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For Maximizing Floor Space |
More and more log homeowners are turning to one-story floor plans. Here’s how to maximize your main level.
1. Create an Open Layout: Open layouts are best for the main level social spaces, with quadrants devoted to eating, cooking, socializing and relaxing. To give yourself some isolation when you need it, install pocket doors in kitchen or dining room doorways. That way, you can close off a part of your home if necessary, but the rest of the time it will feel open. An easy way to create privacy for the bedrooms? Put your master suite on one side of an open floorplan and your guest suite or extra bedrooms on the opposite side.2. Plan Before You Dig: Keep in mind that a single level home can cost you more in foundation and excavation costs. Building a 2,500-square-foot home on two levels can be less than a single-level home of the same size because you can stack the spaces on top of one another. So if you’re not adamant about living on one level, think about doubling up. Look for a 1 1/2 level floorplan with just a guest room in the loft. Or think about creating a basement den that doubles as a guest bedroom with a sleeper sofa.
3. The Sky's the Limit: To make your main level feel airy, think about using cathedral ceilings in part of your home. Usually, a vaulted great room works best, but kitchens with soaring ceilings are picking up in popularity. If you’re dead-set against a loft, you don’t need to include it—though the super-sized ceiling will carve out space for one. But remember, it might be nice to have a loft for visiting grandkids or to increase the re-sale value of your home.
4. Careful Considerations: Are you planning an attached garage? What about porches and decks? With only one level, you’ll have to carefully consider where these things should be placed. You won’t want your garage to block a sweeping vista from the interior of the home. On the other hand, you’ll want your porches and decks to frame your landscape. Our favorite solution? Wraparound porches for panoramic views.
5. Storage Space: Don’t forget: Everything you’ve previously stored on other levels will need a place on one story. So think about where you’ll find room for a washer and dryer. A stackable model can get tucked into a closet in your bedroom or a mudroom if you’re short on space. Also, you’ll need plenty of closets for all of those items once held in the corners of your attic or basement, like holiday decorations, out-of-season clothes and your kids’ old toys.
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