This is our first remodel project and we've certainly learned some lessons. We interviewed 4 companies - 2 design build firms and 2 architects. DH's uncle is an architect in another state and he was our sounding board as we went through the process, and gave suggestions on floor plan. Ideally, we would've had him do our house, but we couldn't afford it. We liked one architect's design portfolio, but decided we didn't have the money to do what they could've designed to really take advantage of their creativity. One of the design build's firm work was more in line with what we knew we could pull off. The floor plan they came up with is a good use of our space. If we had unlimited money, we would've gone a different option. Be prepared to consider options. We were dead set against touching the 2 bedrooms as we needed the space to live in, but the weird walk-in closet in one bedroom was the perfect location for the master bathroom. There were 2 closets in this room and it was minor change - building a 5' wall to close it off from the bedroom and creating a doorway in the other wall for access to the master. This one change made the entire layout work. We did consider minor changes, but they didn't fix underlying problems with layout. That's why people are suggesting you consider relocating kitchen or opening up some walls. Yes it is more to do that, but it costs so much to do anything in the first place and it may be worth it. You won't know until you check.

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Houssan’s idea of using color to minimize the appearance of the horrible painted stone has me thinking- Luckycanucky that is actually a true full masonry fireplace so removing the stone veneer would be costly labor intensive and likely very messy. Your suggestion of incorporating a shelf that extends or continues the mantle into the dining area is likely something that will be incorporated. The space is too small for a traditional china cabinet and a furniture piece in that area would obstruct the hot water radiator so it’s a perfect solution to help resolve a couple issues. Calidesign a wood over mantle seems like the best solution to the odd termination with the stone. If you look a couple posts up I think you would agree placing the TV over the fireplace (which isn’t necessarily my first choice either) is a better compromise than what would happen if the sectional was placed against the kitchen island to get the TV into that corner to the left of the fireplace- (unless I have completely misinterpreted what everyone is suggesting.) Yayagal- I really like your idea of painting the black metal gas insert a gloss white, removing that harsh contrast will help minimize the offensive painted stonework! acm - Totally get the reasoning behind not noting to place the TV over the fireplace however, our current sectional is only a couple of years old and was a very expensive custom piece from Bassett Furniture so it is going to be used in this space- A couple of posts up there is a floor plan clearly showing how dysfunctional the entire space would become in order to get the TV into the corner as many folks are suggesting. I seriously hate that the previous owners painted that beautiful hand chiseled stone and the stone hearth but even if it had been left in its natural state the odd termination of the stone before it reaches the ceiling makes me cringe whenever I look at it. This house has a lot of quirky spaces and functionality issues but the fireplace is far and away the most troublesome for me. Your ideas of accessorizing that area are spot of for our style and very much appreciated… Decoenthusiaste I never thought about painting the fireplace black- i’m going to search out some pictures to see if that’s something I’d find appealing!! We will be using a smart TV so it can go literally anywhere as long as I can get power to it so the sky is the limit but it seems that given the limitations of the room and my furniture the placing the TV over the fireplace provides the best overall functionality-

Most likely the joists run parallel to the vanity wall it should allow the plumbing for the toilet to be moved so if that's the case it's doable, you have the room for a 33" vanity with a 15" sink base or to give extra room you can go with a 36" with a 12" base or 42" to give extra room for the toilet if needed.