My problem with open concept is that I make food that has a very strong smell. Spicy foods, or foods that contain garlic and onions, and I don't want my whole livingroom to smell like my dinner for the rest of the day...That is why I want to be able to close off the kitchen from the rest of the living area.
I love how they LOOK (IF they're prettily decorated) but yeah, they and everything on them will end up coated with grease and dust. At my old place there was space between the top of my cabinets and the ceiling so I displayed my tea set there... and being over the stove they got SO grimy.
I LOVED my open shelves in my previous house. They only collect dust if you aren't using the items often. They don't work as decorative spaces but function perfectly for everyday pieces. Keep all the pieces in the same colourway and don't use it as a catch-all and they will always function well and look stylish.
@@sarastewart2633 It's not just dust, but GREASE that accumulates in the kitchen. The top of my fridge, next to my stove, has to be wiped down regularly or it gets grimy from cooking oil/smoke. So as pretty as open shelving is (IF it's arranged prettily), no thanks. Maybe SOME open shelves if they're not close to the stove.
I'm no fan of open shelving anywhere except a very bare minimum. An etagere is a dreadful waste of cubic space. Why have a "bookshelf" unit that holds all mannner of knick knacks but only 3 books?
I am one of those who grew up with separate rooms. I remember when open concept became the rage. I too thought it was better. Then I heard a designer state on TV, you have to understand open means when people come in your house they see everything. EVERYTHING! So, you have to be very tidy.
Yes! I tried to make a Thanksgiving dinner at someone's house where they had open concept and the kitchen was a whole mess and the guests were looking at it and looking at me trying to cook and bothering me. Open concepts are for looks only but to be cooked in? No unless you want everyone to see your dishes.
Yes! This is literally my problem finding a decent floor plan to build. I've finally given up and decided to pay an architect to draw up a plan that at least keeps any random person from seeing every corner of my home from the front door. One plan had over 10,000 Sq ft, and the front door had a view straight to the open kitchen and family room! No matter how big the house, open plan rules the day and I absolutely hate it.
i also find that they're louder. in my childhood home if someone was in the kitchen i couldn't hear them from my bedroom. then we moved to an open concept and no matter where you were in the house you could pretty much hear it everywhere. there's no walls to stop the sounds and there wasn't a hallway to the bedrooms. the whole house feels like it's all just one room. i hate it.
I hear you the noise pollution from open plan is horrible, visually when they aren’t being cooked in and lived in they look beautiful. But I hate all of the loud noises echoing around a huge open plan room. And the smell of cooking clings to the living room and it never smells beautifully fresh thanks to the kitchen.
I think an open concept for the kitchen and living room is beautiful…. If you’re living alone. My parents opened up a wall between the two a few years ago when there were 6 people living there and it was SOOOO annoying to try to watch tv while people were talking or cooking in the kitchen. Having the wall separate the noise between two highly active rooms is my preference.
@@tanjaeubanks it was not my choice but yeah i guess that works in a way, but having two different conversations even in the different rooms is really challenging
I love the stand alone tub. No cat issues and like that nothing has to clutter my tub time. No every moment needs a candle, book, etc. a wonderful time with tub and oils added can be very relaxing.
You could create freestanding interior spaces with back to back bookshelves jutting into the room? Although my fantasy for a large quantity of books is to line a wall with solid packed bookshelves on wheels, then just pull out what topic/writer you need.
When I was growing up there was always an eat in kitchen and then a separate dining room with an open living room attached. A separate Den for casual television watching and I still love that way of living. I have an open concept now but I don't use it as such. There is no TV in the living room it is formal but there are bar stools in the kitchen and a formal dining room. On the second floor I turned to bedroom into a den. The more casual furniture is there and it works out great. I moved to downsize but even in my larger home I did the same thing. One thing I love about keeping a formal living room is that it is usually the first thing you see when you come into the house. Growing up I remember we couldn't play in there and it always looked beautiful! I've made a point to do that in my adult life. When people come over they can actually visit without being distracted with a television and if there are kids they can go upstairs and watch separately. Plus, I enjoy seeing the things I cherish on a regular basis and orderly. I think a kitchen table in a closed off kitchen is a great place for kids to do homework or for a neighbor to come for a cup of coffee. Also we have these gorgeous kitchens now and nobody freaking Cooks anymore. They don't want to get smells in their house? That smells like home to me. On the other hand indeed it will get in to your curtains and sofas and everything else. Another reason to keep the kitchen separate
If you’re not a dramatic bath person, you won’t understand the standalone bath tub. It’s the experience. Boiling hot bubble baths with salts and oils are my pain reliever, my self care, my reading time, my mood reset, my bedtime prep, etc. The gorgeous standalone tub adds to the overall experience. Also they’re “too deep” said no bath-person ever. 😅
I totally agree and they make a bath a special occasion! And I don't care about how practical it would be cleaning it 😁 I'd get one if I had the space 😊
I just want a tub big enough to fully submerge my entire body. No more knees stickin up out of the water. 😅 Tubs aren't made for big butts and long legs. I need an entire Roman Bath!
@@happy_bubble7 I just have an alcove space in my bathroom, I'm considering a drop-in tub with a custom built wall so I can get the depth and the beauty, but not the increased cleaning hassle of a stand-alone. Problem is I don't have space for an entry step. It's a pretty high hurdle to enter, when most of the time I just want a shower.
I hate open concept!! I do not want to see my kitchen from every vantage point in the house. Also, noise travels - so you can hear the TV, people talking on the phone, noises from the kitchen, et... I have to lock myself in the bathroom to get a minute of privacy. Open Concept only works if you live alone - or are married to someone who is neat and quiet.
Also when I walk in my neighborhood and see right into my neighbors' kitchen, it feels really awkward! In the evenings when it's darker out, you can see everything ugh
Paint on vintage brick is so...permanent. Try limewash instead. That way if it's a disaster, it can be easily removed. It is in fact quite durable, unless it gets direct water on it, like steps, I limewashed the entire salmon-colored brick exterior of our 1960's rancher and it was a huge improvement. It still looks great after 4 years of weather exposure.
100% agree on the beige & white. It's hilarious to me to see home reno shows or UA-cam videos where they crack open a can of white paint and proclaim, "I LOVE this color", and I'm over here thinking, "what color?!"
I know. It's a hoot! Being an artist I get a kick out of designers and their proclamations of look at this color(another variation of white)and look how you can incorporate color into your design. A black and white design--you add green plants and add some tan or rust colored throws and pillows. This has even transitioned to exteriors. The popular paint to use right now is white exterior and black trim. Now I know part of it is because it can be difficult to find colors that are cohesive with your decor...It takes great thought and a bit of planning. I consider the use of tinted shades of black or white or using hues to be the easy out for many. But it is okay as it is still a classic look and you can add color other ways. But for heaven sakes... Please add some colorful artwork or accessories once in a while people! 🤦♀️
I totally agree and even worse my mind goes "Beige = dirty white" I wish I could feel differently with it coming back into style but nope. They see classy, I see the color of dishtowels that need to be retired.
I have a ton of colour in my home--red couch, etc. But I ooohed and aaawed and gushed over the WHITE we chose to paint over the yellow in our living room. BM Cloud White. It glows like sun shining through a cloud. It is like a hug of light on a cool day. I wish I had video taped it so you could have had a good laugh.
@@ilikecontent2327 We were gifted with more colors than we can imagine - use them :-) And yep, we have saturated color on some of our walls, and lots of art.
You can always hang “stuff” from the ceiling, on the back of chairs, from a coat stand in the middle of the room, etc. You can, most of the time, create clutter, chaos and tackiness.
I thought open concept was not having a bunch of decor items crowding up the floor space. Hence "open" concept. Wow, does no one cook anymore? I would hate smoke smells and whatnot going freely into the living room
Yeah I love that I can give each room a different theme. My bedroom is dark bohemian, my living room is more art deco, I’m trying to make a princess themed walk-in closet, and the bathroom and kitchen are just clean with a lot of storage space because they’re very small and look cluttered quickly. Being able to devide the spaces gives you so much room to experiment with different styles/themes.
I unsubbed from a particularly snarky one because this person was just so unnecessarily catty and flat out RUDE. (Also comes across as rather conceited.) This person went so far as to say that any neighbor with inflatable Christmas decorations would get reported to the HOA because it "ruins the aesthetic." I don't know if it was a joke or not but given this person's personality I wouldn't be surprised if it really happens. I don't have time for people that negative. Nick, however, has much more class when criticizing design. Even when he really does NOT like something he's still gentle about it.
Agreed!! I don’t watch any design channels where the person is just nasty about other styles. It’s okay to not like things, but you don’t have to tear down the people who do like it. Nick always encourages us all to just do what makes us happy and I love him for that! He also helps us execute the styles we like which is so helpful!
I had a realtor who bought houses to fix up try to get me to work for her to redesign the houses..I said no..I had fun doing my own home but I wouldn't design for other people..im not a designer..she saw my bathrooms and went wild..I told her she could bring someone over to look but I wouldn't do it..
@@katie7748 I would take out a LOAN to buy as many lawn inflatables as I could just because! Might even install a temporary bathtub Buddha...just because. Folks need to lighten up sometimes. It ain't all that serious. HOAs are weird, and I would mentally snap like a twig if I had to deal with one.
I really love the Japanese bathroom concept. Water closet is separate. Then the soaking tub is in a separate water room with a drain in the floor to accommodate runoff from a shower to clean yourself first before stepping into the tub to soak away sore muscles or tension. Fabulous.
I agree. I had such a hard time convincing family and builders to have a powder room and separate bath/shower room which was a challenge for me as I am usually a push over. So proud I stood up for what I wanted.
The problem with open plan? Heating bills, 50% more maintenance and having to keep it impeccably clean at all times because everything is visible. If you've got small kids that make a mess all the time, it's even worse.
Yeah keeping an eye on your kids with open concept is great until you realize you also never get to be away from them ever because there is no other room to go to!
I have open concept and my daughter is where the TV is. I don't like TVs in the main area because my family doesn't really watch TV when we visit together and it's an eyesoar to me in open concept. So my daughter ends up in the bedrooms. I hangout down stairs.
As a student I have been to student flats where the only decor is the empty bottles of spirits and I agree that they should not be put on display in this context 😂
One of my friends in her fifties collects empty bottles and has them on display... but they are antique. She has an entire wall with shelves filled with them in her dining room - and they are lovely )
I agree that the stand-alone tubs are beautiful, but I chose not put one in my new home. I'm elderly (or will be soon!) and planning for the future ... so getting in and out won't work for me. Also, I think it will be increasingly more difficult for me to clean around them - getting behind them, underneath, etc.
You are smart to consider "aging in place" for your home. Something accessible and easier to clean like a zero-threshold shower can still be beautiful.
I have no idea how your channel ever got suggested to me but I watch you all the time for months now and just find you hysterical, adorable and witty. I have little interest in home decoration trends and yet I watch every video because you have a fabulous personality.
I’ll chime in on the fireplace thing. We are in the process of updating a home and the homeowner wants the California casual look. Instead of painting the old brick fireplace, we are building a surround on it. This gives us a smooth surface for the plaster finish, and also gives a future homeowner the option to tear it out and return to the brick (we know it will be back eventually!). It may not work for every fireplace, but it’s cost effective (we have $300 in materials) and might be a viable alternative to painting brick.
This sounds like it would be a good solution, as long as it passes code. I don't think I'd do anything to my fireplace without consulting a certified sweep, just to make sure I'm not creating safety code violations.
