front entry, how small

18 years ago

hi all

i am an owner of a small (well the rooms are small anyway) bungalow. the county says it is 2100 sq ft, but i find that hard to believe...in any case, the second floor rooms have those sloping ceilings and we are looking to maximize the room. for you small house fans, we actually decided against a family room addition of 500 sq ft that was designed and had bids. 100K was WAY over the budget!

we are now working with what we have and reconsidering each area of the house. as for the entry...the front of the house is a porch, 7x24. the front door enters into a room that is about 12x12. walls have been removed, so this room is bigger than it used to be and is continuous with a living room, also on the front, about 12x13. somehow the "one big room" concept (12x24) that worked in our old 900 sq ft bungalow doesn't work here, i think because of the entry door.

so...we are planning to make the entry smaller and redefining it with a room divider. this will also restore the closet (removed by PO!) to the adjacent bedroom. my question for you GWers is...how small can an entry be and still be useful? 8x12? 6x12? we know that this area will remain 12 foot on one side. the other side is flexible.

thanks in advance for any suggestions, or reports of your own SH entries. kren

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (5)

flgargoyle
18 years ago
Ours is 5X5- pretty much useless. It's really just a bump-out in the LR. I guess it depends on its intended usage. If you are actually going to receive guests there prior to entering the main house, it needs to be big enough for several people to stand comfortably. I've never lived in a house that had a usable entry- just a coat closet and a small hallway. Get a half dozen people to stand around and chat in the proposed are, and see how it feels.
blue_velvet_elvis
18 years ago
At our house nobody uses the front door anyway. Everyone we actually invite and want here comes in the back door. :~) It's not a problem we don't have a dedicated entry way.
Related Professionals
Miami Architects & Building Designers · Columbia Architects & Building Designers · Amherstburg Architects & Building Designers · Brunswick Home Builders · Macon Home Builders · Kalispell Home Builders · Spanish Fork Home Builders · Daytona Beach Interior Designers & Decorators · Pensacola Interior Designers & Decorators · Valdosta Interior Designers & Decorators · Baltimore Interior Designers & Decorators · Tulsa Interior Designers & Decorators · Jackson Interior Designers & Decorators · Memphis Interior Designers & Decorators · Parkersburg Interior Designers & Decorators
willie_nunez
18 years ago
Small house, small entry/foyer, but when we designed our small house we insisted on a dedicated entry space. It's 6' 4" x 15' 6".
kren_pa
Original Author
18 years ago
thanks everybody! the purpose of the back entry is to hide all the junk that we are taking out of the front entry. to get to our back entry, guests would have to do battle with several garbage cans, recycling, etc. better for them to come in the front!
the porch on the front gets used as the foyer in nicer weather actually, but still we need a foyer.
willie thank you for the pictures. ours would be 6 x 12 the other way (enter on the long side), but it is very helpful to see just how wide 6 and a half feet looks. i like your arch!

kren
brutuses
18 years ago
willie, I can see by your foyer that your house is beautiful. Would you mind posting photo's of some other rooms for me to "drool" over? I love looking at other folks beautiful houses and hopefully gaining some insight into how to decorate and furnish my own. Thanks so much.