Realistic Home Challenge TS3

[RylandHomes]

Okay, so this is my first challenge for my fellow simmers.
Many wonderful houses have been coming out, and they are all beautifully designed. However, as I've been going around different sites downloading, I always see comments like, "These modern houses are becoming old really quick.". So to me it seams like people are wanting to see houses that are, more realistic. As in, houses like the houses they live in. I know that's what I like to see. So here's the challenge:

Make a house based off a real floor plan.
Requirements/Include

Include a picture of the actual house
Include a picture of the actual floor plan
Include an in game picture of the house
Include an in game picture of the floor plan


You can go to any real house building companies such as:

Ryland Homes
KB Homes
David Weekley Homes
Castle Rock Homes
And any other real home building company


So my fellow simmers, show your home building skills and make those houses for our sims!

A little bit more detail:

Okay, so are you kind of confused? That's okay, let me explain further.
What you do, is you go to a home builders website, and look at their floor plans. Study their houses inside and out. Then, get on your game and make the house you chose as best you can. You want to make it look almost identical. Once you got the house built and ready to be shown, take some pics of it, and post them here.

Tips for building:


Try printing out the floor plan, and drawing it out on a sheet of graph paper. This seams to help many, as graph paper is a sheet full of squares, that can be easily used as a guide sheet when building.


Possible Issues:

Kitchen Counters:
More and more kitchens now and days have diagonal placed counters that connect to straight counters. Sadly, it's not possible to connect a slanted counter with a straight counter in game. If you know a way to connect the counters, please let others know. I recomend not choosing a house with this type of kitchen, unless you can somehow connect your counters.

Easy Fix


This issue can be fixed, but not completely. When a diagonal counter is being placed next to a straight counter, the two counters wont snap together as normal. When you come across this kind of kitchen layout, use the "moveobjects on" cheat, and then plac the counters together. It wont be perfect, but it's an easy and quick fix.


Closets:
If a house has a W.I.C written in the floor plan, that means, Walk In Closet. (If you didn't already know) A big difficulty I find with making W.I.C's is I can never get it to be a... closet. Nowhere have I found a closet rack, so if you know of a place to get one, post it for other builders to use.

Other than that, you should have no problems making a house based off a real floor plan.

The Goal of this challenge:

The goal of this challenge is simple. Our fellow simmers seam to want to see houses that really give a realistic feel to the game. So that's what this challenge is for; giving a real life feel to the game.
An example that shows our fellow simmers wants can be shown in this link (http://mysims3blog.blogspot.com/2009/11/ikaria-modern-lot-at-sims-3-modern.html).

Links to Home Builders:

Here are some links to the home builders that were listed above.

Ryland Homes (http://www.ryland.com/)
KB Homes (http://www.kbhome.com/Default.aspx)
David Weekley Homes (http://www.davidweekleyhomes.com/Site/)
Castle Rock Homes (http://www.c-rock.com/)

:alarm: Note that the links provided are for home builders in the Houston, Texas area. When you google "home builders" you may come across different builders depending on your location. :alarm:

[calisims]

Most of the houses I build actually are based on real house plans (Houseplans.com is a great resource).
But I always change things to better fit Sim life: instead of trying to fake a walk in closet, I make an extra bathroom. Some house plans have such huge walk in closets that I'm able to squeeze an extra bedroom, nursery or den out of the wasted space.
Your challenge is a fun idea, but I think that adhering too closely to real houseplans results in houses that aren't very practical for Sims. Things like walk in closets are useless to Sims, but adding them adds to the cost of the house.

[RylandHomes]

lol arg so negative. hahaha jk
You don't -have- to put in the closet, make it to what you wish. The house doesn't have to be -exactly- like the floor plan, but "almost identical", and what I meant by that was, pretty close.
I hate how making a walk in closet is useless, that's why I put in there if someone knew of a site to download a closet rack, to fix that issue. But yeah, this should be a lof of fun, and I'm sure we'll see some amazing houses out of this.

