Should I open up my floor plan?

Often yes, but not universally. Open plan works when the joined rooms are used at the same time by the same people, when the result has more than one source of light, and when there is still somewhere else in the house to be. It works badly when it removes the last quiet room, when it creates one long space with a single window at one end, or when it joins uses that genuinely conflict. Noise is the most common regret and the least anticipated — hard surfaces, high ceilings and no doors carry every sound. Consider a partial opening instead: a wide cased opening or pocket doors give most of the connection and keep the ability to separate.

Can I raise my ceilings?

Often there is height available, particularly where a flat ceiling has been hung below a pitched roof — opening it to the structure above is one of the highest-impact moves available in a renovation. It is also structural, and it affects insulation and the thermal envelope, how the space heats and cools, and acoustics. That makes it a planning decision with engineering consequences rather than a later change order. Where full height is not available, raising the ceiling partially, using a tray or coffer where height is most felt, or simply taking the ceiling to the underside of the joists rather than below them all give part of the effect.

What is the difference between an architect and an interior designer?

Broadly, architects deal with structure, the building envelope and how the building meets code and site; interior designers deal with how spaces are used, specified and finished. The boundary is not rigid, and many renovations need both. What matters more than the titles is who is responsible for the drawings being buildable and the selections being coherent — and whether that responsibility sits with one party or is divided between two, because a divided responsibility is one you end up coordinating yourself.

Should new work match the existing house or contrast with it?

Either, done deliberately. A close match works when it is close enough that the join is not visible, which is harder with weathered materials than it sounds. A clear contrast works when the new work is legible as new and its proportions relate to the original. What does not work is the near-match, which draws attention to exactly the thing it was trying to conceal. Whichever you choose, proportion is what carries it: get the window sizes, the solid-to-glazing ratio and the roof relationship right and either strategy reads as intentional.

How do I choose a design style that will not date?

Spend on the things that are expensive to change and keep them quiet; spend expressively on the things that are easy to change. Cabinetry profiles, stone, tile and plumbing finishes are expensive to replace, so restraint there ages better. Paint colour, light fittings, hardware and textiles are comparatively cheap to change, so that is where character can live without committing you. The other durable move is to let the house's own period and proportions guide the decisions — work that respects what the building already is tends to look considered in twenty years, while work that imposes a current look onto an unsympathetic structure tends to look like the year it was done.

Do I need engineered drawings for my renovation?

For anything that changes how loads travel through the house, yes — removing or altering a load-bearing wall, altering roof framing, creating a large opening, or work affecting the foundation. In Fort Worth, foundation work in particular requires engineered plans. Purely cosmetic work does not. The practical point is that whether a wall is load-bearing is a question for someone qualified to answer it, not an assumption to make from how the wall looks, and getting that wrong is expensive in a way that is discovered during demolition. Where engineering is needed it belongs in planning: it has a lead time, and it affects both the design and the permit.

How much does design cost as a share of a renovation?

We do not publish a percentage, and a figure quoted without reference to scope would mislead — design effort does not scale neatly with construction cost, and a complex small project can need more drawing than a simple large one. What is worth saying is that design is the least effective place to economise. Decisions are free to change on a drawing and expensive to change once framed, so the money spent resolving a plan properly is the money that prevents change orders, idle trades and a scope that has to be cut late. If a design fee looks high relative to the project, the useful question is what it includes — drawings, engineering coordination, selections, permit documents — rather than what percentage it represents.

Design & Architecture

Design Decisions That Change How a House Works

The design decisions that most change how a house feels are structural and spatial rather than decorative: where the light comes from, how you move through it, what the ceiling does, and where the walls are. Finishes are the part everyone photographs and the part that matters least to how a house works.

Reviewed November 4, 2026

Open plan, and where it stops being an improvement

Removing walls is the single most requested renovation, and it is often right. It is not universally right, and the cases where it disappoints are predictable.

Open plan works when the rooms being joined are used at the same time by the same people, when the resulting space has more than one source of light, and when there is somewhere else in the house to be. It works badly when it removes the last quiet room, when it creates one large space with a single window at one end, and when it joins rooms whose uses genuinely conflict — a kitchen and a space where someone needs to concentrate.

Noise is the most common regret and the least anticipated. Hard surfaces, high ceilings and no doors make a space that carries every sound from the dishwasher to the television. It is a solvable problem, with soft surfaces, acoustic treatment and the odd closable opening, but it has to be solved deliberately rather than discovered.