@@redwoodcottageart Former sweep here; let me add that when I see these photos of fireplaces where there is obvious soot on the bricks above the fireplace I shudder.
My issue with open concept is the smell. I am not totally against open concept. A big open place can look gorgeous und it can be quite flexible, but epecially in a kitchen, it is a problem, when there is no barrier for smells. Think of an open kitchen, one that you really use. You cook, you steam, you fry. And just, when the tomato sauce boils on one plate and meat and garlic fry on the other, just in that moment the phone rings. It is moments like this, I am happy, that I have walls. And a door, which I can close to keep the problem, where it belongs. In the kitchen.
We searched and searched for a house with defined spaces. Then when we started our remodel we had several contractors tell us that they would knock down walls to give us an open concept. They were surprised when we told them that we purposely had separate spaces! My brother-in-law and sister-in-law built a house that is completely open concept, and they completely regret it! It is too loud an echoey when they have people over. Also, when they have people over, everyone's all in one space, which makes it hard with a bunch of kids running around.
i have a young daughter and have always hated open concept. I like each room to have its own function and personality and walls for furniture and decor
The problem with displaying liquor in decanters is that the seal isn't perfect. If you have a selection of whiskey that takes you a while to get through, they're going to evaporate.
I would go for open-ish, everyone needs a bit of hiding space. Also I love neutrals, earth tones with real greenery, brings the outside in and is soooo calming for me. The earth never goes out of style.
“The earth never goes out of style” - LOVE THIS! Would be a fun quote to add in a frame and hang on my cypress walls. We recently built and instead of Drywall/Sheetrock we covered our walls with cypress planks downstairs and pine planks upstairs and used cedar boards to frame all the doorways/windows. And naturally green looks amazing with our design! (we have a green sofa) I finally got brave enough to start adding in potted plants…I do not have a green thumb! So, unfortunately, a few of them are fake lol 🫣🤭
Please don't keep your alcohol in a lead crystal container because the lead in the crystal will leach into the alcohol. It's fine if you decant a wine into a container and then use that for pouring immediately but don't use them as a storage container for alcohol or other food products.
I will add to that if you're drinking out of a leaded glass don't add any acid (lemon, etc) because it will accelerate the leaching. Stick to unmixed drinks (whiskey, cognac, etc.) for those beautiful but toxic glasses! 😅
Story time: my uncle inherited a set of lovely green glassware from his mother, who inherited it from her own mother. Really lovely vivid green color. He put a very expensive vintage of Glenfiddich into the decanter and proudly put it in his liquor cabinet. And then my cousin, who was in college majoring in biochem at the time, came home from college and saw it. That was when my uncle first heard of Radium Glass. In the Industrial Revolution, glass and paint used to be colored with radium (which is, as the name would imply, very radioactive) to produce a very bright, vivid, distinctive green. It also gave most of the workers who made and used it a horrific death via radiation poisoning. So my uncle spent a lot of money and time getting rid of this glassware; I think he tried to donate it to a museum but nobody would take it because of the radiation, so he had to call some company on the other side of the country that specializes in disposing of radioactive materials. He then got himself a new set of antique cut crystal decanters...that all turned out to be leaded crystal. My aunt has banned him from buying any household items for the foreseeable future becasue, as she put it, "What'll he bring in my house next? 'Antique' tiles made out of asbestos? A vase made out of the bones of murdered children? Where will it end?"
We have a semi-open concept. Living room and dinner room and kitchen are one huge room , while the kitchen can still be closed with slide doors which are inside the wall (once they are open you wont see them). I really like this idea, especially if you are about to cook something heavy/greasy that could ruin the smell of other furniture or where the higher humidity could be bad for plants etc.
Yep, we're doing the exact same thing in our new house for all he reasons you say -- I hate it when smells permeate the entire house (plus then you don't need to look at a mess while you eat) but then I can have the doors open if I'm baking something yummy or for pre-dinner when everyone is congregating.
Our house had a kitchen living, separate dining. We are switching it to kitchen dining, and using the dining room as our living room. The breakfast nook we put upholstered chairs and a coffee to have a more casual sitting area. When I sit to relax at night, I don’t want to be looking at a kitchen. We work a kitchen really hard.
As much as I enjoy certain aspects of open concept spaces the lack of sound control is really frustrating, I am a reader and I normally read on the couch in the living room. My husband walking through doesn't bug me but him making a bunch of noise in the kitchen 2 feet away with no sound barrier does and so I feel kicked out of my space because of open concept noise, if the living space was sectioned off or we had a sitting room I think things would be better. Having lived in a non open concept house to now a fully open concept house I prefer more walls.
I chose a stand alone claw foot tub separate from the shower because my husband is a shower person and I am a bath person and I don’t want to clean a shower/tub combo every single day! I have no desire to sit where he stands and the soap scum builds up! 😊
If you’re not a bath person, skipping the tub altogether is great! And for those who are able to do both separately, a win-win. But I loathe the tub/shower combo! It makes showers worse because you’ve got to climb over the side to get in and out (which does not get easier with age) and it makes baths uncomfortable because you’re surrounded by all your junk and there’s no comfortable way to put your neck. It always ends up at an uncomfortable angle, at least for me. I think they’re really only redeemable if you have kids.
I have been living in my home for 2 yrs and I have tried to love my red brick fire place but WHEN I feel like being honest with myself, I know it's a hard look, I know it's an eye soar. I plan on painting it white once I get to that room. AND I won't feel bad when I do. 😊
I did, and l love it. It looked dingy and dirty and dated in a fresh butter yellow, white and apple green room. Now it is fresh, and the colourful things on my mantle shine. Retiled the old maroon tile as well. Just do it!
I'd be cautious of painting brick - brick is a material that needs to breathe, so make sure that whatever paint you get, it's rated for brick and won't trap moisture inside. Otherwise you've got a recipe for a structural issue waiting to happen.
Do you want mine? I grew up with the brass everything 80s. Then we moved into a 1985 house...with brass everything-shiny, antiqued, everything. We just like cool toned metals better.
I know nothing about the brass everywhere 80s ... but I grew up with a certain amount of antique fittings and furniture and anything of good quality had brass fittings. Whatever people did in the eighties is irrelevant.Brass has been the metal of choice for centuries.
16 years ago I went to open concept because my formal living and dining rooms only got used during the holidays. However, I do have a second media room , a dining/library and an office. So I feel like I have the best of both worlds. Everyone always gravitated to the kitchen so I like that now the kitchen and main living room are a space with an archway that visually sets them apart while still being open to each other.
I have an open concept, but my wife and I both have an office/creative space (her’s is for music, mine is for whatever craft draws my terrible messy brain), so we have spaces to retreat to and be messy
As a bath person, I find standalone bathtubs beautiful but wholly impractical. You need a ledge for soap, etc. Also, I can only imagine how quickly it gets old cleaning around them.
especially when they get pushed up against a wall, so you can't even get into the back side to clean the nooks and crannies! if youre going to have a stand alone tub, it's gotta be smack in the middle of the room for optimal cleaning, and then its functionally annoying for the rest of your room. just a big no from me.
@@GregStanton. 💯! Then again, I strongly suspect those who can afford to have a huge bathroom with a tub in the middle of it probably outsource the cleaning labour.
Same for cleaning those mixing bowl hand basins - there is a narrow gap all around the base that collects water and scum and you have to clean it out with a toothbrush.
As far as the metals go: You want your home to be comfortable to you. If I am a cool tone person I use silver jewlery-therefore metal in my home will probably be silver or black. When I look at it, I feel peaceful and cozy. I have to face it everyday so I want it to make me happy.
This is exactly my philosophy. Metals the same as my jewelry and decor colours the same as the palette I wear! I was planning to trademark it (JK), but I'd have to split credit with you.
I'm a cool tone person too! I dont even like warm tone colors in my makeup lol It's amazing though, what a brushed brass will do to a cool tone baby blue😍
I just moved into a house that's over 100 years old. And we don't have a open plan house and i love it. We can't break any walls down due to the structure. Now we can decorate every room in a different style. We put a bar and chairs in the kitchen for the kids to sit at while we are cooking but i like that i can closed the door and lock in all the smells from the kitchen.
Stand alone tubs are impractical because of the reasons mentioned plus they are harder to clean: more sides to clean, similar issues with dirt/water in the hard to reach places as with many vessel sinks. Honestly, it is more of a showpiece than anything comfortable. We are going to change ours to a normal tub next year
omg those vessel sinks... I understand why sometimes they could be necessary (no room under counter for the sink to drop down into) but mostly it just seems like people are trying to hard to be cool and look fancy... but imo they are ugly and impractical.
Clawfoots are classic and fairly common stand alones. The sides shouldn’t get dirty and can be cleaned once in a great while with a duster which reaches for you. Underneath can be cleaned every couple weeks, the same way. Or with a rag over the duster, once a week if you’re finicky. The insides are easier to clean than fiberglass tubs or acrylic, and stay cleaner longer as less “ sticks” to porcelain. I found all I had to do was wipe weekly and wipe out the bottom and sides whenever it didn’t rinse off easily. Tub baths make less mess than showers. Shower curtains can be tossed in the wash but glass doors and their tracks are awkward to clean, which is why people let them go too long without wiping down.
@@robinbirdj743 my bathroom is in a modern style so a clawfoot won’t look good, and I don’t know if it is a problem with my particular tub but it gathers cat’s hair on its sides whenever cat touches it and I can see my childrens’ fingerprints all over it. After a year of use, I’m done with it.
@@the_eerie_faerie_tales agree, the only thing that I think is worse are round pedestal sinks with no room for anything, even soap. They eat up a lot of space, have no comfortable storage for regular use items and have more sides to clean. They look fancy though
I hate open concept b/c smells from cooking in the kitchen permeate the kitchen, dining, and living room areas. We had a standard house with kitchen/dining/living room separated by door ways and smells did not seem to take over the whole house. Now that we have an open concept U-shaped kitchen/dining/living room area--the whole place reaks of dinner. I can smell what hubby is cooking when I open the door from my office at the other end of the house and up a hall way.
I don't see the point of enormous bathrooms. There is no reason a bathroom needs to be as big as a primary bedroom. It's square footage that could be used elsewhere.
We built our house 22 years ago, and there are a number of things I wish I had not done in regards to design. However, I am not a TV over the fireplace person. We have a finished walk-out basement with a family room. We placed a fireplace in the corner and put the TV in a cabinet with doors that hide the TV when not in use. I love it. Upstairs, our living room has a centered fireplace on one wall and no television in sight. It is a room made for conversations with family and guests.
Bless you for saying the TV is in the cabinet w/ doors ! When we have company , even folks just dropping by , I immediately turn the TV off & shut the cabinet doors so we can genuinely enjoy each other !
Thanks for understanding how our lack of natural lighting in the Scandinavian winter months reflects (ha!) in the choice of light walls and floors in Scandi design. So glad you showed how there can be more colour, texture and life added to it, though. Because who really feels joie de vivre living in The All Grey Everything minimalist nightmare?
my biggest problem with open concepts is smell! even if you don't cook super fragrant foods, even the smell of hot oil can permeate. have you ever accidentally left a hat on the kitchen table and then put it on outside wondering 'what's that's smell?', that's your living room/bedroom all day every day.
I’m literally watching this video while soaking in my stand alone tub, but yes, the wood or bamboo “boat” is a must. A small pedestal table also if you have the space.😅
My problem with open concept is that I use my home and especially my kitchen heavily. I might have liked OC better when I had my corporate job and wasn’t actually cooking at home much.
