27 February 2010

You, me and the kitchen sink

Today's kitchen sink is from Lisa in Germany.  It's very familiar to me as I lived in Hamburg for two years when Hanno and I first married.

Lisa writes:
"I discovered your blog a few weeks ago, and I really love it! I check it almost every day :) what I found really interesting are the kitchensink-photos you post on tuesdays.
I study anthropology and what really catches my interest is everydays ordinary culture. what I noticed in the pictures you already posted, is that the sink is always in front of a window, 
so while washing the dishes you can look outside - I like that! in germany where I live, the sink is usually facing a wall. I also noticed, that most of the pictures were from america, so now, here are some from europe :)
In the pictures you can see the sink and part of the kitchen. I'm a university student and I live in a really big and old apartment with seven other people. You can see our cruchet-washingcloth hanging over the sink and next to the sink our red water carbonator that we use to turn our tapwater into sparkling water."

Please don't forget to comment. A comment is like payment for the time taken to post, and in this case in sending in the photos.  Many of us were enthusiastic about this series, so make sure all the photos get a good number of comments.  I don't want any of the people sending in photos to regret joining in.  Thank you friends.

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52 comments

  1. I remember having a water carbonator when we lived in Germany. I miss that! Your kitchen is so cute!

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  2. WOW - 8 people in one apartment!!! Your kitchen is quite cute. You too have a little window view! Good luck with your studies.
    Cheryl (USA)

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  3. 7 people living in one apartment? Wow must be a great lesson in patience and understanding. Love how much light comes in those windows and surprisingly how clean the kitchen is. 7 different people living together could make for one disaster of a kitchen.

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  4. I absolutely love this kitchen, it's so full of light and life!

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  5. I'm snowed in in Pennsylvania, and your kitchen looks so wonderful- I love all of your decorations!

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  6. Being from Germany myself, this brings back a lot of memories. :-) It's a nice and bright space to work in. Ist eine schoene und gemuetliche Kueche!

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  7. New here. Love your idea. Who knew kitchen sinks could be so interesting and diverse? I love this post about the difference in kitchen layouts. Who knows if I get my kitchen clean anytime soon I may just try and get a picture of it :)

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  8. Looks very cozy! I love the print on the wall

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  9. Wonderful kitvchen thank you for you and your flat mates for sharing.

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  10. Lovely! Looks like a great place to cook in...everything close by!

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  11. How fun to see kitchens across the world. I'll bet this is a neat little apartment in Germany. A carbonator - that's a neat idea. Too bad we don't have those here! Thanks for showing us your cute kitchen!

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  12. I want a water carbonator!

    And for what it's worth I have a sink that faces the wall too and I live in Canada.

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  13. Funny, that kitchen reminded me of when I lived in Asia.... small sink, small stove.

    I love seeing pictures of kitchens, I hope to design my own some day! So, keep those pictures coming!

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  14. I've lived in seven different houses and I've only once had a sink that wasn't in front of the window! I never realized that that's something I take for granted in the U.S. What a lovely little kitchen though, I love rooms full of color and life like that!

    Liz
    Oregon, USA

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  15. Lisa raises an interesting point. In England, sinks are usually in front of a window. Could this be a custom that was taken by the early settlers to Australia & the States and continued there?

    I've never thought of the sink being elsewhere but I rather like the idea of light coming onto the sink from the side, as in Lisa's photograph. Perhaps we should start a new trend.

    Johnson

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  16. Lovely kitchen especially for a flat share! You must be all lovely people.
    Its normal in Britain too to have a window in front of the kitchen sink. Its nice to see the birds hopping around the garden as you clean vegetables or wash dishes.
    Lizzie

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  17. It looks like a lively and interesting kitchen to be in. I've never heard of a water carbonator before, I guess you learn something new everyday.

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  18. What a lovely kitchen! I'd noticed most of the sinks overlook a window too - mainly because mine doesn't and I'm jealous :) Mine faces a horrid dark wood panelled wall, and some nasty veneer cupboards, lol!

    I've taken photos of my kitchen, but just not got brave enough to send them in, because it SO does not look like the pretty kitchens everyone else has :)

    Thanks Lisa, and thanks rhonda for reminding us that we're all different, and to appreciate what we have!

    (I once shared a kitchen with 14 people as a student - now that WAS a complete disaster...)

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  19. those dishclothes look very cute hanging up. It does make a huge difference having a window to gaze out. i watch my chickens in the backyard while I'm doing the dishes.

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  20. This kitchen really has nice lighting and looks nice and happy and it's hard to believe that that many people share the space. May you do well in your studies.

    I didn't always have a window over the sink, but it is a dream come true since we made the scullery off the kitchen.

    FlowerLady

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  21. Thank you for sharing this kitchen, it looks so well organised as it would have to be as it is obviously a very busy kitchen, 8 people sharing.

