aguabella May 28, 2017 Share May 28, 2017 38 minutes ago, biakbiak said: King County was named for William Rufus King who was born and raised in North Carolina and was the Vice President when it was formed so I don't know what that has to do with England. The former flag had a crown but it's name wasn't anything to do with England. The flag now has Martin Luther King, Jr. because it was renamed to honor him instead of slave owning William. Thanks for the info biabiak. They have tons of other British / English references. (I'm not a native but have done many projects in the PacNW.) I must have mixed up my kings! Link to comment
Oldernowiser May 29, 2017 Share May 29, 2017 (edited) "Great for entertaining." It would make my life if just once someone said, "we don't like to entertain." Apparently only faux extroverts are allowed to buy faux houses on faux real estate shows. Edited May 29, 2017 by Oldernowiser 12 Link to comment
biakbiak May 30, 2017 Share May 30, 2017 2 hours ago, Oldernowiser said: Apparently only faux extroverts are allowed to buy faux houses on faux real estate shows. Edited 2 hours ago by Oldernowiser. That's most likely because being on this show wouldn't appeal to a lot of those people so what we see is because that's who want to do the show. Link to comment
QuinnM June 5, 2017 Share June 5, 2017 Well we finally have another new refrigerator trend. Matte Black Interiors. Just in case you're not busy enough cleaning fingerprints off the stainless, every drop off your honed black granite here it is folks. A matte black interior that is guaranteed to show every drop, speck of dust, just everything: https://jennair.com/obsidian-refrigerator Link to comment
laredhead June 5, 2017 Share June 5, 2017 Thanks QuinnM, I'll pass because I don't have nice white dishes like that, and the food in my refrigerator would never look that good either. Why spend $$ on the refrig if it won't look good when it's opened. What happens if you put black olives in a black dish and put them in there? Will they be invisible - LOL. 2 Link to comment
biakbiak June 5, 2017 Share June 5, 2017 I have been waiting my entire life for someone the horrific problem of my food clashing with the interior of my fridge. 5 Link to comment
Mittengirl June 5, 2017 Share June 5, 2017 Who puts a whole bowl of apples in their fridge? And why? 5 Link to comment
mojito June 5, 2017 Share June 5, 2017 Finally! A way to showcase my Old Milwaukee beer, sticky jar of jelly, and molding cheese. 7 Link to comment
AuntiePam June 5, 2017 Share June 5, 2017 39 minutes ago, Mittengirl said: Who puts a whole bowl of apples in their fridge? And why? I don't think apples are supposed to be refrigerated anyway. I suppose it looks pretty though! A new pet peeve -- especially with the International version and We Bought the Farm -- we're not seeing the whole house. With Int'l, they skip bathrooms. With the Farm, they skip whole rooms -- I suppose that's to save time for viewing the actual farm property, but they show four houses. If they went to three houses, we'd be able to see all the rooms, and to see what's behind the doors they don't open. Closets? Pantries? Secret rooms? 2 Link to comment
Kohola3 June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 There are plenty of things in my refrigerator that I would prefer not "pop". That's why they are hidden in the back corners until they get so bad I have to trash them. 5 Link to comment
AlleC17 June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 2 hours ago, AuntiePam said: I don't think apples are supposed to be refrigerated anyway. I suppose it looks pretty though! A new pet peeve -- especially with the International version and We Bought the Farm -- we're not seeing the whole house. With Int'l, they skip bathrooms. With the Farm, they skip whole rooms -- I suppose that's to save time for viewing the actual farm property, but they show four houses. If they went to three houses, we'd be able to see all the rooms, and to see what's behind the doors they don't open. Closets? Pantries? Secret rooms? Totally agree! They replay what we just saw 5 minutes ago, but can't be bothered to show large parts of the home? Very irritating! 2 Link to comment
