Final Days of Summer: Great Outdoor Living Spaces



Final Days of Summer: Great Outdoor Living Spaces

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Final Days of Summer: Great Outdoor Living Spaces

Published at August 27 2024 by JFord

The end of summer means the last of the barbeques, pool parties, and outdoor fun. Most swimming areas will be closing on Monday and traditionally Labor Day is the turning point in the weather. (Well, everywhere but the south where summer will hold us in its sweaty palms until closer to Halloween before finally releasing us.) So of course, we want to enjoy all of that glorious sunshine before winter comes barreling in.


Great Outdoor Living Spaces

We have some amazing house plans that have great outdoor living spaces. I mean, we have a lot of plans that have outdoor living spaces. So, I just want to highlight a few of these great plans.


Timberland Cove (NDG 1428)Timberland Cove (NDG 1428) Floor Plan

Timberland Cove (NDG 1428)

This is one of our most popular plans. Timberland Cove is modern living with a Rustic flair. This home has 4 bedrooms and 3.5 baths in just over 2,000 square feet of living space. It also features a 3-car garage. This home has a beautiful great room and an opulent master suite. And we can’t say enough about the amazing outdoor living area that is just perfect for barbeques and afternoons with family and friends.

When you walk into this home through the covered porch with a vaulted ceiling you find yourself in the foyer. On the right side of the foyer is the entrance to the formal dining room that has sloped ceiling on each side. The foyer also features a closet to store all of those coats and mucky things that we all need from day to day and season to season.

Moving through the foyer you find yourself in a gorgeous Great Room featuring a fireplace and large door and windows opening up onto the Outdoor Living Space. The Great Room merges with the enormous kitchen with an island with seating for six. On the left side of the Great Room you find a hallway leading to 3 bedrooms and one of the bathrooms in the home. Each bedroom has a walk-in closet for plenty of storage.

If you move through the kitchen you find yourself in another hallway that leads to the Master Suite. The Master Suite has room for an optional door to the Outdoor Living Space. The Master Bath features a glass shower with seating, a whirlpool tub and an entrance to the massive walk in closet. If you exit the Master Suite and move back down the hallway you find the half bath, a large laundry room, the stairs to go to the second floor and the entrances to the garages.

On the second floor you have a bonus room, additional storage and a bathroom. One of the options for the second floor is to have an opened balcony that looks down on the Great Room and Kitchen below it.


Lake House Retreat (NDG 1114)Lake House Retreat (NDG 1114) Floor PlanLake House Retreat (NDG 1114) Floor Plan

Lake House Retreat (NDG 1114)

This cabin style home gives you just over 2,700 square feet of living space with 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. This house plan features a beautiful covered porch that runs the entire length of the home. It makes a perfect place to enjoy a quiet afternoon watching the birds or listening to the kids play.

As you approach the home, the first thing that catches your eye is that Covered front Porch. It has exposed rafters and a vaulted ceiling giving this house plan a very old-school look. In fact, a family built this plan just down the road from where I live and even though they finished it recently, it looks as if the home has been there for years. It just fits the surroundings.

Stepping into the home you find yourself in an open floor plan that includes the Foyer, Great Room and Dining Room. This open floor plan gives you high ceilings that reach all the way to the roof. This gives the space a lighter, more airy feeling. The Foyer has the stairs to the second level as well as a pantry nestled under them. Directly to the left as you enter the home, you find the Kitchen area.

The Kitchen gives you plenty of counter space with a “C" shaped counter area. It also features a bar with seating for 6. The Dining Room is directly across from the Kitchen and gives you plenty of natural light with the large windows facing the rear of the home.

The Great Room features a stonework fireplace and opens to the Screened Covered Porch on the rear of the home. On the left side of the home, you will find Bedrooms 2 and 3. Each bedroom has access to the hall bathroom and gives you some great closet space. Bedroom 2 also has a door that leads to the Screened Covered Porch on the rear of the home.

The other side of the home gives you plenty of room for the Master Suite that features large windows and an entrance to the Covered Screened Porch on the rear of the home. The Master Bath features jack and jill sinks and a large shower with a glass block window facing the side of the home. The Master Suite also gives you an entrance to the large Laundry Room.

On the rear of the home you will find a wonderful Outdoor Living Area. This large space gives you a Screened and Covered Porch that has a vaulted ceiling with exposed rafters. It covers the entire width of the home and gives you some gorgeous rustic accents and stonework columns. The porch also leads out onto a Lower Deck.

This Lower Deck gives you plenty of room for entertaining and hosting barbeques. Since the Covered Porch gives you a built-in place for an outdoor grill, the Lower Deck is solely for eating and visiting.

The second floor gives you room for Bedroom 5 which features its own Bathroom and has a window seat. I can just see sitting here on a hot summer evening listening to rain falling on a tin roof right above me.

The other side of the second floor gives you plenty of space for a Game Room or a space that can be used for a fourth Bedroom. Featuring a vaulted ceiling this room is great for an extra space. The two areas on the second floor can be accessed using a bridge that runs across the length of the home and gives you an overlook into the first floor.


Broderick Place (NDG 1450)Broderick Place (NDG 1450) Floor Plan

Broderick Place (NDG 1450)

I am absolutely in love with the roof line on this home. This home gives you both the traditional gabled roof as well as the more modern hip roof. It makes for a great combination. This house plan gives you just over 2,300 square feet of living space with 3 bedrooms and 2.5 baths. It also gives you a 3-car garage. This home has a beautiful 3-part outdoor living area that is perfect for any barbeque or entertaining.

As you step into this home you find yourself in the Foyer. The Foyer makes you feel like you are in a grand home with its high ceiling and columns separating you from the Dining Room. The Dining Room is immediately to your left and features a large picture window facing the front of the home and Timber Post beams to break up the monotony of the space.

Moving forward into the home, you find yourself in a lovely open floor plan that includes the Kitchen and Great Room. The Great Room features vaulted ceilings and false beams that give this home an “old world" charm and elegance. The Great Room has a lovely brickwork fireplace and gives you a spectacular view from the patio door and windows facing the rear of the home.

The Kitchen gives you oodles of counter space with room for a large range. Here you will also find a large island with bar seating for 4. On the left side of the plan, you will find Bedrooms 2 and 3 and the Laundry Room with a mini Mud Room. Bedrooms 2 and 3 both have lots of closet space and share a passthrough bathroom.

The Laundry Room is large enough for a desk and has a built-in linen closet that is big enough to store all the towels for the household. On the other side of the plan, you will find the Master Suite. The Master Bedroom is large and features a private entrance to the covered Porch on the rear of the home. The Master Bath gives you both a large shower with a seat and a whirlpool tub. The Master Closet is large enough that it can accommodate a window facing the front of the home.

The Outdoor Living Areas to the rear of the home is broken into three parts. There are two Covered Porches. One is a private area for the Master Suite and includes a doorway that passes through to the more public area. The second Covered Porch features a vaulted ceiling and an outdoor fireplace.

The last part of the Outdoor Living Area is a Grilling Patio that has a stone surface on it. This is a perfect place to enjoy the last sun of the day or the sun rising.

Maybe you're looking for something in particular? Don’t worry, we have you covered. Come check out Nelson Design Group’s collection of over 1,800 house plans. And come check out the past blog posts in our house plan series:


Here at Nelson Design Group, we are always ready to make your dream home a reality. If we don’t have the plan that is right for you, we’ll make one. We are experts in our field and have been doing this for over 30 years. Give us a call today and we will be glad to help.


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