To Think That Open Plan Living Is Just a Fashion of The Moment

We used to put the computer under the stairs, so adults could see the screen as they passed from room to room. These days children tend to use laptops and tablets though - do people still have family desktop computers?

Witzend

IMO it’s been going out of fashion for a while now.

An open plan kitchen/living/dining room may be practical where there are very small children, but later separate spaces are usually wanted (quiet, noisy, no TV) etc. And that’s without cooking smells, the unlovely mess left after cooking - for those who do actually cook, rather than just shoving something in oven or microwave.

The worst examples (to me, anyway) were the new build flats, where to maximise their profit, developers had shoved a basic kitchen in at one end of a none too spacious ‘living area’, often in order to cram in a 2nd bedroom.

I agree about the awful practice of putting all living into one room in order to maximise profit. Often there is very little storage in these flats.
Our DC and DIL bought a lovely 1930s house with open plant living. They installed glazed doors to separate the sitting room. It is useful to open things up when the DGCs need more room, and they can keep an eye on the computer use.

Families are only young for a few years. Children soon don’t want to be supervised all the time, and like to ‘do their own thing’ without being overheard and ‘shushed’ because someone else is concentrating or busy. People need to have private conversations, particularly older children and teens.

I wouldn’t look at an open plan house myself, but others like them, maybe particularly those with children under ten or so. I agree that you should do what works for you, but if you are concerned about resale being affected, think about who is likely to buy your house, based on price, proximity to schools etc. If the area is attractive to young families or ‘mixed’, you probably have nothing to lose, but on the whole, I think you should live for you in the here and now, not for when you might sell, unless you know that will be happening in the next couple of years.

Theexwife

I dont think fashion comes into it, for some open plan is right for others it is not.

I can see the benefits for families that want to spend time together doing different activities but personally I like separate rooms with different uses.

Absolutely!

Big huge kitchen diner for me, cosy sitting room separately. Always a downstairs loo or if poss shower room!

IMO it’s been going out of fashion for a while now.

An open plan kitchen/living/dining room may be practical where there are very small children, but later separate spaces are usually wanted (quiet, noisy, no TV) etc. And that’s without cooking smells, the unlovely mess left after cooking - for those who do actually cook, rather than just shoving something in oven or microwave.

The worst examples (to me, anyway) were the new build flats, where to maximise their profit, developers had shoved a basic kitchen in at one end of a none too spacious ‘living area’, often in order to cram in a 2nd bedroom.

Open plan has been around for years. My first house in 1983 was open plan and I hated it.

It appears that the trend has waned. I know two young couples who have converted back.

It's purely and simply what you want. If open plan is your thing , do it.

We had an open plan kitchen dining room that opened onto a small garden room in our last house. The sitting room was separate. I hated not being able to close the kitchen off. When we moved we looked for a house with a separate dining room that I could close off from the kitchen. Double doors open into the sitting room. When DH was here, we used the dining room every day, but now not so much.

I think the trend towards integrated kitchens and dining rooms is here to stay, because it’s very practical, particularly for young families. I’ve got a formal dining room, but we don’t use it much, only for when people come to eat and special occasions, which is a waste really. I wouldn’t like my sitting room integrated into one large area, but if it had a small kitchen I’d definitely consider integrating the dining room and kitchen in a future home.

It’s not a fad. My first house in the early 70s was open plan.
Ideas come round again and again.
Interior designers are now fitting sliding/ folding doors between rooms which means you can block off a room if you want: just as we had in the 70s 😀

Ignore trends. Just do what feels right for you, if you like the idea of open plan then do it. And if you don’t, then don’t!

Since open-plan has been around since the 1960s, when we all started knocking down the walls between living rooms and dining rooms, it has already been around a long time and it isn't gong to be going away soon.

Open plan is all the rage with builders because British new-build houses are so small, and getting smaller and nothing makes a small space look large than leaving out all the walls, but most usually have small cubby hole somewhere called the 'snug' where people can be quiet/work/or whatever.

In the past, before central heating we had lots of small rooms so that it was possible to get one or two rooms really warm. Central heating is more efficient if there are no small spaces but hot air can cirulate freely throughout the living space.

It is also easier for parents to keep an eye on children. If the computer is downstairs, it can be seen and be accessible to parental control at all times.

So relax, open plan has been with us a long time and is going nowhere fast. It will be here for many years to come.

