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Architecture/Interior design; need specific design term

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Expert: - 4/8/2005


Question
I read an article about using the design concept of "a room-within-a-room" and I can't for the life of me recall the term for this.  I think I recall them saying it was an area in a house usually around a fireplace or some times in a bower and it literally was a small enclosed area creating a private room-within-a-room. What is the term/word for such an area?  I know it's not nook, niche, window seat, but something unfamiliar and when I first read it, I had to look it up because I had never seen the word before. Hope you can help? Many thanks! :)

Answer
Hi Danielle - thanks for your question!

I think you're talking about an "inglenook".  It's a small alcove off a larger room, often with a fireplace as a focal point.  In damp, cold, clammy England, some inglenooks were more or less inside a very large fireplace opening - a place to warm up and dry off.

"Modern" inglenooks usually have built-in bench seats on either side of the fireplace.  Similar examples are also found in a lot of American Craftsman homes from the '20s and '30s.

Hope this helps!

Richard Taylor, AIA
Richard Taylor Architects, LLC
www.rtastudio.com

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Richard Taylor, AIA

Expertise

Ask me about all aspects of house, remodeling. , and room addition design and construction. Ask me about historic homes, renovation, and restoration. Ask me about materials and techniques, and about how you can get the best value for your design and construction dollar. Ask me how you can make your home a very special place. I can't, however, answer specific structural engineering questions in this forum - that's something you'll need on-site observation for.

Experience

I own a full-service residential architectural firm, and have been designing custom homes, remodelings, and room additions across the country since 1983. Check us out at Richard Taylor Architects and RTA Plans. I have written and been published extensively on the subject of residential architecture.

Organizations
American Institute of Architects, City of Dublin Architectural Review Board, Vice Chair of City of Dublin Planning and Zoning Commission, American Planning Association, Board Member Historic Dublin Business Association, Past Editor of SPLASH (a software forum), Past Editor of Open Directory Project, Assistant Scoutmaster, Boy Scouts of America

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Business First of Columbus, Suburban New Publications, About.com, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Columbus Dispatch Residential Architect Custom Home Architect Remodeling Architect

Education/Credentials
Bachelor of Environmental Design (Architecture) Miami University 1983
For more about home design, check out my blog at Sense Of Place and join the conversation on our Facebook Page.

Awards and Honors
2010 Dublin Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the Year

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