The alternative worth considering is a partial opening: a wide cased opening, a pair of pocket doors, or a structural opening that keeps a defined threshold. It gives most of the connection and keeps the ability to separate.

Natural light

Light is the thing homeowners describe wanting most and the thing least often addressed structurally, because the structural answers are the expensive ones.

What works, roughly in order of effect per pound: enlarging existing openings rather than adding new ones, since the structure is already interrupted there. Replacing a solid exterior door with a glazed one. Adding glazing high on a wall, which brings light deeper into a room than a window at eye level. Skylights or a roof lantern, which deliver far more light than a window of the same area but bring flashing and heat-gain considerations with them. Borrowing light through an interior opening or a glazed internal screen. And removing what is blocking it outside, which is sometimes a tree or an overgrown porch roof rather than anything to do with the house.

What works less well than people hope: pale paint and large mirrors. They help a room make better use of the light it has. They do not add any.

Ceilings

Ceiling height changes how a room feels more than almost any other dimension, and in many houses there is height available above the existing ceiling — particularly where a flat ceiling has been hung below a pitched roof.

Opening a ceiling to the structure above is one of the highest-impact moves in renovation. It is also structural, it affects insulation and the thermal envelope, it changes how the space heats and cools, and it affects acoustics in the ways described above. It is a design decision with engineering consequences, which is why it belongs in planning rather than in a later change order.

Where full height is not available, the useful alternatives are raising the ceiling partially, using a tray or coffer to give height where it is most felt, or simply taking the ceiling up to the underside of the joists rather than below them.

Making an addition look like it belongs

The failure mode is an addition that reads as an addition. Avoiding it is mostly about three things, and material match is not the first of them.

Proportion comes first. Window shapes and sizes, the ratio of solid wall to glazing, floor-to-ceiling heights, and the height of the roof relative to the original. An addition with the right proportions in a different material reads as a deliberate extension; one with the wrong proportions in matching brick reads as a mistake in matching brick.

Rooflines come second. How the new roof meets the old is the detail most visible from the street and the one most often handled badly. A roof that ties in at a consistent pitch, or that is deliberately and cleanly subordinate, both work. A roof that almost matches does not.

Material comes third, and there are two honest strategies: match closely enough that the join is invisible, or differentiate clearly enough that the new work is legible as new. The unsatisfying result is the near-match, which draws the eye to exactly the thing it was trying to hide. Matching an older brick is harder than it sounds, because the original has weathered for decades.

Designing for how long you will stay

If the house is where you intend to grow old, the moves that matter are cheap now and expensive later: at least one bedroom and full bathroom on the entry level, a curbless or low-threshold shower, doorways and corridors wide enough for a walker or a wheelchair, blocking in the walls for grab bars so they can be fitted later without opening the tile, lever handles rather than knobs, and lighting with enough levels for ageing eyes.

Almost none of that has to look clinical. Most of it is simply good design that also happens to accommodate change, and the only ones that are difficult to add later are the structural and in-wall items — which is exactly why they belong in this project rather than the next.

