Who knocked the 2nd reception room wall thru and made their kitchen bigger in a 100 yrs old house and not regret it ?

[biglips]

as i think its a brilliant idea but i do love my "back room" (2nd reception room) as in it is this computer, huge cupboard, telly, trunk & gliding chair.

Atm the kitchen is big and wanting to put a new kitchen in but i dont want to regret knocking the wall thru.

help!!!

[Twiglett]

considered and decided not to for various reasons including the fact that it's nice to have the room as a separate entity to living room or kitchen

But then we can sit in our kitchen and eat so it wasn't truly necessary

and we can shut the door on kids' mess / dining room

and when they are older they can have their own room to take mates to

Next door moved in and did do it and I went for a nosy and have to say I'm glad I didn't because the room shape is not easy to use (kind of L shaped with supporting beams / pillars) and seems a bit of a waste of space

[maidamess]

I've done it and I love it. Its light, airey and a real family and friends room. We fited a utility/loo in too.

[biglips]

hmm i would love to have a downstairs loo as well.

ive gotta write a list down of why i CANT do it and why i CAN do it

Can anyone help me please.....?

[lalalonglegs]

If your house is similar to the rest in the street, try to find out who has done it and whether it works for them. Once you've seen it, maybe it will be easier to make a decision. Our home didn't lend itself to that sort of knock-through but, if it had, I would have jumped at chance.

[spudcounter]

just done it...yes, it's sort of L-shaped but it's great...a fab eating, socialising and cooking space with french doors and entrance to a utility room..it's light and airy and the original (a separate dining room from the kitchen) was just a dumping ground which we didn't use much. It's made the house so much more solid as we had a loft conversion a few years ago and it now seems as long as it is high which evens it up. Have absolutely no regrets.

[spudcounter]

just done it...yes, it's sort of L-shaped but it's great...a fab eating, socialising and cooking space with french doors and entrance to a utility room..it's light and airy and the original (a separate dining room from the kitchen) was just a dumping ground which we didn't use much. It's made the house so much more solid as we had a loft conversion a few years ago and it now seems as long as it is high which evens it up. Have absolutely no regrets.

[biglips]

lala - well one of them had knocked the wall thru but is using it as the main living room (at the back of the house) and they dont use the front room at all (what a waste!)

i need to draw it and visualise it properly

[brimfull]

yup

we have made the downstairs all one big room,tis lovely but
would love to have a separate room now,dd is 16 and it would be nice if we had a room that she and her friends could go in.

I don't get why open plan is supposed to be ideal for families..not ime.

[biglips]

thanks everyone for your advices.

still thinking about it for now.

[newgirl]

i think if you go for it then really think about good storage for your other stuff to keep it feeling spacious and organised. get rid of stuff you really dont need. otherwise i think it is a good idea

[tortoiseSHELL]

We did the opposite - our house had been knocked through, front to back, and also the kitchen/breakfast room had been knocked through. We put the wall back between the front and back reception room, and I'm so glad we did - we have a living room and a music room, which I use for teaching (which I do a lot of each week, would be impossible if it was all one room as the children would be in it). In the kitchen/breakfast room we did a sort of semi-divide, so there is no door, but a 'wide arch', but the floor goes through, so it puts a psychological divide between the 'working area' of the kitchen and the 'eating area' of the breakfast room.

[noddyholder]

All the builders I have ever worked with say when they do a knock through they keep quiet because they know they will be putting it back in a few years!The kitcehn diner is good but i agree once they hit teens a seperate living room is a must

[babygrand]

We didn't knock the wall down completely, but knocked a large hole which was meant to have double doors, but the doors never materialised, so it's a sort of archway. It has really opened up the house and made it a much more sociable space.