What makes a perfect house in The Sims 3?

[Leto85]

Months ago I started to build a version 1 of a huge millionairs mansion in The Sims 3 that was for my laptop to big to handle. The watch it, click on this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=168MU4IIq5E
While making it I was constantly thinking of: how can I improve the house?

The question what makes the perfect house can be answered by a few simple guidlines I think:

1 Don't make the sims walk to far to get from point one to point two (like from the living room to the toilet).
2 Make sure that no matter who is going to live in the house, the whole interior will give the sim the possibility to fullfill his or her lifetime wish.

For the rest I hope some of you can upgrade this list with some things you came up yourself by for example experimenting ingame.
I have a lot of ideas to, but now I am more curious about your idea of what makes a sims 3 house perfect.

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EDIT:

Here are a few guidelines to make the most out of a room:

1 Every room needs the following things; 2 heartform gems like opal, pink diamond, rainbow, or soulpeache, 1 huge masterpiece painting, or 2 normal or 3 little ones (or your own combination of statues etc) to provide the sim that walkes the room with the +40 nicely decoration moodlet.
2 One most expansive stereo per room upgraded to better boxes or sounds (or whatevever the English term is), except for the bedrooms, unless your sims are heavy sleepers.
3 One most expensive fireplace per room.
4 One rubber ducky per bath in every bathroom + that head and shoulders thing that upgrades baths to bubblebaths.
5 One stove per kitchen upgraded to make better prepaired food, one food replicator per kitchen and also 1 5 star cheff fridge.
6 Per room 1 scented candle from the France, Egypt and Chinese destinations that came with World Adventures to provide the sim with a +10 mootlet each, and also with some better change of learning skills, romantic interactions and another thing that the egyptic scented candle does, which I've forgot.
7 Every object that can be upgraded in the rooms are upgraded to self cleaning and once repaired by a sim that makes the object never break again.
9 Every object that can scientifically upgraded will be upgraded. Especially those in the nurcery, because the moodlets that came with an scientifically upgrded object are also influencing the mood of a baby or toddler.

OPTIONAL: put teleportation platforms (upgraded to perfect teleportation and once repaired by a sim so it will never break again) somewhere in the corners of the house to make sims travels quickly. Your mansion will probably big, so you better decrease the traveltime.

[pallyndrome]

I finally built a huge mansion for my legacy-type family. Since I usually have at 6-8 sims at one time, it can be difficult getting through corridors. So how did I fix that? No corridors! All rooms are laid out around a central staircase room. 4 stories and a basement. And each room is designed around 1-3 paintings that my sims made at some point of time. I'm enjoying it so far. And I finally have a big space in the yard for ball games, and a pool, though I had to cut down on the driveway. And I am still working out how to make my sims use the bridge to the vegetable garden - they keep going around the back of the house.

[Swede1992]

OK, I must say it: Hands down, you're easily one of the, if not the, best builders I've seen Leto!
You've really impressed me with that one; it must have taken ages to build!

Now for the question at hand: If you're evil, then I would argue that the best lay-out would be a huge and dark under-ground complex to leave the surface as free as possible. Otherwise, a central stair-case as pallyndrome suggested is a great way of making intra-home travel distances shorter.

Interestingly enough, I once had a smoocher who was so skilled at becoming the neighbours permanent room-mate that even building a house in the first place would in my eyes been too wasteful and inefficient.

[Leto85]

OK, I must say it: Hands down, you're easily one of the, if not the, best builders I've seen Leto!
You've really impressed me with that one; it must have taken ages to build!

Haha, thank you Swede. Nice to hear that. But actually the most work lies in The Sims 2. I've rebuild my old fashion home that I've made previously in The Sims 2. And that, yes, toke indead ages.

I finally built a huge mansion for my legacy-type family. Since I usually have at 6-8 sims at one time, it can be difficult getting through corridors. So how did I fix that? No corridors! All rooms are laid out around a central staircase room. 4 stories and a basement. And each room is designed around 1-3 paintings that my sims made at some point of time. I'm enjoying it so far. And I finally have a big space in the yard for ball games, and a pool, though I had to cut down on the driveway. And I am still working out how to make my sims use the bridge to the vegetable garden - they keep going around the back of the house.

