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Old 06-28-2010, 10:34 AM   #41
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I got a full set of china when I married in 1975. I've never used it. I still love the pattern, but haven't gotten around to pulling it out and using it. I should do that. And use my silver too.
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Old 06-28-2010, 10:36 AM   #42
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Are china cabinets out of style also?
Have you ridden on an airplane lately? Or shopped at a Wal-Mart?

Anything remotely formal is apparently out of style... Sometimes it's hard to fathom how sloppy US society has become- I suspect many of these folks eat Thanksgiving Dinner off paper plates in their underwear in front of the TV, fighting over the Wii....

Grandma's good china got sold in the garage sale to pay for tattoos.
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Old 06-28-2010, 10:41 AM   #43
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Those of you with open plans for the kitchen and living rooms....do you like it that way? Does kitchen noise (water running, disposal, appliances, cupboards closing) bother people in the living room? We have a kitchen TV that I use when preparing food or eating by myself and I know I'm not watching the same thing as the folks in the living room.

So far, I like the separation from the living room. I don't think I'd want an open plan.

I will answer that.. YES.. the noise bothers me... and ours is not an open plan... we have a kitchen and breakfast room... and then an opening into the 'great room' where I have my TV... while my wife is doing stuff in the kitchen... clanking pans, turning on water... etc. etc... it makes it hard to listen to the TV.... so I have to turn it up....

And as I said... it is NOT open, so the 'cook' etc. can not enjoy the company in the living room without getting into the opening...
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Old 06-28-2010, 10:46 AM   #44
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Those of you with open plans for the kitchen and living rooms....do you like it that way? Does kitchen noise (water running, disposal, appliances, cupboards closing) bother people in the living room? We have a kitchen TV that I use when preparing food or eating by myself and I know I'm not watching the same thing as the folks in the living room.
Unless I'm in two places at once, nope, doesn't bother me...

Thankfully, my new dishwasher is much quieter than the old one. Can't say that for the washer or dryer, though. Just have to crank the tv volume. Of course, my house is still rather boxy, only less so after widening the doorway between the kitchen and DR.
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Old 06-28-2010, 12:09 PM   #45
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Those of you with open plans for the kitchen and living rooms....do you like it that way? Does kitchen noise (water running, disposal, appliances, cupboards closing) bother people in the living room? We have a kitchen TV that I use when preparing food or eating by myself and I know I'm not watching the same thing as the folks in the living room.
Not a bother, but we have an Asko dishwasher that you can be standing against and not know it is on and running since it is so quiet. My in-laws have such a noisy dishwasher that one cannot even think when standing outside the front door to the house.

The beauty of the open floor plan is that one can be in the family room and ask, "When's dinner gonna be ready?" or "Can you bring me another beer please?" without raising your voice.
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Old 06-28-2010, 12:36 PM   #46
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I don't see why you can't put a nice china cabinet or hutch on a wall in an open or informal dining area.

I agree with LOL on the open plan, and the need for the quiet dishwasher. If you have a bunch of people, I could see the desire to keep the rooms more separate. For a smaller gathering, it's nice to be able to chat between the rooms.
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Old 06-28-2010, 12:44 PM   #47
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We also made darn sure we got one of the quietest dishwashers out there. On top of that, it has a 4 hour delayed wash feature.

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Old 06-28-2010, 01:04 PM   #48
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We built our house 16 years ago with a dining room - a must for DW. We use it every Thanksgiving, and only on Thanksgiving.
Same age house, with same design and same reason.

Only difference is that we use it only for Christmas Day dinner...
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Old 06-28-2010, 01:47 PM   #49
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Our open plan includes a den at the end of the living room and that is where the TV is so no problem with noise except from the grandchildren .
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Old 06-28-2010, 03:12 PM   #50
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I love open concepts myself. My only thought was it means someone will have to definitely pick up the dirty dishes after dinner from the table unless you want to stare at them all evening..not. But, you probably do that, anyway.

