Any Lantana/Juniper owners??

[NJblue]

We are building a Lantana and are in the process of planning which of our existing furniture we will bring versus buying new. I have the floorplans which indicate that the front BR is 15' 9" by 11' 8". I am assuming (hoping) that these dimensions do not include the bump-out bay or squared-off window area (ours will be the squared-off version). Can any Lantana owners tell me the dimensions of the bump-out so we can figure furniture placement? (Yes, I know its anal, but I don't want to move furniture down there and then find that it won't fit.) Thanks in advance.

[`willy]

You made me get off the couch and find a tape measure. It dosn't include the
bump out, Our Lantans four years old and we love it. GOOD LUCK


We have a loveseat in the bump out and it almost fits.

[Lucko]

Lantana -- According to my floor plan, the square bump out measures 3' by 12' on the inside, but that might be off an inch or two -- we just settled on a Lantana in Hemingway -- add the bump out to the room size shown on a floor plan, same goes for off sets in the garage area -- Happy hauling -- Lucko (in Illinois for the summer)

[784caroline]

We have the bay window and our bump is approx 4ft6" X 9ft...BUT be careful for not all "bumps" are the same with every house especailly if a house has been exended (made wider) on "that" side.

[NJblue]

Thanks for the feedback.

Lucko, you referred to your floorplan having the dimensions. Were you given detailed floorplans for your new house? The only thing that we received was a site plan showing how our house would sit on the lot. However, we didn't get anything that would allow us to get any details and dimensions for the interior.

We will also be in Heminingway. Where is your house being built?

[Villages Kahuna]

I have to help out another Wolverine.

We have a Lantana and wanted to put a sofa in the front bedroom bumpout space. We went to Southern Lifestyles to look around. They have the floorplans for every model in their computers and quickly advised me and Mrs. Kahuna that we could only consider sofa-style pieces that were a maximum of 75-inches long. There was also a back height limitation, but the length was by far the most limiting factor. (The back height limitation could impact on trying to put a big, comfortable easy chair in that room though.)

The problem, when you look at the floorplan of a Lantana, is moving the furniture for the front bedroom from the main room into the hallway, around a corner, and then through a 68 by 32 inch doorway. After much experience the Southern Lifestyles folks know what will fit and what won't. We wound up buying a 75-inch long loveseat for the space. With two end tables, it fits fine in the Lanatana bumpout.

By the way, I might mention that really big pieces won't fit into the master bedroom either, pretty much for the same reason. We hadn't considered that and when the movers tried to move two large armoires into the master bedroom they got them in, but only by removing the door, the hinges, and a couple layers of paint on the doorjamb.

By the way, one other problem we encountered with the front bedroom. We use that room as our TV room and den. I bought a big screen TV and ordered DirecTV. When the time came to install the DVR in that room, we discovered that because TV only wires each room with a single TV cable/outlet, that the DirecTV DVR wouldn't be able to record anything other than the show being watched on the TV. This isn't a problem with Comcast DVR's which for some reason require only a single line, but those used with satellite dishes require two lines into the room. I wound up hiring an electrician. Even then he had to bring the additional cable line from its entry on the exterior garage wall, thru the attic, down the interior garage wall adjacent to the entry walkway, thru the wall, bury it under the walkway, then bring the cable up next to the house to get it thru the wall and into the outlet on the wall where the TV was sitting. Ours is CBS construction with interior raised ceilings but I don't think the problem with be different with frame construction.

[Lucko]

NJblue -- We already settled on our Lantana in the middle of Chapman Loop -- On page 006 of the agreement we had to initial which shows the choices of expanded lanai, garage expansion and 3rd bed room bay/square bump, the drawing has a scale of 1/8 inch = one foot, and that shows the width of the square bump to be the same as the width of the 12' expanded back porch and the depth measures 1/4 of that -- that plan is to scale and shows the same measurements with a ruler -- We will be returning to TV in late October, right after a visit to Midland, Michigan -- If you want, I can email you my direct email and /or phone -- We also have an Austin ranch in Duval and will be glad to answer questions -- Be aware that not all Lantana homes are exactly the same -- You will love TV -- Lucko

[villages07]

Kahuna,

FYI, in my Lantana, front bedroom, I have Cable drops on both side walls....go figure. I use one for comcast TV and the other for high speed internet. I also have phone jacks on both walls.

[chelsea24]

We have a Lantana and have more cable outlets then we know what to do with! I think I counted either 10 or 12. Yes, the front bedroom had 2 cable outlets and 2 phone jacks.

As far as Direct TV goes, we've just had it installed and we can watch one show and record two others on the HDDVR. I also have it hooked up to my computer with iTV. And we have Comcast for our Internet provider. All the tech guys had to do was to go into the crawl space and do something in the crawl space. No extra electrician needed. I couldn't be happier with Direct TV. :bigthumbsup:

[NJblue]

Kahuna,

Thanks for the heads-up on getting large furniture into the bedrooms. I had never given that problem a thought. Was the 75 inch limitation based on the size of your bump-out or the ability to get a couch larger than that into the room? We were really hoping to use the front BR as a den/TV room but also for overflow sleeping by having a sleeper couch in the bump-out area. Our couch is 86 inches long.

Go Blue!

[graciegirl]

Our villages rep went out himself and measured the window openings when I asked about them, because I was sewing curtains. (His name is Jim McLaughlin and he is just terrific.)

It seems strange to me that all of that information isn't in some data base somewhere, even given that each home and model is made slightly different.

I just love the Lantana/ Juniper and it is my next choice. (Don't listen Sweetie) The only small thing I don't like is that there is only the sliders for light in the greatroom/dining room.

