Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
We are currently living in a house built in the mid 1990s. It has TONS of closets. TONS. Everywhere they could stick a closet, they did so. Even the his and her closets in the master are a pretty good size. And windows everywhere.
We are buying a house built about ten years ago. It too has closets and windows everywhere. Tons of storage. I've been over there a few times and every time I go I "discover" another closet or cabinet. The only room that doesn't have a window in it is the laundry room, but due to it's location in the house, it really couldn't have one. I may consider a sun tunnel in there one day, who knows.
Anyway, my issue with 1970s built houses (and earlier) is that without serious renovations (and yes, some on the market have had these done), the bathrooms and closets are small. And I remember when my parents bought a new home in the 1970s and I was SO impressed that they actually had a bathroom off the master! But now I recall that it was a tiny little bathroom with a single sink, toilet, and shower - only one person could be in there at a time. And they had a "walk in" closet! Except it was like you could step inside one step and turn around - that was the extent of being able to "walk into" it.
I love historic and older homes - and we looked at a lot of them. Most of them had such small bathrooms and closets that we just couldn't see moving in without doing some sort of major renovations.
I'm pleased with the large closets and spacious bathrooms of both our current and our next house. I think where they sacrificed some space (both homes are around 2600 square feet) is in the minor bedrooms. But I don't have kids - so I really don't care. I don't need my guests getting TOO comfortable. And in the new house, the bedrooms are still 12 x 12 so that's not tiny.
When I was in real estate, we used the term "structural obsolescence" to describe homes that had very outdated floor plans. Lifestyles, needs, expectations and all that change. Another example - electrical plugs - in the older homes I've lived in, I had all sorts of extension cords going on because there simply weren't enough plug ins. Even our current home built in 1997 doesn't have quite enough plug ins.
Something our current home does have though is a big room that is an office. Back in the day, you needed more space because computers and printers and all that were so much larger. Now most homes that we saw had smaller offices, or even just an "office nook" where you'd put all your much smaller office equipment, since now most people are working from a small laptop or even a tablet or even a cell phone - and have WiFi so there's no need for wires everywhere. I'm very glad to see that. So the new home has an office or "smart home" nook but a large, multipurpose second living area/den/man cave.
We have a very large "mud room" in the new house. Though I'm sure we'll use the built in bench and hooks and storage space, because we always tend to fill up space we have, we don't need it nearly as much as I needed that sort of space when I lived in a much colder area and our whole family had coats, hats, scarves, gloves, boots, etc. for so long each year. But we were living in a much older home and it didn't have a space like that. I know that some do, but to me it really seems like a necessity. We hung hooks up and put a bench in there but it was still pretty tight.
To this point, my sister and I grew up in the 50/60's. We lived in a cape cod style home. No master bath and bath as you described. We all survived, as did all my neighbors and friends, some of who were from families of 8 kids. We become used to the creature comforts of double sinks and large vanities, big tubs, etc.
In our current home, I gutted and remodeled the bath 2 years ago. I took out the jacuzzi tub and enlarged the tiny shower. Replaced the double sinks with new ones. I put in a window seat and drawers where the tub was and it is a great place to put clothing or PJ's while I shower. I also have two additional full baths, one with shower and one with tub/shower combo.
This house has a linen closet in the master bath, but other than the individual room closets there are no storage closets other than the pantry in the kitchen. I recently replaced my vacuum that was in the coat closet with a Dyson that hangs on the wall. My problem there was it needs a plug to charge. I could put it in the laundry room, but it would be interfering with the racks for clothing hung from the laundry and I would need an extension cord. I have a full basement, but who wants to climb stairs to vacuum? Ditto for the garage. I wound up putting it on the wall of the closet in the den, (actually a jr. master). The previous owners used the room as an office and there was a plug in the closet. I have my printer in that closet and files so it worked out. We will use as much space as we have.
To this point, my sister and I grew up in the 50/60's. We lived in a cape cod style home. No master bath and bath as you described. We all survived, as did all my neighbors and friends, some of who were from families of 8 kids. We become used to the creature comforts of double sinks and large vanities, big tubs, etc.
