Why do home these days have so many freaking cupboards? Do people really have that much stuff that needs to be stashed out of view? What happened to a few simple, freestanding, open faced shelves? All these questions and more occur to me as I embark on the mission of buying an apartment.
In fairness, apartments are small spaces, and perhaps it makes sense to have storage solutions in abundance. But I’m starting to feel like I must own a lot less stuff than other people. Either that, or people start acquiring more stuff once they move into one of these places, realising that they might as well take advantage of the numerous inbuilt cupboards, cabinets and drawers. Seriously, they’re everywhere – over doorways, under benches, inside other cupboards.
Call me crazy, but I’d rather have more open space – negative space, if you will, that’s not occupied by objects of any kind. I know I’m being picky, and that we can’t always have what we want. Still, I think it’s ridiculous that what I have in mind for the kitchen, for example, falls into the category of custom kitchen, requiring an ‘unusual’ approach and specialist designer input. Making food is central enough to my lifestyle that I’d be willing to push through with it, despite the misguided perception that I’m asking for something special and kooky.
If I was to have my way entirely, I’d even consider a laundry room renovation. Melbourne residents, it seems, like to store deep shelf upon deep shelf of items in their laundry, and house half their wardrobe in there as well. What are they storing? Are we all supposed to have ten types of laundry solution on hand, along with several brooms and a lifetime’s supply of dishcloths? If so, I’m evidently doing it wrong.
I think I can handle a laundry having excess storage. Even though I’ll get mildly enraged every time I go in there, at least that’ll only be once a day, max.