Cherpumple June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 On 5/29/2017 at 7:43 PM, Oldernowiser said: It would make my life if just once someone said, "we don't like to entertain." Preach it! Or, I would love someone to say "I don't want the kitchen to be wide open to my entertaining space." I can't be the only person who prefers to keep my dirty dishes and empty bottles out of eye sight when hosting a classy dinner party. It really ruins the mood having the prep space so visible! Another thing that's been bothering me lately: I stopped watching this show for years, but recently started up again, and have noticed that the majority of the scripts call for the couples to be highly adversarial, to the point of demanding opposite and often mutually-exclusive features. It's fine to have different preferences, but now almost every show I see has the couple digging in their heels regarding one floor vs. two floors, no pool vs. absolutely must have a pool, all carpet vs. all hardwood floors, and other things that can't be compromised. And then when they pick a house, the spouse that "loses" everything that they were demanding is now perfectly happy with the choice they made. Ugh, it's so fake and unpleasant! The only bright spot for me was in a HHI episode where the realtor just told the couple directly that they were making impossible demands and needed to leave and come back to her when they figured out what they actually wanted. She wasn't putting up with those shenanigans! 11 Link to comment
QuinnM June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 Quote A way to showcase my Old Milwaukee beer, sticky jar of jelly, and molding cheese. So I was accompanying someone choosing appliances for a big fancy renovation. I was obligated not to scream in horror at some of the fancy wonderful things the sales person was showing us. But my thought was - I will guarantee you that whoever is designing this stuff has NEVER EVER been responsible for the upkeep of a home. So there is the glass door frig. Then there is the door with a window. And one of the manufacturers thought, hey not everyone wants to see your mustard so we will make the window opaque. Then you touch it and it goes clear. YOU TOUCH IT! Dude, please. I would rather have the thundering hoards attacking my groceries open the damn door using a handle. And the black we were told, isn't for everyone. That's right because it isn't for anyone trying to get dinner on the table without having to wipe down the inside of appliances. It looks so pretty but the thing with appliances is that they aren't art on the wall. We use them every day, all day. 7 Link to comment
Kohola3 June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 16 minutes ago, QuinnM said: It looks so pretty but the thing with appliances is that they aren't art on the wall. We use them every day, all day. I would wager that there is no "usability" testing done by a panel of people who actually cook, have kids, or run a household. These are all appropriate for loft apartments in downtown areas where the singles eat out every night and not a single burner on the stove has ever been lit. 5 Link to comment
QuinnM June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 Quote These are all appropriate for loft apartments in downtown areas where the singles eat out every night and not a single burner on the stove has ever been lit. Well here's the thing. At this point in my life that's me. Fancy cute townhouse, on the downtown river, hipsterville, single gal. And even I don't think these things are useable on a daily basis. I have a life. I'm not spending my day DUSTING the interior of my frig. I mean how cool will all my slightly used glad containers look in there? 6 Link to comment
laredhead June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 I went to a real estate open house recently and the kitchen had one of those commercial looking refrigerators that had a clear glass door. I swear the refrig had been staged along with the rest of the house. It was perfect and everything in it looked nice. Several lookers remarked how that would look instantly messy if they bought the house and filled it with their stuff. 6 Link to comment
QuinnM June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 Quote I went to a real estate open house recently and the kitchen had one of those commercial looking refrigerators that had a clear glass door. Apparently, 'most people are choosing integrated refrigerators'. Now I did that because I have issues with an open floor plan. But I think a lot of high end buyers are saying if these are my choices I'm going with an integrated refrigerator. Link to comment
auntjess June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 3 hours ago, Kohola3 said: I would wager that there is no "usability" testing done by a panel of people who actually cook, have kids, or run a household. These are all appropriate for loft apartments in downtown areas where the singles eat out every night and not a single burner on the stove has ever been lit. Too many times, I see the refrigerator off by itself, and nowhere to set the gallon pitcher while you get something from behind it. Same with ovens not over stoves, and you're taking a turkey out to baste. And I saw someone put a micrwave in the bottom of an island. Link to comment
Empress1 June 6, 2017 Share June 6, 2017 On 4/30/2017 at 1:11 AM, AuntiePam said: I think [ticks all my boxes] might be British. I first heard the phrase by someone speaking with a British accent -- might have been on HHI, or maybe somewhere else. Yep. I used to work for a company with headquarters in the U.K. In the U.K. you say "tick" instead of "check" - ticks boxes, tick mark, tick it off. 3 Link to comment
