When you walk in a door (or doorway) you want a nice sight line ahead of you -- this makes the house feel comfortable and inviting. Look at what you see when you walk in the entry of this house: Half a dining room wall. This could easily be shifted slightly . . . then adjust the window by the two chairs slightly so that when you walk in, you're looking over the dining room table and to the window. It'll be a lovely, welcoming entrance.

I agree that the two 9' bedrooms are too narrow . . . but together they'll be one very large bedroom -- in fact, it's bigger than the master. However, what I don't like about this newly formed double-bedroom is that the bathroom is across the entryway. I don't think a bath must be attached to every bedroom, but I wouldn't like to have to cross the entryway at night, especially if people were still up in the great room.

The master is not luxuriously large, but it is adequate. I would switch the closet and the bathroom -- this would allow the bath to have more windows. I'd also steal 2" from your daughter's enlarge bedroom . . . and add it to the master closet. What you've drawn here requires the space of a walk-in closet, but it only provides the storage of a reach-in. That small amount of extra space would double your storage space.

Too many vaulted ceilings. If you vault ONE area, it's an accent, something that draws positive attention to that room. If you vault everything, it looks overdone.

Thanks for the feedback! I really like your ideas about the entrance and the master closet. Not sure how I could fix the bathroom being across the entrance from the bedroom?

My husband and I really like the look of this house as it suits our land. It will be built on a lake in northern Ontario. The vaulted ceilings lend itself to windows across the front of the house. I have attached a drawing.

I would appreciate any other suggestions. This is our one and only kick at the can. We not ever be moving or building again.

The bathroom across the house from the bedroom would bother me, too. But, since the combined bedroom would be so large, you could just borrow space from it and shift the bath to that end of the house, next to the master. The old bathroom could become a half bath, pantry, storage, etc.

When I try and move the washroom into the space of the bedroom it looks like a bowling ally to me.

The bedroom will be for my 13 year old daughter and she has her heart set on a hangout space. I have attached a pic of what we are thinking. The sofa would be a fold out bed for sleepovers. Input welcome!

How do I fit all these things in? I can not increase the footprint.

Thanks!

Your daughter will feel like a princess, what a lovely space for a young lady! Not to dwell on this, but would you consider squaring off that corner of the house, and adding a bathroom, making a suite, and you might be able to expand your master closet as MsPete suggests? It might also allow a larger MB, so the person at the second sink can stand on the floor instead of on the commode ;)

It really is a pretty house, one hopes it looks out over a peaceful Ontario lake.

IF the bedroom dimensions don't include the closets, which it looks like it doesn't, here's an idea with the bathroom moved. I put a queen bed in there as well as the IKEA Moheda sofa bed. She could use a pouf as a "coffee table" with the sofa which would also add extra seating.

As a 13 year old, for me it would be so worth it to have a mini walk in closet (very small) and a bathroom right off my bedroom that I might be willing to give up the double sized room.

Plus that way you guys get a fantastic walk in pantry off the kitchen.

The other thing I would consider would be bumping out a small master closet over the stairs downstairs. Perhaps doing 2' deep built ins all along that great room wall, with the top built-in facing the other way into the master. It looks like there would be plenty of head room by the time you get to that part of the stairs.

Just a note on the kitchen plan: I would make sure the DW is planned to the left of the sink when you're looking at the sink. I think they're a little optimistic to think you can fit a 4x4 island plus stools into the space. If the kitchen is 12'4" from top to bottom, take 25" for the sink run, add 42" for aisle between sink and island, add 42" to allow traffic to walk behind the stools on the top run, and you're looking at a 39" deep island. You need 24" of elbow room for each seated person on a stool so you're shy of being able to put two people on that island.

So what I would do is 24" deep base cabinets for the island, facing the sink, plus a 15" deep counter overhang at the back and sides, which leaves you room for one stool with its back to the living room and two stools with their backs to the top wall there.

Then unless you're planning to buy a counter depth fridge, make sure you leave a good amount of clearance between the stove and island, maybe 48"? And make the island somewhere around 4-5 feet long. Maybe 5 feet. So your stools aren't backing into the dining room table.

If you're used to lake living you might be planning to do this already, but it might be worth seeing how expensive it would be to extend the roof over the area in front of the kitchen to facilitate having a screen porch right there. We live in the screen porch from June to September.

I'm curious, do you get snow? If so, won't there be a problem where the roofs intersect?

Thanks so much for the input everyone. I have sent the suggestions on to my builder!

We get tons of snow. For us shoveling roofs is regular maintenance. But we only have to mow the lawn for 3 months of the year.

Heather