Feedback on our floor plan idea, small building window

If the study on the ground floor is also supposed to be a guest room, as suggested by the sofa bed, then the guest bathroom should also have a shower.

Good morning,
The guest room with shower bath is in the basement.

Regards Yvonne

Hello Yvonne,

thank you again. I will now respond.

Hm, then I want to throw in a few bullet points:

Ground floor hallway very large, but the two built-in wardrobes very small. A separate wardrobe will be necessary. Maybe move the door to the living room so that a large wardrobe fits opposite the stairs. Or plan one built-in wardrobe again as a pantry. Or completely omit the built-in wardrobe by the small window, build a wall for the stairs and plan a large wardrobe along this wall. It will be like this anyway, that your window light in the hallway will not be sufficient for the stair area (with or without the wall...)
I find the hallway too large as it is.

Generally for daily outerwear:
- Indeed, on the northern side of the stairs a coat rack shelf (not very deep) is planned (shoes, scarves, caps, hats, gloves, key rings, etc.). It is just not drawn in. The wall is ceiling-high (not visible here because it’s not load-bearing)
- Between the front door and the narrow window there will be a bench (for putting on shoes).
- A floor-length mirror will be placed to the left of the front door

Outerwear for less frequent use:
- Storage area in the garage (e.g., shoe cabinets), rainwear, etc. --> we have included it inside the thermal envelope
- Seasonal jackets will be hung in the guest room basement (cabinets) (heated, livable)

TV in the living room: I would plan it next to the fireplace, possibly as a long bench that runs from wall to wall, one side with the fireplace, then the TV. Depends also on your wish for the fireplace. Advantage: you can look into the fire as well as at the TV.

Yes, we might do that. It is an option now. Our specially engaged architect (only for revising the floor plans) is of the opinion that the fireplace in the living room size definitely has to stand alone on one wall, otherwise it does not have enough impact......?

Double door dining: do you use both doors? Usually one stays closed, one opens. Or you want both to stay open... I would rather rate them as superfluous.

We are torn. On the one hand we want the living room to sometimes be quiet (no dining and cooking noise), on the other hand it surely also looks more generous when it is open. What do you think of a glass door/wall?

Bedroom upstairs: since it apparently is your condition to look out the window from the bed into nature, I would only build the wall at head height (e.g. 150cm), so the inner hallway is more open. Then the passage can remain as it is.
My veto: do you really look out into nature from the bed? Do you use the balcony?

No, not necessarily a "condition." But it would be nice because we have a great beech front to the south. The wall is planned as a half-high wall as you thought.

Of course pure luxury. Also the balcony. But we need it anyway (W1O = 66% of the ground floor area may be built higher than 2.30m upstairs).

Children's rooms: I would not plan the beds in the alcoves. There is not even space for a bedside table. This cave-like character might still be quite nice for small kids, but for teenagers? One room hardly has any space for a wardrobe because of the small window.
So I would only plan the niches about 70 cm deep and place built-in wardrobes there. Also pay attention to door positioning. At the moment it appears that one door was placed more advantageously for the living hallway and disadvantageously for one of the children's rooms.
Then see if you can do without the two narrow windows upstairs so that one children's room has more space (front view side).

Those are my remarks

The inner dimensions of the niches are: 1.20 x 2.30 m. A normal youth bed (mattress 90x2.00 m / outer dimensions approx. 110x220) would fit without problems. A nightstand fits with child 1, with child 2 with the head direction reversed. Or the bed stands south of the door. With child 1 I could also place a wider youth bed vertically. With child 2 a wider bed could also stand south. So we like the niches.

We are indeed considering the narrow windows... however, then we would need a different solution for the north view. Currently, the narrow windows of ground and first floor form the perceived vertical line of the gable.

Many thanks

Hello Wanderdüne,

thank you. I will address your thoughts.

Hello!

Unfortunately, I cannot see that the key points of the last draft were satisfactorily resolved:

- The entrance area still lacks a sufficiently large wardrobe..

See explanations with Yvonne.

- The living room not only has two doors, but also an additionally restless northern wall layout.

Doors..... is an issue...... see above as well. The wall layout can be thought about. Two built-in elements are drawn there. However, a Jugendstil display cabinet (from my grandmother) (90 cm wide) will stand there.

Watching TV (if not in a separate area) can be planned well rotated by 90° to the main viewing direction (from the start!).

Can you draw that or explain it differently? Unfortunately, I didn’t understand. TV will definitely take place in the living room. Our architect already wanted to talk us out of that…..

Light from three sides (the hallway does not count here, as it faces north and is too low) is an affordable luxury, why is it not realized here?