[RylandHomes]

Also, the cost of the house really doesn't matter. I'm sure the houses that come out of this will be pretty high, but that's okay, houses are pretty expensive now n' days.

[calisims]

OK, cool. I've built tons of houses based on real floor plans, but have never stuck to the plans 100%.
So, as long as I can fiddle with them a little, I'm in. I haven't done any building lately, it will be fun to get back into it.

[NickeyElysse]

Sounds fun. And distracting from my homework. I wanna do it! I'm not very inspired when it comes to building houses. However, with the walk in closet, I think the clothes on a rack item would work well. It comes in buy mode, with Ambitions I think. I've been thinking of making a closet out of it. I don't know if it works like a dresser or not, I've not used it yet.

[RylandHomes]

lol cool! I think anything is distracting from homework. XD

[NickeyElysse]

This is true. Am currently taking a two hour break. I deserve it, and it keeps you from getting too stressed.

[NickeyElysse]

I'm getting started on this now. I don't think I'll be sharing with the community though. Just doing this as a personal challenge to make myself a more creative builder.
I'm making a new sunset valley and making each home my own creation. The new face of sunset valley.

[NickeyElysse]

Finished my first one. Inspired by this: http://www.houseplans.com/plan_details.asp?planId=33823

Front of the house

http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/2864/greenvictorianfront.jpg (http://img715.imageshack.us/i/greenvictorianfront.jpg/)

First floor, garage, staircase, storage area, laundry, and back entrance

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/1351/greenvictorianfirstfloo.jpg (http://img217.imageshack.us/i/greenvictorianfirstfloo.jpg/)

Main floor, kitchen, bathroom, closet, no bedroom

http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/8324/greenvictorianmainfloor.jpg (http://img59.imageshack.us/i/greenvictorianmainfloor.jpg/)

It's nearly 27,000 simoleans. I've already moved in a character from another saved game into the house. . . I just noticed how weird the placement of the parking area is. I'll have to move that over a bit to make it look right.

[RylandHomes]

Looks good! Let's see some more! =]

[Kestie Freehawk]

*LOL* I tried this but I build a mirror image to the plan every time *LOL* IE backwards. I am quite possibly why they invented copiers.

[NickeyElysse]

I did another one last night. But because of the way the stairs are, I had to tweak the layout. . . a lot. I kept it though. I started one more, but it didn't work out . because the lot refused to flatten. I got frustrated and quit. I think I'll start on another before class.

Edit: I also went back and tweaked the first house a bit. landscaped it, fixed the roof color and the parking area. It's become my baby. I could barely bear to part with it to make another.

[RylandHomes]

LOL I think I might even make some. Yeah, I'll be back with pictures. =]

[RylandHomes]

So I built a home from RylandHomes, my favorite home builders, hence my username. It's not exact, but pretty darn close.

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_03Nov180937.jpg
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_05Nov181418.jpg
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_04Nov181023.jpg
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_06Nov181419.jpg

[WooHoo31]

So I built a home from RylandHomes, my favorite home builders, hence my username. It's not exact, but pretty darn close.

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_03Nov180937.jpg
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_05Nov181418.jpg
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_04Nov181023.jpg
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_06Nov181419.jpg

That looks great! But maybe you can put an archway in the front where the front door is instead of just an empty space?

[NickeyElysse]

That looks great. I went to ryland homes first but I couldn't find the floor plans and stuff. Now I use houseplans.com and a random number generator to pick which house to build. I'm finishing my third one now, and will be going on to my fourth one shortly.

[RylandHomes]

That looks great! But maybe you can put an archway in the front where the front door is instead of just an empty space?

I would have, and I was trying to, but since it's 3 spaces, there isn't an archway big enough. Also, I gave up on the archway after realizing that doors/windows/archways can't be placed in between tiles, so I couldn't get it centered. Thus, why I just made it an empty space.

