Shop vs Kitchen

[RobinC]

My darling BF and I will talk about what we want in our next house, making it a dream house.

He wants a shop that is separate from the garage, and he wants it to be big. He talks about all the substantial tools and equipment he wants in it - drill press, table saw, mill, belt sander, etc. I haven't questioned him one bit.

When I talk about my dream kitchen, he says "Why do you need 2 ovens??? Gas stoves are really expensive, do you really need it? What's wrong with the kitchen we have now??"

I finally turned to him and said, "My kitchen is like your shop. I don't question you on why you have to have a mill, drill press, and table saw. Don't doubt my needs for 2 ovens and a gas stove."

I am happy to say this put things into perspective for him. :D

[SandyM]

Good for you Robin!!!!

[donleyk]

That's it! What's good for the goose....

[Jewel]

DH couldn't understand why I needed a KitchenAid Mixer, a FoodSaver, a Cuisinart Convection Broiler/Toaster Oven, OR the new Fagor Pressure Cooker...but after seeing what each of them can do, he understands now... ;)

[LaraW]

My DH and I were house hunting this summer, and he kept joking that I was looking for a kitchen with a house attached.

I didn't get my double ovens, though.

[Vanessa]

DH & I talk about this too. He always says he needs a workshop area or garage for his projects and to work with tools. When looking at homes the kitchen & DR are imp to me rather than workshop area I must say DH loves the idea of big kitchens.
He probably would choose a kitchen over shop because he likes to once in a while cook up things. Actually lately looking at homes I like DH's idea of moving laundry area near kitchen and making area into big storage or pantry.

[JHolcomb]

Work it! I'm lucky in that Heath totally understands my hobby-he's already talking about helping me design a kitchen for our dreamhouse, and he doesn't bat an eyelash when I ask for more kitchen gadgets. He's actually quite impressed by my KA mixer and Cuisinart, because they're "heavy machinery." But sometimes, you gotta put 'em in line, and I would say you did a most excellent job!

[pammy]

It can be tough. We are starting to do the research in preparation to remodel the kitchen. It is kind of diffiuclt to explain to DH why we need to spend several thousand dollars more on cabinets which will house my various kitchen "tools", but he is starting catch on a bit. He understands the roll-out shelves for pots & pans, but is having a tough time with the base mixer shelf for my KA and the base filler pull out spice rack (which may not be the best use of space, we'll see after we talk to a couple of kitchen designers). I would love to have a gas range, but I don't think that there is a natural gas line in our neighborhood - everyone uses either heating oil or electric heat. Plus, my stove is practically brand-new (don't think that the previous owner of the home used it much), so no dice on a Viking!

[Shirley Panek]

You go, girl! Way to put it in terms "even a man can understand"! ;) :D

[funnybone]

Originally posted by pammy
I would love to have a gas range, but I don't think that there is a natural gas line in our neighborhood - everyone uses either heating oil or electric heat. Plus, my stove is practically brand-new (don't think that the previous owner of the home used it much), so no dice on a Viking!

There is always the option of propane. We have always had natural gas in the past, but we moved into an area that had no natural gas line to the neighborhood. Some houses are electric, and some are propane. We have a huge propane tank buried in our backyard. Some neighbors have propane only for their fireplace or cooktop, and it is smaller tank (much bigger that one for a grill, though). So, anything is possible, it would just be more expense.

I do have double ovens and would not trade them. Fortunately, DH likes big kitchens, with granite and corian. It is actually the #1 room that sells a house, I hear. We built our house the way we liked it, but we did things in it for selling reasons as well. DH's job moves us around. We always have "resale" in mind.

[pammy]

Funnnybone, luckily, DH is sold on the idea of solid countertops. Our current kitchen has formica and the scratches and marks all over it are all he needs to be convinced that Corian is the way to go for us. I'll have to check into the option of propane. I'm from Pittsburgh, where heating with natural gas is the norm, and I really miss cooking on a gas stove. But, it is not a dire need and the oven/range that I have right now works perfectly well. The frugal side of me kind of bristles at the idea of spending extra money on something that I don't really NEED. On the other hand, the current cabinets have to go. They have been resurfaced once already and are really showing their age. I beleive that it makes more sense to spend a bit more money to get what I really want with those. For the floor, I was really excited to find that Pergo now makes a "tile" flooring. I love the look of ceramic tile in the kitchen, but was concerned that it is cold (we have it in the hallway, brrrr) and how unforgiving it can be on the joints - I spend at least an hour and a half standing in the kitchen everyday. Pergo fits the bill perfectly for us. Anyone have it? Any thoughts on it?