chessiegal June 7, 2017 Share June 7, 2017 We arrived in London today, and while having lunch 4 middle age guys were chatting at a table next to us, and one of them said "Now that ticks all the boxes". I was chatting with a mother and daughter at a wine tasting last week, and they both remarked that they entertain a lot - they seemed quite sincere. I've met women whose husbands were officers in the military, and they also said they did a lot of entertaining. We sure don't, and I'm guessing a lot of the folks on HH don't either. I'm always amazed when I meet people who do. 5 Link to comment
ChromaKelly June 8, 2017 Share June 8, 2017 On 6/6/2017 at 9:18 AM, QuinnM said: So I was accompanying someone choosing appliances for a big fancy renovation. I was obligated not to scream in horror at some of the fancy wonderful things the sales person was showing us. But my thought was - I will guarantee you that whoever is designing this stuff has NEVER EVER been responsible for the upkeep of a home. So there is the glass door frig. Then there is the door with a window. And one of the manufacturers thought, hey not everyone wants to see your mustard so we will make the window opaque. Then you touch it and it goes clear. YOU TOUCH IT! Dude, please. I would rather have the thundering hoards attacking my groceries open the damn door using a handle. And the black we were told, isn't for everyone. That's right because it isn't for anyone trying to get dinner on the table without having to wipe down the inside of appliances. It looks so pretty but the thing with appliances is that they aren't art on the wall. We use them every day, all day. With features like that, it's just more things to go wrong. I just want my food cold and a decent layout in the fridge. Oh, and an icemaker that works. My entire adult life, I've just wanted a good icemaker. They always break. 2 Link to comment
QuinnM June 8, 2017 Share June 8, 2017 Quote Oh, and an icemaker that works. My entire adult life, I've just wanted a good icemaker. They always break. Turns out that the water going into the ice maker should be at a higher volume than most home faucets. So it breaks. I know this because my repairman told me so. I had a filtration installed as part of a renovation. I asked the filtration guy about water volume and ice makers. He agreed. In fact he said that for a long time manufacturers had that warning. But they stopped because they made more money if it broke. Wha? 1 Link to comment
RosieSpider June 8, 2017 Share June 8, 2017 On 10/10/2016 at 4:41 PM, chocolatine said: I just started watching older HH and HHI episodes on Netflix. Joined just to comment... are these on Netflix?!? Can't find anywhere. Help! Link to comment
chocolatine June 8, 2017 Share June 8, 2017 38 minutes ago, RosieSpider said: Joined just to comment... are these on Netflix?!? Can't find anywhere. Help! There were a couple of older seasons on Netflix when I had a subscription last fall. I'm not currently subscribed though, so I don't if they still have them. I am currently subscribed to Hulu and can verify that there are three older seasons each of HH and HHI on there right now. Link to comment
RosieSpider June 8, 2017 Share June 8, 2017 4 hours ago, chocolatine said: There were a couple of older seasons on Netflix when I had a subscription last fall. I'm not currently subscribed though, so I don't if they still have them. I am currently subscribed to Hulu and can verify that there are three older seasons each of HH and HHI on there right now. Thank you!!! Link to comment
auntjess June 8, 2017 Share June 8, 2017 If you look at House Hunters on IMDB, there are links on some to "watch now from $1.99(SD) from Amazon video. Link to comment
mojito June 13, 2017 Share June 13, 2017 Over the weekend, I saw an episode of HH where the wife wanted "vintage and unique". If that wasn't perplexing enough, she balked at a home that was 20 years old because it was so old. 7 Link to comment
aguabella June 15, 2017 Share June 15, 2017 On 6/6/2017 at 8:28 AM, laredhead said: I went to a real estate open house recently and the kitchen had one of those commercial looking refrigerators that had a clear glass door. I swear the refrig had been staged along with the rest of the house. It was perfect and everything in it looked nice. Several lookers remarked how that would look instantly messy if they bought the house and filled it with their stuff. I'm sure you're correct, larehead. (I've seen them, too!) It's one more thing to stage! If sellers are pressed for time, they can usually get away with kinda' ignoring the fridge - as long as smells aren't emitting from it, lol! No different than closets. We all hope that buyers won't peruse closets but they do. It's fair, they need to assess their size. So, it's a good idea to store at least 50% of your stuff, for sellers, and tidy up the remaining items. That is, if/when sellers remain in the home during the sales period. 3 Link to comment
