How to Draw a Simple House Floor Plan
Before your house designer can get to work on drafting your custom house plan, he or she will need a sketch from you. In other words, you’ll need to draw freehand a simple floor plan of your dream home.
A floor plan is like looking down at your house without the roof on. Now, if this sounds beyond your drawing skills, don’t panic. It’s probably easier than you think. All you need is a bold pencil, eighth-inch graph paper and a ruler.
The sketch doesn’t have to be detailed. Details are for your house designer.
Tip: Eighth-inch graph or grid paper is ideal for floor plans. Typically, each small block represents one foot in length. This gives your floor plan a scale of ?th of an inch to one foot. However, if your house is going to be big, you can assign a longer unit to each block, say ?th of an inch to 5 feet.
Sample of a Floor Plan
Note how relatively simple the floor plan is. All the rooms are named for easy identification (e.g. Master Bed, Bed 2, Bed 3, Great Room, Master Bath and Bath 2). Spaces such as the back porch, entryway, a/c unit, and laundry room have been included.
Tip: As you sketch your house plan, think about the flow from one room to another. If you need inspiration, browse through some architectural magazines, ride around a few neighborhoods that you like, and check out Pinterest.
Above is a sketch example image of a one-story floor plan.
What Style of Architecture is Your House?
It’s important you consider the overall architectural design of your home as well, not just the layout. Your house designer won’t expect you to draw the exterior or interior elevations (straight-on views) of your house, but you will be asked about your preferred style of house and design features. Do you fancy modern or traditional, craftsman or cottage, for example?
Your chosen style will affect aspects such as roof pitch, window trims, porch gable, moldings and building materials, so have a good idea of what you want before you make an appointment with your house designer. Again, don’t worry about the details at this stage. It’s your overall vision that you’re trying to capture.