Beautiful Timber Frame Great Rooms

Great rooms are often the main focal point of timber frame homes. Many envision their timber frame home to be open and spacious by including a good size great room that leads into the kitchen and dining room. Great rooms serve many purposes; entertaining and relaxing are the two most common. Before deciding how you envision your timber frame great room, think about the purpose you want the room to serve. Do you want it to be large and easily accommodating for entertaining during the holidays? Or would you like the room to be smaller and cozy? Deciding what functions you want the great room to serve will ultimately help you decide on the size and what features you want to incorporate into the room.

There are many things to consider when designing your timber frame great room. First you might consider the different options for framing systems and what framing system you want to use in the great room. My personal favorite is the hammer beam truss. It gives a room a special touch of elegance. Complex or simple, timber framing truly adds warmth and space to any room, especially to those areas where you entertain. Timber frame great rooms are always fun to decorate since the wood can really accentuate a variety of tastes and style in décor. Beautiful chandeliers are often used in great rooms that feature cathedral ceilings. Some home owners use accent lights, typically modern track lights, which are placed on the carrying timbers to provide accent or additional lighting for the room. It all depends what type of lighting you are looking for, but your choice of lighting fixtures could truly enhance your guest’s impression of your timber frame great room.

Another consideration in designing your great room is the placement of the windows to take advantage of the view, passive solar heating, and natural light. Many Davis Frame home owners choose to incorporate a wall of windows into their great rooms. This can add dramatic detail to a design but can also drive up the cost since windows are a big part of a new home’s budget. Timber frame lofts are open and often overlook the great room which is the reason why the great room of the home feels so spacious. The lofted area is another place for the homeowners to enjoy the view out their great room wall of windows. If small and intimate is what you want, the loft is truly the coziest place to read a book and provides similar beautiful views that the great room provides.

Finally, remember to think of the kind of appeal you want your timber frame home to give when friends and family enter. Think about what style and the features you want your great room to incorporate. The great room is usually the heart of a timber frame home. Visit our website and the timber frame great room gallery featuring great rooms to gather ideas!