It sounds like your interested in a larger island, and I think it would work better for your family too. Especially with seating (lower) for the kids to snack at and eventually maybe homework! I also agree with moving the fridge closer to the DR for easy access and not walking through an area for prep or cleaning. It looks like you have 2 pantry areas, so you might want to consider putting a broom closet where the fridge is now and keep your range where it is, but move the other pantry to where it suits you better?
You have such a large area for your island you could pretty much design what you want & need to suit you : )
I like the layout : )
GL

Thanks for the feedback. I'd thought a little about doing a multi-level on the island but maybe we should consider it more seriously.

We will actually have 3 pantries with this plan - our current kitchen is in the family dining area on the plan, so there are two pantries there currently - both on the bottom wall to the left of the foyer entrance. We're planning to leave those in place but add another pantry as shown to the right of the foyer entrance, so more convenient to the rest of the kitchen. I thought that would be our main one, less-used items in the one just to the left of the opening, and the one on the far left could be used for broom closet, extra storage, etc.

Those islands do look small for the amount of space you have. I'm not sure if the problem is that there are 2 of them or just that they don't seem to be sized properly. How much space do you have between the range wall and the edge of the islands. Have you ever considered running 2 islands with the longer side facing the sink? Check out the link below. This kitchen has 2 islands back to back. One for prepping, one for perching. There's also a thread from a couple of days ago with people asking for pictures of kitchens with 2 islands.

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0101192427464.html

It's hard to tell without dimensions, but with 1 really large island you run the risk of feeling like you're walking a long way around to get "out of the area." Maybe if 1 of the islands above was more of a rectangle and the other a square. Seems that they are too close in shape and also, the bigger one isn't really "that big."

Here is a link that might be useful: Mom to 4 Kids

The one island idea is fine. So is two if you like them, but it sounds like you don't. Just for fun see the 2 island kitchen in the thread I've linked below.

If you move the fridge, I think you'd need a prep sink in the island, which would be a tremendous help in keeping your zones separated anyway. Without the prep sink, it'd be a long trek to the sink to wash anything coming out of the fridge. Most things go from fridge to sink to prep to stove...So you don't want to pass the stove to get to sink, then dbl back to stove. This would also create a lot of cross traffic and people getting in each other's way. With an island prep sink, the cleanup zone stays separate and someone can work there without invading cooking space and vice versa. It will also give you work space options for multiple cooks to have more than 1 sink. A person working on a baking project could get water, wash hands, etc. Someone else could be washing fruit or making salad. Someone else could be cooking dinner. Someone else could be unloading the dishwasher and setting the table. Your kids will get older (quickly) and more will want to be helping in the kitchen at once, and you'll want them to! If people are getting in each other's way or everyone is waiting for a sink that's partially filled with dirty dishes, it won't be welcoming space. (Our 8 kids are 3 - 19, and I can't wait for our kitchen to be finished with its different zones. We often have 4 or more in the kitchen at a time.)

Best wishes!

Here is a link that might be useful: See the Pretty and Purposeful kitchen a bit more than 1/2way down

Okay, I'm really going to think outside the box for you....

1.) I would definitely go with one island - I think its just better for gathering a group of children around, as well as big cookie baking sessions, homework projects, etc.
I love my BIG island. Bigger the better in my mind.

2.) If it were my kitchen, from a flow perspective, I would prefer to have the fridge where the ovens are and the sink where the range is. I know that means giving up the sink under the window === but, think of the flow of cleanup after dinner, popping up for the butter at the table, etc.... And it keeps a prep sink off the island. I personally prefer to keep the island clear of all sinks and cooktops. It is where you will turn around to do all your mixing, etc. as you face the kids at the island, family room, guests, etc. It's just a cleaner look and easier to clean, too!

3.) Then if the windows are part of the flexible part.... I'd do a nice range and hood, with a window on either side all centered under a big arch or something to make that look awesome. This keeps the whole cooking zone out of the main flow. Oh, and put the ovens into a built in looking wall where the fridge currently is.

