It has almost everything we want, with one big exception: the kitchen is tiny. It's 8x9, in an otherwise roomy house. Opportunities for expansion
So here's my question: Can I live with this kitchen? You know how I feel about kitchens. What would you do? Does it say something that I was smiling post-tour last night, or am I kidding myself?
UPDATED
Per a couple of requests for more context, here's what you need to know - I've also answered specific questions in comments:- This house is in our favorite neighborhood in Washington, DC - location is our first priority
- Real estate is very expensive in DC, so being creative with your budget and figuring out where you can compromise is a must for everyone buying a home here.
- The house is a historic rowhome with a rental unit in the basement (called "English basements" 'round these parts) with a separate entrance/exit that could provide rental income each month.
- There's plenty of space in the primary part of the home for our current and near-future needs, and the option of taking over the rental unit and incorporating it into the rest of the house is a great long-term option should we want or need more space.
- Did I mention our tight budget?
Get the kitchen you want! I speak from experience here, as our kitchen is tiny and closed off from the dining room and basically, I hate it! It sucks for entertaining. (I watch too much House Hunters...they always say "entertaining.")
ReplyDeleteAlthough, at least that one has a gas stove...we have a glass top, which I also hate!
I am a city dweller with a kitchen close to that size and I hate absolutely everything about it. I dream of days when I will be able to cook more than one thing at a time and freely move about. If you and your husband like to cook together, I can tell you from experience that it's hard to make it work. My husband bought the place before we ever met so I had no say in the matter but that will be the absolute focal point of our next real estate search.
ReplyDeleteWe just got married and my most beloved gift sits in our basement because there is just not enough room for a Kitchen Aid mixer in our urban paradise.
Do you have options for storage of kitchen type things outside of the kitchen? Is there a dining room you wont use much that could house cabinets for serving pieces, your gorgeous enameled cast iron collection, cookbooks etc? This old house had a tiny kitchen, but we just turned most of the house into a place where we displayed overflow kitchen stuff as if it were our knick knacks. If you have a casual enough dining situation, and if its adjacent to the kitchen, you could probably co-opt that room to be part of the kitchen experience.
ReplyDeleteOh, that's tough Maggie. It's a pretty kitchen and it looks like it has lots of storage. But to me, the kitchen is the center of the house. It's where everyone likes to gather. It doesn't seem like there would be much room to gather there. If it were tiny but open to the rest of the house that might work better but it looks like you'd be isolated while you were cooking.
ReplyDeleteHowever, if the rest of the house put that big smile on your face, maybe you can learn to love a little kitchen?
It is tight but it has pretty appliances and the counter space wrapping around seems like a good workspace. And a nice window so you can look outside at your garden:) I vote yes! Yay for house shopping and finding something exciting in your price range!
ReplyDeleteIs there a pantry? Space for a large table that could also be used for work space? My impression from reading your blog this last year is that this kitchen would be a challenge for you. Without a pantry, I could not survive in that space....but that is me! The appliances look great! I would also miss having enough space to have someone else in the kitchen with me cooking....
ReplyDeleteThanks already for this great input! After a couple of recent discussions I'm led to believe the expansion possibilities are better than I previously thought - they wouldn't be a short-term plan for budget reasons, but there is at least a possible long-term solution.
ReplyDeleteTo answer your questions:
- YES, we have space to store kitchen items outside of the kitchen. There is an adjacent and roomy dining room that would require 1-2 china cabinets to hold pretty Le Creuset up top and electrics etc underneath.
- Yep, it's currently pretty isolated. And in its current design, T and I would have to learn to cook together in those tight quarters. One of the expansion possibilities would be opening it up to look out onto the adjacent room which would at least give the feeling of more room.
- Yes, I really do love the rest of the house!
