The Goal
Our home was built in 1979. We moved here in 1997 and raised our children here. It's been well loved.
Now that the children are (mostly) out of the house, we were able to take stock of what needed tending. Over the years we'd been frustrated by a few things:
-No circular flow in the main floor. When more than 2 or 3 guests came over, there'd always be a bottleneck between the kitchen and the living room.
-No access to the yard from either the deck or screened porch. (These two, though abutting, originally were not connected and we just didn't use the deck--well, the sliding doors to the deck were really hard for the wee ones to open. Just adding a screen door between them improved things considerably.)
-Nothing to draw a visitor into the house...you'd come in the front door and the hallway would lead you to a wall. Bleh, particularly when on the other side of that wall was a beautiful woodland view.
-Formal entry was the only entry, thus doing double-duty as mudroom. We like to work outside a lot, so this area saw a lot of rough use, making it not so presentable for company. We recognized this single entry/exit as a safety concern, as well.
After having elder relatives visit for as long as six weeks, we thought it'd be nice to add some age-in-place features to the main floor, as well. Primarily this included expanding the bathroom to include a shower and adding an entry with no steps.
After initial attempts at working with kitchen designers to do a kitchen makeover, we realized the project went beyond just new counter tops and cabinets, so we opted to employ an architect. That's really when the scope of the project really opened up. $$$. But we love the plan, so here it goes....
Now that the children are (mostly) out of the house, we were able to take stock of what needed tending. Over the years we'd been frustrated by a few things:
-No circular flow in the main floor. When more than 2 or 3 guests came over, there'd always be a bottleneck between the kitchen and the living room.
-No access to the yard from either the deck or screened porch. (These two, though abutting, originally were not connected and we just didn't use the deck--well, the sliding doors to the deck were really hard for the wee ones to open. Just adding a screen door between them improved things considerably.)
-Nothing to draw a visitor into the house...you'd come in the front door and the hallway would lead you to a wall. Bleh, particularly when on the other side of that wall was a beautiful woodland view.
-Formal entry was the only entry, thus doing double-duty as mudroom. We like to work outside a lot, so this area saw a lot of rough use, making it not so presentable for company. We recognized this single entry/exit as a safety concern, as well.
After having elder relatives visit for as long as six weeks, we thought it'd be nice to add some age-in-place features to the main floor, as well. Primarily this included expanding the bathroom to include a shower and adding an entry with no steps.
After initial attempts at working with kitchen designers to do a kitchen makeover, we realized the project went beyond just new counter tops and cabinets, so we opted to employ an architect. That's really when the scope of the project really opened up. $$$. But we love the plan, so here it goes....
Does this mean that you will entertaining even more when you get the improved flow to the house.?Looking forward to seeing it all.
ReplyDeletePerhaps more, but definitely with more enjoyment.
DeleteI'm impressed with how tidy it looks (no big piles of debris laying around) - Anna
ReplyDeleteAnd they are consistently neat. The place is always safe and clean when they leave. The company owner visits several times a week, but it's really Jorge (the foreman) and Miguel (his able assistant) that do most of the structural work. They have a great work ethic. The plumbing and electrical crews are also hard working. We're very happy with the team.
DeleteYou might interested in the owner's approach. On day one or two of the project, we were sitting outside admiring all the work that had been done. It was a peaceful, happy time. The owner said, "Remember this moment. At some point in this project you will be mad at me, I guarantee it. When you are, just breathe and remember this moment. We can work through problems, get this project done, and be happy."