House Plan GHD-3142 is a vacation home with fabulous outdoor and indoor living spaces. From a 10-foot deck off the side of the house to a spacious great room with dining area and eating bar on the main level, and a loft above, it caters to those with a comfortable escape in mind.

Our customers, the Jenkins, are building this home in a somewhat isolated part of British Columbia – a true “get away from it all” locale. This will be their cabin — their main home being near Vancouver. While they intend to spend a lot of time alone at the new cabin, they wanted it redesigned to better accommodate guests since they have a large extended family and many friends who will be invited up for long visits. 

They asked our modifications team to redesign the main level to include a larger master suite and a significantly larger kitchen. And they removed the garage from the lower level and replaced it with 2 additional bedrooms, a small living area, and a large laundry room. The Jenkins also had us increase the house length by 2 feet so the total length is 46 feet. Finally, we reversed the blueprint drawings, text and dimensions (so that what was once on the right is on the left and vice versa) to better suit the layout of their lot.

The couple are also planning to build a separate (detached) garage and are currently reviewing our selection of garage plans to find one that fits their needs.

House Plans GHD-3142

Main Floor Plan of GHD-3142

We had to share this adorable cottage plan with you. It was recently added to our website and is already turning heads.

House plan AM-1151 fits into several categories: cabin, Craftsman, vacation home. From its covered front deck to its light-filled dining area, it’s full of pleasant surprises. With 1225 finished square feet and an extra 225 unfinished in the lower level, it’s a compact and efficient design that could work well on a narrow or hillside lot, yet it certainly has enough living space for comfort.

The exterior is constructed of cedar shake shingles and stone (on the chimney stack) for a charming, natural look. Inside, find a vaulted Great Room at the center of the main level, flanked by two decks and warmed by a fireplace. The kitchen and airy dining area are close by. A bedroom with window seat in a box-bay window and full bath are at the front of the main level. Just step downstairs for two more bedrooms with plenty of closet space and another full bath. Walk out of the lower level to a lovely covered patio. This plan includes special space-saving touches like storage under the stairwell.

Exterior of House Plan AM-1151

Main Floor AM-1151

This cottage plan was created by designer, Alan M. See all of Alan’s plans here.

Robert & Emily owned a nice parcel of land in northern Minnesota (“up north”, as we Minnesotans like to call it). Now that all their kids are out of the family home, they decided to build their dream cabin on their northern land and retire there.

They started with house plan SHD-093-SEA. In Homeplans.com’s database, this house is titled “Truly Unforgettable” and it is just that. It’s a dramatic cottage/vacation home plan with incredible angles and a stone chimney, to name just a couple of it’s “wow” features.

Rob and Em wanted to make the cabin plan their own by making some adjustments, so they hired our home design services team.  (We specialize in customizing Homeplans.com’s house plans.) 

They opted for a more Craftsman-style exterior so we added some shingle siding, more detailing with the porch/deck framing, and architectural shingles. Even with these alterations, we kept the home modern by using fiber cement products (Hardi-plank, Hardi-board, etc.). Rob and Em’s lot is sloped so they asked us to modify the plan to include a walkout basement that faced the lake. Now they and their guests can step right out of the downstairs into their beautiful – lakeside – backyard. The basement was left unfinished for now, but it will eventually be finished to include another bedroom, bathroom and recreation area.

We also removed the covered deck on the living/dining room side of the house and added numerous windows because that’s the lakeside wall. Then we moved the fireplace to the side so it wouldn’t block lake views, and we added a main level wrap-around deck from the front/entry side of the house.

In addition, Rob and Em wanted some of the space from the exterior patio used to increase the finished living space so they could have a larger front entry and kitchen, as well as a new flex/mud/storage room next to the entry.

Now the “Truly Unforgettable” cabin is truly perfect for these Northern Minnesota empty nesters!

Cabin Plan SHD-093-SEA

If you have a favorite home plan that needs some adjustments, give us a ring and we’ll give you a free estimate. 1-888-266-3439. We can handle all types of house plan modifications — from simple foundation changes to complicated projects involving adding square footage and repositioning rooms. Also, we can adapt any Homeplans.com house plan to suit any lot!

As summer sets in this month, we’re doing more thinking about our vacation house plans collection. And recent blueprint sales indicate that our customers are doing the same (although the winter doldrums can sometimes bring on a spat of vacation plan sales as well).

Our vacation house plans collection includes cabin plans, chalet house plans, A-frame house plans, log home plans and others. Often of smaller square footage, vacation house plans usually use traditional architectural details, and frequently include a large deck at the rear. Prow-shaped exterior wall lines with large windows are common, too. Nearly 800 vacation house plans that cater to your need to get away from it all are available at Homeplans.com.

Chalet House Plan H-930-1

Country Cottage House Plan DD-1141