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You make a good case for living in a little dumpy house with a closed off kitchen. How dare those HGTV people make us aspire for living better! And all because of the selfish needs of their greedy advertisers!
If your idea of "living better" is an HGTV-approved open kitchen, then I guess the advertisers have succeeded in their mission with at least one person, eh?
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Originally Posted by loves2read
It is a scripted show
The writers put the words in their mouths and some shows seem to share same script w one in another state even
And the writers are paid by the advertisers. And so the circle neatly closes ...
It is a scripted show
The writers put the words in their mouths and some shows seem to share same script w one in another state even
More than that, I'm pretty sure they throw away a lot of shows that don't hit the right point in the script.
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Originally Posted by N.Cal
I love my open concept first floor. I'm single but cook a lot (and eat out a lot too). But my house has become the go-to house for gatherings since it is such a great entertaining space.
That's what I want too. I have the house and kitchen, I've just been too busy in my business to do it in the year I've owned the house. The main part of my business investment is going into a passive, monitoring mode in about a month and that's when I'll be able to start enjoying what I've got.
I already put in a Wolf cooktop and convection oven. Got the stainless steel double door refrigerator. Got the stainless steel Sous Vide. Dayam, it sure makes the tile look bad! I foresee granite in my near future. Meanwhile I have to send negative vibes to my white dishwasher: break! break! break!
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Originally Posted by Sunnydee
This is my first home with an open concept kitchen and it has been a joy. I cook and bake a lot, so having room to do so, and still being able to interact with other people in the house, is great. We actually entertain a lot more than we used to because we have more time and the layout of this house makes it so easy for me. I think kitchens are very personal work spaces and each individual has to decide what works best for them and go with it.
I used to have a closed off separate kitchen and I hated that whenever I entertained it turned to my guests partying in the living room and me lonesome while I slaved over a hot stove.
No more of that for me!!!!
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Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady
When I was a personal chef, I had the opportunity to cook in a lot of different kitchens. One things I learned pretty quickly - no matter what size the kitchen itself, and whether it was open concept or closed off, it was very important that the "triangle" (kitchen-sink-stove area) require that I take no more than two or three steps from one corner of the triangle to another. A small actual working area works best unless your goal is to wear out the cook!
....
Open concept or closed, the work area is the important thing.
I always knew about the triangle in a kind of gut way but it took my Realtor this year to bring it to a conscious level when we found a house where the island blocked off the triangle! Gawd!!! What a nightmare it would be to cook in that kitchen!!! Let's us hope the buyer of that house is the microwave and take out type!
I'm an amateur chef and love entertaining. Except dining out with friends I cook every meal I eat. I even have a website with my original recipes. Cooking is important to me, my favorite hobby.
I hope any architect that designs a kitchen without a triangle goes to architect hell!
If your idea of "living better" is an HGTV-approved open kitchen, then I guess the advertisers have succeeded in their mission with at least one person, eh?
Well to start with, I don't even watch HGTV. You seen one reality show they all tend to be the same show with only different themes.
As I explained in my previous post I'm an amateur chef and I spend a lot of time in my kitchen. Did their advertisers succeed? Do I have a Wolf cooktop and convection oven because of advertising? Nope.
The other obvious choice is Viking. You're either a Wolf person or a Viking person. Okay GE and a few others have sort of high end amateur/semi-pro appliances.
Note the Sous Vide. (Google is your friend.) Nobody has a Sous Vide unless they are either a very enthusiastic amateur chef, or they are so filthy rich that they needed more stainless steel to fill up their kitchen... That reminds me, a stainless steel double sink would look great with my granite counters yet to be!
As far as open plan houses, I've seen about 3-4 dozen of them in the last 4 months (3 days of showings) and bought 4 of them. If nothing else I know what they look like and there must be a good reason I like them. I like them because I think they will rent well. I like them because I think more people like them than not, if they can afford them and if open plan houses are common in their area.
The triangle is imperative and I'm seen some funky kitchens where the fridge is on the other side of the island from the rest of the appliances or the stove and sink aren't close enough for exactly what THL is talking about. I like to cook and like open concept kitchens, but I don't like the bowling alley affect that some floor plans have. If the kitchen and dining blend with the great room in an L shape, I like those the best for function. My house is set up this way and I love it.