4.) Other things I'd consider, especially if they fit in the budget:
a.)Biggest Refrigerator/Freezer you can afford - possibly an all refrigerator and all freezer next to each other.
b.)Induction cooktop - I love mine! Very, very responsive like gas, quick, saves energy, and very kid safe as burners are only as hot as the heat from the pan. The burners themselves don't heat up - just the pan does.
c.) A speedcook/microwave oven combo - like the GE Advantium 120 --- mine is a godsend with kids. It bakes, it microwaves, it warms, it does EVERYTHING. I call it my workhorse. Stack that with another oven of some sort. And then maybe a microwave in the island for handier kid use.
d.) I did a corner recycling cabinet that I love. It's like the old Lazy susan concept, but with 3 recyling bins going around - one for paper, one for cardboard, and one for cans and plastic.....love it, love it, love it! In my opinion it's one of the best uses for those awful corners in a kitchen.
e.) I also did a tilt out garbage can with a megasized garbage can in my island just opposite the sink - love that, too. I have watched too many friends get the pull out garbage with the little cans and all they do is empty the garbage every half day. The cabinet meant giving up a drawer on the top, but it's worth it. It's the full height of the lower cabinet, but has a fake drawer front on it.
f.) Finally, I did a pull out cutting board on my island that is half over the tilt out garbage can - love that, too! Chop and push over the edge into the giant garbage can! VERY SLICK!
g.) My last favorite thing - Except for one cabinet for my big mixer and blender, I only did drawers in the lower part of my kitchen. Love that, too. Can open them with my toes and peer in to find what I'm looking for - no more bending over and digging to the back!

Hope these tidbits help! Good luck with your decision making!

You have everything positioned so that the cook is always turned away from the rest of the family. That would bother the heck out of me.

The way that kitchen will work most efficently is for prep to occur on the counter between the ref and the sink. The only problem with that is that the counter relatively small and will be congested and far from the rest of the food stores.

Some ref space should be closer to the family dining. Switching it with the ovens is ok or possibly you might want a beverage ref or ref drawers in the buffet. Are you sure you don't want two complete refs? Or are you placing an extra one somewhere else?

With multiple cooks, you may want to duplicate stuff - like an extra sink near the range and/or an extra set of burners. Fire, refrigeration, water, trash are all great duplication candidates. More minor is access to food storage, access to kitchen tools and cleanup. You have enough space to run a major cooking zone and a minor one ...

Where will you keep dishes? If you are planning on storing dishes in the buffet, perhaps the cleanup sink and dishwasher should be across the aisle from the buffet?

Another possibilities for the buffet is snacks and breakfast foods, a prep sink and/or coffee bar.

Thanks for all the feedback thus far!

On the islands as drawn, there wasn't really much thought to them, I think the architect just drew a couple squares figuring we'd get more detail later. The one on the right is currently 4' from the sink, I think that's probably a good distance, or would something closer be better? I am leaning towards one island but not getting much feedback from DH - he says we have a kitchen designer coming so she will just tell us what the right thing to do is :-) I figure it only helps to have some idea of what we want ahead of time.

I am not sure on a prep sink, had never really thought much about having one (we don't currently) until reading a few threads on the forum here. DH thinks we should get a triple sink (two large sides with small disposal area in middle), but maybe a smaller sink for main would work better with the separate prep sink?

I am pretty sure I am in favor of swapping the oven/fridge. Interesting idea about swapping sink and range, too. I'll have to think on that; it would make the transitions and flow better. We currently have range on an island and it's okay, but the idea of a clean island/countertop also appeals. The windows are definitely part of the flexible part, so we could easily do the range with surrounding windows, but I do like the idea of a view outside while standing at the kitchen sink. Choices!

