And yes the wall between the dining and kitchen can be opened up but in John’s address I believe the client wished the kitchen be not so present. If it were open I don’t feel a small table would work. Possibly some window seating like we saw in a previous design case study from a few months back. And some mill work instead of a wall may do the trick. Again we’ve seen examples of that in a recent case study as well.

Elizabeth

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not as closed off as they might like. Added a little slcove around bathroom entrance to give more wall space to adjoining rooms and a little more privacy to BR entrance. Not sure this works, the added wall seems a little short to be effective.. Those ducts or whatever beside the stairs are integrated into a built-in bookcase. Added a pantry (facing kitchen) to balance the entry to dining room, and separate it from kitchen a bit.

BradW

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A very traditional layout.

John Brown

Elizabeth,
I like the way you have created this open plan design. Even if it isn’t exactly what the client asked for, it is usually a good idea to show a range of options. I suppose that the element you have between the kitchen and dining room could be shifted over towards the stair to allow passage on both sides and to create a bit more separation. A similar idea, perhaps with a screen, could be used by the living room.

John Brown

Brad,
That is a nice strategy. I hadn’t thought of the guest bath on that side but it makes sense with the pantry and putting the dining room at the front really makes a good entry sequence. I think it also makes sense to have the in kitchen table because it is located far enough away from the dining table. My only concern would be if the living space is too long to would get enough light.

BradW

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Revised from an earlier layout. This would be my choice. A large modern kitchen with a walk-out to the backyard. The front entry is generous with bathroom and closet afforded a discreet location. The study, located off the front hall, provides a comfortable chair to enjoy a book from the floor to ceiling bookcase and work space for two. The dining room is traditionally located at the front of the home, is generous in proportion while being accessible yet separate from the kitchen. The living room enjoys a view of the backyard and the luxury of a fireplace with builtin storage. An open wall unit obscures the view toward the kitchen. The finishes are modern and minimal providing at counterpoint to the traditional exterior and surrounding neighbourhood.

John Brown

Brad,
I agree with you. I particularly like the translucent wall unit between the living room and kitchen. It is in the spirit of what I was proposing to Elizabeth earlier this afternoon.

MichaelG

How do the stairs work going up to the second floor? The main floor footprint seems awfully tight.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the ceiling height at the landing to the basement stairs is a lot lower to accommodate those stairs.

MichaelG

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Heres my attempt. I wanted the living and the kitchen at diagonally opposite points of the house to give them the separation they wanted. I envision the kitchen as being extremely simple, with all the storage in the pantry behind the bathroom.
The dining room along the back wall close to the kitchen, and the back entrance, through sliding doors, lining up with the staircase down to the basement.
The furniture placement in the living in my plan is just a quick one, not enough thought in it. Its a bit of an awkward space, long and thin, but its would be possible. The divider between the living and dining is a low bench with an ornamental fireplace. I’ll try to dig up an image of what I had in mind, its tough to describe.
I also want to open up and modernise the staircase oriented to the living and dining areas.

I assume that the west side of the house is attached to the neighbor, otherwise there would be windows. It would be nice to add some though…

Terri

James,
I curious where you got the photo of the pre-built banquette table set. I think the separation wanted was between living and kitchen–not kitchen and dining, so your idea of a nook would be fine.

MichaelG

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This is kind of what I had in mind for the fireplace room divider

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/blogging/small-space-solutions-from-a-designers-toronto-homemetropolitan-home-057073

Steve

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My proposal takes its lead from mention of a “walled garden” in the back and a “family study”. These reminded me of a classical Chinese scholar’s garden I visited recently. I understand that within this tradition, living and study are at the rear of the house on the courtyard,and the kitchen is in the front near the street. The client also emphasized the study, so I gave it more space than we’d typically see.

With a nod to feng shui, I balanced the rear exterior and reoriented the front entry progression to align with the central axis. An open stair to the 2nd floor would allow a view from the front entry straight out the back door. The entry is separated from the dining/living space by a wooden screen, about door height, which allows hints of the light-filled living space. If possible I’d lower the ceiling a few inches in the entry and between the kitchen and study. This and the central fireplace are also nods to Wright.

Otherwise it’s as simple, open, and light as I could make it, if I’ve got the mantra right! Looking forward to our discussion.

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