Design for a Cottage –II

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A Photo from the author's garden


In the last post plans for some cottages were described. This post is an addendum to it and includes one more plan. It has been made invoking the older design concept of using a hallway or passage that leads to room. Such a passage although requiring some additional construction space makes the management and arrangement of furniture in rooms much easier because much communication than takes place through the passage rather than rooms. The present plan also includes a staircase. Design and construction of staircases is one of the most complicated parts of home designs. It is because of this that many homes that are not carefully designed end up with either uncomfortable staircases or ones that waste much space. In the present design construction and design is both simplified by placing the staircase in a separate extension towards the back of the building. The same staircase can be set on the side of the building too using the central exit from living room depending upon the lay of the land. In this latter case it would be best to set a hanging beam across the living room so that a smaller room may be created on the first floor.

It may be noted that this design is a highly traditional one except for the change that bathroom is moved to front that becomes possible with modern equipment like piped water, flush toilets and exhaust fans. Keeping it in front makes associated piping easy if it has to be connected towards the front of the property as is often the case. A side enclosure has been created to house the associated chambers and piping. Some of the traditional designs are the most comfortable ones having been discovered through long human experience. Modern architects in trying to be innovative, often end up with expensive and uncomfortable configurations that satisfy not much more than fees collected and egos of the designers.

Design for a cottage

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