Fridge/freezer I think we are going to be okay on. We're keeping our existing fridge, it's a big one. Then we currently also have a chest freezer in the laundry room (just below the kitchen) and another fridge in the garage. We've talked about moving one or both into the storage room that's above the family dining; we haven't really worked out what will go in there yet. Currently, though, we have plenty of space in the main fridge, with the second one in the garage just for things like extra drinks, butter, etc.

Dishes I'm planning to store in the cabinets along the kitchen wall. The buffet I am actually hoping can be storage for non-food things - games for the kids to drag out and play, art supplies, that sort of thing. I'm hoping with a decent wall of cabinets plus island storage and the pantries that we can get all the food/dishes/appliances there.

Good point about cook with their back to everyone, I hadn't thought about that so much. I guess it might be better to tie the island into more of the prep area, maybe by putting the range on it? If we did the one angled like I was thinking, you could have the range and lots of prep space at the end near the sink, with the middle and angled sides still free for bar seating, projects, etc.

Hadn't thought a lot about garbage; currently we just have a free-standing garbage can which I'd kind of thought could go on the floor between sink and island. The built-in one with cutting board over the top sounds pretty neat, though!

I guess right now I am leaning towards single island with the angle, with fridge next to pantry and oven over by covered patio. Range maybe on the island? Although the range/sink swap is still an interesting idea.

Thanks for the ideas to ponder! Keep them coming :-)

I keep seeing 7 sets of hands, all in a scrum in front of the sink! I'm thinking the number of bowls isn't going to create more faucet!

I for one really like the idea of 2 islands - you have a big space to work with, one huge island would impact flow. Two are more unique, aesthetically pleasing and will result in better traffic flow overall

Hey, I was just scanning past topics and stumbled on one with "Cooktop in front of Kitchen window". Show's several pictures that might be of interest.... Do a search for it.

I can't get my mind round how the traffic flow would work with 2 islands. I like the idea of one large island at 45 degrees so that there is a clear pathway between the patio/back yard and the laundry room/garage. It looks almost as though people would walk between the two islands. One big one should stop people from walking through the prep zone.

I like the fridge where it is. But I think a prep sink would be useful.

As the owner of two triple sinks in two different houses -- don't do it! The little sink for the disposal is too small and shallow and is terrific for shooting water up into the air (with whatever was in the sink). I hated mine and ripped both of them out. They take up a lot of counter space and add nothing IMHO -- your mileage may vary!

By the way, I have a cooktop in front of a window and love it so far.

Hi, Aimee. I'm pretty darned sure two islands won't be right for you. The reason is that a specific need that configuration would fill didn't immediately leap into your mind. You know, like, "Hey, that's great--no more _____!" or "Now we can _____!"

Your little ones aren't going to want to be way out there, of course--they require a place as close to under your feet as possible. And what would they do there that can't be done at the inner island or at the table? Using it for food prep would probably be too inconvenient since everything would have to be schlepped back and forth from more convenient areas. And two islands are intrinsically less flexible than one larger one, so you need a specific function to serve to justify breaking it apart. (Is one now leaping to mind, by any chance?)

Regarding your KD, coming here to inform yourself and stock up ideas was a great move. Some KDs are super, some are terrible, a lot of them are competent, and others are good salespeople but very uninspired/uninterested designers. Regardless, the best kitchen configuration is an individual matter that none of them can just measure and draw up. If you prefer your cookie sheets under the sink and a carton of crayons in a drawer by the fridge, your new kitchen design needs to take that into account.

A prep sink will give you many more options, and space for many more people than just having a bigger main sink which will just be the cause of too many people in one standing spot. Putting the prep sink in the island will also kind of automatically make it into a prep area which does face the family... Everything can't face out, and I am all for having the rangetop/cooktop/range be on a wall where you can use a good hood vent...And all for leaving an island freer for projects people (especially kids) can gather around from 2 or 3 sides.