[villages07]

Gracie,

You are right, the main living area (depending on which way the house faces) can be dark. We put a 13" SolaTube in the Dining Room.....what a huge difference that made in the lighting. Those things are amazing...never saw them up North.

[Villages Kahuna]

The door size and the corner that has to be navigated to get a large sofa into the Lantana front bedroom is the issue. With the width of the hallway being what it is, there is simply no way to tilt and turn a sofa larger than 75 inches from the main room, around a corner into a narrow hallway and then thru a door opening that is only 68 inches high and 32 inches wide into the front bedroom.

Regarding large furniture pieces getting into the Lantana master bedroom--we anticipated the problem with our armoires, but only after moving out of our house in suburban Chicago. We had done some remodeling there and eliminated the route and door used to get those pieces into our bedroom. The movers had to remove a large window and use a small cherry-picker to get the two pieces out of our second floor bedroom. At that point we anticipated that we could have a problem at the other end in TV, but it was too late to do anything about it. Fortunately the pieces got in, but only by the smallest fraction of an inch.

Talk to Southern Lifestyles even if you don't buy there. They know exactly what will fit and what won't. They've been furnishing Villages houses for a long time. We wound up buying a very comfortable convertible loveseat that opens into a double bed with an inflatable matteress (like a Sleep Number bed) from White Furniture on 441. Other than the limitation that I really can't stretch out for a nap on that sofa, it's very comfortable--and it fits!

[Lady Jan]

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[NJblue]

We have not yet moved into our Lantana but I believe that the reason for the restrictions on furniture sizes for the front bedroom was because of the bend that is required immediately after going through the passageway from the foyer to get through the BR door. Because of this bend, perhaps the only way to get a sofa into the room is to tip it vertically, thus being limited by the height of the door. However, from looking at the floorplan, it appears that entrance to the middle bedroom is a straight shot through the passageway and hence a couch could be brought through in a horizontal position and therefore would not have any length restrictions. But, that is just a guess on my part.

[beady]

I live in a Juniper and have just ordered a sleep sofa for our "middle'' bedroom. It is a small twin size but I know it will fit. As NJBlue said, "it is a straight shot" into that bedroom. You should not have a problem. We chose the smaller size only because the room is also an office.

[pili]

We just moved into a Lantana last week. J&L construction added crown moulding yesterday and it looks awesome!! It makes such a different in the room. They put the crown moulding in the foyer, LR, DR, breakfast nook, and kitchen. I recommend these guys for any additions, remodeling, etc. They do a lot of work in TV. We have round corners and you need someone who knows how to do round corners. Ours look so beautiful.

We did get our large armoire in Master Bedroom but movers had to do some maneuvering. We have a sofa bed in first bedroom under the window. I do find the second bedroom small but you have to live with what you have. We love our Lantana!

Pili

[beady]

Thanks Pili for the info on the crown molding. I wonder do you have odd angles in the livingroom and eating area. Our ceilings slant down about 4 feet towards the back wall. I do not have rounded corners but the the angles on the vaulted ceiling would be tricky with adding the molding. I love the look.

[villages07]

Pili,

Crown molding sounds interesting....not an 'improvement' I had previously considered. Can you take any pictures and post them? I'd love to see what that looks like. No rounded corners for us either (darn....that was one of the few features I wish our house had upfront).

Thanks for sharing your ideas.

Oh, by the way, we have a queen size sleeper sofa in the front room under the windows. The movers got it in here OK. It's a wide piece but not particularly bulky.

[NJblue]

For those who have sleepers in the front BR, how long is your sofa? Ours is a queen-sized as well, but I'm quite sure it is too long to fit through the door vertically (86 inches). I wonder if there is another way to get that large of a piece into the front room. If so, it would solve a number of problems that we are having concerning furniture.

[Shirleevee]

Pili,

Thank you for the crown moulding post. All the rooms in our home here in NY have moulding. My to-do list for our Juniper is crown moulding. Please send pictures (so I can nudge:icon_wink: my other half). Thank you

[villages07]

NJ,

Our queen sleeper is 80 inches long x 36 in wide by 28 in tall. Like I said, it's not a real bulky piece...pretty streamlined. I don't recall how our movers got it into the front room but they did.

[pili]

We moved into our Lantana 10 days ago. We had J&L Construction put in crown moulding. It really makes a difference. We have round corners and the corners are beautiful. The crown moulding opens up the room and gives it lots of character.

Pili

[jojo]

Do those of you who added crown moulding to the Lantana have volume ceilings?

[pili]

I'm not sure what volume celing is. We do have high ceilings and the crown moulding looks beautiful. We also have round corners and the look awesome with the moulding. That said, make sure you hire someone who knows how to add moulding to round corners. J&L do work all over TV and knew how to do it. I did hear from my sales person that she saw a house where the installer did a terrible job with the round corners.

Pili

[villages07]

I was in a friend's Gardenia model the other day....her husband had put up crown molding throughout the house, volume ceilings and all. I must say, it was a classy enhancement to the interior. Not an improvement I had considered, but, am now thinking about it. Thanks for the suggestion, pili.

[784caroline]

WE also have a Lantana and had Crown Moulding put in...without a doubt I highly recommend it. For comparison quotes I would check with B@J Builders call Brian at 352-516-0668. Outstanding workmanship. Total job includes oil based paint and cleanup.

[pili]

The movers didn't have any problems bringing a queen size sofa bed into the first bedroom. It fits nicely under the bay window. We have a bay window in our Lantana instead of one center window with a smaller one on each side.

Pili