If you watch those shows enough, you’ll pick up on the common themes. People seem to want lots of space to entertain. They want an open concept floor plan, so if they’re standing in their kitchen, they can see all the way across their house. Sort of like they were living in an auditorium.
Sound carries as if in an auditorium, too. It’s amazing how much sound travels.
Our last house was pretty open. There was a kitchen hooked to a two-storey “family room”, a dining room, a pretty big foyer, and a “living room” we rarely used. The bedrooms were on the second level, along a hallway that was more like a balcony since you could look down to the first level.
Noise REALLY carried in that space.
I think that’s one of the reasons we both really liked this house so much. It’s very compartmentalized. None of the rooms flow together. We like it like that. It makes so much more sense for us.
We were both amused to learn that our neighbor, whose house is very similar, wants to tear down a wall to open things up. In our house, Hubby actually built a little mini wall and installed a door so we can completely separate the kitchen and family room when we want to (that usually means when I am banging around in the kitchen and he’s trying to watch TV).
I don’t know…big and open just doesn’t seem to work for us. The biggest downside to compartmentalization? Sometimes, it’s hard to find each other. LOL. The dogs tend to lose us sometimes, too. Maybe it’s time to find a smaller, compartmentalized space.
check out the other bloggers participating this year…
Check out the other bloggers feel about openness vs. life with partitions…
- Two Wheels Two Feet
- Highway Lass
- Ride North
- CurvyRoads
- The Biker Wave
- FuzzyGalore
- Richard’s Page
- Scooter in the Sticks
Funny, I always think you and I have so much in common when I read your posts.. except this one, lol! Total opposites on this topic! That’s why there are sooooo many choices.
Lynne, yes! I had a similar thought.
I’m pretty sure those people who want open floor plans and state of the art kitchens never actually entertain, it’s just something they say on house shows because everyone else says it. LOL.
I agree!
I thought that the other house, I think it was in WV, was ideal. Wide open spaces and a nice sized garage (the most important part of any house).
Richard, in many ways, it was. It was just too far from Mike’s office. And local amenities, like decent restaurants, were scarce. I did like the size of the house and property though. I miss it in many ways.