1900 sqft 3 Bedroom Bungalow, Missouri

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  • James Scott

    I’ll comment on bedroom windows, the kitchen/dining layout and the overall lot plan to house relationship.

    Regarding the bedroom windows, quite often with standard sizes, shapes and placement you lose the ability to utilize the full value of floor & wall space in areas such as bedrooms or exterior walls where the home abuts the neighbours house. How come we don’t see more floor to ceiling windows or windows that tuck under the eaves leaving the lower portion of the wall available for furniture and other fixtures? All three bedrooms face onto two walls, the opportunity to let in more light and allow cross ventilation are over looked.

    One of the trends I see compared to my parents generation is the loss of the formal dining and living rooms for a more casual environment. We can argue that our pretentious attitudes are easing, but I would think our pocket books have as much to say about that as well. What I’m getting at is I feel we’ve cut the cord to the formal spaces but have not come to terms as to how to deal with the loss of these spaces. Thus we have an example of a living room vulnerable to the outside and a dining space that’s inadequate.

    I see how the roadway has influenced the placement of the house and the garage footprints, but I feel little regard has been given to the the four season aspect of this property. The back yard and even the front yard is neglected. And when you consider the back yard is almost as big as the house, that’s a real shame. Maybe the guts of the home could have been aligned to allow more flow between the living spaces and the back yard.

  • Brad W

    3. The awkward front entry.
    2. The kitchen.
    1. The underdeveloped connection between the house and the garage – I see potential to build a family room and mud room linking the kitchen and garage.

  • Meg

    If the garage can be moved, then there’s plenty of room for it to be turned so that it is perpendicular to the house. If not then fencing and planting might be the answer and the left over triangle to the right could be used for garden storage.

    The kitchen reminds me a bit of the house I’m renting – which is architect designed aparently but with what seems to be to be little thought to how the space is used with the back garden. It’s a big space with room for a kitchen, sitting and dining area but the kitchen and the door are poorly place to make each of these areas function to their full potential and have decent cirulation. I’d draw a picture of it for you if I had more time.

    I’m a bit stumped with what to do with the house. My immediate instinct is to run the services more along the North side of the house but that means a huge move and probably lots of cost.

    As a complete aside – what’s the learning curve on Google sketchup?

  • Paul C

    John,
    Assuming there is no technical reason for the garage to be tilted, rotating it, would help define the outdoor “room”. It would also make possible, maybe the provision of a connecting breezeway between it and the house. A slight addition to the garage for a garden shed/workshop would be another improvement. The baths, laundry and pantry area (hi-lited seem to be working real hard to get all those features in. I would suggest a total re-design. Maybe relocate some features into the breezeway between the home and garage. This could free up some rear wall space such that more rooms or spaces could be related to the outdoor room. Single worst thing for me as it sits…the acute lack of storage at either entry. A three bedroom home with no closets or place for dirty shoes, etc etc at either entry is not only unbelievable, but simply unacceptable.

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  • Volker

    I pretty much agree with Paul. Assuming that it isn’t possible to move the garage I’d suggest to try to use the space between the house and the garage, tie them together. It would make a wonderful porch to have b-fast in the morning and lunch in the mid-day sun. You could actually extend the porch as far south as you like, perhaps add a nice outside area to the master bedroom.
    I believe on everyday business everyone is using the backdoor therefore I’d suggest to move the door (no more zig-zag through the dining area) and by redesigning the MasterBathroom gain some extra space to at least add a closet.
    I’d love to have something similar on the front door, but not knowing anything about the roof-design, the front layout and so on I think it is rather difficult to find a proper solution – hopefully someone else got some good ideas.
    I do like the “block” of bathrooms and laundry centered in the middle of the house – although I think there are too many corners and small walls…
    Bottomline: I believe the connection between the garage and the house and its entrance is the worst thing about this house.

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  • Ellen

    Even in Missouri people must wear coats and boots sometimes (and have sports gear). Where are the closets at the front and back doors?

  • Corbin

    1. The closet/entry crisis, relationship to the garage.
    2. The kitchen, I cant believe the placement of the fridge in front of a window!, that is sad.
    3. The living room, the only one in the house and where do you arrange your television and furniture?
    4.wasteful placement of the bathrooms.

    And i could go on…

    the closets do not need to be so deep, this reduces their effective area.

    Bear with me this is my first time posting a drawing. I tried to re arrange the kitchen closet into a closet, pantry, and linen closet for the laundry. But im not sure if the closet facing into the living room helps with the furniture placement.

    I opened up the wall dividing the hall, however i kept 4 feet or so and moved the 2nd bedroom door to add privacy. I added a bifold door and reduced the depth of the hallway closet.

    Any thoughts?

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  • Louis Pereira

    Critiquing the plan from the perspective of this week’s theme, i would be inclined to offer similar suggestions that Paul and Volker already posted. However, if i was to entirely re-organise the spatial arrangement of the house and garage to this site, i wouldn’t give the garage the pleasure of facing that SE yard. Rather, i would prefer to have Living space and perhaps the MB bedroom bordering that outdoor space instead.

    As for WWWTH, i would say…

    3. The angled driveway access to the Garage. Looks to me like a potential conflict with oncoming traffic
    2. No entry closets…again!
    1. Yet another slipshod attempt from a middling builder proving once again that you simply can’t parachute a cookie-cutter house plan onto just any site.

  • John Brown

    Thanks to everyone who took time on this Memorial Day holiday to comment on the exercise. I agree that the lack of any relationship between the house and garage is a real problem. It makes the backyard a leftover space. I think Louis said it best – “you can’t parachute a cookie cutter house plan onto any site”.

    In terms of the other two worst things wrong with this house my vote goes to

    2. The lack of entry closets
    3. the kitchen and its ill placed refrigerator.

  • Joan

    I hope it’s not too late to add my two cents. I’ve been thinking about this all day.

    The problems with this house that really offend me are the doors. They are in the wrong place. The kitchen door shouldn’t come in at that point, traffic flow will be a nuisance and awkward. The main entry door is too much too soon: guests will be right in the middle of the action before they can gather their thoughts or rid themselves of their coats. If you take out the wall that would eliminate the two secondary bedroom hall, then you will have a clear sight line into one of those bedrooms. If it’s a young person’s bedroom, then the view from the living room may not be pleasing.

    I haven’t figured out what that small room near the w/d might be, but could it be a pantry? That hall and entry areas to the kitchen are awkward enough as it is.

    I am so sorry that a dining room or area is not really in this house. Why not take out the kitchen, too? Just kidding, but not laughing.

    The kitchen is very awkward. That really needs some help. If the back door stays there, it’s going to be messy on the floor year round. With no protection from the garage, in bad elements, the person trying to get into the house will enter quickly and with a sense of urgency that will play out in dirt/snow/wet footwear. There is nothing to suggest a calm orderly way of moving from outdoor to indoor life, for shedding clothes and footwear, a place to sit to remove them, a place to put them once removed.

    The master bathroom is very strangely laid out. It is choppy and there is no suggestion of relaxation.

    Apparently building houses is like having children. No one demands qualifications.