Questions This Guide Answers

Should I open up my floor plan?: Often yes, but not universally. Open plan works when the joined rooms are used at the same time by the same people, when the result has more than one source of light, and when there is still somewhere else in the house to be. It works badly when it removes the last quiet room, when it creates one long space with a single window at one end, or when it joins uses that genuinely conflict. Noise is the most common regret and the least anticipated — hard surfaces, high ceilings and no doors carry every sound. Consider a partial opening instead: a wide cased opening or pocket doors give most of the connection and keep the ability to separate.
How can I get more natural light into a dark house?: Structurally, and in roughly this order of effect: enlarge existing openings rather than cutting new ones, because the structure is already interrupted there; replace a solid exterior door with a glazed one; add glazing high on a wall, which carries light deeper into a room than a window at eye level; consider skylights or a roof lantern, which deliver far more light than a window of the same area but bring flashing and heat gain with them; borrow light through an interior opening or glazed screen; and check what is blocking the light outside, which is sometimes a tree rather than anything about the house. Pale paint and mirrors help a room use the light it has — they do not add any.
Can I raise my ceilings?: Often there is height available, particularly where a flat ceiling has been hung below a pitched roof — opening it to the structure above is one of the highest-impact moves available in a renovation. It is also structural, and it affects insulation and the thermal envelope, how the space heats and cools, and acoustics. That makes it a planning decision with engineering consequences rather than a later change order. Where full height is not available, raising the ceiling partially, using a tray or coffer where height is most felt, or simply taking the ceiling to the underside of the joists rather than below them all give part of the effect.
How do I make an addition look like it belongs?: Proportion first, rooflines second, material third — in that order, which is not the order most people assume. Window shapes and sizes, the ratio of solid wall to glazing, and floor-to-ceiling heights matter more than brick colour: an addition with the right proportions in a different material reads as deliberate, while one with the wrong proportions in matching brick reads as a mistake in matching brick. How the new roof meets the old is the most visible detail from the street. On material, there are two honest strategies — match closely enough that the join disappears, or differentiate clearly enough that the new work is legible as new. The near-match is the unsatisfying result, and matching decades-old weathered brick is harder than it looks.
What is the difference between an architect and an interior designer?: Broadly, architects deal with structure, the building envelope and how the building meets code and site; interior designers deal with how spaces are used, specified and finished. The boundary is not rigid, and many renovations need both. What matters more than the titles is who is responsible for the drawings being buildable and the selections being coherent — and whether that responsibility sits with one party or is divided between two, because a divided responsibility is one you end up coordinating yourself.
How do I design a renovation for ageing in place?: Prioritise the moves that are cheap now and expensive later: at least one bedroom and full bathroom on the entry level, a curbless or low-threshold shower, doorways and corridors wide enough for a walker or wheelchair, in-wall blocking for grab bars so they can be fitted later without opening the tile, lever handles rather than knobs, and layered lighting for ageing eyes. Almost none of it needs to look clinical — most is simply good design that accommodates change. The structural and in-wall items are the only ones genuinely difficult to retrofit, which is the argument for doing them in this project rather than the next.
Should new work match the existing house or contrast with it?: Either, done deliberately. A close match works when it is close enough that the join is not visible, which is harder with weathered materials than it sounds. A clear contrast works when the new work is legible as new and its proportions relate to the original. What does not work is the near-match, which draws attention to exactly the thing it was trying to conceal. Whichever you choose, proportion is what carries it: get the window sizes, the solid-to-glazing ratio and the roof relationship right and either strategy reads as intentional.
How do I choose a design style that will not date?: Spend on the things that are expensive to change and keep them quiet; spend expressively on the things that are easy to change. Cabinetry profiles, stone, tile and plumbing finishes are expensive to replace, so restraint there ages better. Paint colour, light fittings, hardware and textiles are comparatively cheap to change, so that is where character can live without committing you. The other durable move is to let the house's own period and proportions guide the decisions — work that respects what the building already is tends to look considered in twenty years, while work that imposes a current look onto an unsympathetic structure tends to look like the year it was done.
Do I need engineered drawings for my renovation?: For anything that changes how loads travel through the house, yes — removing or altering a load-bearing wall, altering roof framing, creating a large opening, or work affecting the foundation. In Fort Worth, foundation work in particular requires engineered plans. Purely cosmetic work does not. The practical point is that whether a wall is load-bearing is a question for someone qualified to answer it, not an assumption to make from how the wall looks, and getting that wrong is expensive in a way that is discovered during demolition. Where engineering is needed it belongs in planning: it has a lead time, and it affects both the design and the permit.
How much does design cost as a share of a renovation?: We do not publish a percentage, and a figure quoted without reference to scope would mislead — design effort does not scale neatly with construction cost, and a complex small project can need more drawing than a simple large one. What is worth saying is that design is the least effective place to economise. Decisions are free to change on a drawing and expensive to change once framed, so the money spent resolving a plan properly is the money that prevents change orders, idle trades and a scope that has to be cut late. If a design fee looks high relative to the project, the useful question is what it includes — drawings, engineering coordination, selections, permit documents — rather than what percentage it represents.

Related Guides

Our Services

Related Work

Where We Work

Advisory

Speak with a NARI Certified Remodeling Designer

Get focused, one-on-one guidance for your renovation with Jennifer Valdes, CRD, NARI Certified Remodeling Designer.

This is a paid advisory service, booked and paid separately. It is not required before hiring PHR Design Build, and it is not part of a project consultation. Your full consult fee is credited toward a Design + Preconstruction agreement signed within 90 days.

Formats, credit & booking policy

30-Minute Consultation
$150
Best for focused questions, design direction, scope clarification, finish selections, or a professional second opinion.
Call to Book — $150
60-Minute Consultation
$225
Best for a deeper discussion of renovation goals, layout, priorities, scope, budget considerations, and next steps.
Call to Book — $225

Ready to start a full PHR Design Build project?

Start Planning Your Project

Planning this work on your own home?

Tell us about the project and we will arrange a consultation at your home.

Schedule a Project Consultation Call (682) 263-7671