[NickeyElysse]

Here's another:

http://www.houseplans.com/1214-square-feet-3-bedroom-2-bathroom-Traditional-House-Plans-2-garage-%2815483%29

A pretty traditional 3 bedroom family home, with a 2 car garage, and lovely flower beds.




http://img809.imageshack.us/img809/6854/tfhlayout.jpg (http://img809.imageshack.us/i/tfhlayout.jpg/)

http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/4470/tfhfront.jpg (http://img821.imageshack.us/i/tfhfront.jpg/)

[Purity4]

I've used the upright storage container of linens for the bathroom linen closet. I've even used it for the kitchen pantry once, because I do keep towels in my kitchen, and I'd just pretend there were canned goods in the closed lower cupboard portion.

[porkypine]

Hi, You can use the moveobjects on cheat and move counters to a diagonal angle. The doors might not work in that section, but it will look good. :0) Good job you guys! Making sims houses to plan isn't always easy. :0)

[NickeyElysse]

Wow. I was just about to post the exact same thing. I just learned how make counters with diagonals. I also learned how to build a stove into the counter island. http://img130.imageshack.us/img130/7648/screenshot2pxa.jpg (http://img130.imageshack.us/i/screenshot2pxa.jpg/)

http://img33.imageshack.us/img33/8620/screenshotot.jpg (http://img33.imageshack.us/i/screenshotot.jpg/)

sorry. I got so excited to share, I forgot to crop. Please forgive.

[RylandHomes]

Anyone else interested in the challenge?

[NickeyElysse]

I'm still building every once in a while. I did today. But I've not been taking pictures. Mostly cuz something always goes wrong. I've lost my focus. Today I ending up making the house backwards, got frustrated and quit.

[RylandHomes]

I'm still building every once in a while. I did today. But I've not been taking pictures. Mostly cuz something always goes wrong. I've lost my focus. Today I ending up making the house backwards, got frustrated and quit.

AWW MAN! I know how you feel, I hate when I make dumb mistakes. When things like that happen I just want to uninstall the game and burn the disk. :lol:

Well, I think I might start on another house myself, especially now that I know how to place diagonal counters with straight ones. :p

[calisims]

Well, I didn't build this house specifically for this challenge, but it is based on an actual floorplan.
I'm using this house in my current random legacy challenge, I needed something small on a larger lot so I could expand over the time of the legacy.

Here's the floorplan and sketch of the house:
http://www.lowes.com/cd_The+Katrina+Cottage+-+Model+480_747080312_

http://i111.photobucket.com/albums/n145/yangthecat/Risk%20Legacy/Screenshot-49.jpg

Here's my exterior.

http://i111.photobucket.com/albums/n145/yangthecat/Risk%20Legacy/Screenshot-62.jpg

Sorry I don't have a top down floorplan pic, I took this pic for my legacy challenge, I wasn't thinking about this thread. But when I'm in game later I can take a top down.
Changes I've made: I took out the back door and closets, as I didn't really need them. The closet space became part of the second bedroom, which I use a studio for my architect Sim. Also, because the challenge I'm playing requires you have laundry enabled, I rearranged the kitchen to accommodate a washer. You can't see it in the pic. but the washer is in the kitchen next to the counter on the left.
Also, my Sims couldn't afford a shower/tub, so the bathroom got changed to having just a cheap shower, but eventually I will replace that.

[wndy26]

i would like to give it a try... i usually go off floor plans anyway....

[Camalus28]

How do you place diagonal counters? haha,and I'll give this a shot. I really suck at building but i guess it's a good place to start practicing :).

[RylandHomes]

How do you place diagonal counters? haha,and I'll give this a shot. I really suck at building but i guess it's a good place to start practicing :).

