In my case while I'd admired and critiqued other house shapes actually drawing a floor plan of our own home was new territory. So the method I used was to first think about what the core shape would be.
A simple rectangle or classic L shape was out - almost every project home was a series of perpendicular rectangles with few going outside of these boundaries; so it was easy to decide what I didn't want. Drawing from my inspirations I concocted a basic layout using a pencil and paper.
My initial sketches combined the curved glass wall with the obtuse L shape. This provided a starting point so I could begin adding extra rooms and seeing how well it worked. I proceeded to add rooms around the perimeter of the basic shape and out of it came a basic layout that is pretty close to what it looks like today.
The shape of an obtuse L configuration provided something unique that would have angles that would challenge the eye and provide interest in its form. The rooms would protrude from this core shape; it was important that the shape was not diluted and still visible from both the outside and inside of the home.
The placement of rooms followed the requirements of maintaining close proximity of rooms that had relationships with each other. The children's bedrooms were at an arms length from the master bedroom but close to the main bathroom, the study could open out to the main living area and it would be no problem getting the groceries from the car to the kitchen. Other touches like a deck and pool added food for thought.
One thing that was obvious is that we would not be able to fit everything on one floor. So the guest room was missing and there were also practical considerations like storage that were still unanswered. However, this technique definitely worked well for getting all my thoughts together where they could be analysed and allowed to evolve.
It was also fair to say that the true appearance of the house could not be seen or abstracted from a simple two dimensional floor plan. Three dimensions would be needed to express the concept in its full form.
A simple rectangle or classic L shape was out - almost every project home was a series of perpendicular rectangles with few going outside of these boundaries; so it was easy to decide what I didn't want. Drawing from my inspirations I concocted a basic layout using a pencil and paper.
My initial sketches combined the curved glass wall with the obtuse L shape. This provided a starting point so I could begin adding extra rooms and seeing how well it worked. I proceeded to add rooms around the perimeter of the basic shape and out of it came a basic layout that is pretty close to what it looks like today.
The shape of an obtuse L configuration provided something unique that would have angles that would challenge the eye and provide interest in its form. The rooms would protrude from this core shape; it was important that the shape was not diluted and still visible from both the outside and inside of the home.
The placement of rooms followed the requirements of maintaining close proximity of rooms that had relationships with each other. The children's bedrooms were at an arms length from the master bedroom but close to the main bathroom, the study could open out to the main living area and it would be no problem getting the groceries from the car to the kitchen. Other touches like a deck and pool added food for thought.
One thing that was obvious is that we would not be able to fit everything on one floor. So the guest room was missing and there were also practical considerations like storage that were still unanswered. However, this technique definitely worked well for getting all my thoughts together where they could be analysed and allowed to evolve.
It was also fair to say that the true appearance of the house could not be seen or abstracted from a simple two dimensional floor plan. Three dimensions would be needed to express the concept in its full form.
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