Are "lawyer foyers" and two-story "great rooms" out of fashion?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Two story foyers and two story great rooms are not out of style. It's a space constraint for new homes built closer in. New homes that are 4000 sf and larger will have a two story foyer, and homes larger than 5000sf will have both.

I hope you are right because I want to sell my house that has both in a few years. I never heard the phrase lawyer foyer... Perfect.

They are still desirable. Pleople who are dissing them are following the adage that "you should show contempt for what you can't have."

Since they are out of fashion and will remain so for a long time, it is dissing what they don't like, rather than what they can't have.

Good luck selling your Dynasty house.

[Anonymous]

I like a 2 story foyer, sense of a arrival. I hate 2-story great rooms and completely open floor plans.

[Anonymous]

Hate 2 story rooms, unless it's my paneled library containing centuries of my families books ?

Also hate completely open floor plans

[Anonymous]

Do folks without a two story foyer ever feel embarrassed when they have guests over?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do folks without a two story foyer ever feel embarrassed when they have guests over?

God no. We have a wonderful, inviting foyer. I would be embarrassed if I had a big two-story foyer and it looked like I wanted to give a speech to the masses from the top of the stairs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:t is....tacky.

The two story great rooms and foyers with twin bridal staircases were controversial enough when they first started to emerge in large numbers in the 1990s. Nothing screams classic McMansions of the cheezy Clinton era as those two features.

As with anything, it all comes down to proportions and how the space is used and sits with the rest of the house. Too often it's badly done and awkward.

I will just say tastes differ. I don't particularly like it either, but I can see why some people like a house designed like that. I have a open foyer, dual stair case, and a 2 story great room, but a bit more subdued in scale and detailing than the photos.

Is it going to be just as out of fashion in 10-20 years for people to look down on homes that are being built now, where the owners are giving up two story design elements in order to maximize the square footage of the home due to the small lot their finances constrain them to?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do folks without a two story foyer ever feel embarrassed when they have guests over?

God no. We have a wonderful, inviting foyer. I would be embarrassed if I had a big two-story foyer and it looked like I wanted to give a speech to the masses from the top of the stairs.

you all are crazy. I have a 2 story foyer, but it's not insanely big or gaudy. It's more similar to the smaller 2 story foyer in father of the bride. We like how the upstairs hallway is open to the downstairs because it makes it feel less closed off. No heating issues although the foyer is usually the coldest room in the house, but luckily we don't sit in the foyer so we don't mind.

[Anonymous]

I'm still trying to figure out what a lawyer foyer is. Never heard this term, and everyone else seems to know what it is. Explain?

Also, I would love a NICER foyer (ours sucks-very poorly designed space, even though the rest of the house has good space), I am not at all embarrassed to have people over. Why the hell would I be embarrassed by a foyer? We have a house that we pay for with our own money - there is NO shame in that.

[Anonymous]

We have both. I'm sure heating/cooling is less efficient so there's an element of consumption there. Our heating bill for a 5,700 sq. ft. house (includes basement which is part of the first zone) is like $300 a month so it's not terrible. We don't use AC much so our total electric bill in the summer is about $80 a month. We have two zones so the second story is largely off during the day and the lower level is off at night.

I really like all of the windows in the family room. Our house backs to woods so its like being in a tree house.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do folks without a two story foyer ever feel embarrassed when they have guests over?

Is this a serious question? I don't even have a true foyer much less a two story one. The only thing that would embarrass me when people come over is if I don't have delicious food and drink to serve them. That and if the house were a huge mess.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do folks without a two story foyer ever feel embarrassed when they have guests over?

Is this a serious question? I don't even have a true foyer much less a two story one. The only thing that would embarrass me when people come over is if I don't have delicious food and drink to serve them. That and if the house were a huge mess.

Of course it is. Don't you know everyone one DCUM has at least one maid, a bulter, and a cook too? Get with the program..

[Anonymous]

We have a two-story foyer, but it is more like this (attempting to post link) than Scarlett O'Hara's Tara foyer.

http://www.gyatnos.com/decorating-a-two-story-foyer/decorating-a-two-story-foyer-laminated-flooring/


We also have 10 foot ceilings but no two story family room. I couldn't stand the openness and sound issues with the two story family room, so we chose a floor plan that appears more closed in but is actually just sectioned into two parts: the formal space vs. the dining and family room space (at the back of the home). It doesn't appear as grand as houses with a two story family room but it's cozier and easier to heat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have a two-story foyer, but it is more like this (attempting to post link) than Scarlett O'Hara's Tara foyer.

http://www.gyatnos.com/decorating-a-two-story-foyer/decorating-a-two-story-foyer-laminated-flooring/


We also have 10 foot ceilings but no two story family room. I couldn't stand the openness and sound issues with the two story family room, so we chose a floor plan that appears more closed in but is actually just sectioned into two parts: the formal space vs. the dining and family room space (at the back of the home). It doesn't appear as grand as houses with a two story family room but it's cozier and easier to heat.

This is much like ours. We ruled out any house with a 2 story family room when we were looking 7 years ago, and are doing the same when we will be looking this spring. An open foyer is a must, but those grand butterfly stairs or gigantic foyers aren't our thing either. We find this to be tasteful yet inviting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:LOL is this home out dated?

https://www.redfin.com/VA/Mclean/938-Peacock-Station-Rd-22102/home/17525477

Not at all outdated ... if your last name is Bourbon and the year is 1742.

Otherwise, it's an incredible combination of prententious and hideous.

[Anonymous]

I don't mind it in an open-plan house, which is supposed to feel airy, but in a more traditional, center-hall type layout, I think it looks pretentious and cavernous and like a big waste of space.