Because too much wall space would be lost. Where should the fireplace, TV and display cabinet, TV bench, possibly a bookshelf go? If you have specific suggestions, very welcome....

- If you want a dressing room, the plan has to deliver this. Your building volume is already very expensive given the external dimensions and the money is available, so there are no excuses here.

The dressing room would only be feasible if the bedroom is very small. Then both would be very cramped. Since neither of us work shift work, a dressing room is not necessarily necessary.

How do you know that about "expensive"? What is expensive for you?

- The access is indeed impractical, but rather a small problem. I would rather want to catch the morning sun, additionally be able to look into the garden / terrace when entering, and then want to look ergonomically at a TV from the bed.

We do not want TV in the bedroom. We had that once in a shared apartment in Cologne. And consciously removed TV.

Morning sun would indeed be nice. But the southern exterior view is more important to us.

-- The master bathroom, like the missing dressing room, does not correspond to the number on the price tag..

The bathrooms are not yet fully planned. They will be planned separately by the bathroom planner and will certainly turn out differently. (at least the master bathroom).

-- General:
- In my opinion, the building shape does not do justice to the plot.

We did not get an "L" approved by the office. We find the "T" very nice as an alternative. Certainly also a matter of taste. In general: There is a relatively restrictive requirement of the building envelope (built-up area, but also length and width).

Thanks!

The problem in the master bedroom with the passage width cannot be solved by widening the windows or anything like that either. The bed position remains the same if you insist on having it exactly centered to the window..

Yes, true, although I meant that the double bed is completely in front of the window facade. Meaning, if there are more window elements, then the bed can be further to the left and still stand completely in front of the window, but not centered.

I would find a half-height wall good, but then the cabinets on the left in the bedroom anteroom would no longer be allowed. That would basically make this anteroom obsolete...

We want to use the cabinet. The alternative would be, as you said, removing the wall, turning the bedroom to the upper left corner at the expense of the children's room. But we don't want that. Or else placing the bed left against the wall and east-facing. Then cabinet space is lost. Or is that what you meant?

I see the ground floor hallway like Wanderdüne and Yvonne. There is a lack of storage space...

See above answer to Yvonne.

In the kitchen I also noticed that if this type of kitchen planning is to be realized, the distance between the work areas sink/cooking becomes uncomfortably large.....

Hmm, do you find about 1.60 m large? What distance is usually planned?

I thought it might even be advantageous that you don’t get under each other’s feet so easily. We’re also not yet sure if we actually want to use it as a cooking island or maybe just as a working island.

Best regards and thanks!

Yes, we might do that if necessary. It's an option now. Our specially hired architect (only for revising the floor plans), however, thinks that the fireplace in the living room has to stand alone on one wall because otherwise it wouldn't have enough impact......?

Nope... But if you want an English fireplace with a slanted chimney and wooden beams, that might be true.
I imagine a cuboid or cube on the wall, so 90-degree edges, well... these plastered and painted white, a built-in bench, the fireplace on top, firewood underneath. Next to it then the built-in bench extended as a shelf. I just saw a photo somewhere...

Regarding the 160 distance in the kitchen: 160 is too wide. It's nice to be able to rotate on your own axis and then continue working there — WITHOUT taking a step or only half a step.
120 is standard! This basically applies to work surfaces, not only to kitchen islands.

TV should definitely be located in the living room. ... Because too much floor space would be lost. Where should the fireplace, TV and display cabinet, TV stand, possibly a bookshelf go? If you have a concrete proposal, very welcome....

Normally, planning is done so that from the preferred type of seating in the living room you have the desired view outside or the desired indoor-outdoor relationship is achieved. Combining this with a home theater without a separate area can result in the TV being rotated 90° from the main viewing axis if the seating allows it, but it doesn’t have to. Everything depends on conditions, preferences, seating furniture, etc., meaning it is important to plan early, as later changes are difficult. Regarding the windows: to get a lot of light into a room, floor-to-ceiling windows, which cost floor space, are not necessary.

How do you know about the "expensive"? What is expensive for you?

Every projection or recess costs money; you might want to request an alternative with a "smoothed" design.

Morning sun would indeed be nice. But the southern exterior view is more important to us.

And why must it be an either-or decision? Why not both?

The bathrooms are not yet fully planned. They will be planned separately by the bathroom planner and will certainly look different. (at least the master bathroom).

But even he can’t work magic on almost finalized facts.

We were not able to get an "L" approved by the authority. We find the "T" as an alternative very nice.

Did you submit an official building pre-application and receive a rejection? Did you submit the application yourselves or with an architect you hired? What was the reasoning given that an L is not permitted?