In the first post, there are some helpful tips when building a house based on an actual floor plan to help you get started. ;)

[Camalus28]

I warned ya'll this would be terrible, but here it is: :|

http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/DRA715-FR-RE-CO-LG.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/DRA715-LVL1-LI-BL-MD.gif
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-82.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-83.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-84.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-85.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-86.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-87.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-88.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-89.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-90.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-91.jpghttp://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-92.jpghttp://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-93.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-94.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-95.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-96.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-97.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-98.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af310/Atilla28/Realistic%20home%20challenge/Screenshot-99.jpg

[Ella In Stilettos]

This is a really cool idea :3 I've been working on houses for this for a couple days now. Almost done decorating my first one <333

Question: A lot of house plans I like end up getting nipped in the bud because parts of the house are on a foundation and other parts aren't (like garages) and I can't seem to find a way to make those parts connect :c like, the walls won't go where they're supposed to. Does anyone know if there's a way to get around this?

[calisims]

Question: A lot of house plans I like end up getting nipped in the bud because parts of the house are on a foundation and other parts aren't (like garages) and I can't seem to find a way to make those parts connect :c like, the walls won't go where they're supposed to. Does anyone know if there's a way to get around this?

Yes, you need to use the CFE cheat.
Here's a tutorial:
http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=350351

[ShadowgirlxP]

Here is the sketch and floor plan of the house: http://www.houseplans.com/704-square-feet-1-bedroom-1-bathroom-Cottage-house-plans-0-garage-%2836033%29

I didn't re-size the images so here are the links:
The Front (http://oi54.tinypic.com/28iq2iq.jpg)
The Floor Plan (http://oi55.tinypic.com/2iu887s.jpg)

I didn't remember there was a porch and foundation until after I started building :faceslap: so I used floor titles as (kind of) a replacement.

[Cecil88]

I'm totally gonna try this out, when I get my new computer next week. It's a great idea, and I wonder why it never occured to me :P

[ohtar]

i think i might give this a try. i built one off my childhood home but i dont have the floor plans to that so ill just do a new one.

[ohtar]

I'd also like to mention:
Damn you all for showing me that freaking floor plan site! Almost an hour later and I'm still drooling over one house I found that is almost so perfect I actually want to live there! -shakes fist at sky-

[ohtar]

OK! So this is the house i fell in love with. I have a weakness for Victorian architecture, so when I saw this I knew I had to make it.
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/472-13e-2614.gif

The floor plans looked easy enough as well.
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/472-13mf-2614.jpg
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/472-13uf-2614.jpg

Believe it or not, the whole rebuilding of this came down to that teeny little bathroom off on the right. I saw how the tub fit perfectly in the wall. measuring it on my print out, I saw that one tub = one cm. I then measured out every room in cm, spawned 5 or 6 tubs, and went to it. Dragging the tubs around the foundation, I managed to accurately measure out every square inch of this house.
Please pardon any places i deviated from the plans. The wrap around staircase, for one, was virtually impossible for me to do without redoing half the house. The roof tool, IMHO, is a piece of junk and it fought me every step of the way, refusing to do what i wanted of it. So I had to improvise the whole roof. Also, the garage was up on a foundation with a sloping hill for a driveway. There was no way to put the hill in without making a chasm of death right outside the garage so I nixed the door and relied on the magic of car teleportation for actual in game play.
Other than that, i labored for about 4 hours in between customers at work to create THIS.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-40.jpg
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-42.jpg

The floor plan is accurate to within a half tub length, with the obvious exception of areas I had to improvise due to awkward shaping of in game items.
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-44.jpg