My parents bought Scandinavian furniture in the 70’s and it’s still timeless. We grew up with 3 legged dining room chairs, everyone eventually tipped over lol. They picked well though, nothing looks like a remake by Target or IKEA, the key to Scandinavian furniture.
it also important to understand that in Scandinavia we also have trends , some things is timeless as you mention ,what north Americans call "Scandinavian" is 1 style in 1 period of Scandinavian design more or less - through the times we have had dark wood (that have actually been popular again the past 10 years) light wood or medium wood, burnt yellow/orange walls were extremely popular in the 90 these and that was also when white or blond floors were most popular, grey walls, beige walls ect. and many picture used of Scandinavian design are actually commercials to show of a lamp, chair ect. or like in this video the picture were is't a very simple all wood house that's a summerhouse from a Real Estate company , so nobody actually live there, there are no rules in Scandinavia about what wood it used it's about personal choice and what is trending at the moment and most people mix, it's only the floors that are never dark but light or medium, there are no rules about white walls although it's very common, but many chose one or more rooms in a color-you almost never see an all white, beige room in Scandinavia , most people have very colorful art or colors in another way in a sofa or rug, but Scandinavians usually don't repeat colors many times we tend to like 1 or 2 pops of color, so either the wall or the sofa ect. and it tends to be more of a simple style but also cosy and laid back - often mixed old/new/rustic/ or mid century/ contemporary
True! 😁 And, can I just say that the brown you have on is a tremendously flattering shade for you. 👍 I don't know if you realize that. Merry Christmas!
I think we’re leaning more towards “open flow” spaces. I know many who are doing or recently have renovated and many are putting formal dining spaces back into their houses. They want the casual breakfast bar or table nook in their kitchen and then a proper dining space that’s separate. People want to host dinner parties and have family over and that’s not going away. People want to be able to send the kids to another room that’s not their bedroom and sit and have wine time or just sit and talk to their spouse. Dens/family rooms are definitely coming back but not as the primary living room.
By open flow I mean arches and pocket doors and French doors or barn doors (i know you hate them) rather than walls being entirely missing and not quite solid doors of the past when every room had a door because you had to control the heating of the house.
Stand alone tubs are very impractical for the vertically challenged too. Those who are going to get one should make sure they can step into and out of first
I wholeheartedly agree with Jordan-hate open concept. I like walls and privacy. And wall space. Also, I don't want my sofa smelling like whatever I cooked in the kitchen that night.
My unpopular opinions: I like solid surface counter tops. I had them in my last kitchen. They didn't stain, they weren't so hard that anything that got dropped broke or broke the countertop. Any scratches could be buffed out. And they are affordable. If you cook A LOT, they are the ultimate in function. My sister has porcelain, which I love, but I can''t afford. I also like my 1978 fireplace. My townhouse feels and looks like a 70s ski lodge. There are vaulted ceilings in the great room and a wood accent that spans from the fireplace to the top of the ceiling. My brother in law said, "It's so ugly it's cool." I think it's just cool. Unfortunately, someone put an Early American shelf immediately above the fireplace. I can't wait to remove it. Not sure I can strip off the layers of white paint on it, but just getting ride of the shelf and replacing the glass doors will help a lot.
Hi Janice, could you just remove the front fancy face of the shelf to leave the plain horizontal surface behind it, then you could strip and stain a plain shelf. Or are you planning to remove the whole kit and kaboodle to put a new ready-made shelf or a beefy mantle, or no shelf at all? Curious... I have had Wilsonart veneer counters in my kitchen w/ the thick trim that has a 45 degree bevel on the edge. We have a lot of counter area, so we wanted to keep costs down. 25 years later, it still has no stains and still feels satiny. I bet I'd like your lodge!
@@kimherben7866 I plan on just taking it off. There are a number of projects ahead of that, but it will make it easier to hand the tv over the fireplace. Lol.
I find that open concept rooms can sound hollow as well as very noisy. If you've got people watching tv at one end of the room and you've got people sitting in the kitchen, one group is going to annoy the other. Little kids are loud no matter whether watching tv or just playing. Another annoyance if you are trying to follow a recipe or get something just right. Or try reading in a living room and people are gathered in the kitchen talking. Same goes if you are on your laptop! And yes, with an open concept you do lose a lot of wall space which I feel is really important. Where do kitchen cabinets go when everything is jammed on the one real wall you've got in that kitchen? In the living room where do the bookcases and cabinets go? I really think the tv belongs in a rec room, not the living room. That's just tacky!
I don't want to display my alcohol bc maybe I don't want my guests to expect me to offer some to them. Unless I'm throwing a party. But, not as everday decor. Though I do love the way whiskey looks in a beautiful cut glass decanter. And tequila...
I liked the idea of open concept initially so the person cooking/kitchening could participate in whatever the rest of the family is doing, but reality, a problem with open concept is that if someone is clanging around in the kitchen, it disturbs people who may be trying to read, watch TV, etc. - and as the person who is usually in the kitchen, the truth is that you can't hear whatever is going on in the greater room anyway. Another thing that looks nice but I discovered is totally impractical is a sink in an island, IOW a sink without a backsplash. We were in a lovely apartment for several months that had the sink in the island, and the whole island was often soaked with splash water. Keep the sink on a counter with a backsplash.
For me it depends HOW open the open concept is, and who lives in it. If it's a whole family I feel like the TV having to compete with the sound of kitchen appliances is going to get annoying pretty fast. However, living alone it's not an issue as I can't be several places at once anyway. My family has a separate TV-room/library (it's small, but functional) and semi-open plan kitchen and dining/lounge. I'd definitely want something similar for myself at a later stage.
I was hoping open shelving in the kitchen would be on your list. Talk about a trend that was DOA. I feel like it's a way sometimes to cheap out on the expense of closed storage all in the name of style, but seriously, people in the real world have crap like novelty mugs that need to be behind doors.
So agree! It's another way for builders to go cheaper on the cabinet budget, and they look cool on design blogs, but to live with open shelving in a kitchen is a nightmare. Grease and dust. Ugh.
I really don't like fully open concept in most cases. I just don't think it's practical, unless you rarely use the kitchen for cooking/baking. I like a modified open concept where the kitchen is open to the dining area and the dining opens to the living area, but not the kitchen to the living room.
I understand not liking open concept because a lot of new homes just feel like giant empty boxes. I would like a compromise space with mostly open spaces with maybe some structural features to create devision, like archways, freestanding slat walls, or something. Just to create more architectural interest and more defined spaces. Anyways this was a fun vid I hope you do more of them.
in Australia it is more common to have open plan NOT be a rectangle but have "bays" with the kitchen ETC in one of the "bays" so NOT 100% open but still ONE SPACE
I agree, the one big room combining everything (kitchen, dining, living) is boring and uninteresting. I feel spaces need some kind of separation, even if it's just a change in ceiling height.
We recently moved to a 1970 colonial sytle home. Allll the rooms and we love it! My hubs has always hated open concept but this is the first home where we haven't had open concept.
Open plan may work if the house was designed that way from the start. Knocking down walls to open up a traditional home can make an unworkable mess. I live in a house built in the 1920's that had been opened up by prior owners. One of the first things I did was getting walls so I have a kitchen, dining room, living room and foyer. The kitchen still opens up into the family room; this sort of works.
In regards to open concept, please keep in mind that fires spread faster in open spaces. I like being able to close off my kitchen for that reason alone.
I was also very torn about painting my fireplace… but the red just doesn’t go well with the color I have at home. I painted my fireplace dark navy color and I LOVE it!
Yes, I was just going to say, "Why are we only talking about painting brick fireplaces white?" What about black, or some other color that blends with your (more modern) decor?
My fireplace was the ugliest brick imaginable. It felt like a black/orange hole; it swallowed all the light in the house. It probably swallowed a couple of proximate galaxies. Yes, I painted it white. I’m reborn! It’s beautiful and bright.
My unpopular design opinion: I think a smooth ceiling painted to coordinate with the rest of the room is the way to go. Ceilings are often overlooked in terms of design and most people just have the same flat white in every room, with maybe some stickers in the kids’ rooms if they’re feeling adventurous. I know it’s a pain in the butt to paint the ceiling, I know it takes a long time and there’s a lot that goes into it, but I think more people should do it anyways (just not beige. Anything but beige. If it’s a choice between leaving it white or painting it beige, just leave it white)
So my thing with open concept is it's a cheap way of tricking the perception that you have more space than you do. Instead of designing a full kitchen that has the space to be communal in and of itself, kitchens got smaller and smaller (narrower, too) especially where I Iive presently in New England. Ovens got shoved in weird places and they began to feel isolated and disjointed so the open concept was a way of trying to fix that problem without the expense of expanding the footprint or redesigning in a more functional but separate way. The issue is, there's no privacy. If I want to cook, I don't want to have all the noise and visual stimuli of the rest of the house (tv's, people yelling at those tvs, etc.) but I still want to have the environment where I can collaborate with a friend or people can be doing something at the kitchen table while I'm prepping etc. Even in a lot of older, wealthier homes you see that the kitchen is a room unto itself--but they're usually big. And if you're a parent--depending on how old your child is, you can make a baby safe area in a portion of the kitchen that's baby gated off if it's a decent enough room, or when they're older, have room time (my parents did this for me and my siblings) where we would play anyway in a sectioned off part of the house. There's no reason to be freaking hawkeye all the time. Healthy boundaries are just so needed.
I totally agree, open concept is a way if tricking you into thinking you have more room than you do & unless you're in a high end home, the kitchens are getting smaller, almost like an afterthought. Kitchens are turning into small islands with a sink and a small counter on the other side with a stove. And in open concept, how can you ever get away from anyone?
Agree. Most apartments in Oslo, Norway, used to have a separate but small kitchen with space for 2-4 people to sit down and eat. Apartments went across the building, meaning you had windows on 2-3 sides. Now, in order to squeeze in as many apartments as possible in huge generic blocks and save on elevators, most new apartments only have windows on one side, pretty much forcing the kitchen and livingroom to be “open concept”. There is no flexibility in terms of changing the plan since bedrooms must have a window and those are extremely limited.
Redesigning my obsolete New England kitchen from the 30's revealed the communal nature of that era. Even though the layout was not functional anymore, there was sooo much space for gathering at the kitchen table! Just lovely and large for members of the family to eat and talk.
Chiming in on open concept: Sound/acoustics is the reason people want separated rooms. By altering ceiling heights and adding natural materials that absorb sound you can have the best of both worlds.
Don't forget the smell. If you cook the smell will get everywhere with an open concept. Not everyone likes a couch that smells like bacon grease, spices + whatever your local cuisine is.
Open concept is how developers turn 3 rooms into one at one third of what the original square footage would have been. SHOULD have been. It’s Victorian tenement rebranded.
With open concept, it reminds me of all the crumby apartments I have lived in that boast “open concept” when it’s really just a low quality studio with new paint. I prefer a bit more sectioned spaces.
Open concept of children is a nightmare so because of the noise level. My friend bought the house next-door because with the open concept in a ranch the bedrooms are too close to the family room and the TV at night wakes them up or keeps them up. The house next-door was a section of home with separate rooms
I am a bath person! Working on building a house, and my main bathroom will just have a claw foot tub. I’m beyond excited. When I get old I’ll have to swap it out I’m sure- but I’m not old yet! My plan is to have a little rolling cart with my bubbles and toiletries on it, roll it in when I’m bathing and roll it away out of sight when I’m done!
