Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Creating a cohousing kitchen

[Joani Blank (jeblank]

1. Read the cohousing-l archives on this subject

2. Will someone please post for Kenneth (and others) the reference for the
article on cohousing kitchens by Katie McCamant that was published in the
Cohousing Journal a couple of years back.

3. Re kitchen supplies:  Just like with furniture for your common house, it
widely recommended that you start out with everyone's extras and don't buy
any stuff before you've lived with the hand-me-downs for a while. Right
from the get go appoint a small committee of 2 or 3 people to sort through
people's contributions to eliminate the least functional 3 of the 4
blenders you'll get, and the best of the two old vacuum cleaners..you get
my drift. 

In the Old Oakland group, about a year before move-in filled in a
check-list of stuff we'd like to donate to the common house and stuff we'd
be willing to loan.  We will repeat this exercise close to move-in to
update our info as we come across things we hadn't thought of before.   Our
list is quite comprehensive and includes furniture, kitchen stuff large and
small, exercise equipment, etc. Virtually everything except major
appliances. Several months after move in our small group (9 households at
that time) bought one large stainless steel pot (we already had one) and a
set of sharp knives. Then, we did just fine with odds and ends of pots and
pans for more than 5 years until things got bad and we bought a nice set of
cookware (I think four pieces with lids)  Of course the hand-me-downs keep
coming in slowly--sometimes a little faster when a new household moves in.
For example when our community food processor, already a hand-me-down,
broke down, a new used one miraculously appeared.  See, there really is
magic in cohousing.  Must be the same magic that disappears common house
bowls, plates, glasses and silverware into the ether. 

If you'd like me to post the checklist on cohousing-L, please reply to me
personally  <jeblank [at] ic.org> If I get a bunch of requests, I'll type the
list into an email letter. If I get one or two requests, I'll send it to
you snail mail if you give me your address.                

Joani Blank
Doyle Street Cohousing and Old Oakland Cohousing  (California)