And now, for some inside views around this lovely abode.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-46.jpg
A cozy livingroom with more space than you would think. Ample lighting both day and night highlight this comfortable area, with massive windows overlooking the deck.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-50.jpg
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-49.jpg
A spacious kitchen/breakfast area with massive windows overlooking the wrap around porch. The stove and the fridge are separate from the counters and placed within their own little nooks to avoid that mid morning toast rush traffic jam.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-51.jpg
Just off the kitchen is a cozy dining room area. The large windows overlook the sunset in the evening, with the overhead chandelier taking over in the night hours to provide ample lighting while you entertain your family for the holidays.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-53.jpg
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-54.jpg
Spacious floor area and a staged bay window make this room ideal for your budding little girl, with a large closet to hold everything your platinum credit card can buy.
The second bedroom, though not as spacious, can easily be converted into an office.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-68.jpg
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-69.jpg
The master bedroom is ery spacious, with lots of room for whatever you please. The large window theme carries into this room as well, as you can see into the deck and backyard area with ease. The glass doors on the far wall...

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-70.jpg
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-71.jpg
... lead into a massive master bath area with two sinks, a huge mirror, and a semi-private toilet area. To the rear of this bath area, you will find the master walk in closet.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-72.jpg
It's pretty big.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-61.jpg
Slipping out the patio door in the living room, we come out to the deck. With a lovely view out to the back trees, you can have your friends over for a bbq dinner or just soak up the day in the built in hot tub.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-62.jpg
Moving back to the front door, we come to the stairs, where a little fountain bubbles happily to itself, adding a pleasant ambiance to the hall.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-64.jpg
http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-65.jpg
Upstairs we have a small library area. The bookshelves lie in a darker area away from the harsh paper damaging rays of the light.

http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx93/Ohtar/sims%203%20builders%20challenge/Screenshot-66.jpg
While a few comfy chairs adorn a snug reading area. the large windows allow excellent lighting and provide a fabulous view of the town below.

So that's a brief rundown of my first huge house project in a long time.
For actual gameplay purposes, i plan on widening the hallways (sims are SO much more picky than humans) and repairing some unneeded areas to make them easier to path around. I'm also putting in a basement with outdoor access. or maybe indoor AND outdoor access. We shall see.

If anyone likes this, I can attempt my first actual upload on this site, wither of the house as it is now or after i finish modding it.
...though I would have to remove a metric butt-ton of CC lol

[wolfy92]

ohtar, that is by far the most beautiful in-game house I've ever seen. You have no idea how impressed I am, especially since I have no building talent at all.

[balletroxmysox123]

these are some awesome houses, i just wish that the people that made the sims were a bit more creative with the wallpapers!

[ohtar]

ohtar, that is by far the most beautiful in-game house I've ever seen. You have no idea how impressed I am, especially since I have no building talent at all.

ive made modifications to it to be more in game friendly as well. if i can figure out how, im gonna make it available for download.
It's actually not that hard to make these. you just need a little imagination and a butt ton of patience. thankfully I did it at work while i was working overnight. no distractions XD

[19smitchell99]

I am starting to make some in sims 3, but i like one that i made in sims 2 (the one shown) and am starting another house which I will post shortly :)

[pianoman35]

Hey everybody,

Awesome houses on here! It inspired me to try my hand at this as well and found this one so I decided to give it a shot. It turned out much better than I thought it would. Let me know what you think!

Here are a few pictures of the real house:


Front
http://img2.houseplans.com/plans/alt/427-6alt5-1924.jpg

Back
http://img2.houseplans.com/plans/alt/427-6alt6-1924.jpg

Here is the floor plan.
http://img2.houseplans.com/plans/mf/427-6mf-1924.jpg

The rest can be found here:
http://www.houseplans.com/1924-square-feet-3-bedroom-2-bathroom-Country-house-plans-2-garage-%2831175%29

Here are the screenshots from my attempt.

