Closets and Wardrobes and toilets and vests and things....

[Geoff Bannister]

Geoff:
One of the problems of living on the nice side of the "pond" <eg> is 
that the group sometimes goes wild while I am asleep. Last night, I 
posted message 36274 at 23:58 and retired to bye-byes only to wake 
up and log on this morning at 07:00 to find 36305 on the list!

So, I'm going to have to do a Catlady and try to answer a number of 
comments from different messages.

In post 36275, Potioncat wrote:

> I think in the past we've discussed kitchens often being below ground
> in British houses. Am I correct? That the kitchen at 12 GP is below, or
> partially below ground?

> I ask because it dawned on me recently that the house my mother 
> grew up in had a kitchen below ground, with ground level windows. 
> Her father  built the house. I mean, he and some friends built it. He 
> was a bricklayer. He was from England and now I wonder if he was 
> building the style of house he was used to.

Geoff:
Generally, this only happened in older Victorian/Edwardian houses which 
had servants – you'll get the idea if you ever watched the TV series 
"Upstairs, Downstairs". Most newer UK houses, say from the 1930s 
onwards do not have any underfloor areas; storage, as in my present 
house, is in a loft.

Potioncat:
And while we're on kitchens. What is an Aga?

Geoff:
A large stove for heating and producing hot water with side ovens for 
baking. They are usually solid fuel, coal or wood although there are 
oil-fired installations nowadays.

In message 36276, Carol wrote:
> But I did think that "cupboard" ought to apply to a place to store cups 
> rather than brooms or whatever the Dursleys store under the stairs


Geoff:
Well, its original etymology was a board on which crockery was placed, 
then became a closed box as the cupboard we know today and has 
expanded to cover any similar construction. Almost every UK house 
has a cupboard under the stairs, usually referred to by that name.

In post 36280, Carol wrote
> > Goddlefrood:

> > Geoff's already expanded on what a Welsh dresser is. I would 
> > add that while it is a familiar piece of furniture it is not all that
> > common. If my internal US - UK conversion is working correctly
> > I think it would be known as a tallboy there. <snip>

> Carol:
> I don't think we use the term "tallboy." I think we'd call it a "china
> cabinet." Usually, they're quite expensive and are used more for
> display than for storage. I can't afford such luxuries and wouldn't
> have any dishes worth displaying if I bought one.

Geoff:
A dresser would have open shelves on which the plates etc. are 
stacked individually, leaning back. A china cabinet usually doesn't 
have the same cupboard space below and has glass-fronted doors 
and would also display china other than plates etc.

In message 36281, Carol (wot, `er again?) wrote:
> Then you're the person I need to consult! The manuscript I'm editing
> now calls a man's sleeveless tank-top shirt (what the Brits, I think,
> would call a "vest") a "wifebeater."

Geoff:
I must lead a sheltered existence. Like Lee, I've never heard the term 
before. In UK speak, a vest is an item of underwear between the shirt 
and the body – if you wear one. (I haven't for several years). 

Sometimes also called a singlet if it's the sleeveless type such as 
runners wear.

Finally (whew!), Lee Storm wrote in 36301:

> Ah--and don't forget the term "Lavatory," which is what many 
> the "Rest Room" or "Toilet."

Geoff:
Interestingly, this word has dropped out of UK English recently. 
You rarely hear it used in conversation. And in public, where you 
used to look for the sign "Public Lavatories" – or the more delicate 
"Public Conveniences" – now you look for plain and simple "Toilets".