I'm moving in with my boyfriend whose 1920s home needs some work. Every original fixture is brass and or art deco. I'm thrilled. I love it and I don't care what's "in" or "out" paying tribute to the history of the house is more important to us that design trends that look dated in no time. The point is to look dated now, we want that roaring 20s look
For me, having bottles of alcohol on display is like having your jar of peanut butter or a bottle of vinegar on display. I dont get why that is seen as attractive decor. But I think beautiful decanters containing alcohol are fine.
I am a bath person, and I'd love a deep soaking tub! My ideal would be a Japanese bath-room, with separate shower and tub. Also small enough to stay warm. I keep my house at 65°F in the winter, and my spacious bathroom is never warm enough in heating season. A small bathing space, with a deep soaking tub with a built in heater, is my idea of true luxury.
I'm a bath person and I have baths too frequently to need all of the fancy things like candles. Candles are for those who rarely have baths. However my bath is actually a bath I imported from Japan, it doesn't use much water, it can be set to fill at a certain time, and it can even maintain a set temperature so these practical features were what made me choose that instead but I was looking at the standalone baths and they're really comfortable to sit in (but lots of water, you have to fill it *manually* like a caveman with plumbing (so I guess a roman, who was banned from the public baths), and even with lots of water it will cool down so you have to juggle with warming it up), if you love baths enough I can recommend importing a bath but just be aware we couldn't find a control panel in English so be prepared to either learn a little bit of Japanese or just remember which buttons to press by rote (my wife is learning Japanese and so she has set it up so it requires very few button presses by me)
I think my problem with painting brick (aside from painting an authentic material) is that it's almost impossible to undo. You have to have it sand blasted. Inside. In your house. It's hilarious to me how many of these unpopular design opinions I agree with, actually. 😁 I disagree with TV over the fireplace (I think it's the only way to have a TV and a fireplace without splitting focus) and of course I hate popcorn ceilings with a passion. Alcohol can be on display, especially in some very nice decanters. I can say I don't like bright, polished brass. It's... brassy. Once it ages or if it comes aged, then I like the look of it. As always, a fun video! Don't feel bad about disagreeing so much; these are unpopular opinions, after all.
The brick around my fireplace was painted white when we bought the house. Hated it. We painted over it with a brown paint that has speckles like brick. Looks great!
I built a ranch last year. Open concept kitchen, Lg eating space and living area. I also have a den with a big modern bookcase and tv. Some days I want cozy and some days I don’t. I need both
I’ll tell you who really loves open concept: tall dogs. “Ha,” they say. “There’s no way she can keep me off the counter now!” Oh, and tubs: I am a tub person and think that standalone soaking tubs are a bad idea. I want places to set my book, my shampoo, my collection of bubblebath, etc.
I've been thinking about the tub thing. What about some cute shelves or an end-table-type furniture next to the tub? I don't have a stand-alone tub, but my dream house would have a great, big soaker. Right now I have what I call a puddle-sitter.
@@robinbirdj743 I definitely wouldn't want a board over it. I know that's a thing people do, but it limits my ability to move around in the tub. A stool next to it is ok in theory, but I don't have sufficient clearance in practice to do that without making the tub shorter. I am going to put a large tub in the biggest bathroom, but the biggest bathroom is only 7.5x10.5. The bathroom can't feasibly be expanded, based on what's around it. The ability to move the toilet is very limited based on what's under the bathroom (half of it is over the stairs). I've spent more than a year arranging things in an architectural drawing program and concluded I need a J tub in the corner. I can force in a 6' tub that way, and it's really the only reasonable way I can. If I try to do the same with a standalone tub, it's too wide, or, if not too wide, it's quite a bit shorter, and I'm also not going to be able to clean around it. ("Reasonable way": if I'm putting in a 36" vanity or a pedestal sink, options abound! But I can't get rid of all of the storage in the largest bathroom in the house to have a nice tub. I need more storage, not less.)
@@whiteserpent6753 Yes of course. My tub is 4-1/2 ft long. My bath board stands up on end against the wall until I need it. A narrow shelf runs the length of the tub, fastened to the wall. My bathroom is 5.5’ x 8.5’
The problem with TV's above the fireplace (for me) is not the aesthetic but the wastefullness of it. Heat vastly decreases electronics life span especially with TV's, those LEDs will get burned up so much faster. No matter if you can afford it it is wastefull to damage something and throw it away faster.
I designed our house with open concept kitchen and living room then created offices, pantry, bedrooms, rec room as separate entities-best of both worlds! Our freestanding tub has a ledge behind it :)
I hate open concept primarily because real estate developers now build smaller flats where you cannot comfortably close off a kitchen. :/ In my county home ads are with rooms (not bedrooms), so 2 room apartment means a bedroom and a living room. Kitchen, bathroom, storage room are spaces, but do not count as rooms. So now 1 room is actully 2 spaces with less square meters than 2 separate spaces.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for mentioning sealers on stone counters!! They are so important and I tell the people I show slabs to about them constantly.
An issue with open concept with children is, you can't put baby gates up to block off the kitchen while you're cooking if you have no walls. I was so thankfull I was able to put up a gate when my kids were crawling/toddlers because they could reach up and grab the hot stove, or turn on the stove knobs. The kitchen is a dangerous place for young kids, so your only alternative would be a play pin or exersaucer. Which many toddlers hate and will cry the entire time. So the idea of needing to be able to see them is true, but how would you keep them out from under your feet while cooking? I don't know, since I put up a gate I didn't have to worry about that.
Thank you for another great video. I had a completely open floor plan for a few years. While I loved it, I often wished the kitchen was not so visible. Or rather, the mess in the kitchen was not that visible! LOL! Now I have a semi-open floor plan and, in my opinion, it's the best of both worlds. Stand-alone bathtubs: Love them! They look gorgeous. I'm not a tub person, but we are planning a bathroom remodel and we are switching our regular bathtub for a stand-alone, it looks so much better! Marble countertops: My Italian grandma had one in her house. She cooked the best meals in the world for over 50 years in that kitchen, with her white marble countertop. It was soft, aged, and lovely. She never sealed it, but it was wonderful and warm. I wouldn't mind having countertops just like hers.
open concept: (1) too much noise, try to watch TV while someone is cooking, (2) smell, that gets into the fabrics, (3) can't leave a messy kitchen even for a little while. I would never buy a house with an open kitchen, unless it is doable to close it quickly, easily and at little costs!
I love a separate tub. I love soaking in a deep stand-alone one, but they are for the young and flexible. As I age, such a thing could literally be the death of me.
Came late to this ... but I HATE the sink on the kitchen island! In the designer photos they are always empty and pristine .... but I imagine them with drying pans, dirty dishes, detergents and all that mess around the sink in real life.
Stand alone tubs main purpose to me, is to allow easy access to the shower in the room. No more stepping over a tub ledge. In a perfect world, if I shared a bathroom with someone who liked a tub, I would want it separate so that it doesn't interfere with my shower experience.
Tubs can be separate and “ standalone” without being free-standing ( no deck or surround.) I think people are using the terms interchangeably and it gets confusing!
I have a corner tub with ledges for candles, etc. It is just more surface to dust. I would like to get a smaller standalone tub so I can make my walk in shower bigger. I get why people would prefer the ledges though.
"Always remember: If you're alone in the kitchen and you drop the lamb, you can always just pick it up." -Julia Child Sometimes you just don't need an audience.
Yes, the "Island" is a stage for cooking. But cooking is a messy activity. And, also, it is better to eat without seeing the dirty dishes and pots and pans. I vote for a comfortable closed kitchen.
Another reason I dislike open concept is because the last thing I want to see when I’m relaxing watching TV is a sink full of dishes. 😩
Yeah, walls and Doors keep the mess and clutter out of sight
My problem with open concept is that I make food that has a very strong smell. Spicy foods, or foods that contain garlic and onions, and I don't want my whole livingroom to smell like my dinner for the rest of the day...That is why I want to be able to close off the kitchen from the rest of the living area.
Exactly 😅😅😅
THIS!!!
How is that even an unpopular opinion?!
It is impossible to keep the smell of onions and spices from spreading to the other rooms no matter how hard you try.
what a hood fan is made for ?
Something else that I don't like is open kitchen shelves - they are just dust collectors and can easily look frumpy and untidy
I love how they LOOK (IF they're prettily decorated) but yeah, they and everything on them will end up coated with grease and dust. At my old place there was space between the top of my cabinets and the ceiling so I displayed my tea set there... and being over the stove they got SO grimy.
Yes!! Completely impractical in a kitchen that’s actually being used.
I LOVED my open shelves in my previous house. They only collect dust if you aren't using the items often. They don't work as decorative spaces but function perfectly for everyday pieces. Keep all the pieces in the same colourway and don't use it as a catch-all and they will always function well and look stylish.
@@sarastewart2633 It's not just dust, but GREASE that accumulates in the kitchen. The top of my fridge, next to my stove, has to be wiped down regularly or it gets grimy from cooking oil/smoke. So as pretty as open shelving is (IF it's arranged prettily), no thanks. Maybe SOME open shelves if they're not close to the stove.
I'm no fan of open shelving anywhere except a very bare minimum. An etagere is a dreadful waste of cubic space. Why have a "bookshelf" unit that holds all mannner of knick knacks but only 3 books?
I am one of those who grew up with separate rooms. I remember when open concept became the rage. I too thought it was better. Then I heard a designer state on TV, you have to understand open means when people come in your house they see everything. EVERYTHING! So, you have to be very tidy.
See everything and smell everything. Not just the smell, but also the fat that slowly forms on certain surfaces.
Yes! I tried to make a Thanksgiving dinner at someone's house where they had open concept and the kitchen was a whole mess and the guests were looking at it and looking at me trying to cook and bothering me. Open concepts are for looks only but to be cooked in? No unless you want everyone to see your dishes.
Yes! This is literally my problem finding a decent floor plan to build. I've finally given up and decided to pay an architect to draw up a plan that at least keeps any random person from seeing every corner of my home from the front door.
One plan had over 10,000 Sq ft, and the front door had a view straight to the open kitchen and family room! No matter how big the house, open plan rules the day and I absolutely hate it.
i also find that they're louder. in my childhood home if someone was in the kitchen i couldn't hear them from my bedroom. then we moved to an open concept and no matter where you were in the house you could pretty much hear it everywhere. there's no walls to stop the sounds and there wasn't a hallway to the bedrooms. the whole house feels like it's all just one room. i hate it.
I hear you the noise pollution from open plan is horrible, visually when they aren’t being cooked in and lived in they look beautiful. But I hate all of the loud noises echoing around a huge open plan room. And the smell of cooking clings to the living room and it never smells beautifully fresh thanks to the kitchen.
I think an open concept for the kitchen and living room is beautiful…. If you’re living alone. My parents opened up a wall between the two a few years ago when there were 6 people living there and it was SOOOO annoying to try to watch tv while people were talking or cooking in the kitchen. Having the wall separate the noise between two highly active rooms is my preference.
That's a great point!
And that is EXACTLY why I hate open concept: it becomes a loud, chaotic mess.
@@tanjaeubanks it was not my choice but yeah i guess that works in a way, but having two different conversations even in the different rooms is really challenging
@@tanjaeubanks and no people? 😁
I would like my open kitchen/living area more if there were a second living area that was quieter for watching tv or reading.
The stand-alone tub is a real issue when it comes to cleaning the floor and walls behind the tub.
This was my first thought. My second thought is that this is the spot my cat would go when it's time to go to the vet.
