Part 1 – 1340 sqft 2 Bedroom Condo, Texas

Posted on: September 21st, 2009 | 32 Comments

1340 sqft 2 Bedroom Condo, Texas (PDF)
1340 sqft 2 Bedroom Condo, Texas (JPEG)

  • James Scott

    Maybe they could pitch a table and a few chairs in the hallway so they can eat breakfast with the neighbours from down the hall. The dining room is too dark and too close to the entry.

    Odd placements for the closets throughout, and that extra space beside the master shower, I wonder what that is for. I would also be concerned about the buffer between the master bath and bedroom.

    Now why would they want a service entrance, maybe they can hang the laundry in the hall when dining.

    Balcony seems small as well. Maybe it could have been better used as interior space with functioning windows or doors for ventilation.

  • Terri

    I’m stuck at the entry. It’s just too close to that kitchen island and that awful small, dark dining room (maybe 8 ft wide), which really is the only place for a dining table; otherwise, it’d be in that central circulation space.
    Similarly, the utility entry is a bit tight too with the hot water tank right by the door and the jogged hallway next to laundry machines.

    The master bedroom will be hotter than the extra bedroom being on the south side of the deck. I agree with James that the deck is too small, but I do think they need to keep it as outdoor space to offer some shading to the living room.

    I’m not a fan of going through the bathroom to get to the closet either. Would the toilet be visible from the head of the bed too?

  • Jim

    Get rid of the sink in the island. Your guests are going to be leaning etc. on the island while your preparing food. And do you realy want them looking at the sink full of dirty dishes?

    Get rid of the alcoves, they waste space. Turn the bathroom so it is along the north wall put the washer and dryer in it. Run the utility room along the hall wall. Put the walk in closet, and the master bath side bye so you don’t have to walk through the toilet area to get dressed when someone is sitting on it.

  • Jane

    Interesting condo, not sure what my impression would be walking through the front door.
    I wondered if trading the kitchen and the dinning room would help, but there is still no front entrance ‘impression’. If nothing else re-orientate the island to allow for more walking space – maybe on an angle.
    I also want to trade the master bath and closet around, and move the hot wate heater – that is a safety issue.
    There is very little closet space in this condo – and although its Texas they still wear winter coats!
    My biggest pet peave are interrior doors – the fewer the better for me, and this place has too many.

  • Jim

    What is powering the apliances?
    If it is all electricity, I would like to see zone heating in all the rooms, instant demand water heaters for the bathrooms and kitchen. A stackable washer/dryer unit.

    I’m assuming those big black blocks are structural and can’t be moved, same thing with the entry doors.

    If the entry doors could be moved I would like to see it turn the “dining room” into a foyer, the bathroom turned along the northwall. Possibely if there is room a small wall to give the bathroom and entry a bit of visual shelter, but not if it makes the entry too crowded… actualy… a wall there, doorway into the kitchen from the foyer, and entry into the living room on the northside of the angled pillars.

  • Jim

    Ok, just realized that the furnace is also the A/C unit and zone heating won’t free up any space. Sorry John, I’ll shut up for a while now…

  • Jim Argeropoulos

    James, you sure are on a roll today!

    1300 sq ft is not a small space, but this sure feels small.
    The utility room in general is a mess. I think the utility room unit entry door has to go.
    Too much space dedicated to halls and circulation space.
    The deck feels like you could stand on it and maybe put a single chair on it. It needs another foot or two of depth.

  • Grace

    #1 entering into the kitchen and smashing up against the island.

    #2 eating in the dark corner; I’d rather sleep in the dark corner and eat in the second bedroom.

    #3 no separate tub in the master (sorry, just won’t let up!:))

  • Jim

    One more question before I shut up for a while. How low is this lowrise? Is it possible to run light pipes from the roof to bring natural light into the back of the space? Or is there another unit above?

    My very first reaction is that the back (and even the kitchen) is going to be dark and gloomy, and I don’t like space with light from only one side.

  • BradW

    3. Unusable balcony.
    2. Secondary entry – why?
    1. Front entry, what front entry…

    A possible solution would be to use the dining/study space for the front entry with additional space available for the kitchen and the second bathroom. The result would be kitchen/dining and living in the centre section of the space with entry, bedrooms and utility space on each side.

  • Terri

    Just noticed…that master closet is quite a lot bigger than the balcony. Even if it’s used for storage other than clothes, it’s in a very awkward location. I can’t see someone carrying boxes through the bathroom…

  • Elizabeth

    I think the walk-in closet is too big. If the size is needed for extra storage space, then you’d have to move anything out through the bathroom. I’d add the extra jog (toward the hallway)to the utility room as storage.

