“ Your home is living space, not storage space.” – Francine Jay
If you’re ready for a change – perhaps you are an empty nester or just prefer an easier footprint to live in, this traditional style home, Kenilworth (B-2490) by Frank Snodgrass of Living Concepts, is a great choice. The Kenilworth brings you 1.5 stories, 3 bedrooms and 2 ½ baths in 2,490 square feet of comfortable living.
Do you have a golf course lot picked out? Maybe you’ve found the perfect lot tucked in a cove of a lake? This plan will fit in where ever you like, I’ll show you.
While this home might appear stately and fancy and ‘more’ than you think you are looking for, it isn’t. The beauty of a Traditional home is that it can be anything you want, from casual comfort to elegant charm. From the tall arch above the front door, to the arches above the garage doors and a large front window, you are welcomed with uniform details, not uncommon in a traditional home. A window box under the large front window, when filled with your favorite flowers, will look good from the inside and outside of the home. Line your drive with floral delights too.
Step Inside:
The loggia/front porch isn’t large, but there is room for something ornamental, like a tall plant in a stand that is weather protected, or a statue of some sort. Now, open your door and take in the views. Your foyer is very open to other areas of the house. You can see right into your large gathering room straight ahead, the dining room to your right, to the left, a powder room and a closet for your coats and shoes, so you shake off the day when you remove them. There is also a staircase, on the diagonal, that leads to your second floor. While the foyer is shaped in an interesting way, it isn’t a ‘square’, there are interesting possibilities here. Perhaps under the staircase, you build a room for storage, a reading nook for a child, pantry items for the kitchen or a really unique temperature controlled wine cabinet.
Welcome:
Your gathering room is so cozy and welcoming. You will enjoy time here, alone, or with friends and family. The space is open, thus plenty of room to move. Taking dancing lessons? Practice in here. Playing charades with family? You have all the room you need. A great asset to this space is the fireplace and space for shelving on one wall. The fireplace can be as ornate as you wish or understated and calming. Any style is appropriate in this home. Installing a sound system in your home with speakers in ceilings, you can put a great stereo system on the shelves here and control where you hear your music. Make sure to add a speaker to your covered lanai. Your kitchen and breakfast area open up to the gathering room as well, so you won’t miss a thing if you have a large crowd over, a select few friends or are trying to keep an eye on the news while you prep dinner.
The kitchen sink and counter area faces the gathering room at an angle. You could build up an edge/bar top to that space and add seating for casual times or easy breakfasts. An island in the middle of the kitchen might hold a cooktop. You can sling eggs and hash browns quickly from there to your bar-top eating area and feel like a rock star short-order cook. A back counter area will be perfect for your favorite coffee maker to start your day with energy .
A breakfast/dining area in the kitchen will be perfect for banquette seating or a rustic table with chairs and a bench. Late night card games, peaceful morning devotions or just a nice meal with those you enjoy will be ideal here.
Keep Going:
From the kitchen, pass a small closet or space you use as a pantry, on your way to the laundry room and 2-car garage. Out to your garage, there is a utility door that opens to your side yard. There is a section in the garage (an L-shape) that you might build a countertop, drawers and shelves into so your tools and garden implements are tucked neatly away.
Come Around:
Back into the house and into your gathering room, there is a door to your covered lanai. This lanai will happily take on your grill and a small table and chairs. Add a few pots of flowers or herbs and you are set. Depending on your lot and space, consider extending a patio area from the lanai for even more outdoor living options. If you have a really ideal spot, a pool for warm Summer days will surely add a vacation vibe. From the lanai, there is also a door leading to your master suite. That’s a nice bonus for nights you can’t sleep and you just want to sit outdoors and enjoy the quiet. Maybe a small fountain or windchime lulls you here.
Relax:
Your master suite will surely be a favorite spot for you. A large room with a corner for a chaise lounge (for a nap, or reading the latest NY Times best seller) will be your haven morning and night. You’ll also appreciate the separate walk-in closets. You don’t have to share space with your partner now! You can keep seasonal clothes apart or use one space for all your shoes and handbags. Through the double doors to your master bath, again, no sharing with a partner, you’ll appreciate separate sinks/vanities opposite each other. No cleaning up somebody else’s toothpaste right! This space is at the front left corner of the house and the floral window box outside is just in front of your soaking tub. What a nice view right? A shower and privacy for your commode round out this suite.
Not quite done:
Leave your master suite and head to your stairway. You need to spend time in your dining room, or if a dining room doesn’t fit your needs, make it an office. The space is shaped like home plate on a baseball field. With a tray ceiling, the added feeling of height will make dining or working at a desk pleasurable. No cramped feelings here. If you use this for an office, there is plenty of wall space for shelves, bookcases, art to hang or a really cool clock. For dining, a round table, a sideboard or two, unique chandelier and great wall art will make this space feel clean and airy, but intimate for small gatherings.
Upsey Daisy, not Oopsy:
Heading upstairs, you are greeted to an open loft space. Yes, this can be your office area too. Whatever suits you will be perfect here. There are 2 suites that lend to multi-use. One suite has a bath, the jack-and-jill style that you can ‘pass’ through between the loft and a suite with a walk-in closet. Again, lots of options for an office, guest room(s) or for college kids. The other suite up here has a door and access to the ‘rooftop’ of the covered lanai. Hmmmmm, options, options. Maybe this is a work-out room and the long reach-in closet holds your yoga mat and weights. This room has a lot of doors. With a door into the room, one out to the covered lanai (where you sit and drink your cucumber water after your work-out), one to a very large attic space and the pull open 2 doors to the closet, this may not make the best space for a guest room. Put the guest room on the backside of the house with bathroom access and a better closet. Now, keep thinking of what this space will be to make you happy and make it happen.
Keep it feeling easy and happy for you.
Make this your own. Welcome Home.