This rerun is for Sara, who is looking for a ranch house design to build. I originally ran this post back in spring 2008. Source for this design is the Small House Planning Bureau, St. Cloud, Minn. Year: No info.
“Not another one! Yes, another thing that I’m becoming obsessed with – collecting and then for hours, scrutinizing, vintage 50s house plans. It’s sort of like — the quest for Eldorado. The quest for the perfect little jewel box. Not that my house isn’t great. But I am intrigued to see if I can discover the perfect 50s house in the most compact footprint. I have these criteria, the house must have:
- Two full bathrooms – honestly, I know that legions of Americans lived with one, but that is where I draw the line.
- Foyer with adjacent coat closet – Foyers always get cluttered and then there’s the whole muddy boots thing. So, this must be a clearly defined area with handy storage.
- Mudroom – Same as above with the addition that the mudroom must be between the garage and kitchen so that all junk can be left in this ante-way with a door to close behind it.
- Good kitchen layout – I know it when I see it.
- Dining room or area must also be well designed. If there’s a dining room – it needs to be in a flow where it can/will actually be used every day.
- One, not two, front doors — It is very bad feng shui to have two doors (e.g. one main door, one visible into kitchen or mudroom) visible to the street. Like, the energy does not know where to enter.
On virtually all other counts — exterior design, layout, size of rooms — hey, I’m flexible! Here is my first pretty darn close to perfect home, discovered after a few hours of staring intently at a new stash of home plans. I’m telling you – hours of cheap and wholesome fun!
This house gains points for:
- Utility/mudroom/lav off the back of the garage leading to the kitchen. Washer/dryer – right there.
- Twoand a half baths.
- Kitchen is nicely done, great flow to family room.
- Bedrooms are small but that’s okay.
- Foyer close enough, coat closet a little far from the action, but okey.
- And (shown in original image at top, and below): Nice curb appeal
Loses points for:
- Kind of big — but pretty darn well-done for 1625 s.f.! From a book of four-bedroom plans. Which is what makes all this stuff fit!
- I don’t honestly think 20′ wide will do for a two-car garage, would have to be bigger, in reality.
Honestly, I think my quest will be complete when I find a 2 BR 2 BA 1,200 s.f. winner. But the more I look at this particular home design – the more I think, it’s a really really good one – especially considering that it is 4 BR. Stay tuned, the quest continues.
PugFreek says
I cant build a house. So I hope my sims enjoy it!
Pam Kueber says
Do you have mid century interiors for your SIMS, pugfreek? Send me pics….
sablemable says
Tikimama-Wasn’t that fun looking at those home plans? I also collect home plans magazines from the Fifties and Sixties, which sometimes are hard to find. Most have come from Barnes and Noble (out of print search) and the antiquehome.org also sells home plans books.
Colleen says
But if you made the bathrooms bigger it wouldn’t be a 50’s style home, would it?! …although…my american standard tub is nice but wouldn’t space for a wirlpool be great!
Nice open floor plan, but I agree the bedrooms are a bit small. Nice to have that bath off the master though!
I don’t have the plans (would love to find them), but my 1950 home is a 2 bdrm 2 bath (only the bath on the main level counts though, the other isn’t quite legal without an egress window) 1219 sq ft, single car garage. Interesting thing I’ve noticed in my neighborhood…we have attached garages but no doors from the garage into the house.
Pam Kueber says
You’re right about small bathrooms, Colleen. I have three of them…and I have to say: Less to clean! And, it makes me conscientious about not collecting stuff in them…There is a freedom in “less.”
Tikimama says
That website is amazing! I looked only at the 1949 – 1961 homes, rather quickly, but I know I could spend hours! This is a nice resource for exterior paint selections, too. Even a bit of landscaping. Thanks for the link, sablemable!
Magnarama says
I simply must lay my hands on a scanner so I can send you the most purely perfect 50s house plan ever. I saved it from a 1956 ‘House Beautiful’ magazine, for that dream day when I build my dream home. It was one of those ‘House of the Year’ things they used to do and it is divine, with the ultimate kitchen/dining/family room layout. Plus: interior photos after house is built! Pam, you would swoon for the kitchen. Must.Get.Scanner. But right now must check out that antiquehome website.
sablemable says
Have you tried looking at http://www.antiquehome.org? You can view home plans dating from the early 1900s up to 1956 (Alladin, National).
I have a 2 bed/2 bath ranch that has, to me anyway, the perfect floor plan. A good sized eat-in kitchen, huge living room, large bedrooms and ample closets.
sumacsue says
I’ve visited in a home with a floor plan similar to this one, and I really liked the way you can circulate through the main areas. I think back in the 50s and 60s, plans like this were popular because when families visited, parents could be in the living room, kids could hang out in the family room, and the kitchen could easily serve both areas. I would love to have a foyer — such a nice transition area from outdoors to indoors. I agree about ditching the smallest bedroom — I’d use some of that space to make bigger bathrooms. I’d want some louvered doors to hide the washer and dryer, or enlarge that utility area and arrange it so you don’t have to look at those appliances from the kitchen and the entry from the garage.I like the way you can get to the backyard from both the kitchen and family room.
Pam Kueber says
I agree with much of what you’ve both said.
1 – extend the mudroom across the entire garage
2 – wall off the kitchen. i very much agree with northsidecj that it is SO NICE to be able to close those kitchen doors
3 – i also think that i’d nix the bedroom at the end of the family room. i’d make the bathrooms bigger.
4 – in addition, if you have a total 15×15 space for the kitchen – you can put a table in the center. maybe i’d expand the kitchen into that family room space as well to accomplish that…
but…remember, in my little cocktail game here, i want to keep the footprint of the house as compact as possible…. so maybe possibly except for doublechecking that the garage really will hold two cars today…no expanding the house!
NorthsideCJ says
While not a bad plan, I’d certainly modify it. Yes the garage can NEVER be too big! (Sorry, car guy here.) I would wall off the kitchen from the family room before removing that bedroom to enlarge the family room. If you’ve ever lived with a family and a “free flowing” house plan you’ll realize quickly how unpleasant they are to live with. The kitchen needs to be its own room. I’d possibly wall off the dining room as well. There should be seperate wood burning fireplaces in the family and living rooms. Also the coat closet should be nearer the entrance. Directly in front of the front door the coat closet could go, the bookcase would be smaller to make a walkway, and that would enlarge that one bedroom too. The hall bath is large enough you don’t really need the linen closet in the hall cutting into that bedroom. But that’s just my opinion, and looking at house plans and then seeing how you would modify them is a lot of fun.
Missouri Michael says
Not a bad plan, but I think I would make a couple of changes – I would take out the little bedroom by the family room and increase the size of the family room and the kitchen to fill the extra space provided (or create a dining space off of the kitchen since it is not an eat-in kitchen). I would also run the utility room and lavatory across the entire width of the garage, walling off the utility room and adding a door from the kitchen to provide a way to hide the utility room when it is a mess. I think that I would also probably bump out the front wall where the bedrooms are around 3 feet to provide more space in those bedrooms – you would just have to bump the roof out over the bedrooms like they have done with the garage. I might also do the same thing with the back bedroom and attached bathroom to provide a little more space.
I really like to look at these old house plans, but I usually customize the stock plans (in my mind) to make them work in the way that I want.