The house design is completely schizophrenic.

The LH side details do not extend to the RH side of the home. Pic one style and let it run through the design.

Please identify the barn, the required breezeway, the garage and the front entrance.

What is the purpose of the barn? Livestock? Horses?

take my advice with a grain of salt bc I think simple homes with lush landscaping are a more sophisticated look and this home has a lot of different window styles and lots of different elements tacked on to the facade to create “interest” which I think isn’t ideal -

but likely you have gotten very far in the design process at this point and exterior changes can impact the interiors… at this point if it were me, I would want to simplify and unify the home by toning down all the different elements (ideally, i’d tuck the garage behind the home)

I agree with all of these comments! I’m just unsure how to fix it!

I love simple as well!

we are far into the plans but willing to make changes in the jntettoor floor plan.

interior *

the barn is the building on the far right- connected by the 4windoes and door (breezeway)

The barn is an inlaw suite in the front as well as equipment storage

Random thoughts:

- What bothers me most is that -- were I a guest arriving at this house -- I would not know where to park /where to approach. That's uncomfortable.

- No, it doesn't have a balanced, aesthetically pleasing look. Instead, it appears rather random and chaotic. The parts do not seem to fit together /match one another.

- Nothing here is too plain. I'd suggest simplifying -- simple is not a synonym for dull or plain, but simple stands the test of time.

- Nothing is modern or transitional in style.

- The exterior needs a full re-model.

Make a decision to select either the Modern style of the LH side or the more Traditional style on the RH and change the front details of the exterior based on that decision.

The proportions on the barn roof seem way off. To me the roof line should be stepped down. It doesn't look like a barn. It looks like an airplane hangar.

Which is the plan now ? I find it hilarious a town insists on a brn attached to a home ever. The whole house has an identity issue the windows th roof lines all add to the confusion This is neither modern or transitional and honestly all of this should have been designed before the first step in construction How far along are you ? Waht can be changed? I gues I will ask the obvious why barn at all? Is this a farm ?

These comments confirm all of concerns, the airport hanger is so accurate.

Thank you for the suggestions with pictures, its helpful!

Do you think the stepped barn photo you attached,
Fits the left side of the home better?

Thank you so much for the input, I really appreciate it. This is not a farm. We live on several acres, have atvs, boat etc those type of things that need more space than a garage. Our town only allows a certain size extra out building, attaching via breezeway allows us to get around that. The front of the barn is also an in law suite for my parents.

We have not broke ground so anything can be changed. I sent the plan to a 3D renderer bc I was concerned with the initial elevations.
I was hoping to get suggestions on how to make it better without starting over because the cost is quickly escalating with changes.

I don't mind the connection to the barn. But the amount of rooflines! No thank you . It is way too much and the sizes are all different so the pitches are all different. It reminds me of a house near me that started as a one room summer cottage, then over the years a room or 2 were added. Each addition is a different size, higher or lower roof, bumped in or out. Just a patchwork of little rooms slapped next to each other.

If I pulled up to this house I wouldn't know where to go to get in. You don't even see the garage doors as you are pulling up. The driveway should be redone - make the split towards the barn earlier and do not have the driveway in front of the breezeway. Or relocate it.

_ I like a bit of a simpler roof line so I think I would have the main house and fireplace are have the same roof as the main entrance.

Is this the only way the house can be positioned? I feel like the house needs to be first when you come up the driveway. Can you put the house on the right of the barn? Or maybe change the driveway so that you approach the main house first? Can you swap the garage with the fireplace section?

Geez I am just not sure. I hope some of the brilliant people in here can give you some more ideas!

Beverly- do you think with changes to the RH / barn
the garage placement is ok?

We considered moving the garage doors to the opposite side- parking for us and guests would be on the backside of the garage in front of breezeway.
The breezeway is the guest entrance. Once in the breezeway to the left leads to mudroom/kitchen to the rights it leads to the in- law suite.

Thank you!

Thank you I agree Debbie! I would like the house portion to be the first thing you see when pulling up the driveway not the breezeway/ barn.

The architect made the roof pitches the same, at least that’s what he told me.

The renderer threw the driveway/ parking up around the house as an idea so that can certainly change, but where the driveway starts has to stay unfortunately.

I thought about flipping the plan - barn on the left side. It’s just a lot of extra driveway to get over to there.

