spinoff to formal living rooms

If you have a formal living room or dining room, do you actually use it? My parents house has both rooms are hardly ever used... the dining room only on thanksgiving, and the living rooms pretty much never (until recently when they put a tv in there.)... so when i am looking for a house these kinds of rooms are very unimportant to me...

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

We had a formal living room in our last house and we used it whenever we had friends over. Mostly because our kitchen was so small.... But our kitchen is small in our new house as well so I would imagine we will be in the same situation.

We just got furniture for our living room and we already had friends over and used it so I am hoping that we will continue to use it. I dont like rooms to go to waste, so i will do my best to use them as often as possible.

It was very important for me to have a house with both a formal dining and living room.

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

We use our dining room quite often. It's 15x18, so we can accomodate a decent amount of people in there. Needless to say, I host almost every holiday.

We currently don't have a formal living room.

BUT, there was a formal dining room and living room when we first moved in. We combined the living room and dining room to make it one big family room. The old family room is now our dining room.

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

Posted by PotofLuck06

Posted by SweetTooth

If you have a formal living room or dining room, do you actually use it? My parents house has both rooms are hardly ever used... the dining room only on thanksgiving, and the living rooms pretty much never (until recently when they put a tv in there.)... so when i am looking for a house these kinds of rooms are very unimportant to me...

My parent's have a DR, LR and a FR. The FR was used for the TV, the fireplace and just relaxing. The DR was used at all holiday's, birthday's, and to hold a hospital bed when my brother broke his leg and the LR is used for the holiday's to hold the tree, the presents, reading area, quiet area, play area when friends were over, etc.

I personally want a FDR and a great room. If the house had two rooms for FR and LR, that's nice, but I prefer a great room!

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

I personally want a FDR and a great room. If the house had two rooms for FR and LR, that's nice, but I prefer a great room!


that's what I want

I don't need a formal living room- we never used the formal living and dining room in my house growing up

but I want a dining room- b/c I want to host holiday's

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

We have a room that when we looked at the house it was set up as a formal living room and there is also a den. WE don't use the den only because we didn't feel we would ever use the formal living room It is the biggest room and it has our fireplace.

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

I would love a formal dining room but we will probably just get a great room combo which will be more of a den than a living room.

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

I would like a dining room, because I like to entertain. I would like two living rooms, mainly because we want to have kids, and one of the rooms for all the gazillions of toys would be just great while the other room stays neater.

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

We spend most of our time in the kitchen and the family room which is off the kitchen opposite the side of formal dining/living room... we don't use either one frequently, but do use them when we have company - depending on what type of company though. If it's for dinner, then we hang out in the dining room, otherwise if it's just to hang out, we're in the family room...

We enter the house kind of into the dining room, so I wanted to make sure I had formal dining room furniture - the living room is behind it so you see that as soon as you walk in as well...

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

I don't think they're crucial. Any extra room is nice, but I only use my dining room for the holidays. My sister has both, a formal LR and DR. The LR is ALWAYS empty. And the DR has only been used once so far.

So you're right to not care when looking...they're a bonus, but not a necessity IMO.

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I would love a FDR/LR combo

b/c I would like to be able to entertain

For now - I don't need a LR and a Family Room - just one would suffice

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I don't have a house yet, but I definitely want a formal dining room, a family room and living room. the more space the better IMO.

My parents only use the dining room when they are hosting dinners or a holiday, but it's also where they have their china & crystal closet and there is a LOT in it!

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

I have a formal living room and dining room that I NEVER use!! I always joke and say that if that part of the house fell off, I would never miss it.

I have a very large great room (family room) off my kitchen and a finished basement. That's where we live.

Message edited 11/29/2006 5:55:39 PM.

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

My house was built with a formal living room, family room and eat-in kitchen. After all these years, we, finally, turned the family room into a dining room and use the living room every day. Eventually, the open wall between the kitchen and the now dining room will come down and create a great room. I like it much better this way.

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

our house had a living/dining combo, we took down a wall & made a big L-shaped kitchen-great room.
I had 18 people for sitdown dinner on Thanksgiving with ample room.
Not always but often FDRs are on the smaller side & the walls can prevent adding tables for really large groups, my table(s) was 14ft long with people sitting all the way around for thanksgiving.
The living room area of the great room is 'formal', we don't have a TV in that room. However we use it everyday, the front doors basically opens into that room. We have a family room in the basement.
I come from a long line of homes with unused & off limits formal areas, I wanted to break the cycle

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We don't have a FDR...I would love one but it's the one thing we had to sacrifice at the time we bought.....I'd be less interested in a FLR. Actually, we did see a house with a FLR off to the side of the house and I wondered when we'd ever use it.

Since we don't have a FDR it's hard to host major holidays since it's harder to fit everyone comfortably for meals.

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I could totally do without a formal living room...but a dining room...heck no! That is a HUGE MUST in our list for buying a home. We host a lot of family dinners...can't be without one.

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The house we are buying has a formal living room, dining room and a familiy room. The kitchen is not eat-in although there are 3 bar stools on the peninsula, so I think we may use the formal dining room more that we might have otherwise in a different situation.

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we used it for the first time this Thanksgiving

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

Re: spinoff to formal living rooms

I grew up with a semi-formal living room, plus a formal dining room. My father uses the living room to read. The dining room is never used as a dining room since holidays are never hosted there, nor does my dad have company. He kind of uses the DR table as a desk!

I want the living room in the house I'm buying to be formal. I'll use it for when people come over, I assume. I've got a den that will have a TV and such. My house doesn't have a formal DR...only a dining area in the kitchen. It can seat six people (though the table I currently have will only seat four.)