Thanks for the pointer to the cooktop under window. I also found a thread with pictures of sinks not under window. I don't think we'd go with the cooktop under the window, as someone suggested we could do a regular backsplash and then do the windows on either side - nothing is fixed right now, that wall exists but actually currently has a fireplace on it, so any windows we do are new :-) Maybe I am too traditional, I am still having a hard time going for it, though, the sink under window just feels right.

I am leaning towards one island - I appreciate the poster that said I didn't have a need for the two island configuration - that's true. DH saw it in a magazine and thought it looked neat, but I just don't know.

But then what to do with the island, will it look like this huge expanse with nothing on it? I know we could put the range there, but I am liking the idea of it on a wall with a nice vent/backsplash/etc. I guess possibly a prep sink on it, I am waffling on that as well. We've never had a second sink and I've never missed it, but maybe with the kids getting older it would become more useful.

I guess a configuration like shown, with fridge and oven swapped, but with a prep sink on the island close to the fridge might work out? I appreciate all the feedback, this is giving me a lot of food for thought.

Oh, and another thanks to the person with the triple sink. I showed DH some pictures of a silgranit double sink and he agreed it did look nice. So maybe I can convince him to go that route; it also helps that it would cost about half the amount of the triple stainless he is thinking of.

I also vote for a single, large island with prep sink and swapping fridge and ovens.

Our kitchen layout was influenced by the desire to keep the window wall free of upper cabinets and a range hood, and to recess the fridge. Thus, our kitchen looks like this:

I vote for:

1 island, putting a beverage fridge in it along with a SHARP microwave drawer.

Flipping the ovens and the fridge.

And adding another sink.

Overall, for a family of your size your layout looks fantastic!

The best choices may depend on how you cook. I spend most of my kitchen time prepping -- chopping, peeling, mixing, making school lunches, fixing snacks, etc. and much less time actually at the stove. With 5 kids, I'd say you have a fair number of school lunches to pack in your future. :-) So to me, having the range on the island would be less advantageous than having plenty of prep space (and a prep sink since you've got all that gorgeous space!). That will give you more face time w/ the kids.

(And abbycat9990, I love your kitchen!!)

abbycat, thanks for your pictures, I do like the look of your kitchen. I agree, lots of school lunches in our future :-) I had never thought much about a prep sink before coming here but it is starting to grow on me. I think I'm off to read a thread I found here about prep sink uses (see link below). Maybe that will inspire me!

Here is a link that might be useful: Prep sink thread

Take it from someone who knows, I know you feel buried in nursing/bottles, diapers, and toddler and elementary age activities right now, and feel it will last forever, but it will change...a lot and all too soon! Kids making their own meals, hopefully learning to bake and cook, helping or taking over meal prep at times. Teenagers...First in combination with the little ones still using sippy cups, but eventually they'll range from 10 - 19. Lots of eating will be going on. You'll want to do bigger and bigger baking projects to keep up with growing appetites. No more making 1 pie at a time (if you still do that now), major batches of dough to roll out for cinnamon rolls and cookies, that will all need room to cool. Varying schedule and activities will mess with meal times and prep. Friends and more friends underfoot....Loud and lots of motion, but a good thing. Pizza and ice cream sundae parties, buffets, and if any are like my dd's, even some attempts at 'gourmet' dinner parties. You'll want your kitchen to keep working through all the stages coming. I would really encourage keeping that island open, except for adding a prep sink, which I'm betting will earn its keep in short order.

Best wishes, it's mostly all good, but different at every turn. :-D (Just don't ask me about teaching them to drive...You don't want to think about that yet!)

