Prior to embarking on the renovation, at planning stage, I spent alot of time trawling the internet for information / opinions on Open Plan Living (OPL). Was our space going to be big enough? Is bigger even better? How about mess and OPL? You get my point.
We were lucky, a couple of friends and family had recently undergone renovations themselves and done the the whole OPL thing so I was able to draw on their experience. My cousin Lou in the west had an architect who refused to create an OPL space over 70sqm. She eventually got one at 72 sqm.
"So!" I quipped "Are you loving it? You've got to be loving it, right?"
"Ummm....yeah, it's great" (I sensed hesitation) "It's just, the cleaning is a bitch, it's so damn big." she sighed "The architect was right."
6 months on and I too can attest to a few OPL drawbacks.
Now don't get me wrong, we are very happy with our new/old house and wouldn't change a thing. OPL is wonderful when you are relaxing at home with just the family. It's great having your kids playing on the floor in front of you while you prepare dinner or load the dishwasher.
It's also great when you have a few friends over for coffee or a casual dinner / lunch and you all huddle around the island topping up wine glasses and swooning over nibbles while chatting happily. The drawback, which in my opinion is a rather large one, occurs when you attempt to entertain more than a few.
In my old kitchen come xmas day lunch I could slip away from the crowd and get down to the serious business of food prep. The door served as a gate keeper which kept the guests from viewing my manic rush to get everything finished and out on the serving table. Actually, provided I had a glass of wine I enjoyed being tucked away from everyone. I could concentrate on the job at hand.
With OPL you had better be 100% ready when guests arrive because if your playing a game of catch up your going to be caught out BIGTIME! It's difficult chatting to guests while creating a meal you hope people remember (for the right reasons). Following a recipe while making small talk, with the clock ticking, requires some super human multi tasking skills that I clearly don't possess.
Fortunately entertaining large numbers isn't a goal I aspire to achieve often. Give me a small casual lunch any day.
We were lucky, a couple of friends and family had recently undergone renovations themselves and done the the whole OPL thing so I was able to draw on their experience. My cousin Lou in the west had an architect who refused to create an OPL space over 70sqm. She eventually got one at 72 sqm.
"So!" I quipped "Are you loving it? You've got to be loving it, right?"
"Ummm....yeah, it's great" (I sensed hesitation) "It's just, the cleaning is a bitch, it's so damn big." she sighed "The architect was right."
6 months on and I too can attest to a few OPL drawbacks.
Now don't get me wrong, we are very happy with our new/old house and wouldn't change a thing. OPL is wonderful when you are relaxing at home with just the family. It's great having your kids playing on the floor in front of you while you prepare dinner or load the dishwasher.
It's also great when you have a few friends over for coffee or a casual dinner / lunch and you all huddle around the island topping up wine glasses and swooning over nibbles while chatting happily. The drawback, which in my opinion is a rather large one, occurs when you attempt to entertain more than a few.
In my old kitchen come xmas day lunch I could slip away from the crowd and get down to the serious business of food prep. The door served as a gate keeper which kept the guests from viewing my manic rush to get everything finished and out on the serving table. Actually, provided I had a glass of wine I enjoyed being tucked away from everyone. I could concentrate on the job at hand.
With OPL you had better be 100% ready when guests arrive because if your playing a game of catch up your going to be caught out BIGTIME! It's difficult chatting to guests while creating a meal you hope people remember (for the right reasons). Following a recipe while making small talk, with the clock ticking, requires some super human multi tasking skills that I clearly don't possess.
Fortunately entertaining large numbers isn't a goal I aspire to achieve often. Give me a small casual lunch any day.
