A Kitchen Full of Other People’s Choices 🍳
Borrowed dishes, small apartments, and dreaming of permanence.
Lately, I’ve been thinking and dreaming about what owning our own home here in Spain might look like. Mostly, it comes down to my current kitchen, which, if I’m honest, I loathe.
I have specific tastes — items I loved in the U.S. and want to find replacements for here. Most of them are kitchen-related — the space where I love cooking for my little family. Since moving here, I’ve enjoyed that hobby less because our apartment kitchen isn’t laid out the way I’d prefer. Sure, I’ll admit I’m a little spoiled by U.S. kitchens, which are typically spacious and often feature an island. But as someone who spends a lot of time in front of a stovetop, I’ve learned what works for me and what doesn’t.
Spanish kitchens are functional, and traditional apartment layouts like ours usually have doors that close them off from the rest of the home. They’re smaller than American kitchens, with space for only one or two people to work together. Appliances have a minimalistic footprint, and the washing machine is usually located in the kitchen as well.
In other words, they’re workspaces — built for function, not charm.
My kitchen back in Tennessee was the best one I’ve ever worked in. I had a wide island for extra space, a gas cooktop that worked beautifully with my cast-iron skillets, a big pantry, and more cabinet space than I knew what to do with. Our house had an open floor plan, making it easy to communicate with the rest of the family or watch the news while I prepared meals. It was both cozy and spacious, and I loved it.
I started collecting pieces I loved the longer we lived there: Fiesta plates in rainbow shades, campfire mugs from our kids’ elementary school fundraisers, OXO kitchen utensils, and a Lodge Dutch oven. And the item perhaps I miss the most? A slow cooker I used frequently in the winter to make soups, roasts, chilis, and pulled pork or chicken for sandwiches.
Quick note: This post contains a few Amazon affiliate links. If you buy something I mention — say a Lodge Dutch oven or an OXO spatula — I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
In our small, already-furnished Spanish kitchen, there isn’t much room to begin collecting the pieces I want. Each cabinet contains pre-chosen dishes, silverware, appliances, and cookware. Will and I have made a few concessions — buying a large cast iron skillet, a small food processor, a Ninja countertop oven (which we also had in the U.S.), and some of our own utensils — but it isn’t mine.
For the past few months, we’ve been quietly thinking about buying an apartment of our own. I have dreams of lining my cabinets with Le Creuset rainbow dinner plates — the closest match I can find to Fiesta here in Spain — silverware I chose, and small appliances I handpicked for my kitchen.
Truthfully, I’m ready to have my own space.
This past weekend, Will and I wandered into a ceramic shop in Valencia’s Old Town, and I fell in love. From butter dishes to olive oil jars to decorative wine corks to mirrors, I looked at Will and said, “I could do some real damage in here.”
Except I couldn’t.
Where would I put it all? How would I store it?
The visit only deepened my longing to own my own space again. After over a year of living in a furnished rental, it’s starting to feel like it’s time to put down some real roots. And it isn’t just me. Will has expressed this desire several times as well. It doesn’t help that we’re in our 40s and have owned four homes, so it isn’t a foreign concept.
The longer we’re here, the more persistent the itch to scratch the homeowner urge becomes.
Every day, I scroll through Idealista listings, wondering if that perfect home popped up that morning. I’ve found several apartments that fit the bill, but with our Tennessee house still in the picture, the timing isn’t quite right yet.
But soon.