One more question:
ReplyDelete- There is currently not *really* a pantry, but there is a large landing with steps that go down to the basement apartment (rental income - hellooooo!). Right away I saw that we could build shelving along this landing (two walls' worth) and it could serve as an open-air pantry. The current owners store food in the cabinets, but clearly they do not own nearly the kitchen "stuff" that I do that needs storing. ;-)
Oops, sorry, meant to add - Nope, no space for an additional work table.
ReplyDeleteFor me a good kitchen is crucial. I can live with a smaller bathroom or closet, but not a tiny kitchen.
ReplyDeletei have a similar kitchen, although this one looks square and mine is rectangular (and *not* pretty ha). After living with it for 6 months i've decided i'm not investing any money in it until we can expand (push the back of the house out, so you know, no big deal). it's annoying to have more than one person in there but you work with it.
ReplyDeleteif you love the rest of the house, it will be easier to get over the kitchen. and really, dc real estate is a beast. i hate to say it but compromise has to happen (but you know that!), you just have to figure out what you are willing to compromise on.
the exterior is super charming! capitol hill?
Maggie-I think if you can work the unconventional storage solutions, and you absolutely love the house it might be worth a shot. Given how much you love to cook, though-it might be overly ambitious to think this kitchen could work for more than a year or two before it drove you nuts... The appliances do look great but there is just not very much room.
ReplyDeleteI need more pictures and the MLS listing please. Also, more info on possible expansion regarding a 5-7 plan. E-mail me at your earliest convenience (aka ASAP- you know how I ADORE real estate discussion).
ReplyDelete5-7 YEAR plan. I got too excited to proof.
ReplyDeleteThis is random, and I do not know you (but love your blog of course), but I live in DC and just bought a row house with my husband, with a very similar situation. Tiny kitchen, attached dining room and a semi-pantry area. I was very nervous about it, but we are loving the tiny kitchen so far (and of course the fact that it is attached to said lovely row home). I say, if this is the only drawback, you will make it work. We have a large dining room hutch and are in the processing of shelving the pantry/stairway area. It is working great. The small kitchen was a great excuse to get rid of needless kitchen clutter too. Anyways, sorry to be a rando here, but I really felt like I had to chime in since I was in such a similar situation!
ReplyDeleteOh, this is a tough one! You know I spend as much time in the kitchen as you do. And have as many appliances and gadgets and pretty Le Creuset pieces. But it sounds like there are options for expansion and extra storage space available. I think if you're pleased with the rest of the house, you can make the kitchen cozy and useful! The house looks so charming, and you might regret it if you lose a spot in your favorite neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteI cook alone (no husband involvement) so a tiny kitchen as along as the appliances are good is fine for me. If I was you, all the other plusses about this home would make it a winner to me (rental income!!! ) but if you and you husband often cook together, then this kitchen would probably frustrating! Personally I LOVED my tiny but well designed kitchen in boston. The u- shaped layout is very efficient for moving from sink-counter-stove and back again.
ReplyDeleteI have a small kitchen as well as a love for cooking (along with my husband). Here's my two cents, but ultimately its your decision. We have a HUGE closet not far away that stores all my serving pieces and lesser-used appliances which makes the small kitchen infinitely better. It, like your pretty house kitchen, has a window - which I ADORE. A window in the kitchen was a requirement for me. So while it's manageable and I love my house/kitchen for now... that's just it. For now. I won't want this kitchen forever. On the rare occasion I talk about our next house (because I try to be content where I am when I'm there), I always talk about a big kitchen. It's what I most look forward to.
ReplyDeleteSo... you have to figure out what is right for you, but I hope, maybe, I was able to help just a bit. :)
Ummmm.... do you remember MY kitchen that you just saw and experienced last October? Listen, you can live with it for 5 years. It will be tough, but it can be changed eventually. If this place is in a location you love and there are improvement possibilities, GO FOR IT! Like I've said a million times, the ONLY thing you can't change is location.
