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And I disagree as the design I posted will attest to. Hell, even in my 1932 house I currently live in, you open the front door and you can see all the way through the kitchen to the back window (and there are no doors to the living or dining room that can be closed off and that's original for the house).
I love the smell of home cooked spaghetti or bread permeating the house.
And cats should be closed off in the basement...
I really was thinking of newer, open plan home when I opined that seeing the kitchen from the front door was bad design. You have to cut older homes a lot of slack because they were built when people's ideas about homes were different than now. Some posters on his forum adore older homes, and I think there is room for everyone's opinions on this.
As to smells, if you get the aroma of bread or spaghetti sauce, you can also get the aroma of cooked cabbage and fish. So, it cuts both ways.
Even in a segmented house, cooking aromas and odors will drift in though, in my experience.
It's very frustrating to be uncomfortable in one's own home. Our home is supposed to be our refuge from frustration, our comfort zone. When a person is perpetually - every day, day in and day out - uncomfortable in their refuge, it can bring out the vehemence.
I agree so much! It's like there is no where to escape! It's all so public. Like living in a conference center.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KathrynAragon
Several things frustrated me every single day in my beautiful, open floor plan home. One thing was the difficulty of placing furniture without walls. I have a lot of original art work and I wanted walls to hang it on. I really hadn't thought about that before living there.
Yes, so much yes. I didn't realize before moving in how hard this would be for me either. They had it staged so nicely for showing, I just didn't realize. One thing I miss so much is my fireplace mantle. I have a gas fireplace, but it is two sided and extends out into the room. It is a room divider of sorts. Not that it is useful in that way since it's not tall enough to block noise, vision, or scents (I'm looking at you Burnt Bacon) and you can't put any furniture against it on either side. There is a "mantle" in the sense that there is a top to it, but, though it be oak wood, it has the aesthetic of an elbow height countertop. There is nothing about that fireplace that says "gracious country home". Instead, it rather screams "hideous poorly executed effort to look modern". No one is fooled. There is no fireplace flue there. I thought when we moved in we could at least put a sheetrock wall in from the ceiling down to the "mantle" to separate it into two sides (while also suggesting a real fireplace on either side and getting me a WALL to hang our family portrait on), but Husband overruled my ideas because he thinks we must protect that solid wood countertop...er, I mean "mantle"...at all costs. He is one of those who thinks painting wood, any wood, even bathroom baseboards, is a sin, so installing sheetrock, which implies nails, probably, is unthinkable. We should have discussed it at more length before buying, yes, I know.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KathrynAragon
Another thing that frustrated me was that every sound and smell from the kitchen permeated the living space. And turn the TV on and it was like having a symphony orchestra, or a football stadium, inside my house. I like peace and quiet, so this really bothered me.
Yes, one thousand times yes. The cooking smells. Ugh. The noise of loading the dishwasher, clanking pans, all of it reverberating across the hardwood floors causing whoever is watching TV to crank that volume up. Football stadium is an apt description. Likewise, while baking or clipping coupons, or whatever in the kitchen, I am bombarded by the sound of whatever action movie my husband is watching just across the fireplace "mantle". I feel like I am continually assaulted in my own kitchen.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KathrynAragon
Here's something odd that subconsciously bothered me for awhile until I realized with a start what was really getting to me - TOO MANY LIGHT FIXTURES HANGING EVERYWHERE. Oh my gosh - three pendant lights over the bar, a big kitchen light and fan, a big chandelier over the dining table, a big fan/light in the living room, and another hanging pendant in the entry way....
Oh, my dear goodness gracious, YES! And except for the three spotlights over the bar, they are all rather randomly arranged. At the same time, our lighting is terrible. Try taking photos inside the house! Either they are a silhouette due to the light behind them or they look haggard from harsh lighting placed oddly directly over their heads or streaming from an excess of windows. I have to herd everyone outside for some natural lighting to get some good pictures.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KathrynAragon
Now - the house itself was beautiful. It had a lot of architectural interest and gorgeous trim and surfaces. So it LOOKED nice but it didn't feel comfortable to me.
Yup. All of the same. It showed beautifully when we looked at it before buying. It was very nicely staged. We looked at it several times, so I can't say I didn't notice the ugly fireplace. But living it it is a very different thing. I can't express strongly enough how much I hate living in it.
To circle back to the original post. I am bothered that everyone has to say "hardwood" floors, on TV.
In real life, doesn't everyone just say, "wood floors"?
Everyone says "hardwood floors" where I live.
Maybe it's a regional difference?
To circle back to the original post. I am bothered that everyone has to say "hardwood" floors, on TV.
In real life, doesn't everyone just say, "wood floors"?
Why? Because not all floors are hardwood (examples: oak, maple, mahogany, teak, walnut). Some floors are made out of soft woods like pine (or cedar, redwood, or spruce). I've even seen modern houses with stained plywood floors.
When people have the more expensive, long-lasting hardwood they want you to know it. If floors are made out of a hard wood they usually can be sanded and refinished to make them look like new if they are in poor condition, which is a huge plus for people buying older homes.
Last edited by Jukesgrrl; 09-05-2016 at 07:51 PM..
Reason: spelling
Speaking of things I wish never to see again ... put Joanna Gaines and her silly husband on the list. I'm starting to see shiplap everywhere and she's no doubt responsible for that as well as the barn doors. I'm also tired of her cutesy sayings pasted on walls, rusting parts of commercial buildings hung on walls, and fancy chandeliers in rustic rooms.
Every house she designs looks alike. If you can walk into any house and say to yourself, "This person is copying Joanna Gaines, that's wrong right there.
Hmmm. She's about the only one on HGTV I like. And I love the interplay between her and Chip. And yes, most of her houses look similar, but there have been enough variations and other builds that it's not bad, and when you count her homes as a percentage of what you see on HGTV in total, it's a welcome change from the typical HGTV build.
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