I don't have a prep sink but what makes me want one is the fact you can be doing dishes and someone "always" want a drink of water.......that drives me crazy. Plus with all the little ones, they can get their own drink, rinse their own fruit and you don't have to worry about sharp knives etc that might be in the sink or having to move!
Like I stated in my first post, I think you'd get more use out of a large island but have you considered your large sink in the island and with your prep sink to the right of your windows...........giving you a lot of area to prep and no one needing to be in that area, since there isn't the range or fridge close by? Plus from the island sink you can see the DR and out the window and be near the range : )
Instead of having seating at one "end" or the other you could have a larger seating area by utilizing the side near the LR for seating, either "up" or level. That would again give you a larger area for set up/prep.
I've seen so many ideas of what you can put into your island from this web site.........it's amazing!! Maybe some will post pics of their islands, with all the interesting ways to use the space ie) a hole in the top to sweep peels etc into a hidden under cab garbage!
HTH

Combining your islands will give you more contiguous space -- believe me, you want this. We started out planning two islands, & are so happy we did one big one. It's not a barrier because the kitchen is zoned well. We have big drawers in our island & love them. It may not be obvious, but our all-refrigerator is the completely paneled one near our ovens, range, & prep sink, and the all-freezer is next to the oven stack, opposite our pantry. The glass front refrigerator is for beverages, snacks, & space for party foods. Our cleanup sink & DWs are on the wall to the right, not visible.

In your kitchen I'd swap the ovens & the R/F, to get the R/F closer to the dining area & the range. I'd put a prep sink in the island on the range side. In our kitchen, we have our prep sink in an island corner.

We've had a triple sink--never again! After always having double sinks, this time we installed a 36" single bowl sink with grids. It is absolutely wonderful! If we want a double sink, we simply use a dishpan.

Here's a picture of what I'm currently thinking, if you can read my kitchen scratch instead of the architect's beautiful drawings. I think my scale is off, too, but at least it gives an idea:

Swap the ovens and fridge, change to a single island, put a prep sink in the island. I also noted a dishwasher and microwave. Probably sliding the range to the right a little to allow a little counter space between microwave and range, although maybe that's not needed?

I like the idea of the angled island, a little unique and also makes the seating nice on that angle, but when DH tried drawing it in with more accurate measurements it didn't work quite so well. But at least you can see roughly what I'm thinking.

Thanks for all your advice thus far. Does this seem like it would work reasonably? I am starting to think that single island is what I want, and also the sink under the window and range on counter, not island, so this configuration seems to fit that, and the prep sink probably would work well to save a lot of walking to the main one.

"when DH tried drawing it in with more accurate measurements it didn't work quite so well --That's key and a red flag to a problem with the idea. Not sure, though, until we see why it didn't work when drawn to scale. It doesn't look like you'll have room for the seating you imagine or the aisle width, because your 4 and 5 ft aisles and your 4 ft island actually, in scale, look more like 3 ft or less each. Things will change quite a bit when it's accurate.

One thing I would want to be careful about is that if you get close to this plan when it's to scale, you have about 6-8 ft between the range and your prep area...That's pretty far to drip things across after you've washed and/or chopped.

Thanks for the feedback. I really like the idea of an island like this where it's angled, but I think it might be more realistic to just have a more normal rectangular one. We could slide the whole thing down so it's like 4 feet from the bottom counters, and put the prep sink across from the range, or maybe centered between fridge and range? I liked the angled seating area, but no reason you couldn't put it on the left end facing towards the main sink.

Well, make a drawing to scale before you give up, just to make sure. You could also have the mostly rectangular island, but angle one end of it just to make it a little fun and different. Doing that might also stretch the seating area a tiny bit.

Good idea. Maybe I will make DH play with it a bit more tonight - he's much more accurate at drawing than I am. I would like the angle, but I guess I could live with rectangular, too.

Any other thoughts on the layout? Does the updated version, whatever final config the island ends up in, seem like it would be functional? I think I am liking it so far - we meet with the kitchen designer next week so we can start filling in more details then.

Trying again, this one is to scale and I've moved things around a little.