However, I think I will probably have to get a dining room since I have two dining sets.
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Old 06-28-2010, 05:27 PM   #51
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We had a formal dining room growing up but it was only used for holiday family dinners or entertaining. We ate in the kitchen nook. As a "grown up" I have a dining room (which opens onto the living room) which is used as my office/sitting room. I usually eat at the kitchen island. Funny how much things change......
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Old 06-28-2010, 05:28 PM   #52
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The choice I was thinking about was not having a dining room or not, but having a separate dining room vs. an open plan.
It has a dining room, but it is open to the kitchen and living room so that the cook can participate in the party while preparing dinner. The island hides any mess in the kitchen.
A drawback of this floorplan is that the guest bedroom opens directly onto the dining room, but we were going to use that room as a study anyway...
Our layout has the same ideas, with double pocket doors between the study and the diningroom.

The separation between our kitchen and diningroom is just a barstool counter. The parties tend to gather at the bar (or on the back lanai) and ooze flow into the diningroom.

The Navy helped us get rid of our china, one household goods move at a time, but we use the expensive fourth-generation silverware every day.
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Old 06-28-2010, 08:05 PM   #53
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I love open concepts myself. My only thought was it means someone will have to definitely pick up the dirty dishes after dinner from the table unless you want to stare at them all evening..not. But, you probably do that, anyway.

However, I think I will probably have to get a dining room since I have two dining sets.
Don't you have a dump nearby? For a woman who wants to date, the open plan is 575% better. A bar and stools enable the conversation to flow easily and for people to be comfortable and most importantly, for you to be socializing with your date or guests.

When I was last condo hunting I saw a nice place about 1050 sq ft., $450,000. Starting from the SE corner and going north there was a kitchen, with a door! into the formal dining room and another doorway into the living room. Some middle aged bachelor lawyer lived there. It was too expensive, but nice as it was in many ways I would not have bought that floor plan for a third the price. It was last appropriate in the days of kitchen staff.

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Old 06-28-2010, 08:55 PM   #54
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What ever happened to dining rooms? We don't need to sit down to eat any more.

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Old 06-28-2010, 08:59 PM   #55
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My current home has a large formal dining area off the great room and it is visible from the kitchen. I have a large table that seats 10 max and a formal china hutch. We host several family dinners each year (mostly holidays and birthdays). We also have a couple of parties every year and utilize the space for that.

Our home is 4 years old now. The dining area was very important to us when we picked the floor plan. For once we could have the entire family at the same table. We have thoroughly enjoyed having it,
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Old 06-28-2010, 09:09 PM   #56
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For once we could have the entire family at the same table.
This is the reason I have a small dinng room...
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Old 06-28-2010, 09:37 PM   #57
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Does anyone know if china cabinets are, also, out of style? I tried looking thru HGTV's website, but really did not get an answer there. Seems people need to put their "good" china somewhere other than their everyday cabinets, but who knows what is in style now? Are china cabinets out of style also?
I have a built-in corner china cabinet in my kitchen as well as a dining area. I also have a dining room with a china hutch that belonged to my grandparents. The hutch is at least 70 years old and if the house started to burn down, DH would save it before me. We use the dining room maybe twice a year....we just can't get rid of the furniture.

Our house was built circa 1984...
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Old 06-28-2010, 09:53 PM   #58
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....and I do have to say those flower arrangements are silk. I think they are out of style too.

I thought about fruit, but I'm afraid they might get the fuzzies. For sure I won't get plastic fruit....
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Old 06-28-2010, 10:20 PM   #59
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I have a small(36sq ft)DR but never use it for dining. I eat in my bed. I lie down with the food real close to me over my stomach. I have my lap top on my thighs just past the food. Then if I look above the lap top I can watch tv. So, i'm lying down while eating, "surfing" and watching tv. That's how I like to spend about 90% of my waking hours. Too bad work gets in the way.
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Old 06-28-2010, 10:46 PM   #60
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I have a small(36sq ft)DR but never use it for dining. I eat in my bed. I lie down with the food real close to me over my stomach. I have my lap top on my thighs just past the food. Then if I look above the lap top I can watch tv. So, i'm lying down while eating, "surfing" and watching tv. That's how I like to spend about 90% of my waking hours. Too bad work gets in the way.
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