@@vociferonheraldofthewinter2284 I will never again see a freestanding tub without thinking of our cat as well!
I agree.
hmm, grody
I love the stand alone tub. No cat issues and like that nothing has to clutter my tub time. No every moment needs a candle, book, etc. a wonderful time with tub and oils added can be very relaxing.
My problem with open concept is that we have thousands of books and literally 150+ pieces of framed art. We need WALLS!
Open space *and* floor-to-ceiling windows 🥺
Yeah I don't get how to hang art very well in open concept homes lol
@@Kimberlyk12 it’s nice for me because I don’t have much art.
You could create freestanding interior spaces with back to back bookshelves jutting into the room? Although my fantasy for a large quantity of books is to line a wall with solid packed bookshelves on wheels, then just pull out what topic/writer you need.
When I was growing up there was always an eat in kitchen and then a separate dining room with an open living room attached. A separate Den for casual television watching and I still love that way of living. I have an open concept now but I don't use it as such. There is no TV in the living room it is formal but there are bar stools in the kitchen and a formal dining room. On the second floor I turned to bedroom into a den. The more casual furniture is there and it works out great. I moved to downsize but even in my larger home I did the same thing. One thing I love about keeping a formal living room is that it is usually the first thing you see when you come into the house. Growing up I remember we couldn't play in there and it always looked beautiful! I've made a point to do that in my adult life. When people come over they can actually visit without being distracted with a television and if there are kids they can go upstairs and watch separately. Plus, I enjoy seeing the things I cherish on a regular basis and orderly. I think a kitchen table in a closed off kitchen is a great place for kids to do homework or for a neighbor to come for a cup of coffee. Also we have these gorgeous kitchens now and nobody freaking Cooks anymore. They don't want to get smells in their house? That smells like home to me. On the other hand indeed it will get in to your curtains and sofas and everything else. Another reason to keep the kitchen separate
If you’re not a dramatic bath person, you won’t understand the standalone bath tub. It’s the experience. Boiling hot bubble baths with salts and oils are my pain reliever, my self care, my reading time, my mood reset, my bedtime prep, etc. The gorgeous standalone tub adds to the overall experience. Also they’re “too deep” said no bath-person ever. 😅
I'll use it at your place so I don't have to clean around it.
I totally agree and they make a bath a special occasion! And I don't care about how practical it would be cleaning it 😁 I'd get one if I had the space 😊
I just want a tub big enough to fully submerge my entire body. No more knees stickin up out of the water. 😅 Tubs aren't made for big butts and long legs. I need an entire Roman Bath!
@@happy_bubble7 I just have an alcove space in my bathroom, I'm considering a drop-in tub with a custom built wall so I can get the depth and the beauty, but not the increased cleaning hassle of a stand-alone.
Problem is I don't have space for an entry step. It's a pretty high hurdle to enter, when most of the time I just want a shower.
I whole heartedly agree, also if your a mom that likes to homebirth, it is so nice to not have some inflatable bath in the middle of your living room
I hate open concept!! I do not want to see my kitchen from every vantage point in the house. Also, noise travels - so you can hear the TV, people talking on the phone, noises from the kitchen, et...
I have to lock myself in the bathroom to get a minute of privacy. Open Concept only works if you live alone - or are married to someone who is neat and quiet.
Smell also travels! If your cutting onions, everyone can smell them haha
Same! If you are entertaining you have to cook and wash up before everyone arrives or you are staring at a pile of stinky dishes.
Great points. Odors dust, grease travels.
Seriously, unless you’re working from home as a troupe of mimes it’s too loud
Also when I walk in my neighborhood and see right into my neighbors' kitchen, it feels really awkward! In the evenings when it's darker out, you can see everything ugh
Paint on vintage brick is so...permanent. Try limewash instead. That way if it's a disaster, it can be easily removed. It is in fact quite durable, unless it gets direct water on it, like steps, I limewashed the entire salmon-colored brick exterior of our 1960's rancher and it was a huge improvement. It still looks great after 4 years of weather exposure.
100% agree on the beige & white. It's hilarious to me to see home reno shows or UA-cam videos where they crack open a can of white paint and proclaim, "I LOVE this color", and I'm over here thinking, "what color?!"
I know. It's a hoot! Being an artist I get a kick out of designers and their proclamations of look at this color(another variation of white)and look how you can incorporate color into your design. A black and white design--you add green plants and add some tan or rust colored throws and pillows. This has even transitioned to exteriors. The popular paint to use right now is white exterior and black trim.
Now I know part of it is because it can be difficult to find colors that are cohesive with your decor...It takes great thought and a bit of planning. I consider the use of tinted shades of black or white or using hues to be the easy out for many. But it is okay as it is still a classic look and you can add color other ways. But for heaven sakes... Please add some colorful artwork or accessories once in a while people! 🤦♀️
I totally agree and even worse my mind goes "Beige = dirty white"
I wish I could feel differently with it coming back into style but nope. They see classy, I see the color of dishtowels that need to be retired.
I have a ton of colour in my home--red couch, etc. But I ooohed and aaawed and gushed over the WHITE we chose to paint over the yellow in our living room. BM Cloud White. It glows like sun shining through a cloud. It is like a hug of light on a cool day. I wish I had video taped it so you could have had a good laugh.
@@ilikecontent2327 We were gifted with more colors than we can imagine - use them :-) And yep, we have saturated color on some of our walls, and lots of art.
hahaha
I prefer divided rooms over open concept. I like having more walls to decorate/paint, and to hang more things on.
And for hide the chaos of the kitchen!!
You can always hang “stuff” from the ceiling, on the back of chairs, from a coat stand in the middle of the room, etc.
You can, most of the time, create clutter, chaos and tackiness.
I thought open concept was not having a bunch of decor items crowding up the floor space. Hence "open" concept. Wow, does no one cook anymore? I would hate smoke smells and whatnot going freely into the living room
Yeah I love that I can give each room a different theme. My bedroom is dark bohemian, my living room is more art deco, I’m trying to make a princess themed walk-in closet, and the bathroom and kitchen are just clean with a lot of storage space because they’re very small and look cluttered quickly. Being able to devide the spaces gives you so much room to experiment with different styles/themes.
"metals are metals, we all need to calm down"
Words to live by
I do appreciate you saying, " you just do you" if you like that kind of thing. So many designers appear snooty about tastes other than their own.
I unsubbed from a particularly snarky one because this person was just so unnecessarily catty and flat out RUDE. (Also comes across as rather conceited.) This person went so far as to say that any neighbor with inflatable Christmas decorations would get reported to the HOA because it "ruins the aesthetic." I don't know if it was a joke or not but given this person's personality I wouldn't be surprised if it really happens. I don't have time for people that negative.
Nick, however, has much more class when criticizing design. Even when he really does NOT like something he's still gentle about it.
Agreed!! I don’t watch any design channels where the person is just nasty about other styles. It’s okay to not like things, but you don’t have to tear down the people who do like it. Nick always encourages us all to just do what makes us happy and I love him for that! He also helps us execute the styles we like which is so helpful!
I had a realtor who bought houses to fix up try to get me to work for her to redesign the houses..I said no..I had fun doing my own home but I wouldn't design for other people..im not a designer..she saw my bathrooms and went wild..I told her she could bring someone over to look but I wouldn't do it..
@@katie7748 I would take out a LOAN to buy as many lawn inflatables as I could just because! Might even install a temporary bathtub Buddha...just because. Folks need to lighten up sometimes. It ain't all that serious. HOAs are weird, and I would mentally snap like a twig if I had to deal with one.
@@jackiec859 I love it! This is my kind of petty, lol!! 😂
I really love the Japanese bathroom concept. Water closet is separate. Then the soaking tub is in a separate water room with a drain in the floor to accommodate runoff from a shower to clean yourself first before stepping into the tub to soak away sore muscles or tension. Fabulous.
I agree. I had such a hard time convincing family and builders to have a powder room and separate bath/shower room which was a challenge for me as I am usually a push over. So proud I stood up for what I wanted.
I went to Japan a couple years ago and I loved their bathrooms.
I lived there for three years and LOVE their bathroom setup.
I think this is standard in Europe. It’s def standard all over Africa and the Middle East!
Floor drain is key. Garages need them too.
The problem with open plan? Heating bills, 50% more maintenance and having to keep it impeccably clean at all times because everything is visible. If you've got small kids that make a mess all the time, it's even worse.
Yeah keeping an eye on your kids with open concept is great until you realize you also never get to be away from them ever because there is no other room to go to!
Currently in my bedroom listening to this & mine found me 😂😂😂😂 I just need a moment!! 😂
I have open concept and my daughter is where the TV is. I don't like TVs in the main area because my family doesn't really watch TV when we visit together and it's an eyesoar to me in open concept. So my daughter ends up in the bedrooms. I hangout down stairs.
😂😂😂
👏👏👏
They find you…..no matter what 👀
As a student I have been to student flats where the only decor is the empty bottles of spirits and I agree that they should not be put on display in this context 😂
One of my friends in her fifties collects empty bottles and has them on display... but they are antique. She has an entire wall with shelves filled with them in her dining room - and they are lovely )
If they're beautiful stylised bottles, or spirits in decanters then it's great. But if you're displaying your Heineken bottles, yikes
Not empty bottles, no. So uninviting.
I agree that the stand-alone tubs are beautiful, but I chose not put one in my new home. I'm elderly (or will be soon!) and planning for the future ... so getting in and out won't work for me. Also, I think it will be increasingly more difficult for me to clean around them - getting behind them, underneath, etc.
You are smart to consider "aging in place" for your home. Something accessible and easier to clean like a zero-threshold shower can still be beautiful.
Yes exactly. Those stand alone tubs look beautiful. but are NOT remotely ergonomic. Function matters to me.
@@gloriaalex11 yes, I have a zero threshold shower as well … it is wheelchair compliant. I plan on getting old in this house.
@@ribbrascal You'll probably have more success aging well if you cut back on judging people you don't know in the slightest.
@@ribbrascal You can "plan" a lot of things, but Mother Nature rarely goes along with the plans humans make.
I have no idea how your channel ever got suggested to me but I watch you all the time for months now and just find you hysterical, adorable and witty. I have little interest in home decoration trends and yet I watch every video because you have a fabulous personality.
like the brown shirt too
I’ll chime in on the fireplace thing. We are in the process of updating a home and the homeowner wants the California casual look. Instead of painting the old brick fireplace, we are building a surround on it. This gives us a smooth surface for the plaster finish, and also gives a future homeowner the option to tear it out and return to the brick (we know it will be back eventually!). It may not work for every fireplace, but it’s cost effective (we have $300 in materials) and might be a viable alternative to painting brick.
This sounds like it would be a good solution, as long as it passes code. I don't think I'd do anything to my fireplace without consulting a certified sweep, just to make sure I'm not creating safety code violations.
The California Fireplace has to be sans actual wood here... Thanks to Agenda 21 aka The Great Reset.
@@redwoodcottageart Former sweep here; let me add that when I see these photos of fireplaces where there is obvious soot on the bricks above the fireplace I shudder.
@@redwoodcottageart the surround is constructed of a safety rated fire board, so it meets all requirements.
Smart!
My issue with open concept is the smell. I am not totally against open concept. A big open place can look gorgeous und it can be quite flexible, but epecially in a kitchen, it is a problem, when there is no barrier for smells. Think of an open kitchen, one that you really use. You cook, you steam, you fry. And just, when the tomato sauce boils on one plate and meat and garlic fry on the other, just in that moment the phone rings. It is moments like this, I am happy, that I have walls. And a door, which I can close to keep the problem, where it belongs. In the kitchen.
