1. Start by ‘deconstructing’ the home you’re currently living in. What do you like about it, and what frustrates you? Do you have enough storage? Do you have cupboards so jamb packed you’re not game enough to open them? Are there times you yearn for a quiet private lounge for yourself, or a separate rumpus area for the kids? Do you have ‘hot’ rooms because your home is facing the wrong way? Is there a feeling of light and airiness, or is it dark inside? What do you like? What frustrates you?
2. Things to consider when preparing a floor plan.You must imagine yourself living in the home that you are drawing the floor plan for. Is there enough storage in the kitchen for the Tupperware or the coffee machine? Could you easily take the groceries from the car to the kitchen? Are the bathrooms and toilets conveniently located? Are there toilets located in areas you’re happy for party guests to be going into? Does the design have little quiet areas as well as family areas? You must try to imagine YOUR family living in there!
3. Look at your home site and the available service plans. Having a good handle on your building site helps you factor in any special considerations. For example, will you need to ensure your home design takes into account easy driveway access, captures the breezes, and gives protection from the angle of the sun.
4. Check for space for your existing furniture that you’ll be taking to the new home. Make sure for example, that there’s not only adequate room in the Master Suite for your bed, but for your dressing table. If you have a couch and chairs, make sure the lounge is wide enough to fit everything as you would put it in that room, with plenty of space to move around the furniture. Which brings us to traffic flow.
5. Trace the traffic flow through the home on your sketched design. What may look like ample space in a family room might not seem so big when you family members are taking short cuts through it to get to the kitchen all the time. So a good think about traffic flow when settling on a plan will overcome years of annoyance later.
