You can see in the drawing below that doors are drawn as thin rectangles and may include an arc to indicate the swing direction. Pocket doors are drawn as thin rectangles that disappear into walls. The increasingly popular sliding or “barn” doors are drawn partially open alongside a wall. ...
If the front door opens directly to the living or dining space there’s often no notation, just the door swing. Door swings trace the swing of the door in and out — good to keep in mind as you think about furniture placement. Sliding doors are noted not as swings...
A well executed courtyard makes a house memorable as well as more livable. The strong indoor-outdoor connection is a powerful lure but also the geometry of the space, its openings and wall surfaces, and paving materials play important roles,as you can see in modern plan on this post....
Everyone wants to move outside in good weather so a well-designed and convenient porch, screen porch, pergola, patio, lanai, or deck is essential. It lets a small house live large. The trick is to make sure that such a space is ample enough for sitting and convenient to the kitchen...
The family usually enters the house through or near the garage, so why not include a "drop-zone" for weather gear and a recharging station for cell phones as part of a mud room. It could also include space for the washer and dryer....
Most floor plans show the location of sinks, toilets, and other critical fixtures. Skilled designers focus intently on locating kitchen and bath fixtures because they know that precise layout matters. The placement of a refrigerator in relation to the sink, oven and range can determine if a kitchen...