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  22. How cute! And I have never heard of a water carbonator. Sounds intriguing. Looks like your apartment mates are very tidy. My girls share one kitchen and it is usually full of dishes! Thanks for sharing.

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  23. Hi Lisa, nice kitchen! I never thought about the sink being in front of the window, I guess I have just always expected it to be. Now that I think about it, I think the kitchen of my childhood home had a sink facing the wall. I must ask Mum. Thanks for sharing.

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  24. A lovely kitchen.

    I once shared a house with seven other people. Our kitchen was never that nice.

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  25. Lovely kitchen!

    Beautiful light coming in from that window!

    Thank you for sharing your kitchen!

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  26. I was noticing all of the window too! I do live in the US (Minnesota) but my sink faces a wall. All of the houses I've lived in had the sink facing the wall.
    We are full German though and Minnesota has a lot of Germans living here???

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  27. I like your kitchen. It is very homey looking. And wow! Living with seven other people! That must be funchallenginginteresting!

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  28. I just noticed you have a Kroken kitchen rail from Ikea that you have utensils hanging off of on your wall. I have those in my kitchen too. Pretty cool you in Germany me in Indiana US:both have good taste :)

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  29. In US you can also get machine to put bubbles in water (carbonator). Check on internet. I like a window to look out when I wash up, but in some places the area above the sink has rack style dish storage so glasses and dishes drain and store right above the sink.
    A reminder that we really don't need so many dishes daily!

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  30. I think the sink being under a window was to allow the steam to escape, but I could be wrong.

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  31. Your kitchen looks very comfortable and warm. Vielen dank!

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  32. What a nice little kitchen! Very different from what we have in America. It's so much fun to see kitchens from all over the world Thanks for sharing! :) Melissa

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  33. Thank you for sharing your kitchen. I love it!

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  34. I love this kitchen! Can I be a room mate too?

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  35. I love how light and cheery your kitchen is.

    Not all of us are lucky enough to have kitchen sinks facing a window...I look at a wall with a paper towel holder on it while washing up. :)

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  36. Wonderful kitchen! Thanks for sharing.

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  37. Very nice kitchen... I like having a window over my sink too. I have lived in one house without the window, and it drove me crazy. I even hung a picture over the sink, of an outdoor scene.. but it surely wasn't the same.

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  38. Your kitchen looks really homely and the light is great. Its great to have an insight into kitchens all over the world. Well done.

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  39. When we moved here to Wales, our sink uncompromisingly faced a brick wall. One of the first things we did was to put it facing the little window at the back, which overlooks the yard and when I had horses, I could see them in their stables as I was washing up.

    That's a lovely kitchen you have and very tidy for a student kitchen!! My daughter is one of 6 sharing a student apartment too, but their kitchen doubles as a sitting room too, with a big tv on the wall. I love your Pre-Raphaelite picture on the wall.

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  40. What a nice bright, cheery kitchen.
    Very neat and clean for so many people. When my daughter was at college (university) and sharing a kitchen, it wasn't as clean!
    Connie

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  41. Thanks for sharing your kitchen with us.
    I have never heard of a water carbonator either.
    Would love to have one. ---krystal

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  42. My sink faces a wall but that is because the water supply is nowhere near a window to keep the pipes from freezing.

    I love your little kitchen! And I want a carbonator also!

    I too have been watching the similarities and differences in the material culture of the kitchen postings--very interesting.

    Deb in Wisconsin,USA

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  43. A cheery kitchen to cook in!
    I love your header Rhonda..

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  44. What a charming kitchen! It looks just pleasantly cluttered, and and the window is lovely.

    I myself live in Canada, in a townhouse (row house), and my kitchen doesn't even have a window at all! I hate it. I am going to make sure that our next home has lots of windows in the kitchen, make no mistake. :)

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  45. It is a busy kitchen (lots of things) but it has loads of character.

    I do like it though.

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  46. Ich finde für eine Studi-WG-Küche sieht es ziemlich sauber aus!
    Interessanter Punkt, das mit dem Fenster und der Spüle...
    Looks like a lot of life is happening in this kitchen. Thanks for sharing these pics!

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  47. I live in Belgium, and when I was a student, also lived in a beautiful old building (I think it used to belong to nuns). At our floor there where like twelve rooms sharing one kitchen. And it NEVER looked as tidy as this :) It seems like a warm and friendly place.

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  48. How fun to have a water carbonator! I would love one of those.

    Lovely kitchen. Thanks for the view from Germany. I've actually loved in 3 places w/sinks that didn't face a window - I much prefer the window.

    Blessings from Ohio/USA...Kim<><

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  49. When my grandmother moved from her home to an apartment, the sink faced a wall. So she put up a mirror with curtains to make it feel like a window. It really worked.

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  50. I've had three homes here in the US that didn't have a window above the sink. The last one, I put a corkboard over the sink and put photos, to do lists, poetry, comic strips, and interesting quotes. It made it as nice as a window.

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