1) Swapped the fridge and pantry, so the fridge is on the end. I don't think this will impact functionality that much, will it? We are planning the pantry to be built-in cabinets anyway. And our current microwave/fridge are next to each other and I hate it because our fridge has two doors, and the microwave opens down, and the kids are always bumping the fridge door (stainless) into the open microwave and scratching it.

2) Measured the microwave and range locations better. I moved the range over so there are 2' of countertop between microwave (which will be built-in, countertop height, with cabinets above and below) and range. Not sure whether two feet is adequate for a landing zone?

3) Moved the double oven to the corner. I found a thread on her mentioning the idea and I like it - don't feel like I have that wasted corner space, and also gets the ovens closer to the range and prep area. My main worry here is that as drawn there's only about a foot between range and oven edge, allowing 4' from the wall for the corner oven as suggested in one thread. I don't think the space itself will be an issue per se, as we have plenty of other space on the island, etc. but will it look strange? Maybe I could change the microwave to range distance to 3' and butt the range right next to the oven?

4) Moved the dishwasher to the left side of the sink, and replace the ovens with cabinets/countertop. Will this arrangment work? I think we'll mainly want to store plates/bowls/glasses in these cabinets, and I think there will be room. But then they're far away from the rest of the kitchen. Although that could also be good, setting/clearing the table people can walk (or maybe hike :-) around the top of the island and not through the prep space?

5) Redrew the island to scale. It's 4 feet wide, 42" from the sink, 4 feet from pantry/fridge and then 6 feet from the range. The angled part looks a little stubby in the drawing, but maybe with some rounding it'd look okay? I like the idea of the seating on the angled edge and the prep sink at that angle.

Am I trying too hard with the island? The main issue here is probably that there are only 3 feet between island and the buffet up top. That's going to be a pretty big traffic path. Should I slide it down to leave 4 feet there, but then only 3 feet and 5 feet below (actually the 5 feet would probably be better for prep sink to range distance anyway). Or make the angle even stubbier and go from 4 feet away to 5 feet instead of 4 to 6? Or make that part of the island narrower (is 3 or 3.5 feet wide sufficient?) Or just give up and make it a rectangle, four feet from the entire bottom wall?

A couple things are bothering me. The first I noticed was the narrowed aisle between the buffet and island. Don't do that to yourself. And 6 ft is still pretty far to the island from the stove if you plan to use it for prep.

The other thing is that your range wall is now SO crowded. You've left yourself so little workspace around your cooktop that I don't think it'll feel good or look that great to have all that tall stuff and the poor range pinched in and off-center. I hope you know I'm trying to be helpful, while hoping I'm not being too blunt.

Changing the dw to that side seems a good move. It is a good thing to store your dishes over by the sink and dw, and so that the table setters can access them without going through the work area. I don't know that you need so much counter, so it might be a good place for an upper that comes down to the counter, if you like that look.

I am just not sure what to do about the range wall. I think it is good to get the oven out of the way so you have dish storage on the 'cleanup wall.' I hate to recommend losing the pantry, but I don't know what else you can give up on the cooking wall. If it were mine, I'd probably put the ovens in place of the pantry and keep all the cabinetry in the corner to make up for the pantry space. I'm not a big fan of corner storage either, but I think the ovens are too big a presence and take up too much storage room there.

I'd disagree about the dw. I want don't want dw in front of area where incomming dishes should be piled or in have it open between me, the sink, and the place the dishes are going. This is personal preference for sure.

You can have a third oven or warming drawer between range and pantry or even directly underneath the rangetop. I would rather store pots and lids to one side of a cooking surface than underneath it. Again, personal preference.

The change in island is really about two things. You need to leave at least a three foot aisle between the buffet and island if you have NO STOOLS. Four feet is a good distance for a crowd. The other is with multiple chefs and 5 kids, its not recommended to use 42" working aisles.
{{gwi:1613637}}

Thanks! Be blunt all you want, I appreciate it, much better to consider things now instead of when it's too late.