Sun-Bun June 17, 2017 Share June 17, 2017 What's up with this trend I'm seeing in new kitchens of open cabinets? Why would you want all your cups and dishes laying out looking all cluttery and collecting dust?? It's enough to just go along with the endless "open concept" living room/kitchen/dining room trend but to add the open cabinet thing to that madness? It's all too much. 10 Link to comment
Kohola3 June 17, 2017 Share June 17, 2017 1 hour ago, Sun-Bun said: Why would you want all your cups and dishes laying out looking all cluttery and collecting dust?? That's what I always think of as well! Nobody's home is dust free and there have to be dishes that are not used and washed daily. It's just nuts to think you'd have to add dusting dishes to the weekly chores. 6 Link to comment
auntjess June 17, 2017 Share June 17, 2017 Why would you want a backsplash with LOTS of grout to get splashed on? There was a reason it was called a backsplash, and when I baked and cooked a lot, all that grout would have been covered with tomato and chocolate stains. 11 minutes ago, Kohola3 said: It's just nuts to think you'd have to add dusting dishes to the weekly chores. And think of how much time it would take to clean one of those "spa baths," with large glass shower enclosure, and acres of floor space. 6 Link to comment
Kohola3 June 17, 2017 Share June 17, 2017 Auntjess, I hear you. My backsplash the same stuff as the countertop (Corian) and easy to clean. I hate grout in the kitchen and bath; it looks nice until you actaully live there and then it's a cleaning nightmare. And those glass enclosures - give it 6 months and the soap scum will make it opaque. 5 Link to comment
MaKaM June 18, 2017 Share June 18, 2017 The one that kills me lately is that people just "hate" houses with a staircase by the front door. News flash, home buyers, 80% or more of 2 story houses have floor plans that include staircases near the front door. Know why? Probably many reasons. But having a staircase front and middle of the house allows you to utilize all the exterior walls for windows for bedrooms. It also often allows for your "grand" entrance because builders will sacrifice the small footprint of a staircase opening to allow for a 2 story foyer (aside: my house has a staircase right as you open the door but the the space above was given to the master closet upstairs so I do not have a soaring entryway). The number of 2 story houses that have the staircase somewhere in the back is minuscule compared to the traditional staircase-at-the-front-door layout. Maybe it was done that way for fire escape or for fighting off bandits, maybe it is just something we inherited from Europe for no reason, but it is consistent across a majority of floor plans. Stop bitching because the traditional house you are looking at has a staircase that is visible from the front door. Also HH needs to find a new shtick. I am tired of couples who must have a certain style of house that is exactly opposite to their significant other's must-have style. Every single person on this show simply can't be that obsessed with a style enough to make it fight worthy. "Oh, this house is a craftsman, I guess this one wasn't chosen for me." "I hate it, it isn't an Acadian." "I MUST have a spanish style...in Minnesota." Die, producers, die. Quit making these people look like fools or you'll stop getting signups. The guy who didn't want any columns, even on porches was a head scratcher. Dude, what the hell do you think holds a porch up? Magic? I can see not wanting the columns on the inside as I don't particularly like that look either and would rather have walls than a multitude of columns to run into, but on the outside of the house? Get over yourself. 12 Link to comment
auntjess June 18, 2017 Share June 18, 2017 49 minutes ago, MaKaM said: The number of 2 story houses that have the staircase somewhere in the back is minuscule Back staircases were for servants, tell them that. Once in a while they'll flip a big old house that has one. I've seen people say that it's bad feng shui when stairs face the door. 3 Link to comment
Kohola3 June 18, 2017 Share June 18, 2017 Quote Dude, what the hell do you think holds a porch up? Magic? Either it supports the producer-driven fake drama (from the Big Book of Appearing on HH Must Use Phrases) or this guy is a dumb as a rock. Just like people think you can just knock out a load bearing wall. Apparently they think the second floor will just float in space. 6 Link to comment