I don't think its fashion as such...more what suits your family life...I'm 59 , live with DP ... we have a separate big lounge .....but very rarely use it....prefer to live in the back of house in family area ( kitchen / dining table/ sofa and an easy chair.....even when we have DC and 3 GC we all tend to squeeze into that area ....its just peoples preference I think...neither is right or wrongb

No open plan living for me.

I much prefer separate rooms. Once a meal has been cooked and eaten, I don't want to spend the rest of the evening with the smell.
Plus heating the large space can be a problem, especially if there is a flight of stairs.

I think the fashion for a big living kitchen is great - all 3 daughters have that arrangement but they also all have separate spaces away from the busy kitchen.

I’m not sure it’s a fad. Our first house in the mid 70s was open plan, it was built in the early 60s.
Our second house, built in 1850, had been ‘modernised to be open plan. Our third house was a traditional Victorian villa and had a large kitchen, separate dining room and sitting room.
We liked the separate rooms and each subsequent house has had separate rooms. Our current house has a dining room that is large enough for a sofa as well as dining furniture, so it’s comfortable to use as a second sitting room.
We will probably make one more move and will definitely be looking for separate kitchen, dining and sitting rooms.

Never had a kitchen incorporated in a living area The snells of cooking would be awful to me bad enough when you can shut a door and heating a great area would be prohibitive too
A fad …stick to doors and walls
Totally agree with Chestnut

The problem with this open plan fad, is heating. I understand becomes prohibitive.
In my last two houses I had big kitchen/diners with sofas and a tv, then a separate living room. It meant more privacy and if two of you wanted different live programmes, you could each be comfy…

my home is 1300 square feet and I chose it because I have separate enclosed areas with doors. I can make any area cosy and all areas have their own function. Kitchen/dining, living room, utility, large hall with cloakroom.

Open plan is a fashion fad, cheaper for builders but much more expensive to heat and without privacy, everyone needs their own space

We are house hunting and aren’t bothering to look at anything that is ‘open plan’. Although I suppose we could erect some walls.

I really like my dining/kitchen.
There is no way I would want totally open plan though for all the reasons already given.
At the moment I am in Australia where open plan is king and my builder SonIL is building a house for sale. I keep bleating away that three bedrooms is enough but he won’t listen to me!😂 Totally refuses to make the fourth bedroom into a lounge room (that’s Australian for sitting/living room). The area he is building in is a small coastal town that people retire to. Of course over here the doors and windows are open a lot more and there is a bbq area outside on the balcony but I would still want my quieter space.
Also mandatory is a huge garage to house the workshop, caravan and boat! In fact in his opinion that’s the most important bit.

I'm interested in this as I intend to downsize soon.
Currently I have a good size kitchen with a large table seating 6 or 8 at a squeeze.
Next to this is the sitting room, with fireplace, 2 settees , chair, TV, desk and extending dining table which I use for sewing. We eat in there for dinner parties. It can be cosy although a bit too big.

3 of my DC have a settee in their kitchens which is nice to sit on while watching them work 🤣

If you like the current arrangement why change it for a fashion?

Not for me…🤓

Don't knock the walls down OldHag!! Open plan definitely is a fad and a horrible one. Who wants strong smelling fish or fatty foods cooking in the living room, or hear the dishwasher turning or the washing machine spinning. You will also end up with your sofa smelling of roast dinner which you then have to sit on. Then there's the aroma of boiling vegetables which puts a lot of moisture into the air, again this will travel to your soft furnishings and make them smelly. You also have the dirty dishes staring at you while you're trying to relax in the living room. I can think of countless reasons why this is a bad idea.

I prefer the kitchen/utility area to be completely separate if possible. It can be joined to the dining area if necessary, just not to the living room. No way.

I’m another who prefers separate rooms so that people can do different things without disturbing others. I was in the dining room tonight with a group I belong to, and Mr D was watching James Bond in the sitting room. My meeting started early so we ate in the kitchen and I closed the door before anyone arrived. That couldn’t have happened in an open plan space - or it could, but I’d have had to clear up or eat even earlier, and the meeting and James Bond would have clashed. When the children were at home they would have been doing their respective activities too.

If I have friends over for coffee we don’t always want to chat with Mr Dog listening in, and he’s not always interested in what we are talking about either .

I’m not bothered about fashion, but I think open plan will go out very soon, because of heating costs and to keep architects and builders in work.