I ran my picture past DH after posting it here and he is definitely with you about the space between island and buffet. It has to be 4 feet. He had also started describing an island like bmorepanic shows, where it's not angled but does get larger at one end.

I don't think I actually want seating all the way around (with back to buffet). I'd like to have 3 seats at the island - a few people but not the whole family or anything close. Mainly we use our current island seating (room for 2) for breakfast, which is usually in shifts, and it seems like a 3rd seat would be used but not more than that. Another reason I liked the angle, as it gave you more linear space along the edge, although I guess less storage.

I'll have to think on the dishwasher - hadn't really considered having it open vs. not and blocking the sink access. If it were on the right, with the corner ovens, would the doors hit each other? Maybe not.

On the range area, I don't know, maybe I need to see mock-ups of the space (hopefully the KD can do that for us). I liked the thread in the link below on corner ovens - the very bottom set of pictures shows one where the range doesn't have a lot of counter space around it. I was thinking with the island behind you there wouldn't need to be a lot of landing space?

Do you think 42" is not enough between sink and island? That's what our current setup has (actually 41 I think) and it works fine. I didn't think that would be a high traffic zone, normally only one person would be standing there at the sink and even with multiple cooks I don't envision a lot of walking through the area.

Here is a link that might be useful: Corner oven thread

I think the 42" in between island and sink are fine, but again, I think with so little prep area around the stove itself, the island is too far away at a 6' distance.

If I get a chance tomorrow, I could try to draw up that wall in my drafting software and email you a rendering.

If you could draw it up, I'd love it. We remeasured things a little and there's slightly more open space than I have shown in the picture. We came up with, from the left edge:

6" for wall, 3 feet for fridge, 3 to 3.5 feet for pantry (smaller than the 4 feet I had drawn). Then 30 inches for microwave. I think we then have room for 2.5 feet of counter, then the 45" range, then 2.5 more feet of counter, and finally four feet to the wall for the corner oven. From the pictures I saw, the 4 feet for the oven would allow some additional counter space, just dead space for underneath cabinets.

Anyway, I would love to see how it looks. I think the island has to get closer than the 6 feet, though, you're right there. Either go with a standard rectangle all 4 feet away, or else something like bmorepanic drew where it starts 4 feet away and then goes a foot back to 5 feet.

DH and I tonight were also question the window a little bit. As drawn, they're almost 8 feet wide, which is probably a lot of window? I don't think it matters much for the design, other than smaller window could mean more upper cabinets, but do you think a 6' window would be less overwhelming?

I will see what I can do.

Our kitchen window is 6 1/2 ft. Almost 8 would have been nice. 6 would be OK, but I think I'd err on the larger side, rather than the smaller. I would only make it smaller if you need the width for the uppers for your dishes. Which direction does yours face? Ours faces a wooded area to the East and has a covered porch outside besides, so doesn't get a lot of direct daylight.

Here are a couple photos of our window about Christmastime. We'll have a dish hutch that goes down to the counter on the right.

If the windows aren't permanent yet, you could also consider something like this.
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Nothing's permanent at this point, the kitchen area is actually our existing family room, which we'll move to the area of the new addition (top) and then put the kitchen here. So the walls exist, but we'll be taking them to the studs, taking out the fireplace that's currently where the architect has the kitchen window drawn, and adding the windows. So lots of change is possible!

I had thought about swapping sink and range, I think it was suggested up top, but after much pondering I really didn't want to give up the sink under window look. It is probably boring and traditional, but then that's me to some extent :-)

Rhome, the view out the window isn't that great. It is east-facing so would get some light but not a ton. But it looks out onto our side yard and then the neighbor's house. We have a decent sized lot (1/3 acre) for a subdivision and some separation from the neighbors, but you can still see their house. Well, I guess mostly their trees. Anyway, it will be nice because we have the play structure for the kids out there so it will be good to be able to watch them playing from the window, but it's not what I'd call a stunning view or anything :-)

I had been thinking that the window would just be too huge at 7.5 feet, but maybe it's not so bad? I'd like to, if we go with the corner ovens, have room for an upper cabinet between window and ovens, but that may not be feasible anyway, no matter how narrow the window.