I never thought about this, but this is really smart!
We searched and searched for a house with defined spaces. Then when we started our remodel we had several contractors tell us that they would knock down walls to give us an open concept. They were surprised when we told them that we purposely had separate spaces! My brother-in-law and sister-in-law built a house that is completely open concept, and they completely regret it! It is too loud an echoey when they have people over. Also, when they have people over, everyone's all in one space, which makes it hard with a bunch of kids running around.
i have a young daughter and have always hated open concept. I like each room to have its own function and personality and walls for furniture and decor
The problem with displaying liquor in decanters is that the seal isn't perfect. If you have a selection of whiskey that takes you a while to get through, they're going to evaporate.
Yes you really need to get ones that have a perfect seal.
I would go for open-ish, everyone needs a bit of hiding space. Also I love neutrals, earth tones with real greenery, brings the outside in and is soooo calming for me. The earth never goes out of style.
Yes! Also, some folks knock brown. But the brown-green combination calms and relaxes me.
@@franjones5312 Agree ! Our home is calming - soft / muted blues , greens & some brown . Think nature inside our country home .
Totally agree. I like open concept but I also like to have quiet places to retreat to. You need both. ☺️
“The earth never goes out of style” - LOVE THIS! Would be a fun quote to add in a frame and hang on my cypress walls. We recently built and instead of Drywall/Sheetrock we covered our walls with cypress planks downstairs and pine planks upstairs and used cedar boards to frame all the doorways/windows. And naturally green looks amazing with our design! (we have a green sofa) I finally got brave enough to start adding in potted plants…I do not have a green thumb! So, unfortunately, a few of them are fake lol 🫣🤭
@@Sica210 I like your style - warm , natural , calming . 💚🤎
Please don't keep your alcohol in a lead crystal container because the lead in the crystal will leach into the alcohol. It's fine if you decant a wine into a container and then use that for pouring immediately but don't use them as a storage container for alcohol or other food products.
I will add to that if you're drinking out of a leaded glass don't add any acid (lemon, etc) because it will accelerate the leaching. Stick to unmixed drinks (whiskey, cognac, etc.) for those beautiful but toxic glasses! 😅
Story time: my uncle inherited a set of lovely green glassware from his mother, who inherited it from her own mother. Really lovely vivid green color. He put a very expensive vintage of Glenfiddich into the decanter and proudly put it in his liquor cabinet. And then my cousin, who was in college majoring in biochem at the time, came home from college and saw it. That was when my uncle first heard of Radium Glass. In the Industrial Revolution, glass and paint used to be colored with radium (which is, as the name would imply, very radioactive) to produce a very bright, vivid, distinctive green. It also gave most of the workers who made and used it a horrific death via radiation poisoning. So my uncle spent a lot of money and time getting rid of this glassware; I think he tried to donate it to a museum but nobody would take it because of the radiation, so he had to call some company on the other side of the country that specializes in disposing of radioactive materials. He then got himself a new set of antique cut crystal decanters...that all turned out to be leaded crystal. My aunt has banned him from buying any household items for the foreseeable future becasue, as she put it, "What'll he bring in my house next? 'Antique' tiles made out of asbestos? A vase made out of the bones of murdered children? Where will it end?"
@@mirih5368 a vase made out of the bones of murdered children. I love your aunt! She's twisted lmao
Mixed concept seems to be the best of both worlds, with movable walls and such that you can adjust _how_ open things are on a whim
We have a semi-open concept. Living room and dinner room and kitchen are one huge room , while the kitchen can still be closed with slide doors which are inside the wall (once they are open you wont see them). I really like this idea, especially if you are about to cook something heavy/greasy that could ruin the smell of other furniture or where the higher humidity could be bad for plants etc.
Yep, we're doing the exact same thing in our new house for all he reasons you say -- I hate it when smells permeate the entire house (plus then you don't need to look at a mess while you eat) but then I can have the doors open if I'm baking something yummy or for pre-dinner when everyone is congregating.
Yes! That’s it! Open kitchen concept is mostly for people who aren’t heavy duty cooks or who don’t mind cooking smells everywhere
Our house had a kitchen living, separate dining. We are switching it to kitchen dining, and using the dining room as our living room. The breakfast nook we put upholstered chairs and a coffee to have a more casual sitting area. When I sit to relax at night, I don’t want to be looking at a kitchen. We work a kitchen really hard.
And after a giant cooking session, you can hide the mess from guests.
Yeah I think that's more the case going forward - semi-open.
As much as I enjoy certain aspects of open concept spaces the lack of sound control is really frustrating, I am a reader and I normally read on the couch in the living room. My husband walking through doesn't bug me but him making a bunch of noise in the kitchen 2 feet away with no sound barrier does and so I feel kicked out of my space because of open concept noise, if the living space was sectioned off or we had a sitting room I think things would be better. Having lived in a non open concept house to now a fully open concept house I prefer more walls.
I chose a stand alone claw foot tub separate from the shower because my husband is a shower person and I am a bath person and I don’t want to clean a shower/tub combo every single day! I have no desire to sit where he stands and the soap scum builds up! 😊
Agree- who wants to clean soap scum before taking a bath?
If you’re not a bath person, skipping the tub altogether is great! And for those who are able to do both separately, a win-win. But I loathe the tub/shower combo! It makes showers worse because you’ve got to climb over the side to get in and out (which does not get easier with age) and it makes baths uncomfortable because you’re surrounded by all your junk and there’s no comfortable way to put your neck. It always ends up at an uncomfortable angle, at least for me. I think they’re really only redeemable if you have kids.
“No one needs a nugget ice machine” ….. “you don’t know who I am” LOL I so agree Nick! That made me laugh
What I do NOT understand is putting one of your most expensive piece of electronics in the house where it can roast over an open fire. 😅
Yes! Ours fried in less than 2 years!
Agree 100%!
I have been living in my home for 2 yrs and I have tried to love my red brick fire place but WHEN I feel like being honest with myself, I know it's a hard look, I know it's an eye soar. I plan on painting it white once I get to that room. AND I won't feel bad when I do. 😊
I did, and l love it. It looked dingy and dirty and dated in a fresh butter yellow, white and apple green room. Now it is fresh, and the colourful things on my mantle shine. Retiled the old maroon tile as well. Just do it!
I'd be cautious of painting brick - brick is a material that needs to breathe, so make sure that whatever paint you get, it's rated for brick and won't trap moisture inside. Otherwise you've got a recipe for a structural issue waiting to happen.
I literally gasped at the brass opinion; they can also pry it from my cold, metal loving hands
Me too!!!1
Do you want mine? I grew up with the brass everything 80s. Then we moved into a 1985 house...with brass everything-shiny, antiqued, everything. We just like cool toned metals better.
Agree. I love brass but hate the treatment it got in the '80s and '90s, where everything was that cheap shiny trash. What a time.
I know nothing about the brass everywhere 80s ... but I grew up with a certain amount of antique fittings and furniture and anything of good quality had brass fittings. Whatever people did in the eighties is irrelevant.Brass has been the metal of choice for centuries.
16 years ago I went to open concept because my formal living and dining rooms only got used during the holidays. However, I do have a second media room , a dining/library and an office. So I feel like I have the best of both worlds. Everyone always gravitated to the kitchen so I like that now the kitchen and main living room are a space with an archway that visually sets them apart while still being open to each other.
I have an open concept, but my wife and I both have an office/creative space (her’s is for music, mine is for whatever craft draws my terrible messy brain), so we have spaces to retreat to and be messy
After living in the open concept home for over 20 years, I have to say I definitely hate open concept!
Me too. My semi open 1906 house is perfect with its walk through big dining room and separate kitchen closed on only two sides.
@@robinbirdj743 I agree! Semi-open is the perfect sweet spot! ☆
Paint it white if it looks shoddy. Usually… paint it
TV over fireplace is “practical” BUT it is so nice to not have the TV as a center of the room. 2 rooms is preferable.
I think this needs to be in survey format🤣
I think I feel the same way about copper as Nick feels about brass. I think any metal can look good and be timeless as long as it's styled well.
As a bath person, I find standalone bathtubs beautiful but wholly impractical. You need a ledge for soap, etc. Also, I can only imagine how quickly it gets old cleaning around them.
especially when they get pushed up against a wall, so you can't even get into the back side to clean the nooks and crannies! if youre going to have a stand alone tub, it's gotta be smack in the middle of the room for optimal cleaning, and then its functionally annoying for the rest of your room. just a big no from me.
@@GregStanton. 💯! Then again, I strongly suspect those who can afford to have a huge bathroom with a tub in the middle of it probably outsource the cleaning labour.
Same for cleaning those mixing bowl hand basins - there is a narrow gap all around the base that collects water and scum and you have to clean it out with a toothbrush.
A pro of brass fixtures is that they're anti-microbial, unlike steel! Any copper-based metal alloy is anti-microbial, really.
As far as the metals go: You want your home to be comfortable to you. If I am a cool tone person I use silver jewlery-therefore metal in my home will probably be silver or black. When I look at it, I feel peaceful and cozy. I have to face it everyday so I want it to make me happy.
This is exactly my philosophy. Metals the same as my jewelry and decor colours the same as the palette I wear! I was planning to trademark it (JK), but I'd have to split credit with you.
I'm a cool tone person too! I dont even like warm tone colors in my makeup lol It's amazing though, what a brushed brass will do to a cool tone baby blue😍
100% agree but as a "warm tone" person I prefer BRASS over Chrome / nickel BUT THAT makes ME "happy"
I just moved into a house that's over 100 years old. And we don't have a open plan house and i love it. We can't break any walls down due to the structure. Now we can decorate every room in a different style. We put a bar and chairs in the kitchen for the kids to sit at while we are cooking but i like that i can closed the door and lock in all the smells from the kitchen.
Stand alone tubs are impractical because of the reasons mentioned plus they are harder to clean: more sides to clean, similar issues with dirt/water in the hard to reach places as with many vessel sinks. Honestly, it is more of a showpiece than anything comfortable. We are going to change ours to a normal tub next year
omg those vessel sinks... I understand why sometimes they could be necessary (no room under counter for the sink to drop down into) but mostly it just seems like people are trying to hard to be cool and look fancy... but imo they are ugly and impractical.
Clawfoots are classic and fairly common stand alones. The sides shouldn’t get dirty and can be cleaned once in a great while with a duster which reaches for you. Underneath can be cleaned every couple weeks, the same way. Or with a rag over the duster, once a week if you’re finicky. The insides are easier to clean than fiberglass tubs or acrylic, and stay cleaner longer as less “ sticks” to porcelain.
I found all I had to do was wipe weekly and wipe out the bottom and sides whenever it didn’t rinse off easily. Tub baths make less mess than showers. Shower curtains can be tossed in the wash but glass doors and their tracks are awkward to clean, which is why people let them go too long without wiping down.
@@robinbirdj743 my bathroom is in a modern style so a clawfoot won’t look good, and I don’t know if it is a problem with my particular tub but it gathers cat’s hair on its sides whenever cat touches it and I can see my childrens’ fingerprints all over it. After a year of use, I’m done with it.
@@the_eerie_faerie_tales agree, the only thing that I think is worse are round pedestal sinks with no room for anything, even soap. They eat up a lot of space, have no comfortable storage for regular use items and have more sides to clean. They look fancy though
Hand held shower spray..
