Kitchen size

[Chancer]

Actually there is another school of thought regarding (most) French buyers.

The kitchen is that room which is expected to be totally bare but for a sink over a flimsy white 2 door melamine unit that will collapse if you open one of them, illuminated by an ampoule screwed into a brass douille hanging from a domino.

The room will be worthy of no more than a few seconds during a viewing before moving on to more important considerations.

If you have a fitted kitchen and you will be leaving it you must impress this fact on them, it may or may not be very attractive to them according to their taste but they cant really dislike a blank canvas.

[WJT]

NickP, I am so happy to see that we aren't the only ones here that will have an open plan kitchen.[:)]

[Richard51]

My wife is in your hubby's camp I'm afraid.  It took several (okay - a lot of) years to extend our kitchen in the UK to something that we could swing a cat in so she was adamant that her kitchen in France would be a big, 'heart of the home' kitchen.  Our kitchen in France is definitely that!  It's (at a guess) 35+ sq m and is big enough to accommodate a table seating 10, lots of work surfaces / appliances and a very large buffet.  It needs a redesign (a retirement project) but is definitely the 'heart of the home' that she wanted for our family.  We do have a separate dining room but in five years (and many big meals with friends and neighbours) we have never used it.

[mint]

What an interesting discussion and what interesting and personal views have been expressed!

The latest news is that the owner has accepted our offer in principle and it only remains for us to pay a final visit and make a definitive decision

Pachapapa has been advising me on the installation of a new fosse and all of you on this thread have been swaying me back and forth about the size of the kitchen.

I think I can find a way around the kitchen problem.  It is not a bad sized T-shape.  Therefore, as there is a walk-in pantry (long and narrow) and I don't particularly like fitted kitchens, what I might do is to use one arm of the T for cooking and washing up and turn the other arm of the T into a place where you can site a table and eat with a couple of other people if needs be.

I shall, in time, probably have some free-standing units, 2 large ovens, hob, hood, grill, etc in the cooking part and a narrow table in the other.

Don't know about extension as I can't now remember the layout in detail after only one visit.  Might or might not be possible; the building dates back to the 16th century and has thick stone walls and so extension might not be feasible.

Whatever, I shall work around the available space and, if I do sell in future, I will just need to find a buyer who doesn't want a big kitchen, won't I?

Chancer, I love your description of the "typical" French kitchen though I do not think that your interpretation is exactly spot on!

[mint]

Judith, I am interested, and reassured, that you also are thinking of moving.  As I recall, you, like us, are relatively new to living in France.

So............what your post does confirm to me is that you do not always get it right the first time.  Rather like marriage, I suppose:  some of us need a dummy run in order that we get the second one right![:D]

[Jo]

My kitchen here in UK is long and narrow, no room for a table but long worksurfaces, in France it is a big square room, short on worksurfaces as it's not fitted, but with a large table in the centre that I do all the preparation on. However, because it is big enough friends want to eat in there, whereas like you, I don't like eating surrounded by the pots and pans, so I actually prefer the kitchen in UK ( if there was only space for a comfy chair! )[8-)]

[mint]

I'm hoping, Jo, that the new potential house will lead to a change of lifestyle.

In my present house, the kitchen is the first room you come to once you've entered.  Therefore, people do tend to just go in there, plonk themselves down and wait for drink or food.

Big, warm, square kitchen so how we live here makes sense.  Though I do always use the dining table if we have more than, say, two guests.

It won't be like that if we do go ahead and buy the new house.  For a start, it is not on any main route to anywhere so the likelihood of people just popping in is going to be remote.  Then, once they enter, they are into the sitting-room which leads directly out on to the conservatory.  So, drinks in the conservatory will be the expected scenario.

It will be nice NOT to have people popping in on a daily basis.  It can get too much when you have 3 or 4 sets of visitors more or less everyday.  I now just want some peace and quiet and "me" time.[:D]

[Jo]

I can see where you are coming from with the peace and quiet and "me" time, but at the moment we are still in the Uk waiting for our house to sell so we can move out permanently, and I hate the fact that while I am still working I have no time for friends to 'drop in'! When in France I get a real 'buzz' that I can make time for visitors, and appreciate that they have made the effort to come and see me[:D] The wallpapering can wait for another day[:D] I'll let you know how long it takes to wear off, as I'm sure it will, it will just take a bit longer than for Mr Grumpy, aka MOH[:D][:D][:D]

[Judith]

[quote user="sweet 17"]

Judith, I am interested, and reassured, that you also are thinking of moving.  As I recall, you, like us, are relatively new to living in France.

So............what your post does confirm to me is that you do not always get it right the first time.  Rather like marriage, I suppose:  some of us need a dummy run in order that we get the second one right![:D]

[/quote]

Sweet, right on all counts!  Though in our case as regards the current house, it was ever only intended as an "interim" until I retired and moved out to join hubby.  And having sold in the UK, we can now move on....  Having said that, our original plan for the room we now use as the kitchen was to be hubby's study (it being the largest room in the house - don't ask, he won't throw anything out!), but for a variety of reasons, we changed our minds. I do like the wood burning cuisiniere, but at this time of the year, when we have almost run out of wood (and don't really want to buy any more now since it almost definite that we are moving - compromis has been signed)  but we still need it for the heat, it can be a problem.  I do have other ways of cooking, but I need to know that I am doing so to decide what food to buy!!