Snowy, your comments that the view didn't need to be considered because it wasn't that great and your kitchen got "some light" through that window really grab my attention. I'm going to get preachy because you pushed my button, and because they could mean you're about to drop the ball.

First off, morning light is a wonderful asset to be taken advantage of (lucky you!). When you find yourself loving to be in some room somewhere on a morning (we have one every single day, BTW) it's probably in good part because of it.

Second, the land your home is on is part of the home you live your lives in and is these days an enormously expensive asset that needs a full portion of your consideration. As far as views go, a garden designer recently said she needed a minimum of 11 feet to create a view. She didn't explain why 11, but you get the idea. Right now the children at play are as nice a view as anything, but now about tomorrow when they hop the fence?

I would strongly recommend putting on your list of priorities taking advantage of this enormous asset that is, ugly or beautiful, part of your kitchen by planning to create the best view you can out that window now and eventually. Most people don't realize it, but a well-designed lovely garden need be no more difficult to maintain than a drearily ordinary "yard." In fact, exactly like the difference between maintaining a beautifully designed, well-loved kitchen and the "designless" and uninviting one it may have replaced.

Thanks for the thoughts rosie, good point that just because the view is boring now doesn't mean it needs to stay that way. I guess we'll never have a lake or woods like some have mentioned, but we can do a garden as you mentioned. It's honestly never come up before, because before now the only window on that side of the house was a tiny one in the laundry room, so the view just didn't really matter. But now that we will have this big window, whatever, size, it makes sense to spruce up the view!

I'm not sure what you'll think of this option but here goes.....Again not sure if you can move your existing entrance either. If you can move the door that gives you some extra space for a message area and a larger 2 door pantry, which would help when the kids go for snacks and back to the island, eliminating them from your cooking/cleaning area : )
You may be able to use the space between the range and fridge for a coffee/bev area too. Also you would have lots of storage for drawers in your island for plastic containers (near the fridge for leftovers), P&P near the range and some storage on the other end for bakeware & roasters.
Like I said, I'm not even sure if this is an option to move the door and put in french doors, so just an idea.
Oh, I just realized I didn't think of your MW......coffee/bev area maybe?
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Yes, entry is movable, too, it's kind of nice at this point that everything is mainly on paper. I'm sure I'll feel a lot more panicky/tied-down once we actually start (hopefully 1st week of March).

And thanks for the ideas. I don't think I actually want a message center, I thought about it but DH and I are thinking it will be more a magnet for clutter than useful to us. We have a full study/den downstairs (next to the foyer) which is where computers and bills and the like go. I'm thinking of putting the kitchen phone at the end of the buffet (end closest to kitchen) and maybe using a drawer there to hold a phone book or message pad or the like. But I don't think I want more than that.

That said, though, it is interesting to think that the space could be expanded that direction for whatever we end up using it for. I guess I should double-check with the architect, though, it may be that little short wall is load bearing - that's the top edge of our existing house, and I know the columns (square dots in the buffet) are load bearing, so maybe it has to stay? Or at least would be expensive to move.

I was reading another thread where someone posted about the various work zones and the way things should flow and thinking that my latest proposal, a few pictures up, might actually be pretty functional. With zones near each other and ideally going around the kitchen so you don't interfere. They talked about incoming/storage, where we could put grocery bags on the island and then store into fridge and pantry. Then next is prep, where food comes out of those and onto the island near the prep sink. Then cooking, where we go to the range and ovens. Finally I think was clean-up, where we move on over to sink and dishwasher.

Anyway, made me happy to think that at least I'm not thinking things that are completely dysfunctional :-)