    I’d try to turn that odd little closet near 2nd bathroom to work better as an entry closet.

    The dining room looks like an afterthought.

  • Elizabeth

    Oh, don’t think I explained well.

    If the master closet is a backward “L”, I’d reconfigure the walls so that the vertical part of the “L” becomes part of the utility room. The remaining master closet would just be the rectangle with the door near the middle, as is.

  • John Y

    My only guess for the utility entrance is as a security measure: odds are the condo association has a maintenance contract and by having the door from the utility/laundry area into the main space, you can lock *that* and not have to worry about people rummaging around your house just because your furnace filters need to be changed.

  • Louis Pereira

    [img]09092101.jpg[/img]

    An improvement…no?

  • Grace

    an improvement–yes!

  • James Scott

    Louis – Big improvements. If somehow the doorway was buffered from the living spaces, anything that would reduce the flow of noise from the public hallway.

    I’m assuming that this unit doesn’t have the luxury of 12′ ceilings like last weeks design project….oh the opportunities…

  • BradW

    Louis – an improvement but with many assumptions…also, it would be nicer if the front entry closet was hidden from the dining area/kitchen…

  • Louis Pereira

    [img]09092102.jpg[/img]

    Bradw – You could do something like this (attached) to mitigate noise from the Public Hall though it starts to tighten the Dining Room

    JohnY – Perhaps create a secondary to the Utility as revised.

  • BradW

    [img]wwwth311.jpg[/img]

    Not solving all the problems but at least the front entry is improved.

  • BradW

    Louis – I like your revision…especially the kitchen offset into the old utility space.

  • John Y

    I’m not saying setting the utility up like that is a *good* idea, mind you. It’s just the only reason for it I can think of.

  • jim baer

    [img]090921wwwth.jpg[/img]

    louis, as always, a nice redesign of the plan.

    this is monday of WWWTH so i decided to do a johnesque redline scribble over the plan.

    the “dining rm / study” might just be a B.S. way to get a “third” bedroom. bedrooms need light and vent, but in some jurisdictions “studies” do not. in nyc the B.S. designation is “home office”. some come with their own closets and bathrooms. if it looks like a bedroom and sounds like a bedroom…..

    the second entrance might be a second EXIT. depending on construction type, each unit might need two ways out. john, can u enlighten us in this case?

  • Louis Pereira

    [img]09092103.jpg[/img]

    Thanks Jim…

    i have a sore neck so i rotated your drawing.

  • Terri

    Louis,
    I like the revision to your first improvement, especially if that utility area is supposed to be accessed by maintenance people.

    Brad W,
    Your revision of the entry makes this suite function so much better. That second bedroom now has so much more privacy as does that bathroom (which the public will use).

  • Terri

    Jim Baer, Nice dissection of the plan’s problems. You’ve made some good points for discussion tomorrow with John.

  • BradW

    I have another small pet peeve here – I noticed that the cabinet over the fridge is not full depth. Difficult to access anything in there. Just a small example of cost cutting…

  • Amy

    My guess is that the utility entrance is an entrance through a garage. You know how these stock house plans are drawn sometimes leaving out major details like an attached garage!

    Biggest problems I see: walking straight into the kitchen with no real entry, empty corner in master bath, and coat closet protruding into walkway and facing the wrong way.

  • Steve

    [img]sh090921.bmp[/img]

    Well, I do like being able to assume that the plumbing is movable! I thought it unlikely, however, that the exterior of the building could be changed, and so worked with the given entries and structural obstacles.

    Like everyone else, I disliked that dark NE corner, and decided to slide the guest bath up there. That allowed me to slide the bedroom up too, and that opened the NW corner to the living area, which I think makes for a much more interesting space in terms of progression, light, and flexibility. I imagine the “light wall” of the second bedroom as interior windows, sliding screens, or open fenestration — loft-style — depending on the needs of the client. I’m interested to hear what others think.

    This is my first post, and I’m lovin’ SH. Thanks for the opportunity!

  • Grace

    I like it, Steve! I wonder if you might push the kitchen into the utility room a bit (there’s quite a bit of space there that could possibly allow the appliances to be rearranged). Then the entry could be attached less to the kitchen. The long central wall would also be broken. I think that would add a sense of spaciousness to the living area.

  • BradW

    Welcome to SH Steve…nice redesign, I like having the additional living space in the SW corner.

  • John Brown

    Steve,
    Welcome to the site and thank you for your thoughtful response to the project.