Alternative Solution #1
Pros
- large kitchen
- large living room
- large porch
- large guest bedrooms
- large master bath
Cons
- small dining room
- no distinguished entranceway (at front or back door)
- small utility room
- little storage
- corridors occupy much of the space
- living areas consolidated in front of house while back door is most common entrance
- no formal entrance to master suite
- little privacy for master bedroom because of two story living room
- master bedroom setback from front of house/view
- valuable space wasted with two story living room
- plumbing not alignedplumbing over guest bedroom
While the first Alternative Solution does have pros, the cons strongly outweigh them. The house is designed to promote an open and relaxing environment. The most open part of the house is the two story living room. The master bedroom overlooks the two story living room, giving it an open feel, yet restricting privacy. Because of the two story living room, the master bedroom is also set back from the front of the house and the view of the Atlantic. The kitchen in this house is very large, with a lot of counter space and a large breakfast bar. This however is condescended by the small dining room. At both the front and back door there is no distinguished entranceway, so there would be no place to take off coats and shoes when walking into the house. In the case of the front door, after walking in the door one immediately finds oneself in the living room. The guest bedrooms are both fairly large with decent sized closets, yet the bathroom and utility room are both rather small.
Upstairs is the master suite. Because the entire second floor is considered the master suite, there is no formal entrance, only the staircase. The master suite consists of a master bedroom, a master bath, a walk in closet, and a library/study area. Each of these areas is fairly large. However, valuable space is wasted in that a corridor runs the entire length of the north wall of the house. The decks in the front and back of the house are fairly large.The overall design of the house faces issues such as limited storage and unaligned plumbing. For this design, the cons far outweigh the pros. The general idea of the design is satisfactory, yet it not very practical for full time living.
Alternative Solution #2
Pros
- large L shape porch
- large living room
- large kitchen
- large dining room
- mudroom
- large utility room
- distinguished entranceway
- large master bathlarge open space
Cons
- small first floor bathroom
- walk-in closet separated from master bedroom by stairs
- living areas consolidated in front of house while back door is most common entrance
- little storage
- limited counter spacesmall guest bedrooms
The second Alternative Solution has a fairly even balance of pros and cons. One of the biggest pros of the second solution is the large L-shaped porch. The L-shaped porch allows for the door to be set away from the gathering area of the porch and create two separate areas. After entering through the front door there is a foyer area separate from the living room. From the foyer one can go upstairs or into the living room. The size of the living room is another positive aspect of the house. Dividing the living room from the kitchen is a breakfast bar. The house has a large kitchen area as well as a large dining area, except there is little in the way of counter space and storage. Moving toward the back of the house are two guest bedrooms, both of which are small. The first floor has one small bathroom, but there is a large utility room and a mudroom. The biggest flaw of the first floor layout is that the living areas are consolidated in the front of the house and the private areas are toward the back of the house. Because the clients mostly enter the house through the back door, they would have to walk down the hall past the private areas to reach the living areas.
Moving upstairs is the Master Suite. The Master Suite has the same large L-shape porch as the first floor. There is also a decent sized master bathroom. The biggest flaw in the design of the Master Suite is the separation of the walk-in closet from the master bedroom by the stairs. Moving on from the Master Suite is a large open multi-purpose area, with a large deck on the back of the house.The overall concept of the house satisfies the clients to some degree, yet the specifics of the design aren’t right. Although there are many pros, there are almost as many cons. The pros emphasize the concept of what the client is looking for, yet the cons identify some of the more practical aspects and specifics of the house.
Alternative Solution #3
Pros
- large kitchen
- large living room
- large dining room
- large mudroom
- large utility room
- large master suite
- two full baths upstairs
- additional living room (den)
- limited counter space/small island
- few/no kitchen windows
- little storage
- plumbing not aligned
- bathroom above bedroom
The third and final Alternative Solution is the strongest design. Walking into the house through the backdoor, one will be in a large mudroom, with a same-size utility room on the left. Moving toward the front of the house is a large kitchen with an island and breakfast bar. Across from the kitchen is a large dining room. Immediately next to the dining room is a large living room. The kitchen, dining room, and living room are all open to each other. Adjacent to the living room is one of two guest bedrooms. Across from the guest bedroom is a full bathroom. Past the guest bedroom and bathroom is a den and a large porch. The front door leads from the outside into a small foyer with a coat closet. The first floor layout provides an open, relaxing atmosphere with two separate living areas. The biggest living areas are close to the rear of the house and the back door, which is the most commonly used entry by the clients.
Moving upstairs is the library/study area. Attached to the library/study area is an open multi-purpose area, as requested by the client. At the back of the house is the second guest bedroom with a small attached balcony. There is one full common bathroom upstairs. Moving toward the front of the house is the Master Suite. The Master Suite consists of a large bedroom, bathroom, walk-in closet, and private balcony.
The design consists of many pros, and the existing cons can be easily corrected. The overall design of the house is somewhat different than what the client envisioned, yet it greatly satisfies their needs.
Chosen SolutionAlternative Solution #3 was the final alternative solution for Mr. & Mrs. Crumlish’s retirement beach house. Although it deviated from what the clients had in mind, the design greatly appealed to them. The design introduced a new direction to the clients and convinced them it would actually satisfy their needs greater than the previous two alternative solutions. The client especially liked the idea of having two separate living areas downstairs, a living room and a den. Several other aspects of the house that appealed to the clients were the mudroom, the large kitchen and dining room, and the large master bedroom and master suite as a whole.
Although the design does have some cons, the pros are of a much higher value to the client, and they are willing to proceed with Alternative Solution #3. Moving forward, the client will be involved in working to reduce and eliminate the cons of the original design and adjust the design to satisfy the client 100%. Changes include adding closets to the kitchen, upstairs guest bedroom, and upstairs common area, enlarging the island in the kitchen, and switching the place of the stove with the sink to allow for a window in the kitchen.
