Long before people had family rooms, rec rooms or great rooms, they had conservatories and orangeries. These where the rooms where well-heeled families would gather, not to watch TV or listen to the radio, because those things weren't around back then. Instead they would gather around a piano and play music, or they would pursue their hobbies and interests, like collecting exotic plants. So what if i don't know how to play the piano and can't keep house plants alive? I still want one.
In my last house i seriously considered adding a conservatory to use as a family room, but two things made it non-ideal. First, most conservatories available in Canada these days are framed in white PVC (vinyl), which i find a little bit cheesy for a structure that is suppose to look historic. Second the conservatory would have had a Western exposure, meaning late day sun would have turned it into a sauna inside. Unfortunately the house we have now is a semi detached and too narrow to add a conservatory or orangery to. So alas i am left to covet them from afar.
Here are some fine examples of conservatories. You wont find any PVC in these structures:
Here are some fine examples of orangeries. Shovels and bikes not allowed: