Browse Forums Kitchen Corner 1 May 18, 2008 10:17 am Open plan kitchens have been a part of new homes for about 40 years. In fact my massive renovation of a 30s clinker brick home, involved building a new open plan kitchen.
Looking through some old homes in a very expensive part of Melbourne, I stumbled a cross a number of homes with kitchens as separate large rooms near the back of the house (I guess to keep the "help" hidden) - I must say I like this and now regret my open plan kitchen! Another house had an open plan type but completely enclosed in a galss wall (like you see in some restaurants) - I liked this too. So maybe when talking to a builder, try and shift them away from the easy open plan kitchen / living area model. The most beautiful doors and furniture in the World Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 2May 18, 2008 10:28 am Rajasthan Doors . So maybe when talking to a builder, try and shift them away from the easy open plan kitchen / living area model. Only if thats what you want! Open plan kitchens are designed to bring familys together, whilst preparing food you can also be a part of whats going on around you, wether it be kids doing homework (as is the case in my house), or a part of your guests conversation. If my kitchen was in a seperate room, no homework would get done and it might me takeaway for us as I'd hate to be closed off from everyone. The introduction of a butlers pantry takes care of the 'mess' when entertaining - shove everything in there so the guests dont see!! Paula Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 3May 18, 2008 10:43 am I love open plan kitchens for all the reasons Paula mentioned.
I would hate to shut myself away to cook, not that I cook much as it is, but I wouldn't want hubby shut away in a room either! Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 4May 18, 2008 10:56 am I know someone who has "help" who prepare all the meals etc
and they wish the kitchen was separate and unseen so they entertain in privacy but most of us dont have that luxury! actually my laundry backs onto the kitchen....whats a butlers pantry? I might have one even without knowing what it is!! yay! Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 5May 18, 2008 1:09 pm They do seem to be the 'latest thing'. I'd be interested to hear a defintion too. Is it just a normal pantry which also happens to store all the miscellaneous devices and gizmos ? Is it also intended as somewhere that those devices are used ? If too much preparation goes on in their then it's sort of becoming a separate kitchen by default. The regular (open plan) kitchen then becomes what ? A sort of "presentation and final preparation" area ? Do the hard jobs first. The easy jobs will take care of themselves. - Dale Carnegie Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 6May 18, 2008 1:36 pm Cabinfever They do seem to be the 'latest thing'. I'd be interested to hear a defintion too. Is it just a normal pantry which also happens to store all the miscellaneous devices and gizmos ? My deffinition of a butlers pantry is really a walk in pantry, that has a bench, does contain the gizmos, and usually a sink. Not a place for a lot of preperation, but mine will house the toaster so I wont have to get it out every morning!! With the design of island benches with the sinks in, the butlers panrty or walk in pantry, are a great spot to put all the dishes and mess when entertaining, so the island bench doesnt get cluttered. Paula Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 7May 18, 2008 2:03 pm Have seen some kitchens that have a 'skullery' off them, which seems a fair idea! It was a combination storage area and clean up area, so all the dishwashing etc was done in there, and the main kitchen was purely for for cooking, preparing & serving.
I think it's a very good thing to think outside the square, and creating spaces that are effective and user friendly. It could be argued (for example) that the oven is not necessary in many small kitchens, apartments etc. We assume that certain appliances are necessary, but many people (especially singles) hardly use much of their kitchen at all. They may be sufficient with a sink, microwave oven and small cooktop. Have even seen some innovative hidden kitchens, that are along one wall behind large doors, so you only open it up when you need it. I love the idea of semi-outdoor kitchens too! Ash. Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 8May 18, 2008 2:18 pm Our first house had an old style kitchen and it was fairly small. Fine if Just a friend came over and they could have a chat while you cooked but no good for entertaining. Our second house had a big open plan kitchen area as part of the main living/meals area. But it did have a 14c high cap along the bench above the tiled splash back so it wasn't a "breakfast bar" type kitchen. it also had a small section with a full height wall. we loved the fact that we were part of the family while cooking and in the kitchen but the dirty dishes etc couldn't be seen from outside the kitchen area without peeking over the jarrah cap. The full height wall section helped hide the sink end and provided a space for the microwave and could have allowed for an overhead cupboard area.
The one thing people do tend not to think of with open plan housing is the noise. This time we've built almost the same exact kitchen area as our last house but we've made sure to incorporate doors from the main living area out to the front part of the house and down to the minor bedrooms. Something we ended up doing last time after we'd lived in the house a while. Perhaps not very adventurous but our last house worked reasonably well for us so we've stuck to a similar design with just a few extra features we'd wished we could afford/had thought of, last time. Including more rooms. More cleaning as my DH says. Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 9May 18, 2008 2:27 pm While I like the look of these pantries when looking through display homes, I do also wonder about where we’re heading as far as entertaining goes. When I was a few years younger and we entertained friends and or relatives, the cooking and cleaning up afterwards was done by several of the guests as well as the host, these days there appears to be a change in peoples attitudes to having people over for say dinner. The hostesses seem very protective of their kitchens and don’t like others to invade their space, and this is both during preparation and cleaning up afterwards. I’ve lost count of the number of day after wading through a few hours of helping to clean up the dishes and mess leftover from the night before.
I’d say 90+ percent of our entertaining these days is either cooking on the BBQ to minimise the mess in the house or after dinner entertaining where we supply finger food for the duration of the evening. Both options certainly minimise the cleanup afterwards. Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 10May 18, 2008 2:36 pm It's certainly a shame that the appearance seems to be harking back to an earlier time when the "little lady" of the house was stuck, slaving away in the kitchen while DH entertained and relaxed with the guests elsewhere. Hopefully this is not that case no matter whether it's the DW or DH or partner etc. I must admit I love the idea of a a bigger pantry to store the gadgets but the idea of having a sink back there to hid the messy stuff does not appeal. Seems a shame that cleaning up can't be part of the whole package of getting together with close friends. Perhaps it suits those who do more formal entertaining but don't have the luxury of a separate formal dining room.
Should I change my sig to "home is where the kitchen is? Sigh I only cook when I'm on holidays. no energy to do anything more than basic meals during work weeks. Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 11May 18, 2008 2:54 pm My current kitchen is in another room totally seperated by walls to the rest of the living areas, and I can't stand it!!!!
I never get to see the TV while cooking/cleaning up, and can't keep an eye on the kiddies. Personally, I can't wait for the whole open plan kitchen/meals/family room. To be a part of the family again will be bliss! Henley - Wilshire Mk 3 ... I love my house!! Site start: 4th Feb 09 Handover: 10th Sep 09 Blog: http://stormygirlscastle.blogspot.com/ Build Thread: viewtopic.php?t=7166 Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 12May 18, 2008 3:14 pm For us the kitchen is as much a 'family room' as the lounge room. I've set up our new house kitchen as a large central room that has access to all three living areas. It's for homework, playing, cooking, talking and anything else you can think of. But I do like the idea of a larger pantry to store appliances and have extra bench space. Things like the juicer, food processor, breadmaker, grinder. So you could have them out all the time without having to haul out of a cupboard every time you want to use it. And I hate kitchen bench space cluttered all the time- I compromise now, some stuff out and some not.
Guess it depends on the family situation. Some people probably don't eat at home much so don't really want much of a kitchen and hiding it away would work well. Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 13May 18, 2008 3:36 pm We have young toddlers - almost 3 and almost 1 - so our kitchen is one massive large open plan area incorporating loungeroom / kitchen / dining area with another room at the end - which can be shut off with double cavity sliders - this will be the kid's toy room. This way I can keep my eyes on the babies the whole time they are playing - whilst I am doing whatever I am doing in the kitchen or lounge area.
We are having NO formal areas at all in this home - last home we built we had a formal lounge (that was used on Christmas day) - it soon became the home theatre plus a formal dining room (think it was used approx 10 times in 7yrs). This time when we designed the home we wanted a large area that we could be together but still had the flexbility of the kids having a large room that they could throw all their toys around (and I can close the doors and not stress about!). We are having a massive pantry but that is because I love to cook but despise having to search for ingrediants in a normal cupboard - this way everthing will be accessible and visible at first glance. Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 14May 18, 2008 3:50 pm Dolly22 But I do like the idea of a larger pantry to store appliances and have extra bench space. Things like the juicer, food processor, breadmaker, grinder. So you could have them out all the time without having to haul out of a cupboard every time you want to use it. My point exactly - I tend not to use something if its too hard to access. Paula Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 15May 18, 2008 3:54 pm Kyton that sounds perfect. we did the same in our last house but didn't have an area we could close off. which once they got a little older meant a lot of mess. urghh Now the boys are 9 1/2 and 12 1/2 we are going for a separate activity room near their bedrooms for the younger ones play area and in the future a better private area for study or play so they can be separated which with their age difference they sometimes need. we've still kept a lot of open plan area because we do most things as a family. read that as we are a happy little geeky "comp together" family and at this stage of their development there is no way I would want them away from observation with computers and not just because of any online issues.