Whether or not you like an open concept depends on what you like to do. Personally, my friends are IN the kitchen with me. If we are making pizzas, they help to chop, do the dough, etc while we have beer or wine. Typically, one will start doing dishes so the kitchen isn't a mess when we go to eat.
My friends are all casual folks and being involved in each other's kitchens is kind of what we do. I can see if you want to cook all by yourself that the open kitchen would be a distraction. It's just a preference.
The triangle is imperative and I'm seen some funky kitchens where the fridge is on the other side of the island from the rest of the appliances or the stove and sink aren't close enough for exactly what THL is talking about. I like to cook and like open concept kitchens, but I don't like the bowling alley affect that some floor plans have. If the kitchen and dining blend with the great room in an L shape, I like those the best for function. My house is set up this way and I love it.
You must have seen the same house I did! Refrigerator not only on the other side of the island from the other appliances, but get this: the sink wasn't in the island, and there was a major traffic path--front of the house to open plan kitchen, dining and family room area--between refrigerator and the island and rest of the kitchen! Whatever was that architect thinking? What kind of drugs was he on?
(I just figured it out. It's the perfect house for somebody on a diet. You burn off all the calories when you're walking back and forth between cooking area and refrigerator!)
I think you'd like my plan. It isn't quite open plan, definitely is not great room. My kitchen (including perfect triangle) is separated from my family room by a bar (counter extension) allowing me to visit with guests in the family room or sitting at the bar. Both rooms have 9 foot ceilings. (Slide door overlooks back yard and view.) Open doorway (no door) and wall cut out to about 3 feet from floor separates FR from LR and I can see most of my LR (with 18' cathedral ceiling) as I sit in my favorite spot. Living room has huge windows up to about 15 feet. (Allowing me to see the top floor of my neighbor's house. Oh well. ) Bedrooms and bathrooms upstairs, 1/4 bath downstairs.
Definitely not great room, not quite open plan, but open enough to give the feeling of open plan without having a vast open space large enough to play badminton.
or not you like an open concept depends on what you like to do. Personally, my friends are IN the kitchen with me. If we are making pizzas, they help to chop, do the dough, etc while we have beer or wine.
My friends all fit in my kitchen, which is not open. Another post that assumes.
I've been watching HGTV quite a bit recently and noticed all buyers want big, state of the art, open concept kitchen that would be "great for entertaining".
For some reason, whenever I hear that phrase on an HGTV program, I get visions of them jumping up on their granite counter tops and belting out a show tune for their friends and neighbors. Probably says more about me that anything else
My friends all fit in my kitchen, which is not open. Another post that assumes.
I don't want my friends in the kitchen. Stay the heck out of my triangle!!! Go sit at the bar or make yourself comfortable in my family room and I'll lean on my side of the bar and chat/entertain while I'm cooking.
Despite my very nice house my kitchen isn't that big really, certainly not an eat in kitchen, unless you sit two at the counter. I have a formal dining room. I could stand just one person in my kitchen and that would be my significant other if she and I learned to coordinate our dance around the triangle. (I'm currently single.)
The only assumption you can safely make is that everybody has difference preferences.
For some reason, whenever I hear that phrase on an HGTV program, I get visions of them jumping up on their granite counter tops and belting out a show tune for their friends and neighbors. Probably says more about me that anything else
Do you have granite? Not me... But I will!!! And when I get it I'll find it difficult to not keep running my hands over it and caressing it.
I decided to not make any comment about things I would jump on! But granite counters are not on my list.
My friends all fit in my kitchen, which is not open. Another post that assumes.
That was in response to posters that said they don't want people in their kitchen because they don't want guests to see the mess while they eat. The POINT which was obviously missed was that if my friends are in my open kitchen with me and helping to create the mess, then there is no embarrassment about it while sitting and eating at the table in the open kitchen concept. It had nothing to do with the assumption that many people can't fit in closed off kitchens.
Thanks for the name calling. That's special and mature.
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If your idea of "living better" is an HGTV-approved open kitchen, then I guess the advertisers have succeeded in their mission with at least one person, eh?