The first 2 photos I loved so much,
also some others I sent the architect, maybe I’m having the identity crisis bc I like a lot of things.

So this property also has a barn/outbuilding but they changed the material and it's not connected to the home physically.

Here is the barn/out building with a roof line more like the home and the siding a different stain color. But the pitch on the roof matches the house.

No small tweaks are going to fix what's wrong with the exterior design of this home. Changes to the façade will have some affect on the interior plan. I can't tell you if dividing the structure with a side loading garage works for this home. It's a lot of driveway, and I'm trying to understand where your in-laws will park without walking through your home to get to theirs.

We don't know what your budget is, but the house you posted has lots of large glass which is $$$$. You have to decide if you're going with standard windows in this house or custom glass.

The details on the LH side of the house in no way reflect the details presented in the inspiration picture. That home has kept things very simple. Your design has a large overhanging roof, a glass vestibule entrance and exposed timbers. That design is almost MCM and a throw back to the 80s.

We don't know if you are working with an architectural designer or draftsman. There's a big difference. The house needs work.

I hired an architect who then gave it to a draftsman in his office, it’s been a brutal process and expensive to this point. I expected them as professionals to tell me how to achieve a well designed home along with my inspo picts. Turns out neither im working with str designers at all and it’s showing.

This pict attached here was given to them as inspo for the LH. They then came up with the RH to attach the barn.

The right side of the barn has an inlaw side entrance currently. Parking would be on the right side of the barn- there are 3 garage doors and a man door.

The photo you re posted I agree is not at all reflected in my current renderings- those were just a collection of
photos I sent to the architect to show what I liked.

If I could make the tweaks to help my current exterior, that would be great. I spend hours scouring the internet to find solutions, I’m not a designer or an architect so it’s difficult to figure out exactly how to fix it.
I thought I would try here with all the talented people. Do you have a suggestion of who can help?

I agree with everything you are saying. It’s been the most informative help I’ve gotten since starting this process 7 months ago. Thank you.

What does the back and sides look like? I don't like how the garage sticks out in the middle of the whole thing. Can the garage go on the left side? Then have a small " breezeway " then the fireplace then the front entry, then the other breezeway then the barn?

This is super crude because I don't know how far back these sections go and the driveway is wonky in my drawing.

So the left side of the house is a cut/paste from the first inspiration picture. Then the barn part gets added on because it has to go somewhere.

Given acreage, I'd think the original direction should be something like this. So the house is the first/most prominent thing you see.

Thank you Debbie for the visual. I’ll post the floor plan- which can still be adjusted. There are certainly some things we did that make the elevations tricky and having to attach the barn is making it even more difficult!
Unfortunately we now realize how important it is to hire a seasoned designer and architect.

I’m not sure how clear this will be

How many square feet is the house itself and the barn? (Sorry if i missed)

Why do you need a garage if you have a huge freaking barn that is not going to house animals?

Try coolhouseplans.com

They have filters to refine your search. Good luck! I get the need for the barn. Same situation here.

Ok, just at a glance, I don't care for it. That big outdoor fireplace at the front of the house is off a bedroom? ! I would have expected that to be the great room at least. Hard to tell what the rooms are.

It seems very forced. The breezeway isn't a breezeway. It is a whole section of house attached to the barn.

I think I would design the house I wanted ( disregard the barn for the moment ). Then do an actual breezeway between the 2 buildings.

Look at these

Simplify the connection. That's my thought. It looks like the architects threw every idea you had into the build. I'm far from an architect but I think I would go back tot he drawing board. Even looking up house plans on your own ( without the barn for now since all you need is a breezeway).

Good luck to you!

Thank you Debbie this is so helpful! I really appreciate you taking the time to do that. I think you’re right about the “breezeway” ….back to the drawing board.

I understand that you want it to be just right and have loads of ideas. But never forget about the function of the spaces you are creating. Homes can be visually stunning with landscaping, lighting, walkways and a great mix of finishes.

It just seems like everybody is fighting with the barn instead of just adding a nice enclosed breezeway - simplicity. I liked the picture with the breezeway that had the deck in front of it.

It seems like you have a nice huge piece of property that may have views everywhere.

Is there a house there now? Is there a driveway there ? Maybe if you post a couple of pics of the area , people can make suggestions.

