kitchen renovation

[macapecod]

If you were doing a big renovation would you consider eliminating a formal dining room to get a bigger kitchen with an island and less formal table?  Our family is too big to ever fit at a normal dining room table anyway

[stephm0188]

It would depend on the house.

[munkii]

I would not, but that's because I don't want people to see my messy kitchen. Every person/family is different, though, and you really just have to do what works for you.

[SusanBAnthony]

Yes, definitely, as long as the neighborhood supported it. If every other house in the neighborhood had a formal dining room I would worry.

[emoflamingo]

I agree with stephm0188. I could see it working in some houses, but not all.

[TBM]

Jan 24, 2013 14:28:35 GMT -5 stephm0188 said:

It would depend on the house.

This.

[simpsongal]

Tough call. We have a center hall colonial - I would probably eliminate the formal living room before the dining room.

[pinkroses]

Yes.  This is how the previous owners renovated our house and I love it.  The dining room still has the built-in china cabinet so it feels a bit more formal, but it's open to the kitchen so it's easier to use casually every day. 

[sjh722]

Depends on the house/neighborhood. We sort of did this (eliminated a tiny den to turn it into a big eating area, turned the formal dining room into an office), but the formal dining room could, I suppose, be used as a dining room again if someone wanted to.

If all the other houses in my area had formal dining rooms and people expected it, I'd be hesitant.. For some people a dining room is a must-have. If it's a house you're going to live in for a long time I'd be more inclined to do what you want vs. if it's something short-term.

[kaylie]

Hmmmm, I would consider it. I was very pro-dining room when we were house shopping, but now we don't use it. It just sits there and looks pretty. If I could have a giant kitchen that everyone would drool over, I'd probably sacrifice it knowing that someone would buy my house for the enormous kitchen.

[decoraholic]

I am not a fan of having separate formal living and formal dining rooms, so if I was buying your house I'd love it. I'd rather have bigger, open, multifunctional rooms than a bunch of smaller rooms that essentially serve the same purpose. I think I'm probably in the minority though and would have the same concerns about resale if I eliminated it completely.

[macapecod]

So the house has a fairly small kitchen- a formal living room, formal dining room and then a "back" room addition that is like our tv den but does not connect to the kitchen and then another room that the previous owners used another tv room. We use is as a playroom for the kids now. It has a beautiful fireplace and could be used as a dining room if necessary.

[downtoearth]

Jan 24, 2013 14:58:35 GMT -5 macapecod said:

So the house has a fairly small kitchen- a formal living room, formal dining room and then a "back" room addition that is like our tv den but does not connect to the kitchen and then another room that the previous owners used another tv room. We use is as a playroom for the kids now. It has a beautiful fireplace and could be used as a dining room if necessary.

Would opening it up give a more open-house-plan feel or connect multiple rooms other than just kitchen/dining?  I think if it did and still kept the character of your house (if it's an early 1900's house), then I would go for it.

Can you draw out your floorplan a little?  That might help us visualize.

[Deleted]

This is exactly what we are doing. We are moving a wall, converting the dining room to a small office, and expanding the kitchen. 

[Deleted]

If I was staying for awhile, I'd do it in a heartbeat. We aren't formal people at all and neither is anyone I know. We're all gathered around the kitchen table 99% of the time anyways. I actually took out what was supposed to be a formal DR so we could have sunroom space someday. Much better use of space for us.
However, if you plan to sell soon and all the other houses have them I would not.

[treedimensional]

We did. When I bought my house it had a large dining room and a tiny galley kitchen. The dining room was the largest room in the house, which would have made it great for dinner parties IF ONLY I'D HAVE HAD A KITCHEN LARGE ENOUGH to support hosting dinner parties.
In 16 yrs, I had exactly ONE dinner party. And because of the tiny, cramped, galley kitchen, it was a huge PITA. So for 16 yrs, my large dining room was the LEAST used room in my little house. That's a huge block of precious space, wasted.
When we remodeled, eliminated the dining room altogether and rebuilt our new kitchen into that space. There was enough space for a small table, so now we have a spacious, eat-in kitchen.
We divided the space where the kitchen used to be into two small new rooms: a mudroom (at the back door) and a half bath (an enormous improvement, because before you'd have had to go up or downstairs to get to a bathroom).
This works for the two of us, but I have no idea how it would work for a large family. Where would you feed everyone without a dining room?