We frequently tour the homes of other builders to get a feel for the market. One of our founders, Judy, frequently says on entering home that’s all about entertaining, “This would be great for a party. I’d hate to live here.” It’s important to balance everyday needs with the ability to entertain to create a functional space. We accomplish this through a set of design principles we’ve learned over the years.
It’s important to always be thinking about how people will move through a space, to provide clear pathways and sufficient space that people can pass one another and move freely within a space. Pathways should be a minimum of 40″, but larger is preferable. In a kitchen, there should be a larger pathway on the backside of the island that encourages people to circulate around the island and not through the kitchen where cooking will be taking place. You should also consider how you will actually use your home. A vestibule at the front door will make welcoming guests easy and feel elegant, but it is essential that you also have a landing space for bags and keys near the door to the garage – where you’ll actually enter your home for the most part.
There are advantages to open concept plans, but it’s important to still provide “separate” spaces. We accomplish this through design cues, rather than walls. This allows the space to function is multiple spaces for the everyday and as one large space for entertaining. Even in entertaining, having spaces separated visually allows people to organically gather is small groups – and to function as one large group when it’s time for the host to address them.
Here, we see that the living area is delineated by the tongue-and-groove cathedral ceiling. It’s not actually a separate space, but it feels like one, so people will naturally gather in two to four separate groups in this layout:
However, this entire space can function as one when needed. For most of the time though, this will need to be functional for the average family – someone doing homework at the bar, while someone watches TV in the living room. This layout allows for both.
A lot of how we think about design comes from commercial spaces. These spaces really rely on design cues to get people where they need to go and to get them to do what they need to do. Think about the airport; there is always a tile walkway and a transition to carpet for the seating area. This unconsciously tells us “walk here” and “wait here.” The same can be accomplished in homes through a number of features:
A key design principle to keep in mind is flexibility, both in layout and in design. How you use a space now may not be how you always use a space. Styles change and you’ll want to stay current. You want to design your home with the flexibility in spaces to perform different functions in the future and you’ll want to design so that style can be update through decor, furniture and lighting, rather than big, expensive features like tile, countertops, or appliances. A timeless aesthetic will allow you to update your style over time without needing to gut the place every ten years.
Ready to build your dream home? It needs to be as functional as it is beautiful. Through careful space planning, our team can help you design a home that works for entertaining and for everyday life.
Contact us today for a consultation and project estimate.
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