we've kept a separate lounge which will be for watching movies, tv but no formal dining area. we didn't have one in our last house and certainly don't want or need one now. we've also been able to afford the luxury of a separate extra large office area which will be a parent retreat/ storeroom/study area so all the junk associated with DH and my hobbies and fav past times does not clutter up the main living areas. As well it will also serve as a place for me to retreat when i need a quiet area to do prep and research for work and to keep all my reference materials . Most of my prep i prefer to do in the main living areas but I sometimes require somewhere quiet. Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 16May 18, 2008 4:12 pm Yep we have a separate room that will be a dedicated home theatre (which DH keeps saying that will have a fingerprint entry system so the kids are never allowed in there LOL!!) as well as a study for the computer / business stuff. But because our kidlets are so little (and because we waited so long for them to come along) we don't want to be separated during their waking hours. Although since we will be living in this our teeny tiny little home that was previously our rental property (and will be again once our home is built) for two years by the time the new place is finished then the kids will probably want to be far far away from us Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 17May 18, 2008 7:13 pm Kyron our eldest was born on our 10th wedding anniversary so i do understand wanting to have them close by . It is nice to be able to escape sometimes though as they get past the stage when you feel like you need to watch them all the time. Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 18May 18, 2008 7:42 pm Rajasthan Doors Looking through some old homes in a very expensive part of Melbourne, I stumbled a cross a number of homes with kitchens as separate large rooms near the back of the house (I guess to keep the "help" hidden) - I must say I like this and now regret my open plan kitchen! So maybe when talking to a builder, try and shift them away from the easy open plan kitchen / living area model. Separate kitchens don't do it for me at all RD I've lived in several houses with different kitchen/dining configurations. First house was an old home with boxy rooms completely separated from one another and the kitchen in the middle of the house. Dreadful for entertaining and family living. In fact we sold the house as it was entirely impractical for modern living. Next house had the kitchen at the back with a raised breakfast bar between the kitchen and dining room. Although this was better it still created zones of separation and if someone wanted to watch tv they were visually separated from the cooking area, which meant that we were separated as a family. When we come home from work we want to spend as much time together as possible. So the open plan home suits us perfectly . However we have zoned sleeping areas from living areas to reduce heat loss. Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 19May 24, 2008 7:32 pm I've never liked separate kitchens...I find them old fashioned and just in my own personal opinion and taste, not in a good way.
The house I grew up in (birth to 20) had a separate kitchen and it was nice and big and I loved it cause it was mine, but I didn't particularly like eating in the kitchen. I always preferred to be out in the open plan dining/living area...the kitchen wasn't completely shut off though. It had wide doors opening off the dining part of the living/dining area and also on the other side a door going to the rest of the house... But I love open plan kitchens...I love 3 different types... 1. The standard open plan kitchen that is right off the living area but has a nice breakfast bar to separate the areas a bit. 2. The alternate version of the above that is more closed off as it has walls around the kitchen area but one wall is mostly taken up with a wide doorway and the other wall (the one that directly looks over the living area) has a large serving arch or "hole"...so it's open but slightly closed too. 3. The less common style of the kitchen being raised on steps. Say, 3 steps and so even though it's in the same room as the living area, it seems separate because it's on a slightly higher level. In fact, the only open plan kitchens I don't like are the galley-style ones that look like a tunnel and that are just along one wall. Don't like those at all. How the hell did I become a senior member!? I know nothing! Re: Kitchen : Open Plan V Kitchen "room" 20May 24, 2008 7:39 pm Butlers Pantries……a room to one side off the kitchen where there is more space and preparation benches. Good place to hide stuff I say!
Rays got one her home, it looks great!…..heres one off the net! Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Internal and External Building and Colour Consultant Online - Worldwide http://www.denovoconcepts.com Hello! We have a very large open plan living room and wanted to get layout options, and furnishing ideas for this space. Currently there is only a… 0 9328 Cupcake.girl This really depends on your local council. Each one has different definitions and ways to calculate contributions. This is called a contribution… 1 3586 Hey, I am wanting to add a second toilet to my house, bit we have limited room. There is a hallway/entry that is never used, so was thinking this could be an option. Only… 0 4713 |