Home Building Trends - Open Floor Plans (Part 2)

Balance Privacy and Togetherness

Home building trends will assist in the relative placement of rooms that play a major role in how a home lives. Do you really want your children's bedrooms directly above (or adjacent to) the master bedroom? We all love our children, but even the closest of families need their privacy. Ideally, the master bedroom shouldn't be too close to your home's media room or main television set. With the popularity of surround sound, TVs have become louder. The best plans keep the master suite at a comfortable distance from other activities in the home — ideally in its own wing, with nothing above or below it, and few common walls.

Not all room adjacency issues deal with privacy. Sometimes it's about togetherness. For example, kitchens should not isolate the person preparing the meal. Eat-in kitchens are great places to bring families and friends together. By combining food preparation and dining, you can create wonderful opportunities for conversation and closeness.

The game room concept is changing, too. Instead of just converting an extra bedroom, families are finding children's retreats to be far more useful. A children's retreat consists of a common recreation/study that serves as the hub of the children's activities and is surrounded by their bedrooms. This area of the home becomes a special place just for the kids, where they can do their homework, play games or watch TV — while mom and dad enjoy some quiet time with a movie or reading by the family room fire.

Consider Window Placement
It doesn't take a lot of windows to make an impact on the personality of a home. You just need to know where to put them. And, as you may have guessed, sight lines play a large role here, too. An expansive rear wall in the family room doesn't have to be filled with two-story windows to bring in the beauty of the outdoors. Even a 20-foot vaulted ceiling doesn't call for windows all the way to the top. Besides wasting a lot of energy, it may not improve the look and feel of the room. A strategically-placed set of six or eight-foot windows can have just as much impact and be far more economical.

Small windows under cabinets and above countertops are becoming increasingly popular. A bay window in a small dining area will make it seem much larger. Pay special attention to the interior/exterior relationship created with windows. What direction does the window face? Will it give morning or afternoon light? You may want eastern exposure for a breakfast room window that frames colorful landscaping bathed in morning light. However, large windows with western exposure may not be a good idea for a family room with a large screen TV.

Additional windows that act as an eyebrow above the main window (known as Palladian windows) can add character to a home. However, they can also add cost, so make sure they're located where they will have the greatest impact and not hidden away where people can't enjoy them every day. -- By Jay McKenzie from New Home Source

Interested in reaching out to a home builder? Please do not hesitate to contact us at Landon Homes, (904)567-3430!