It seems to me from your later posts, that you have now worked out how to make the kitchen work for you, which is good for you.  It is indeed a very personal decision. 

[Chancer]

[quote user="sweet 17"]

Chancer, I love your description of the "typical" French kitchen though I do not think that your interpretation is exactly spot on!

[/quote]

I probably didnt explain it very well, what I was trying to illustrate is what will remain of a beautifull fitted kitchen seen during the visit with the estate agent on the day of moving in.

You are  right my description was not spot on, I was being generous as having removed everything else the lightbulb is unlikely to remain.

That is why freestanding kitchen units are still the norm here and I see that you will be having them, in which case you must make doubly sure that potential buyers understand that you intend to leave them and are not off your trolley [;-)]

[mint]

To Jo and to Judith, very best wishes with your house-selling/house-move!

I can really, really sympathise with you, Jo, because our UK house sale fell through four times and then, when the fifth (and genuine buyer) came along, I refused to believe it and wouldn't do anything about packing up, etc until he gave me 10 days to get ourselves out of the house!  It was a rout rather than a proper move and the stress nearly killed me, I kid you not.

Chancer, you're right about how the meanies take everything with them but, in a way, you can understand it as everything (white goods, etc) is so expensive to replace.  Someone I knew moved to Normandy and found that even the fioul tank had been drained.

Buying from Brits this time and they have already gone back to the UK so hopefully they won't be making a special trip back to France in order to strip off all the lights, drain the oil tank, pull up all the plants in the garden and take away all the kitchen units!  They are planning to sign for everything by proxy so it doesn't look like we'll even be meeting them.

Just need to give the place another good look over and for OH to be happy enough with the property to give me the nod. 

So, fingers crossed, all will proceed with speed and smoothness.............wishful thinking or what?[blink]

 

[britgirl]

[quote user="Chancer"]

Actually there is another school of thought regarding (most) French buyers.

The kitchen is that room which is expected to be totally bare but for a sink over a flimsy white 2 door melamine unit that will collapse if you open one of them, illuminated by an ampoule screwed into a brass douille hanging from a domino.

[/quote]

That rings a bell or two.

The house we bought was less than 10 years old. When we completed, our kitchen was just as Chancer described. It did make it easier as we didn't have to empty cupboards when putting a new one in. When I sold it my French buyers were quite insistant that they wanted my U.K. range oven to remain.

Another 'design' feature were the wall lights, ( in every room), which were electric cable with a knot and a light fitting.[blink]. Couldn't complain about that, because it was like it when we viewed the house.

Best of luck with your move.

 

[Chancer]

Sweet 17

I am not sure that it is mean-ness as such but that kitchen units being freestanding have always been regarded as personal furniture and may well have been handed down through the family.

Unfurnished rentals will only have the evier and base unit in the kitchen, the tenants bring/buy their own kitchen furniture and take them with them when they move to another rental or buy their first place.

As my place was a liquidation and I assume had been seized from the previous owners it came with all sorts of stuff, a full commercial kitchen which I sold, a 6 door bar counter fridge which still serves as my workbench and storage, it still works and will be sold, several refrigerated patisserie type display cabinets which had been used for selling fishing bait and maggots, (they had an enticing soup in the bottom) and a 3000 litre cuve de fioul drained to the last drop.

There was tons of other assorted stuff but none of it really saleable, the stuff I did and will sell made a significant refund to the purchase price of the property.

[Jo]

[quote user="sweet 17"]

So, fingers crossed, all will proceed with speed and smoothness.............wishful thinking or what?[blink]

 

[/quote]

Yeah right![blink] I am dreading it! We put the house on the market January last year, overpriced I thought, the agent said no. Got NO interest whatsoever, not even the nosey ones! Was advised by another agent to take it off the market and try again this year, so it wouldn't be an 'old' property so will be putting it on next month. Meanwhile I have convinced myself it won't sell[:(] Plus the thought of moving the dogs cat and ducks with us........[:-))]

[mint]

Jo, it will all be worth it in the end, when you get the OH and the animals and ducks out here.

Only thing is, I do believe it's better if you hang on in there until you find a buyer.  My take on this is that, once you've moved away, people think you must be desperate to sell and think they can offer you whatever rubbishy price they wish.

Oh, and do advertise it yourself on the net.  Prepare a really good info pack, with pictures, room sizes, floor plan etc.  I'm sure I don't need to tell you and then, remember you only need the ONE buyer and one will surely come along.

[Jo]

I will be staying here until we find a buyer, it has a big garden and wouldn't take long to look neglected! Deeply tempted to send OH over with the animals in advance[:-))] but can't keep both places going without his pay packet[:(] Thanks for the tip about the net!