MaKaM June 18, 2017 Share June 18, 2017 1 hour ago, auntjess said: Back staircases were for servants, tell them that. Once in a while they'll flip a big old house that has one. I've seen people say that it's bad feng shui when stairs face the door. Which is, of course, super if you live in Asia where houses are possibly designed with that in mind. If you are searching in Podunksville, IN, requiring a bunch feng shui things to be present in an already-built house is stupid. Build a house if it is such a requirement, silly house hunters. :-P I've seen the ones that require a certain number not be in the address or that it face a certain direction and it is lovely your incredibly generous budget allows you to eliminate perfectly fine house for silly reasons--oh, wait, it always seems to be the house hunters with tight budgets that have such picky requirements. Yeah, probably producer encouraged. Still a peeve. 3 Link to comment
LazyToaster June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 OK, this has probably been discussed many times - but, I've been thinking about the whole open concept thing. My 3 kids were born in 1971, 1973, & 1075 - so, I'm old - ha! Anyway, if someone would have asked the young mom of 3 little kids that was me -- if I wanted an open concept home? First off they would need to explain to me (because I wouldn't have had a clue) that it would enable me to watch my kids at all times. Well folks, I promise that young me would have been incredulous. I also imagine I would have genuinely been confused and asked "watch them do what?". I didn't need to - nor did I want to - be in the same room with them all the time. If there was any trouble I just followed the screams. My kids grew up and as far as I know they weren't scarred by me not watching their every move. Amazingly enough they learned to navigate stairs, play outside, have fun, etc. etc. - all without my constant supervision. I also wish I had $1 for every time I said - "ok now, get out of the kitchen!". Ha! 21 Link to comment
auntjess June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 Remember the woman who couldn't live in a house by a cornfield? I think she was spooked by some movie, but that really was her requirement. As to open concept, I had baby gates to keep family dog or visiting children in or out of any room--usually the kitchen, or away from the top of stairs until they could safely go down them. (Split foyer, stairs going down from living room.) Too, even though I had no kitchen doors, a separate kitchen gave the pretense that guests couldn't see the dirty dishes. 3 Link to comment
FormerMod-a1 June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 57 minutes ago, LazyToaster said: My 3 kids were born in 1971, 1973, & 1075 - so, I'm old - Wow, I guess you really are! :-P (JK - I love typos like that, I make them all the time). 11 Link to comment
Nysha June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 11 hours ago, MaKaM said: The number of 2 story houses that have the staircase somewhere in the back is minuscule compared to the traditional staircase-at-the-front-door layout. Having a staircase in the back is awful. I lived in a house where you opened the front door and instead of the staircase, you saw the door to the cupboard under the stairs. So, everything brought into the house had to be angled to the left. Then, at the back of the house instead of an open hall to the upstairs, some moron put in a half bath so you had to figure out how to get non-flexible furniture around a sharp corner & upstairs with no wiggle room. 1 Link to comment
laredhead June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 I just took my 92 year old aunt to see a new retirement apartment that boasts 21st Century Living as it's motto. We walked into the apartment and there was a full kitchen with ss appliances, granite counters and a wide eating bar all open to the living room. She told the woman showing us the apartment that she didn't want her kitchen in her living room and she was too old to sit on a bar stool to eat at a counter. The woman said that was what most people wanted these days - open concept. My aunt just looked at her like she was nuts, and on our way home, she declared that open concept was not for her and that she might as well have moved her bed into the living room. 16 Link to comment
Lady Iris June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 On 5/29/2017 at 7:43 PM, Oldernowiser said: "Great for entertaining." It would make my life if just once someone said, "we don't like to entertain." YES to this! I don't like to entertain, never have. I'll do it under duress but I'm perfectly fine bringing a dish or wine and helping to clean up after the 'entertaining' at my friend's homes. 8 Link to comment
MortysCleaningLady June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 17 minutes ago, Lady Iris said: YES to this! I don't like to entertain, never have. I'll do it under duress but I'm perfectly fine bringing a dish or wine and helping to clean up after the 'entertaining' at my friend's homes. Me, too! My house is great for about 4 people for a dinner party. Beyond that, it's cramped. It's smaller house and perfect for me and the pup. That is NEVER a consideration when I have purchased, but every single House Hunter needs it! 6 Link to comment