http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/5007/1screenshot31.jpg
http://img560.imageshack.us/img560/4303/1screenshot15.jpg
http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/2544/1screenshot29.jpg
http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/4418/1screenshot16.jpg
http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/7254/1screenshot30.jpg
http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/1278/1screenshot19.jpg
http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/4291/1screenshot20.jpg
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/2695/1screenshot21.jpg
http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/6986/1screenshot22.jpg
http://img207.imageshack.us/img207/157/1screenshot23.jpg
http://img38.imageshack.us/img38/6663/1screenshot24.jpg
http://img262.imageshack.us/img262/6289/1screenshot25.jpg
http://img815.imageshack.us/img815/2094/1screenshot26.jpg
http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/1927/1screenshot27.jpg
http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/6919/1screenshot28.jpg

Enjoy! :)

[Kingv97]

Lets Face It the sims just limits the realisticness of home building!
they all come out shabby
ive tried many times to build a realistic home but it always comes out so simmish!

[Apocryphallen]

I also suck at making houses, although I think this would be a fun challenge (no matter how old it is :P ) Now, I'm off to find the perfect house....

[BenC0722]

I don't normally do challenges or contests, since there are often time constraints (though I guess this one doesn't). So I haven't built any houses specifically for this challenge. Every lot I build, I build with the intent of possibly using it later. However, I'll mention one thing.

About 99% of the lots I've been building are inspired by floor plans. Without floor plans, it would be quite hard to come up with ideas.


When I build the lots, I do follow some guidelines.

Usually, walk-in closets are 3x2. Just enough room for a dresser and the clothing rack decor object in Ambitions. It adds to the effect, yet the closet can be used for it's intended purpose. There IS a functional clothing rack object as CC (available here on MTS), but so far I haven't used it.

Even though not all house plans call for it, I always use basements. It's out of habit, probably because I live in the Midwest. Sometimes I have to guess the basement layout, since plans sometimes don't provide this.

I use foundations probably 99% of the time. As a result, I use CFE very frequently, for the sake of attached garages.

I follow the plans as close as I can, though sometimes changes are required because of the space that objects require, or TS3 limitations.

I use fake chimneys frequently.

I include laundry facilities on every lot, even in starter residences.


Anyway, I have two threads in the CFF forum which detail a couple of houses I built. I've made at least a dozen more, but didn't make threads for those. Without further ado, here are the links. Both threads contain links to the plans I used for inspiration.

Suburban House (3 BR. House):

http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=438142

Sussex House (6 BR. Mansion, has an elevator!):

http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=440423

[Kenedyox]

So I built a home from RylandHomes, my favorite home builders, hence my username. It's not exact, but pretty darn close.

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_03Nov180937.jpg
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_05Nov181418.jpg
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_04Nov181023.jpg
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb370/ian_bernard/sims%203%20errors/ScreenHunter_06Nov181419.jpg

Looks awsome! Might try something from this website, thanks!:D :up: :)

[shart105]

This sounds like fun. I typically build my own homes anyways since i dont care much for the onces already in the game so nothing new there. Altho I didnt know about the angled counters which always messed up my builds when i had to change it to make it work. Now that I know how to do it it will make it much more fun. I have a book with over 10k house plans that I bought to help design my own home that I used to make my sims houses. I think I will do this challenge and focus on starter homes, gives me a reason to work on some new ones and start uploading them to the site. Thanks for the idea :)

[shart105]

Alright so heres my first house. It's not perfect but I wanted to keep it under 18,500, and I did, final furnished value is 18,492 and is perfect for a newly married couple. If your playing a single sim you can still purchase the house unfurnishted at 15,377 and furnish it yourself. Haven't tried it so not sure how much you'd be able to get right off though lol.

This is the house I chose to start with.
original front view
original floorplan

And this is the house I made.
front view
floorplan

[shart105]

ok i'm not sure why I got "image not available" and screenshots at the bottom but at least you can see the pics lol. I uploaded the pics and used the image button and put the name of the pic in the little box that popped up. If anyone could tell me where I went wrong that would be great.

[Ilikewaffles204]

Sign me up! So, I was wondering, you can use items from every expansion and stuff pack, right? I don't plan on using CC, but is that allowed?