Bedroom Remodel, Part 2

The closets are gone!  Mr. Fix-it attacked them with his usual tenacity!  The trim is all down too!  So, now that I'm looking at a blank slate, I am re-considering the floor plan.  I had been vascillating between the walk-in closet being at this end (the North End), or the South end of the room:

I just love the morning sunshine that streams in!  As you can see, this room has windows on three walls. It's longer rather than wide, which is why we need to place the walk-in closet at either end.  I've always liked when there's a window in a closet; it provides such great natural light. 

Let me show you around, and share all the considerations filling my head! 

This is the interior wall.  The door has always opened the wrong way!  Another way precious inches were wasted. The long wall to the right was where we placed the bed, most of the time.  Mr. Fix-it would love to not have to move the doorway...

But, here's the story on the other side of the wall!  

These are the last few areas of the house we haven't finished!  Notice the globe lights and the orange, small woodwork. The house used  to end where the seams are in the floor.  The bedrooms at the end of the hall were added above the kitchen in the 60's or 70's.  This hallway is always dark.  The pictures above show the glass front cabinet with our bedroom door closed, and then open. We want to add a window someday where those yellow shutters hang.  The previous owners had an air conditioner unit there, hence my creative decorating!

Taking all these issues into consideration, we put together some floor plan options.

This is where we had been, up until a week ago!  It was workable, but there's only about 18 inches on the tight side of the bed, and it just felt really cramped, although the closet would be nice and big (in my old-house realm)!  The goofy cut-out at the bottom left (the south end) has always been a thorn in my side.  It's un-usable floor space. It even had space-wasting bi-folds!   There's built-in shelves above the stairway, so I get some storage there, but no furniture can ever fit in that space, because the shelves need to be accessed. Now that the room is empty, my strategic brain has been in overdrive.

Here's what I came up with:

Of course it means moving the doorway! If the closet is located at the south end of the house, it incorporates that useless corner!  There is way more wall space than we've ever had before, which means more possibilities of room arrangement! I personally always like angling my bed.  I like this arrangement the best; as you enter the room the bed is "looking at you". The windows would be straight ahead.  The farther our eyes can see, the bigger the space looks. Here's another possibility:

And another...

And the glorious sunlight!  We would put some type of glass, vintage door on the closet so the southern sun streamed in, and the morning sunlight would stream down that dark hallway! The door would be centered on the windows!  Sightlines are so important in architecture! I was even thinking we could build in the glass front cabinet in the hallway, add some lower drawers beneath it, and I could have linen storage, all the while making it look like it was always there!

What do you think? I think Mr. Fix-it is warming up to the idea! Even though the initial plan was simple and straighforward, we always want to better the flow of the house. Function and beauty go hand in hand. I probably will have to wait awhile before I post on this subject again, because we will be working!  The subfloor will go down next, and the popcorn will be attacked soon after.  When we see some walls being constructed, I'll let you know! 

Comments

[Paula]

I love the last floor plan, probably because our master bedroom is very similar. We love having our bed under the window - great view and lots of fresh air while sleeping. Good luck!

[Bkheitke]

I like the plans that have the bed square on the wall. I've slept in a bed or two that are asymmetrical with the wall and it's a weird feeling, (just my two cents:)). It's so fun to follow your progress Lora...can't wait to see the end result!
~Kari

[Lora Bloomquist]

Thanks for your input! The only problem with the bed in front of the window, is that our headboard is tall (you can see it leaning in the hallway)and will block the window partially. I like the idea of smelling the fresh air right by my head, though!

[Lora Bloomquist]

Well, there's 2 votes for the bed straight on the wall! But, Kari, you know that sometimes I can be a little "off the wall", therefore those days the asymmetrical may work for me! :) Love to see all your projects also!