Open Floor Plans....how we got here

[Blansky]

I'm sure the popularity of the open concept is part of the "informality of daily living" that people enjoy now.

In my youth, the kitchen was the center of the home as it still is, (during parties people still gravitate to the kitchen) but still the mother was the slave to the kitchen while everyone else had moved to the family room/dining room to do homework, watch TV etc.

She was isolated from the kids she needed to watch over and from the family interactions. Men rarely or never cooked in the kitchen, maybe did some BBQing but only went to the kitchen to get a beer from the fridge or to eat.

Also the kitchen housed the dining except for maybe 3 times a year. Christmas dinner, Easter Dinner and maybe some family get togethers went to the dining room.

The dining room table was often covered with school book and other "junk" and the living room had the good furniture in it and was only used for company. And some people's furniture was covered with plastic.

Later in my 20 the homes had an entranceway and to the left was the dining room...never used, and to the right, the living room almost never used, and all the action was from the kitchen or the family room.

In my 40s I started to see the cathedral ceiling appear in a lot of higher end homes.

So I guess the natural evolution was open floor plan to join the kitchen, family room and dining room with an added island to eat at or snack at. Both adults can cook if desired and they are both present for TV, and all interactions.

If you want to be alone go to your office/spare room, or to the bedroom or outside deck if weather permits.

This is the way we've been living for the last 30 years I guess.

[herts9]

Love an open plan. Ours from when we moved in a new build in NKY last April.


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[Boopie]

I heard the trend started with “Seinfeld” and “Friends,” so the set could show the kitchen and living room at the same time.

I’ve seen too many HGTV shows where people blow out a lot of interior walls.

Every mom on the shows says she loves the open concept so “I can watch my kids while I’m cooking.”

I’m Gen X and, when I was growing up, not only did my mom not “watch” me when she was cooking, she never wanted to, nor did I want to be watched. I was one of those “latchkey kids” who took the city bus home from school, arrived to an empty house (as both parents worked), and then, after completing homework in my room, at my desk, took my bike out for a ride until it got dark. No cell phones.

A lot of people got sick of open concept design when the entire family was working and going to school from home during the pandemic.

I have an old school house built almost 100 years ago. It has an ample size living room for entertaining, and a beautiful formal dining room that has been the site of so many wonderful family events. I even found an archived article from our local newspaper about a formal engagement party that was held in the dining room in the 1930s…We also have a nook in our kitchen area for casual dining. That being said, when we do entertain, I love that the kitchen is on the other side of the downstairs from the living room, and I can close the kitchen doors so no one in the living room or dining room can see the pots and pans. I also cook dinner every night, and am thankful that the smell of the food doesn’t permeate every room in the house. You cannot see my kitchen from the entry or from the living room.

Obviously everyone has their own preferences, which is why we have so many architectural styles and interior designs. I have some relatives with open design spaces, and they love it. It’s just not for me.

[Krash]

Originally Posted by Boopie

I heard the trend started with “Seinfeld” and “Friends,” so the set could show the kitchen and living room at the same time.

A lot of people got sick of open concept design when the entire family was working and going to school from home during the pandemic.

The trend didn’t start with “Seinfeld” and “Friends.” Please forgive me, but that’s a little silly. I remember builders selling new homes with an open floor plans back in the 80s when my wife and I were just starting out. Plus, what about all those TV shows back in the 60s and 70s? Brady Bunch quickly comes to mind. They had an open floor plan, too.

With regard to your second point, they’re not building any new homes anywhere with closed floor plans. And the reason is very simple. They want to sell homes. They’re building what their customers/clients want.


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