In our current home, I gutted and remodeled the bath 2 years ago. I took out the jacuzzi tub and enlarged the tiny shower. Replaced the double sinks with new ones. I put in a window seat and drawers where the tub was and it is a great place to put clothing or PJ's while I shower. I also have two additional full baths, one with shower and one with tub/shower combo.
This house has a linen closet in the master bath, but other than the individual room closets there are no storage closets other than the pantry in the kitchen. I recently replaced my vacuum that was in the coat closet with a Dyson that hangs on the wall. My problem there was it needs a plug to charge. I could put it in the laundry room, but it would be interfering with the racks for clothing hung from the laundry and I would need an extension cord. I have a full basement, but who wants to climb stairs to vacuum? Ditto for the garage. I wound up putting it on the wall of the closet in the den, (actually a jr. master). The previous owners used the room as an office and there was a plug in the closet. I have my printer in that closet and files so it worked out. We will use as much space as we have.
I also grew up in a "Cape Cod." 2 bedrooms, one bathroom, 2 adults and 4 kids. Later, my father finished off the attic space, adding 2 bedrooms and a 1/2 bath. We thought we were in heaven.
The "new" (2014) house I'm buying has both plus a nice walk in kitchen pantry. Decent storage is one major reason I bought it. Its a relatively small house square footage-wise, but whoever designed it made good use of those feet. You have to put stuff somewhere. The rooms may have ended up smaller but the reason was closet space; linen closet in the hall to the beds and bath, and each bedroom has a deeper closet. AK residents own/use LOTS of coats and boots! A house here without a coat closet would seem ridiculous, but you sure see them.
My parents house, built in 1925, where we lived in the 1960s, still had a floor buzzer under the dining room table to ring into the kitchen. We rang and rang, but the servants never came.
My parents house, built in 1925, where we lived in the 1960s, still had a floor buzzer under the dining room table to ring into the kitchen. We rang and rang, but the servants never came.
I have always said that I wanted a house with LOTS of the 3 "C's"-closets, cabinets, & counters. Unfortunately, my beautiful house doesn't have a lot of any of them so we had to be creative.
We don't have much in the way of counters but we do manage. It is in the bathrooms where the lack of counters really bother me-but I have had creative ways for that, too. (Read on.)
We do have built-in cabinets along a hallway between the kitchen & living room that we refer to as the panty. When we were designing the kitchen, I was trying to figure out a broom closet. We were going to buy a large cabinet for that purpose but then we thought otherwise. At the end of the hall-in front of the build-in was a cast iron pipe for the bathroom upstairs. When they redid the plumbing, that pipe had to be replaced. We were asked about keeping it there where it stuck out or putting it in the built-in-which would mean that we would lose a bit of that cabinet. We chose to put it inside.
It was funny because Hubby & I thought AT THE EXACT SAME TIME about making the area between that pipe and wall the broom closet. We lost the shelving of the built-in but gained a broom closet. I put hooks up to hang the broom, mop, and dust pan. It works.
We don't have a coat closet. When we moved in, they had a bunch of hooks in the foyer. We kept some of them so we do have a place to hang the coats. We also have a coat rack that we have in the dining room. I'm not too sure I like it there but we haven't figured out a better place.
And of course a linen closet: With the amount of overnight guests we get at Christmas time, I bought a whole bunch of sheets, blankets, pillows, etc. But, where to put them. I was going to buy a wardrobe. But, changed my mind. I bought a whole bunch of shelving and put them in the spare bedroom closet. It is actually a fairly big closet for an old house. There I was able to put most of the linens.
Towels: I have racks that sit behind the toilets in the downstairs bathroom & the guest bathroom that I have towels on them. In the guest bathroom, I have one shelf empty for guests to put their toiletries on. I have two small dressers in the spare bedroom-one for guest clothing (which my SIL usually uses when she is staying with us) and the other I have extra towels in but I am STILL looking for bigger ones to replace those.
We are also looking for an antique commode for the downstairs bathroom for counter space as well as a cabinet since we have a pedestal sink. The issue is the space between the sink & the wall isn't much so it has to be a small one.
In our bathroom, we bought a cabinet that is have all our personal hygiene, first aid items, and the like in it. I supposed if I got rid of a bunch of that stuff, I could put some extra towels in there, too.
Cat
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I don't need my guests getting TOO comfortable. And in the new house, the bedrooms are still 12 x 12 so that's not tiny.
