Advice on floor plan!

[doxiepoxie]

Happy Sunday evening folks,

After some advice regarding our new home. How would you configure the ground plan of this Victorian house.. the stair case separates the reception rooms. Would have the sitting room at the front or in the middle?

Thanks all, hoping for some useful advice!

I'd have the dining room next to the kitchen so you're not carrying plates through the living room.

Always the dining room off the kitchen. I can't see any reason why you would do it differently.

Oh, unless you can eat in the kitchen? Maybe change hall into a small vestibule to make front room larger? Replace window in middle room with French doors. I had a house with this layout and always wish I'd done that.

I can see why you wouldn't here - because the room at the front is the smallest.

If this was my house, I would want to - I think - possibly look to do a side return extension or change the kitchen so that it had cabinets going down both walls at the entrance to the kitchen, with no cabinets in the bottom half; giving space for a dining table. With living space at a premium, I am not sure I'd want a formal dining room at the front of the house that in likelihood you'd rarely use (as per floor plan now), or give up biggest reception space for dining room and be squeezed into tiny front reception.

If have the dining room coming off the kitchen - I'd open it up if I could and I also think you could make it a diner/ family room with TV and stuff?
Then have a lounge at the front for just chilling in!

Thanks all.. great comments here!
My intention was always to have the sitting room at front, but as you say, it is small.. more like a snug!
Would love to extend and do side return but it's raised already as there is a cellar (not large enough to use as a room sadly. I think my worry is not having enough usuable living space..

Can you eat in the kitchen ?
Not sure how big it is.
If you can then the middle room seems larger, so I'd eat in the kitchen and have the middle room as the living room and use the front room as something else - depending on your interests and the age of the dc... a study / music room / play room / hobby room / whatever.

Thanks @youarenotkiddingme .. I think opening up would work well but would have to see if the walls are ok to do that. Currently binge watching Kirsty and Phils love it or list it and getting lots of inspiration!!

Unfortunately the kitchen isn't quite large enough.. it's slightly larger than galley..with a large fridge at end.. although may have to have a think about the potoental for moving things around. Thanks guys .. loving all of the ideas!!

We like to hang out in/near the kitchen a lot in the day and early eve so I'd def make the middle room a dining room, maybe with a couch.
Then keep the small living room for night time relaxing.

Can you put on a porch at the front, and then open up the existing dining room to the hallway, to create the space for a larger living room?

I actually love snugs and that's what I want in a sitting room. I'd love this floor plan. The place I hang out by default is a kitchen or dining room, so ideally I'd have a couple of compact armchairs in corners, a nice big dresser, big scrubbed pine table to eat/MN on etc, toy box somewhere, the radio on and that would be the hub of the house. Lovely! Then make the sitting room all about evening relaxing, soft textures, as big a sofa as it will take, a proper tv and books room.

Does the kitchen need two doors? Do they both lead to the same external space? blocking one might help.

I'd definitely try and have the dining room leading off the kitchen.

I love the floor plan.

Sitting room at the front. 3.6 x 3.2 is a decent sitting room size.

Bet there is room for a dining table and sofa and TV in the back room to have as more a kitchen/diner/family room.

I like JoinourClub's thinking.... can you make the "front door" at the bottom of the stairs and get rid of the hall to make a full width living room across the front of the house ?

Thanks @LilaoftheGreenwood.. I have been a bit apprehensive about the layout so glad to hear you think it's a workable one!
It's a funny house as the kitchen has two doors, one of which is a stable door which leads to steps down to the cellar.. maybe this pic helps a bit

Block up kitchen single door and have kitchen units both sides at that end. Round table at far end.

French doors from middle room onto garden. Have that as a informal lounge - sofa, maybe a desk in the alcove, maybe knock the door to kitchen into a wider opening.

Front room as a snug. Porch etc as per Junior if you can.

Thanks for your comments @trinitybleu, unfortunately the middle room is raised as it sits on top of the cellar, don't think the pics are very clear though.. would def do that otherwise! I was thinking maybe Getting rid of decking and extending further the kitchen.. although it may not add much materially on reflection.

Thanks @Joinourclub, I prefer to have a hallway though.. our first house went straight into our sitting room & I found it quite intrusive after a while... a good idea for more space though def so may I have to be more flexible!!

@doxiepoxie I didn't see the photos before I posted having seen them the kitchen is stunning so wouldn't want to rip it out

Aw thank you @doxiepoxie.. tbh the pics are estate agents particulars which always make it look a lot larger ... hoping we can squish a table in there somewhere but probably unlikely!!

Can you take out the bottom half
of the stair wall so you have the under stairs area as part of the front room?

Sorry I meant @trinitybleu.. I'm @doxiepoxie (baby brain?!)

That's a beautiful house!