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evelyns
Joined: 15 Mar 2008
Posts: 7
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 Posted: Sat Mar 15, 2008 11:43 am Post subject: What's the point of a keeping room? |
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Many of the home plans I've been looking at lately have a "keeping room" off the kitchen. I understand what a keeping room was for historically, but what is it used for now? I mean, what's its purpose in a house that already has a family room, an eat-in area, a formal dining room, a formal living room, and maybe a media room, library, etc.? What do you DO in such a room? What is its function?
Thanks in advance for your input.  |
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mx2
millennium club
Joined: 18 Jan 2006
Posts: 1906
Location: Miami, Florida
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| Posted: Sat Mar 15, 2008 2:15 pm Post subject: |
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I believe in the 1600's and/or 1700's (imagine how far back that was)...most simple structures had a large open area as the main room...where everything was done (ie, a common room)...including cooking, eating, entertaining, even sleeping. At best there would be a separate sleeping spaces...but your restroom was an outhouse and you bathed in a bucket. 
Now fast forward to today and the use is a throwback to some "general purpose" room, similar to what I would call the Family Room. In essence, it matters not what you label a room...what matters most is the function of all rooms and the relationship it has to each other and how will you and your family use and move about the various spaces.
mx2.5
_________________
*Art of Architecture: The conscious use of skill and creative imagination in the production of an aesthetic building.
*Science of Architecture: The calculated use of technical skill and knowledge in the construction of a functional building. |
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Madimel
Joined: 06 Feb 2008
Posts: 138
Location: Scottsdale, Arizona
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| Posted: Sat Mar 15, 2008 3:17 pm Post subject: |
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| Many of these names are retained to "romantisize" the floor plan for the homeowner. For instance, the home owner would much rather tell their friends they have a "loggia" or "Lanai" (if building in Hawaii) than to say it's a patio. A Butler Pantry doesn't necessarily mean the owners will hire a Butler. |
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evelyns
Joined: 15 Mar 2008
Posts: 7
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| Posted: Sat Mar 15, 2008 11:48 pm Post subject: |
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True, I understand that. I guess I just think that a room should have a purpose or function, regardless of name, and to me the main function of a keeping room, in a house that already has a family room and living room--and I have seen many floor plans where the kitchen is flanked on one side by the family room and the other side by the keeping room--is unfathomable. It seems like a trendy thing without any real function. I can't see what my family would do in a keeping room that they would not otherwise do in another room. Read in it? No, it's too open to the house to function as a nice, quiet library. Eat in it? No, there's the nook, eat-at island, or dining room for that. Watch TV? No, that's the media room/home theater. Hang out? Nope, family room. Entertain guests? No, that's why you have a formal living room. A lot of the rooms I just mentioned are not necessary, because a room can have more than one function, but even in a big house with plenty of square feet, a room should have a reason to exist.
I know this seems like a philosophical question, but really it's not. We'll be building in a few years, and "keeping room or no?" is one of the questions I'm currently asking myself. |
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Madimel
Joined: 06 Feb 2008
Posts: 138
Location: Scottsdale, Arizona
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| Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2008 11:38 am Post subject: |
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| We have designed playrooms (or whatever you want to call it) for couples with young children or are expecting. The reason for that is it's proximity to the kitchen and the ability to close off that area when you have guests. After the kids are older, the owners turn it into a project room. Try to keep the names of the rooms simple and easy to understand so when the plans go in for permit, the reviewer don't misinterpret its function. |
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mx2
millennium club
Joined: 18 Jan 2006
Posts: 1906
Location: Miami, Florida
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| Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2008 11:56 am Post subject: |
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I'm a bit bothered by the essence of the question...trying to assign a function to a room that has no specific purpose. No, let me rephrase that: it's ludicrous!@!!! If it has no function, you could call it the "Red Polka Dotted with Green Squares Room" and it still is the exact same thing. I'm perplexed that a designer would simply plop spaces about without having some reason for it...
...however, that said, it's impossible to really crit a design without seeing it. There are a lot more issues that surround a space and its function than a name. Is it part of the general circulation, as in a Vestibule or Mud Room? Is it an flex space that could be an Office/Study or Home Gym? Is it potentially an extra bedroom and has it's own bathroom? Is it part of the public side of the house and perhaps has views or more light than the adjacent rooms and could be some sort of "sun room"? I mean there's simply no way to determine what the cookie-cutter plan was originally designed for. It's often why I don't like the idea of people buying plans and saying to us "this is what I want" without any regard to all the real issues.
mx2.5
_________________
*Art of Architecture: The conscious use of skill and creative imagination in the production of an aesthetic building.
*Science of Architecture: The calculated use of technical skill and knowledge in the construction of a functional building. |
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csintexas
millennium club
Joined: 06 Feb 2006
Posts: 1670
Location: USA
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| Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2008 6:09 pm Post subject: |
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I agree with Madimel's first answer -it's just a name that sounds romantic and is seen on many home plan sites. I suppose there are people who do buy house plans based on how many different rooms there are (otherwise known as McMansions)
Don't worry about what any room is called just consider how well a particular plan would fit your families lifestyle. If you really want a good house find a residential designer or architect who has some experience and interest in energy and passive efficient houses that are not McMansions.
_________________
Chris Stewart
Modern Texas Home Project |
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phansford
Joined: 18 Apr 2004
Posts: 500
Location: SW Ohio
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| Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 4:57 am Post subject: |
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| You might purchase Home: A Short History of an Idea . Rybczynski is one of my favorite writers - very accessible. |
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evelyns
Joined: 15 Mar 2008
Posts: 7
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| Posted: Wed Mar 26, 2008 6:16 pm Post subject: |
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| Thanks, everyone. Especially csintexas. You hit the nail on the head. In a few years, we will be building a large home because it will house multiple families/generations, so good/efficient design is crucial, and a McMansion is the LAST thing we want. It does seem as if in some of these floor plans there are rooms just because, with no real purpose. (Of course a room has the purpose you give it, but rooms do lend themselves to certain purposes based on their locations in the home, amenities, size, etc.) |
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