Odd UK questions

[prairie_girl]

Odd UK questions. Is that what half of the home page is filled with?

sorry…I had to lol

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Older homes here in the U.S. may have doors to them, honestly though a lot of what I've seen when I've been in a home with doors is the saloon style doors--think western saloon (don't ask me how that became a thing). New homes tend to be open concept here people favoring wide open versus small broken up style.

You will find laundry in the kitchen in the U.S. but I tend to see it more in apartments vs homes. My apartment in my college town the washer and dryer were in the kitchen separated by a door. On the other hand my husband's grandmother's home (built in the '40s) the laundry is in the kitchen dining area and it's just out in the open no walls or doors to separate it out from the other space (it's right next to the tiny kitchen table actually).

But I will say I enjoy watching House Hunters International because it's neat to see how other countries have as a norm and for sure a lot of places around the world have laundry in either the kitchen or the bathroom (which assumes they actually have a washer/dryer) which I will assume is to take advantage of the water hook ups. I've also seen a lot of dual washer/dryer in one versus a separated out washer and dryer.

 

[mamamia2005]

I was thinking about this earlier - maybe this is where the stereotypical British obsession comes from about the weather - it's because we want to know if we can put the washing out (to dry) !

 

[barkley]

Now I'm going to have to find a store that sells these digestive biscuits so I can try this with my tea. The only option I see so far is being overcharged through Amazon for them. Maybe I'll get lucky and find a store around me that might have them because I'd really like to give it a try.

cost plus world market generally has them in stock, if not they tend to sell that kind of stuff on their website more reasonably than amazon.

 

[AurumPunzel]

The reason why we have washing machines in our kitchens is because of history. Many houses in the UK were built without utility rooms, and even today, many still lack them, being largely reserved for much larger detached houses and McMansions. Also, the size of our bathrooms and building codes regarding 230V sockets in wet areas preclude a solution that's commonly found in Continental Europe. As kitchens have easy access to the water supply and waste pipe, it's the default location for washing machines in most homes.

 

[Snowysmom]

Some supermarkets have international food sections where you can find the tea cookies. Around me I have Shaw's and Wegmans. I love looking in those sections for something interesting and different.

 

[Weedy]

On a lot of the shows I watch from the UK I’m surprised how high the door handles are on the door. What’s with that?

 

[Welsh_Dragon]

On a lot of the shows I watch from the UK I’m surprised how high the door handles are on the door. What’s with that?

Explain further, please. Just measured …about 40 inches from floor. Where are yours?

 

[La Tomate]

Because I’ve been reading lots of British mysteries and watching House Hunters lately

1) do people really eat biscuits (cookies) with tea as often as in books? And why always packaged biscuits? Why not homemade cookies? Biscuits are cookies right?

Yes - and we dunk them in our beverage of choice too. And prepackaged because noone has the time to double bake digestives Also - price, and convenience.
Why don't North American bake all their cookies and donuts? Price and convenience.

2) What is up with doors on your kitchen and lounge? Do new builds have kitchen doors or is this an older house thing? We don’t have doors on kitchens and living rooms even in older homes.
How often do you close your kitchen door?

I miss this. I dislike the open-plan approach of NA houses. And I closed the doors a lot.
Don't want the dog to run out of the front door? Close the living room door.
Cooking an awesome curry and don't want the whole house to smell? Close the kitchen door and open the back door.
It's cold and you want to be cosy? Light the coal fire and close the living room doors toasty.

3) isn’t having the laundry in the kitchen annoying? How do you dump out and separate loads in the kitchen?

Not annoying at all. And more convenient. I've lived in 3 houses in Canada - and in all - the laundry machines are in the basement. BASEMENT! meaning I have to lug all the clothes down there and sort them on a cold basement floor, and then!!! Lug them all BACK UPSTAIRS to the main floor to sort when they're dry.
And I REALLY miss having a washer drier in one machine. Moving laundry between machines is a PITA, and as soon as I could get a front loader - I did. Those open from the top machines? I'm short. that's all I'll say there. Short people and those machines? STUFF OF NIGHTMARES!!!

Now, I'll have a cuppa cha and a choccie biccy.