Is there anyone that DOESNT want a kitchen/diner/open plan?

[palacegirl77]

Ive posted recently about loft conversions as this is next on our list - so my youngest daughter can have a larger bedroom. However, I was speaking to my brother and his wife and they suggested we concentrate on (opening up the downstairs) first - they totally assumed that we would want to knock down the chimney, several walls, extend and have a massive kitchen/diner/family room type thing. Don't get me wrong, I think these are nice but I LOVE the downstairs in my 1930s semi. I like having separate rooms - I dont want kitchen smells in my lounge and I like the kids to have their own space, I also want to keep some of the character of the house. They were genuinely surprised as they thought everyone wants open plan nowadays - am I really the odd one out?

I don't like living kitchen diner all as one to be honest. However I do like a living room and separate kitchen big enough to put a table in. Whether or not I had a dining room on that wouldn't bother me. Its all about proportions of the house and how it flows 2 houses on paper can be the same but work very differently.

We had open plan in our rented property. It made us ensure we didn't have open plan when buying. I love that all the rooms downstairs are separate.

Surely open plan is more of a fire risk as well?

I think open plan is better with primary school aged kids or younger, but not so much with teenagers.

We are having an extension built and EVERYBODY has said 'Ooh, are you having a lovely big island and bifold doors?' It just seems to be what is expected.
Also, lots of comments about opening everything up by knocking the rooms into one, and even a neighbour who said they are thinking of knocking their kitchen, dining room and garage all into one. I had to bite my tongue and not ask if the car was going next to the island....

I had a separate kitchen (small) next to a dining area, and hated the fact that I couldn't watch the children whilst preparing meals. However, we didn't knock through, but we did move the kitchen into the bigger of the living rooms, and changed the old kitchen into the utility, partitioning it off from what became the study/tv room/snug (instead of the diner)
So we now have a much bigger kitchen diner in the best part of the house with a lovely view onto the garden, and it is great for children to play in. But it is still the original room, so about 5.5 metres by 4.5 metres.
And I Hate islands. They ruin a room unless it is enormous, when a table can define the space so much more aesthetically. And why would you want to gather round an island when you can sit round a lovely kitchen table.

We also have a separate living room, not knocked through to snug, at the front.

Everyone on our road has knocked through and ended up with a dead room in the middle that is a corridor to the back.Although it looks very wow when you go in. I'm glad we didn't go for the open plan. But it is important to make things light and airy and have your kitchen with a view because you spend so much time in there.

Friend with new house just made her kitchen/diner half the size by putting in a wall and creating a really big walk in pantry/utility room between the sitting room and now separate kitchen. It's totally changed my mind about knocking through everything and looks way better than the huge kitchen diner that was there before. She's still gone for a big kitchen table but minimal units in the kitchen, base unit only (no need with pantry/utility next door). Bifold doors along back kitchen wall create sense of space and make the kitchen much brighter than it was before.

I’m just about to put the wall back up to separate my lounge and dining room but will leave French doors from dining room into sun room.

I'd like a kitchen diner, but I also don't like open plan. Which is a shame, because the most sensible thing for my tiny kitchen, would be to knock the wall down!

I wouldn't want my sitting room with my kitchen, but kitchen/diner is OK.

I just hate hate hate hate hate fitted kitchens.

I hate fitted kitchens too but have a very small old B&Q one in our 1930s house.
Ideal world we'd have a kitchen diner with freestanding units for a kitchen , but need to have enough space for that.
Bog standard semis are tricky on the kitchen layout

Completely get what you mean, OP. As long as the kitchen is not pokey, keeping it separate is nicer. And once kids are teens, more rooms=family peace.

Kitchen diner is essential for me but all other rooms should br separate.