ReplyDeleteYou can compromise on the kitchen. I say this knowing full well what a large kitchen means, and what a boon it is, but -- you and T can work on designing a dream kitchen together, and that itself is a huge opportunity. Like you, we have one very specific area that we're looking in because we love the neighborhood, good schools, etc., and we're willing to swallow a few things to stay there, including a less-than-ideal kitchen. My aunt (the one who baked all my wedding cakes) lived with a 6x6 kitchen for 10 years....and still managed to own her own cake business. You can do it! Go, real estate champ, go!
ReplyDeleteI seem to remember a post you wrote about fond memories in your tiny kitchen in New Mexico. If you love the rest of the home - I say go for it! There is always a compromise when buying a home. We built our home and compromised on many things.
ReplyDeleteI've been thinking about this all day. If nothing else in the house gives you pause, then you'll likely learn to love the kitchen.
ReplyDeleteIf the kitchen is from the original floorplan, and even if it's not, see if you can snoop around at the neighbors' places to see what they've done. (I assume your row house is one of an actual, er, row.) Your real estate agent may be able to pull some old listing photos. It'll give you a bit of inspiration, if nothing else.
I think small kitchens can be OK if they are well-designed. At least it has a gas stove. Also, is there anywhere people can stand around and talk to you while you cook? Or is there a closed door? One easy thing to do would be to open up the entry into the kitchen as wide as you can.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who currently functions in an 80 square foot kitchen, that one looks absolutely palatial. ;) Of course, I've annexed most of my dining room for kitchen storage, and while it's not ideal, it works. As has been said before, if you really love the rest of the house, you'll be able to make that kitchen work for now.
ReplyDeleteKitchen was a huge priority for me, too. Until I realized that overall layout, yard and location were all more important than I'd initally realized. Needless to say, I ended up with a kitchen with crap for storage and cabinets hanging by a thread in need of a total gut job. I miss my old kitchen in our rental every day, but I wouldn't trade our location or the yard for the world. The kitchen will come. We've been here for 9.5 months now and I still think it was the right decision. Good luck! xo
ReplyDeleteOh man. So tough. As someone whose passion for cooking started in a TINY kitchen... gained more enthusiasm in a larger, prettier (yet poorly-ish designed) kitchen... and now putters around in the Dream Kitchen, I feel like I've kind of experienced it all.
ReplyDelete(a) While small, it is GORGEOUS! White cabinets (some with glass panes!!!), gas stove, stainless steel appliances, windows with sills for herbs... love, love, love! My only qualm is sink size. I'm such a sink-loader.
(b) The fact that you have storage in an adjacent room is a HUGE plus! If you didn't have that, I'd be leaning towards "meh."
(c) Given the fact that the rest of the house works for y'all and has options for growth in the future... I'm really leaning towards GO FOR IT!
(d) I'm going to need the MSL listing emailed to me immediately, please :) Pretty House looks so so so adorable!
The kitchen doesn't seem that bad, especially if there is a dining room. Everyone has to give ups something, if you live in the Washington region.
ReplyDeleteHappy holidays.
No question. Buy now! You had me at "rental income."
ReplyDeleteIf anyone can make ANY space work for what you need, it's you!
Did I mention "buy now"?
I didn't weigh in on this before mostly because I got distracted by Christmas prep, but I agree with the consensus that if you love the rest of the house, you can live with a small kitchen until you can renovate. That photo makes it impossible to tell exactly how small the kitchen is because it seems like one of those fish-eye lenses was used. The appliances all look new and that big window gives lots of light, so it may be small, but at least it will be pleasant. Your ABQ kitchen was tiny, but it did have a little eating area, which I can only imagine allowed for some company while you cooked. That seems like the biggest downfall to this kitchen. I'd love to see more pics of the whole house if possible. Especially if you move forward with it! Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteI remember the great utilization you gave that tiny little kitchen back here in 'burque. I agree with Mjae. You can make it work. I say go for it.
ReplyDelete