LazyToaster June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 16 hours ago, aquarian1 said: Wow, I guess you really are! :-P (JK - I love typos like that, I make them all the time). Cracked me up - both my typo and your response - ha! But then again, when they were all 3 little I felt that old by bedtime! Active bunch of boys. Come to think of it - I miss those days and would like to do it all over again. 3 Link to comment
Oldernowiser June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 On 4/2/2014 at 5:10 PM, ChlcGirl said: This seems like the laundry list of rooms needed for a typical family now: formal living room, dining room, kitchen with great room (for all the entertaining!), laundry room, half bath, home office, master bedroom with ensuite, two more bedrooms minimum, full bath, play room and 2 car garage. Did I get everything??? OH WAIT!!! Backyard with deck. I mean ... people, COME ON. Dammit, i forgot the finished basement. And three years later...now everyone also wants a man cave or if they're being all classy, a "media room." Also an outdoor kitchen. And a "craft room." 1 Link to comment
CherryAmes June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 (edited) 1 hour ago, Oldernowiser said: And a "craft room." I saw one where the woman wanted a craft room and couldn't seem to clue in that any spare bedroom would do the trick. She held out for the one house that had a spare bedroom already set up as a craft room. Far too complicated I guess to figure out how to set up some shelves and a table and chairs in a room in any other house. Edited June 19, 2017 by CherryAmes 4 Link to comment
Kohola3 June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 Quote That is NEVER a consideration when I have purchased, but every single House Hunter needs it! I expect they all say that to make us believe how popular and cosmopolitan they are. In reality they probably have family over for a holiday meal once a year. 5 Link to comment
MaKaM June 19, 2017 Share June 19, 2017 20 hours ago, LazyToaster said: OK, this has probably been discussed many times - but, I've been thinking about the whole open concept thing. My 3 kids were born in 1971, 1973, & 1075 - so, I'm old - ha! Anyway, if someone would have asked the young mom of 3 little kids that was me -- if I wanted an open concept home? First off they would need to explain to me (because I wouldn't have had a clue) that it would enable me to watch my kids at all times. Well folks, I promise that young me would have been incredulous. I also imagine I would have genuinely been confused and asked "watch them do what?". I didn't need to - nor did I want to - be in the same room with them all the time. If there was any trouble I just followed the screams. My kids grew up and as far as I know they weren't scarred by me not watching their every move. Amazingly enough they learned to navigate stairs, play outside, have fun, etc. etc. - all without my constant supervision. I also wish I had $1 for every time I said - "ok now, get out of the kitchen!". Ha! So I've been thinking about this too and part of the reason it seems that they have to keep their eyes on the kids all the time is that there is so much more to kill them now. I mean, we had LEGO and Barbie shoes but when a sequin from a dress can be inhaled and cause years of medical issues (thank TLC for planting that one in my brain), or the TV can fall on them, or porn can be accessed, or the kid can go outside and then CPS be called on you for your unsupervised child...well, it is no wonder people are paranoid. I mean, I saw a news article where a lady left the sleeping baby in the car to go pay for gas and was charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor. With all the mommier-than-thou types out there, people are paranoid about anything happening to their kid. Kid shows up to school with a bruise? Bad parenting! They've got to say how much they love entertaining or else we will think they are total losers with no friends. ;-) 7 Link to comment
auntjess June 20, 2017 Share June 20, 2017 (edited) On 4/2/2014 at 8:10 PM, ChlcGirl said: OH WAIT!!! Backyard with deck. What happened to swingsets for kids, garden, plants, picnic table, and posts to set up the volleyball net? And GRASS! I want grass--real grass--in my yard. I see these shows, and they've covered half the yard with a deck, then paths to the "water feature" and "fire feature." You just know that water feature is going to quit working at some point, and it will be stagnant. And kids or drunks falling into the fire feature? And for people who think pergolas are great to keep off the sun, I want to sell you an umbrella that is ribs only. Edited June 20, 2017 by auntjess Because I forgot the "bonus room." 11 Link to comment
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