I hate open concept b/c smells from cooking in the kitchen permeate the kitchen, dining, and living room areas. We had a standard house with kitchen/dining/living room separated by door ways and smells did not seem to take over the whole house. Now that we have an open concept U-shaped kitchen/dining/living room area--the whole place reaks of dinner. I can smell what hubby is cooking when I open the door from my office at the other end of the house and up a hall way.
The Scandinavian with the green looks so much more inviting. Love your perspective!
Yes, that one does! I didn't realize that Scandanavian can be something other than white or some other washed out nothing of a color.
Agree! Loved that one with the green ....
I don't see the point of enormous bathrooms. There is no reason a bathroom needs to be as big as a primary bedroom. It's square footage that could be used elsewhere.
Agree we had a house as a kid where the bathroom was bigger than all the bedrooms and just made no sense. Such a nonsensical house
My bathroom is a bathtub deep, single toilet, single sink vanity. Somehow two adults and two children managed!
Yes my bathroom is way too big and I’d rather have that square footage in my kitchen or one of the smaller bedrooms
As a person who is periodically challenged on my mobility, I have to disagree 😂
We built our house 22 years ago, and there are a number of things I wish I had not done in regards to design. However, I am not a TV over the fireplace person. We have a finished walk-out basement with a family room. We placed a fireplace in the corner and put the TV in a cabinet with doors that hide the TV when not in use. I love it. Upstairs, our living room has a centered fireplace on one wall and no television in sight. It is a room made for conversations with family and guests.
That’s what’s changed. People think the tv can be always on!
Bless you for saying the TV is in the cabinet w/ doors ! When we have company , even folks just dropping by , I immediately turn the TV off & shut the cabinet doors so we can genuinely enjoy each other !
Thanks for understanding how our lack of natural lighting in the Scandinavian winter months reflects (ha!) in the choice of light walls and floors in Scandi design. So glad you showed how there can be more colour, texture and life added to it, though. Because who really feels joie de vivre living in The All Grey Everything minimalist nightmare?
my biggest problem with open concepts is smell! even if you don't cook super fragrant foods, even the smell of hot oil can permeate. have you ever accidentally left a hat on the kitchen table and then put it on outside wondering 'what's that's smell?', that's your living room/bedroom all day every day.
I’m literally watching this video while soaking in my stand alone tub, but yes, the wood or bamboo “boat” is a must. A small pedestal table also if you have the space.😅
My problem with open concept is that I use my home and especially my kitchen heavily. I might have liked OC better when I had my corporate job and wasn’t actually cooking at home much.
My parents bought Scandinavian furniture in the 70’s and it’s still timeless. We grew up with 3 legged dining room chairs, everyone eventually tipped over lol. They picked well though, nothing looks like a remake by Target or IKEA, the key to Scandinavian furniture.
it also important to understand that in Scandinavia we also have trends , some things is timeless as you mention ,what north Americans call "Scandinavian" is 1 style in 1 period of Scandinavian design more or less - through the times we have had dark wood (that have actually been popular again the past 10 years) light wood or medium wood, burnt yellow/orange walls were extremely popular in the 90 these and that was also when white or blond floors were most popular, grey walls, beige walls ect. and many picture used of Scandinavian design are actually commercials to show of a lamp, chair ect. or like in this video the picture were is't a very simple all wood house that's a summerhouse from a Real Estate company , so nobody actually live there, there are no rules in Scandinavia about what wood it used it's about personal choice and what is trending at the moment and most people mix, it's only the floors that are never dark but light or medium, there are no rules about white walls although it's very common, but many chose one or more rooms in a color-you almost never see an all white, beige room in Scandinavia , most people have very colorful art or colors in another way in a sofa or rug, but Scandinavians usually don't repeat colors many times we tend to like 1 or 2 pops of color, so either the wall or the sofa ect. and it tends to be more of a simple style but also cosy and laid back - often mixed old/new/rustic/ or mid century/ contemporary
You made me laugh out loud, several times; that's a gift in itself. Merry Christmas. :)
Merry Christmas!
merry christmas, Nick!
True! 😁 And, can I just say that the brown you have on is a tremendously flattering shade for you. 👍 I don't know if you realize that. Merry Christmas!
I think we’re leaning more towards “open flow” spaces. I know many who are doing or recently have renovated and many are putting formal dining spaces back into their houses. They want the casual breakfast bar or table nook in their kitchen and then a proper dining space that’s separate. People want to host dinner parties and have family over and that’s not going away. People want to be able to send the kids to another room that’s not their bedroom and sit and have wine time or just sit and talk to their spouse. Dens/family rooms are definitely coming back but not as the primary living room.
By open flow I mean arches and pocket doors and French doors or barn doors (i know you hate them) rather than walls being entirely missing and not quite solid doors of the past when every room had a door because you had to control the heating of the house.
Stand alone tubs are very impractical for the vertically challenged too. Those who are going to get one should make sure they can step into and out of first
I wholeheartedly agree with Jordan-hate open concept. I like walls and privacy. And wall space. Also, I don't want my sofa smelling like whatever I cooked in the kitchen that night.
My unpopular opinions: I like solid surface counter tops. I had them in my last kitchen. They didn't stain, they weren't so hard that anything that got dropped broke or broke the countertop. Any scratches could be buffed out. And they are affordable. If you cook A LOT, they are the ultimate in function. My sister has porcelain, which I love, but I can''t afford.
I also like my 1978 fireplace. My townhouse feels and looks like a 70s ski lodge. There are vaulted ceilings in the great room and a wood accent that spans from the fireplace to the top of the ceiling. My brother in law said, "It's so ugly it's cool." I think it's just cool. Unfortunately, someone put an Early American shelf immediately above the fireplace. I can't wait to remove it. Not sure I can strip off the layers of white paint on it, but just getting ride of the shelf and replacing the glass doors will help a lot.
Hi Janice, could you just remove the front fancy face of the shelf to leave the plain horizontal surface behind it, then you could strip and stain a plain shelf. Or are you planning to remove the whole kit and kaboodle to put a new ready-made shelf or a beefy mantle, or no shelf at all? Curious... I have had Wilsonart veneer counters in my kitchen w/ the thick trim that has a 45 degree bevel on the edge. We have a lot of counter area, so we wanted to keep costs down. 25 years later, it still has no stains and still feels satiny. I bet I'd like your lodge!
@@kimherben7866 I plan on just taking it off. There are a number of projects ahead of that, but it will make it easier to hand the tv over the fireplace. Lol.
I’m hoping to build next year and intend to get solid surface for all the reasons you commented on. Agree completely!
In any kitchen the ultimate in function is the professional choice - stainless steel. Clean, heat-proof, lasts a lifetime.
I find that open concept rooms can sound hollow as well as very noisy. If you've got people watching tv at one end of the room and you've got people sitting in the kitchen, one group is going to annoy the other. Little kids are loud no matter whether watching tv or just playing. Another annoyance if you are trying to follow a recipe or get something just right.
Or try reading in a living room and people are gathered in the kitchen talking. Same goes if you are on your laptop!
And yes, with an open concept you do lose a lot of wall space which I feel is really important. Where do kitchen cabinets go when everything is jammed on the one real wall you've got in that kitchen? In the living room where do the bookcases and cabinets go?
I really think the tv belongs in a rec room, not the living room. That's just tacky!
I don't want to display my alcohol bc maybe I don't want my guests to expect me to offer some to them. Unless I'm throwing a party. But, not as everday decor. Though I do love the way whiskey looks in a beautiful cut glass decanter. And tequila...
I liked the idea of open concept initially so the person cooking/kitchening could participate in whatever the rest of the family is doing, but reality, a problem with open concept is that if someone is clanging around in the kitchen, it disturbs people who may be trying to read, watch TV, etc. - and as the person who is usually in the kitchen, the truth is that you can't hear whatever is going on in the greater room anyway. Another thing that looks nice but I discovered is totally impractical is a sink in an island, IOW a sink without a backsplash. We were in a lovely apartment for several months that had the sink in the island, and the whole island was often soaked with splash water. Keep the sink on a counter with a backsplash.
my takeaway: "people need to calm down". Agreed.
For me it depends HOW open the open concept is, and who lives in it. If it's a whole family I feel like the TV having to compete with the sound of kitchen appliances is going to get annoying pretty fast. However, living alone it's not an issue as I can't be several places at once anyway. My family has a separate TV-room/library (it's small, but functional) and semi-open plan kitchen and dining/lounge. I'd definitely want something similar for myself at a later stage.
I was hoping open shelving in the kitchen would be on your list. Talk about a trend that was DOA. I feel like it's a way sometimes to cheap out on the expense of closed storage all in the name of style, but seriously, people in the real world have crap like novelty mugs that need to be behind doors.
So agree! It's another way for builders to go cheaper on the cabinet budget, and they look cool on design blogs, but to live with open shelving in a kitchen is a nightmare. Grease and dust. Ugh.
I really don't like fully open concept in most cases. I just don't think it's practical, unless you rarely use the kitchen for cooking/baking. I like a modified open concept where the kitchen is open to the dining area and the dining opens to the living area, but not the kitchen to the living room.
I understand not liking open concept because a lot of new homes just feel like giant empty boxes. I would like a compromise space with mostly open spaces with maybe some structural features to create devision, like archways, freestanding slat walls, or something. Just to create more architectural interest and more defined spaces.
Anyways this was a fun vid I hope you do more of them.
in Australia it is more common to have open plan NOT be a rectangle but have "bays" with the kitchen ETC in one of the "bays" so NOT 100% open but still ONE SPACE
I agree, the one big room combining everything (kitchen, dining, living) is boring and uninteresting. I feel spaces need some kind of separation, even if it's just a change in ceiling height.
We recently moved to a 1970 colonial sytle home. Allll the rooms and we love it! My hubs has always hated open concept but this is the first home where we haven't had open concept.
Open plan may work if the house was designed that way from the start. Knocking down walls to open up a traditional home can make an unworkable mess. I live in a house built in the 1920's that had been opened up by prior owners. One of the first things I did was getting walls so I have a kitchen, dining room, living room and foyer. The kitchen still opens up into the family room; this sort of works.
In regards to open concept, please keep in mind that fires spread faster in open spaces. I like being able to close off my kitchen for that reason alone.
I was also very torn about painting my fireplace… but the red just doesn’t go well with the color I have at home. I painted my fireplace dark navy color and I LOVE it!
Yes, I was just going to say, "Why are we only talking about painting brick fireplaces white?" What about black, or some other color that blends with your (more modern) decor?
SAME ours wasn't in great condition either and was very salmon colored, I painted mine a dark green 💚
My fireplace was the ugliest brick imaginable. It felt like a black/orange hole; it swallowed all the light in the house. It probably swallowed a couple of proximate galaxies. Yes, I painted it white. I’m reborn! It’s beautiful and bright.
My unpopular design opinion: I think a smooth ceiling painted to coordinate with the rest of the room is the way to go. Ceilings are often overlooked in terms of design and most people just have the same flat white in every room, with maybe some stickers in the kids’ rooms if they’re feeling adventurous. I know it’s a pain in the butt to paint the ceiling, I know it takes a long time and there’s a lot that goes into it, but I think more people should do it anyways (just not beige. Anything but beige. If it’s a choice between leaving it white or painting it beige, just leave it white)
So my thing with open concept is it's a cheap way of tricking the perception that you have more space than you do. Instead of designing a full kitchen that has the space to be communal in and of itself, kitchens got smaller and smaller (narrower, too) especially where I Iive presently in New England. Ovens got shoved in weird places and they began to feel isolated and disjointed so the open concept was a way of trying to fix that problem without the expense of expanding the footprint or redesigning in a more functional but separate way. The issue is, there's no privacy. If I want to cook, I don't want to have all the noise and visual stimuli of the rest of the house (tv's, people yelling at those tvs, etc.) but I still want to have the environment where I can collaborate with a friend or people can be doing something at the kitchen table while I'm prepping etc. Even in a lot of older, wealthier homes you see that the kitchen is a room unto itself--but they're usually big. And if you're a parent--depending on how old your child is, you can make a baby safe area in a portion of the kitchen that's baby gated off if it's a decent enough room, or when they're older, have room time (my parents did this for me and my siblings) where we would play anyway in a sectioned off part of the house. There's no reason to be freaking hawkeye all the time. Healthy boundaries are just so needed.