Can I see your house somewhere? The way you explains to me the layout of it sounds interesting.
About the bridge: if it isn't the shortest way to the vegetable garden (isn't a garden always vegetable? ) than they will take a shorter way. Make sure the bridge is the shortest, or if that doesn't help, build vences around the way to the bridge to force them to walk that way.

[Saltypaws]

That house is beautiful Leto.  I guess I need to build something one of these days. lol

[pallyndrome]

 
Leto your house is amazing!!! Wow!

As for my house, I'm not sure how to show it to you. I have no idea how to make a beautiful movie like you did for yours. And mine is really for my own personal tastes - it may look a little wierd. And there are some rooms, like the kids' rooms, that I'm not particularly proud of. And the basement is a little incomplete.

[Leto85]

Leto your house is amazing!!! Wow!

As for my house, I'm not sure how to show it to you. I have no idea how to make a beautiful movie like you did for yours. And mine is really for my own personal tastes - it may look a little wierd. And there are some rooms, like the kids' rooms, that I'm not particularly proud of. And the basement is a little incomplete.

Need some help than? I really like people to help with this game wherever I can. I can provide you with some tips or simple to follow guidelines in order to increase your building and designing techniques skyhigh or beyond.
Look at the top of this topic, if you like. I already have put some easy (yet expensive) guidelines about 'upgrading' rooms there.

One day, I hope one of the friendly moderators will alloud me to write a 'how to build an over the top house' for The Sims 3, but until then I will be settle with this topic.

[The Illuminator]

Pallyndrome, you're right that houses without corridors will ready cut down your travelling distance, but does it really look that nice? My mansions are usually built around one big hall and a small entrance hall. The house has many corridors, but your sims will be able to get everywhere in no time.



This is a mansion plan. (It was made with CorelDRAW cin 5 minutes, so don't laugh at me please...).

Yellow boxes are corridors.
Blue boxes are rooms.
Red boxes are doors
Green box is the main hall with a staircase (lighter blue)
Orange is the entrance hall

Every room has a connection to a corridor and to the rooms next to it. Of course those rooms are optional and you can divide them if they want, as long as they have a connection to a corrido and/or another room.

You do not want to connect rooms which do not have anything in common e.g. a private bathroom and a formal dining room.

Please tell me what you think of it.

EDIT: I forgot: repeat on other floors if necessary. The corridor behind the staircase will be the balcony on the next floor. The position of the staircase will switch everytime the building gets higher.

[Pam]

Illuminator -

Your image isn't opening for me.  I recommend you try using these instructions for Photobucket.  We've had very good results this way.

[The Illuminator]

This isn't a screenshot, it's a drawing made by CorelDraw and a .pdf. Photobucket keeps saying : Video upload failed
Upload failed for Mansion Layout.htm with error: Video server error

By the way, you need Adobe Reader to open it.

[Pam]

Is there no way to convert it to a jpg file? I have a program that will convert it to .jpg and I'd be happy to do so if you send the image to me at [email protected].  It should then be able to upload to Photobucket and then show the image here on the forum.

[The Illuminator]

I did it myself, Pam! Although the quality isn't as good as it were a .pdf, you'll be able to see it and that's what's important! Are you able to see it now?

[Leto85]

Ha, cool! Pam just found my post. Woohoo! (O, wait. Woohoo may sound a bit wrong. )
But anyway, I was about to invite you here but now you're here already I am really curious about your opinion off what you think of the mansion in my link. Will you take a look, Pam?

[Pam]

Are you able to see it now?

Yes, I see it!  Thank you!

I am really curious about your opinion off what you think of the mansion in my link. Will you take a look, Pam?

I think the mansion is quite stunning! 

[pallyndrome]

I find the image of the plan of your mansion quite confusing. How wide are the corridors? What happens if 2 sims try to pass each other but they can't?
As for my idea not looking nice - that's a matter of opinion. I like my house.