For now take a pause to regroup and see what other wonderful ideas everyone comes up with.

Texas, this has got to be in Texas.

From what I see, the architect gave you what you wanted, according to that inspo pic that you really, really love. Maybe that directive was too strict, and resulted in awkwardness in the design.

Point of illustration: The inspo pic is here - in massing, function, pretty close aesthetically but bringing in "rustic" detailing which I assume you desire. The inspo pic has that high-gabled front open porch, probably because the site required that for a view and focus on outdoor living for that view, with a public space accessing that porch. However, in your design, to mimic that, an awkward long hallway past the Master Wing to get to this outdoor living area that apparently is not the focus of your site - it looks like the focus is towards the back with the covered porch and probably outdoor pool.

Point of illustration: The inspo pic is a main floor house with bonus room above garage. However, in your plan, all secondary bedrooms are above the garage, with a very remote entrance stair from the heart of the home. It seems this was done to keep the inspo pic intact.

Point of illustration: You have programming requirements that you will not find off the internet. Things like the dual garages. The large room (indoor pool? racetrack? bball court?) with it's accessory room (game room?). Large gym adjacent (I think). ADU connected to the accessory garage (not "barn"). You've got it, even if there is some awkwardness in melding those with the inspo pics.

There could be a different design than what you have, but there are many, many directions to go and any could be successful. It seems you understand that awkwardness, but can't quite pinpoint it's root cause. Maybe a little more conciseness in how you live, how you want those ways of living to relate to each other, might offer a better direction to change the design.

If you're really going to go "back to the drawing board", PLEASE do it with another architect. I know you've invested a lot of design money already, but you're going to spend a lot more on the house itself. Best to start over and get everything right with someone who will listen to your needs, evaluate the site, and give you the house you deserve.

^ good advice, I’ve worked with 3 architects and 2 were fantastic - one was for a really extensive addition/reno and the other was for a new build. for the new build, we had one discussion at the beginning about style and I sent a few pics but that was the extent of the inspo - she was off and running: melding the style concept with the lot and our family needs. She was also not shy about saying no to things to that took us off our path and I think that’s important too - a lot of good design is discipline. Hope you can find someone great and get the home you want, building a custom home is not for the feint of heart ❤️❤️

You have to set your expectations right for what you and who you are working with. Your inspo pics are probably million dollar architects who work in a particular style and your architects are not as skilled and that isn't their style. So you ended up with what looks like an AI generated mistake.

Just spit balling some questions and thoughts:

- Stop calling it a barn. That notion is out the window with the code and need for change. You need a garage, equipment storage, and an in-law unit. Why not align all three of them in the same "wing"?

- I cannot tell from the attached pic what is at the back of the house. Can you say more about that space? Circled here in pink

- Is there a spectacular view across from the front of the house? That is the only reason I can figure out why anyone would place the outdoor fireplace at the front of the house. Is there some other reason? Why not place it at the back of the house?

- This is the ever most bastardized form of a sketch that is not to scale and not accounting for the interior design - just a way to organize your exterior design so you are dealing with two interesting buildings instead of a hodge podge of way too many.

- It creates a flat line across the front of the house with a nice right angle to the garage. The garage can still be pulled into from the front. Equipment doors are still on the side they were originally on. In-law is at the back of the garage / equipment wing. There is no longer a need for a breezeway because this is all one dwelling.

Thank you all so much for the advice and taking the time to help. Each input has certainly given us a lot to think about.

Love the idea of lining the garage up with the storage unit/inlaw, I did send inspo PICTs with that idea in mind.

The architect was having difficulty making the building circled in pink (basketball/ game room) work along side that as well.

I know we need to concede on the layout.

This first 2 pictures I found recently look very similar to our right side drawings right now, I don’t love it.

The last picture is the inspo of garage lining up In front the “barn” which I love. of the “barn”.

I feel for you because you have already spent a lot of money and are not close to getting what you want. It sounds like you are never going to get what you want from this firm. I don't know where you are, but I would be looking into whether there are other options. No sense in sending good money after bad.

I would start over with an architect who would not pass off the work to someone else. It's better to cut your losses than to throw good money after bad, as kandrewspa says. What you have spent so far is small compared to building costs. The existing design has so many wall corners with "ins and outs" and complicated roof structures that it will be far more expensive to build than a simpler, more unified design.