I totally agree, open concept is a way if tricking you into thinking you have more room than you do & unless you're in a high end home, the kitchens are getting smaller, almost like an afterthought. Kitchens are turning into small islands with a sink and a small counter on the other side with a stove. And in open concept, how can you ever get away from anyone?
Agree. Most apartments in Oslo, Norway, used to have a separate but small kitchen with space for 2-4 people to sit down and eat. Apartments went across the building, meaning you had windows on 2-3 sides. Now, in order to squeeze in as many apartments as possible in huge generic blocks and save on elevators, most new apartments only have windows on one side, pretty much forcing the kitchen and livingroom to be “open concept”. There is no flexibility in terms of changing the plan since bedrooms must have a window and those are extremely limited.
Redesigning my obsolete New England kitchen from the 30's revealed the communal nature of that era. Even though the layout was not functional anymore, there was sooo much space for gathering at the kitchen table! Just lovely and large for members of the family to eat and talk.
yes, well you loose at least one wall where you could have had cabinets, so immediately, a lot less storage.
Cracking up picturing a Homegoods-style wooden sign that says “Leopard is a neutral”
Chiming in on open concept: Sound/acoustics is the reason people want separated rooms. By altering ceiling heights and adding natural materials that absorb sound you can have the best of both worlds.
Not really. But adding pillars, balustrades, bookcases, etc helps.
Anything that blocks the open flow of sound and captures it.
Don't forget the smell. If you cook the smell will get everywhere with an open concept. Not everyone likes a couch that smells like bacon grease, spices + whatever your local cuisine is.
Open concept is how developers turn 3 rooms into one at one third of what the original square footage would have been. SHOULD have been. It’s Victorian tenement rebranded.
0:28 agree! I love my home because it flows well but is not entirely open. Having a kitchen in my living room is not my idea of relaxing. Lol
With open concept, it reminds me of all the crumby apartments I have lived in that boast “open concept” when it’s really just a low quality studio with new paint. I prefer a bit more sectioned spaces.
You are my favorite. I could listen to you comment on all sorts of things all day.
Open concept of children is a nightmare so because of the noise level. My friend bought the house next-door because with the open concept in a ranch the bedrooms are too close to the family room and the TV at night wakes them up or keeps them up. The house next-door was a section of home with separate rooms
I am a bath person! Working on building a house, and my main bathroom will just have a claw foot tub. I’m beyond excited. When I get old I’ll have to swap it out I’m sure- but I’m not old yet! My plan is to have a little rolling cart with my bubbles and toiletries on it, roll it in when I’m bathing and roll it away out of sight when I’m done!
I'm moving in with my boyfriend whose 1920s home needs some work. Every original fixture is brass and or art deco. I'm thrilled. I love it and I don't care what's "in" or "out" paying tribute to the history of the house is more important to us that design trends that look dated in no time. The point is to look dated now, we want that roaring 20s look
Good for you! Love your house!
For me, having bottles of alcohol on display is like having your jar of peanut butter or a bottle of vinegar on display. I dont get why that is seen as attractive decor. But I think beautiful decanters containing alcohol are fine.
I agree with you on the brass fixtures. The feel of a smooth brass drawer pull adds a bit of joy to your day!
I am a bath person, and I'd love a deep soaking tub!
My ideal would be a Japanese bath-room, with separate shower and tub. Also small enough to stay warm. I keep my house at 65°F in the winter, and my spacious bathroom is never warm enough in heating season. A small bathing space, with a deep soaking tub with a built in heater, is my idea of true luxury.
I'm a bath person and I have baths too frequently to need all of the fancy things like candles. Candles are for those who rarely have baths. However my bath is actually a bath I imported from Japan, it doesn't use much water, it can be set to fill at a certain time, and it can even maintain a set temperature so these practical features were what made me choose that instead but I was looking at the standalone baths and they're really comfortable to sit in (but lots of water, you have to fill it *manually* like a caveman with plumbing (so I guess a roman, who was banned from the public baths), and even with lots of water it will cool down so you have to juggle with warming it up), if you love baths enough I can recommend importing a bath but just be aware we couldn't find a control panel in English so be prepared to either learn a little bit of Japanese or just remember which buttons to press by rote (my wife is learning Japanese and so she has set it up so it requires very few button presses by me)
I think my problem with painting brick (aside from painting an authentic material) is that it's almost impossible to undo. You have to have it sand blasted. Inside. In your house. It's hilarious to me how many of these unpopular design opinions I agree with, actually. 😁 I disagree with TV over the fireplace (I think it's the only way to have a TV and a fireplace without splitting focus) and of course I hate popcorn ceilings with a passion. Alcohol can be on display, especially in some very nice decanters. I can say I don't like bright, polished brass. It's... brassy. Once it ages or if it comes aged, then I like the look of it. As always, a fun video! Don't feel bad about disagreeing so much; these are unpopular opinions, after all.
I'm with you on these things!
Just make sure the decanters aren't leaded cut glass decanters and you're fine!
The brick around my fireplace was painted white when we bought the house. Hated it. We painted over it with a brown paint that has speckles like brick. Looks great!
I built a ranch last year. Open concept kitchen, Lg eating space and living area. I also have a den with a big modern bookcase and tv. Some days I want cozy and some days I don’t. I need both
I’ll tell you who really loves open concept: tall dogs. “Ha,” they say. “There’s no way she can keep me off the counter now!”
Oh, and tubs: I am a tub person and think that standalone soaking tubs are a bad idea. I want places to set my book, my shampoo, my collection of bubblebath, etc.
I have two dogs and two cats and they are the reason my next house will have a separate kitchen/diner with a door!
Use a board over it? And a stool next to it?
I've been thinking about the tub thing. What about some cute shelves or an end-table-type furniture next to the tub? I don't have a stand-alone tub, but my dream house would have a great, big soaker. Right now I have what I call a puddle-sitter.
@@robinbirdj743 I definitely wouldn't want a board over it. I know that's a thing people do, but it limits my ability to move around in the tub. A stool next to it is ok in theory, but I don't have sufficient clearance in practice to do that without making the tub shorter.
I am going to put a large tub in the biggest bathroom, but the biggest bathroom is only 7.5x10.5. The bathroom can't feasibly be expanded, based on what's around it. The ability to move the toilet is very limited based on what's under the bathroom (half of it is over the stairs).
I've spent more than a year arranging things in an architectural drawing program and concluded I need a J tub in the corner. I can force in a 6' tub that way, and it's really the only reasonable way I can. If I try to do the same with a standalone tub, it's too wide, or, if not too wide, it's quite a bit shorter, and I'm also not going to be able to clean around it. ("Reasonable way": if I'm putting in a 36" vanity or a pedestal sink, options abound! But I can't get rid of all of the storage in the largest bathroom in the house to have a nice tub. I need more storage, not less.)
@@whiteserpent6753 Yes of course. My tub is 4-1/2 ft long. My bath board stands up on end against the wall until I need it. A narrow shelf runs the length of the tub, fastened to the wall. My bathroom is 5.5’ x 8.5’
The problem with TV's above the fireplace (for me) is not the aesthetic but the wastefullness of it. Heat vastly decreases electronics life span especially with TV's, those LEDs will get burned up so much faster. No matter if you can afford it it is wastefull to damage something and throw it away faster.
I designed our house with open concept kitchen and living room then created offices, pantry, bedrooms, rec room as separate entities-best of both worlds! Our freestanding tub has a ledge behind it :)
I hate open concept primarily because real estate developers now build smaller flats where you cannot comfortably close off a kitchen. :/ In my county home ads are with rooms (not bedrooms), so 2 room apartment means a bedroom and a living room. Kitchen, bathroom, storage room are spaces, but do not count as rooms. So now 1 room is actully 2 spaces with less square meters than 2 separate spaces.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for mentioning sealers on stone counters!! They are so important and I tell the people I show slabs to about them constantly.
An issue with open concept with children is, you can't put baby gates up to block off the kitchen while you're cooking if you have no walls. I was so thankfull I was able to put up a gate when my kids were crawling/toddlers because they could reach up and grab the hot stove, or turn on the stove knobs. The kitchen is a dangerous place for young kids, so your only alternative would be a play pin or exersaucer. Which many toddlers hate and will cry the entire time. So the idea of needing to be able to see them is true, but how would you keep them out from under your feet while cooking? I don't know, since I put up a gate I didn't have to worry about that.
Thank you for another great video. I had a completely open floor plan for a few years. While I loved it, I often wished the kitchen was not so visible. Or rather, the mess in the kitchen was not that visible! LOL! Now I have a semi-open floor plan and, in my opinion, it's the best of both worlds. Stand-alone bathtubs: Love them! They look gorgeous. I'm not a tub person, but we are planning a bathroom remodel and we are switching our regular bathtub for a stand-alone, it looks so much better! Marble countertops: My Italian grandma had one in her house. She cooked the best meals in the world for over 50 years in that kitchen, with her white marble countertop. It was soft, aged, and lovely. She never sealed it, but it was wonderful and warm. I wouldn't mind having countertops just like hers.
open concept: (1) too much noise, try to watch TV while someone is cooking, (2) smell, that gets into the fabrics, (3) can't leave a messy kitchen even for a little while. I would never buy a house with an open kitchen, unless it is doable to close it quickly, easily and at little costs!
I love a separate tub. I love soaking in a deep stand-alone one, but they are for the young and flexible. As I age, such a thing could literally be the death of me.
Try watching tv while someone else is at the sink washing dishes. At my house this volatile combo frequently ends in a shouting match.
Came late to this ... but I HATE the sink on the kitchen island! In the designer photos they are always empty and pristine .... but I imagine them with drying pans, dirty dishes, detergents and all that mess around the sink in real life.
I hate open concept too - every smell from the kitchen immediately goes to the living room and it's awful.
Stand alone tubs main purpose to me, is to allow easy access to the shower in the room. No more stepping over a tub ledge. In a perfect world, if I shared a bathroom with someone who liked a tub, I would want it separate so that it doesn't interfere with my shower experience.
Tubs can be separate and “ standalone” without being free-standing ( no deck or surround.) I think people are using the terms interchangeably and it gets confusing!
I have a corner tub with ledges for candles, etc. It is just more surface to dust. I would like to get a smaller standalone tub so I can make my walk in shower bigger. I get why people would prefer the ledges though.
"Always remember: If you're alone in the kitchen and you drop the lamb, you can always just pick it up."
-Julia Child
Sometimes you just don't need an audience.
Yes, the "Island" is a stage for cooking. But cooking is a messy activity. And, also, it is better to eat without seeing the dirty dishes and pots and pans. I vote for a comfortable closed kitchen.
This comment was so unexpected and funny.. 5 second rule, right?
Then you cook! Lol I don't want to be alone in a room working!!!