I wish I had pics!! The kitchen cabinet-carts were in a rental house built by a retired carpenter; apparently his own idea. The counters were standard height, each unit immediately beneath the counter had a shallow drawer. Below that was the cart, an open wood frame with one end that looked like a cabinet-style door with a toe-kick but off the floor about ¼". When the cart was pushed under the counter, all you noticed was the "door" which matched the other cabinet doors. I remember there were wooden plinths which actually looked like the standard vertical cabinet dividers; the plinths acted as a stop so you couldn't push the cart through and smash the wall at the back. Most of the carts had adjustable "shelves" (shallow baskets actually) and two had a countertop for the top shelf -- I really loved those when I baked. I liked another of his ideas for some of the wall cabinets. The door of the cabinet was actually a shallow box with shelves (facing the usual shelves) that were just wide enough to hold cups or canned goods. I've haunted websites and carpentry info, and haven't found anything really close, although there are lots of cart plans available. So now I'm looking for a carpenter! Depending on which sort of crafts your DW is into, also consider adapting stackable shoe drawers -boot size-, maybe hidden behind bi-folds. I use these for storing sweatshirts in the BR as well as hold yarns in the craftroom. Sweater size hold flatwork. Link is to the ones I use -- I've got them stacked 9 tall with no problems. Here is a link that might be useful: all-purpose storage drawers

Buehl-- we're hoping that the spare bedroom upstairs will end up becoming the new playroom, and some stuff will be in their rooms. We'll end up with a small toy chest in the living room and the rest upstairs. So the whole "new space" thats created when we take down the wall will just be kitchen and dining room. After seeing Raenjapan's kitchen I may be swayed back to keeping the kithen to the left side and moving the bench for the banquette along the 94" wall and putting a penninsula between the other two windows. Lyvia-- the two 24" bases you see in the current kitchen are actually an island with a strange overhang. I wouldn't be able to put a fridge there. (I know the drawing is a little confusing, it was drawn mostly to show the layout of the first floor.) I also think I won't really have room for two separate seating areas in the kitchen, even if one is really small. Once I start drawing things in, and factoring in wide enough walkways it gets crowded fast. nini & florantha-- seems like G-shaped kitchens are more popular than I thought!!! That is what I origianlly was thinking for the kitchen (towards the left of the empty floorplan above). I love hearing that you have this same thing and it works for you. Also, we currently have Austrailan Cypress flooring in about 75% of the downstairs and plan to push it right through the new kitchena nd dining space as well. Its really beautiful (here is the internet pic.) LRy-- I think the pendants are from Ikea. if not, they are almost identical. If you go to their website ikea-usa.com I think under other departments they list lighting, and its 3 or 4 pages in. $29.99!! I saw them last weekend in person and fell in love. They are really sharp looking. Mnerg-- there are LOTS of possibilities with this blank space. TOO many! LOL! I am having a terrible time making up my mind. I keep worrying I won't ever get it right! I have also considered a small movable table for the center of the kitchen. I guess if I end up with a large center space I can always buy something like that to hang out in the middle when I need it to. Thanks everyone for all the help!!

See, I'd just tell my DH that he could enjoy the sunrise while he's doing the laundry rather than while he's making coffee! ;) I kind of like the look of latest rendition, but I'm not loving the function. Leaving the laundry in the MBR would kill it for me. I know you don't mind it, but I can't imagine that it wouldn't be a sticking point for some potential buyer down the road. It would be for me. The issue raised earlier about kids having to come in the parents' room to do their laundry as they got older would be even stickier with the addition of another bedroom--i.e., room for a second kid with laundry needs. Could your stackable W/D fit in that closet area in the mudroom? Also, how will you use this desk? Will it become your home office space? If not, it seems like it would become a clutter magnet, ruining that nice view. I still prefer the rendition above where you reuse your sink and five-panel door. I think it makes the space far more useful in a house where useful space is at a premium.

javachik, I LOVE how you marked up the layout. One issue with that is that our contractor is building out the wall by 3 feet to exactly where you suggested putting in the fridge, so that would block off the hallway and bathroom from the kitchen and dining room. Aside from that, I'd still do the island, just a smaller one, and still orient the table lengthwise, it would be tighter but it's New York, things are tight anyway. If anyone had suggested the layout you did earlier, I'd have probably asked the contractor to put in columns around an island instead of building out the wall. since posting originally, I bit the bullet and hired a designer to come in and nail things down so we could order cabinets, and we ended up sticking with the one-wall kitchen and making the island 3 by 6 feet including an overhang for 3 stools, and making the focal points of the kitchen the fridge and range, with an undermount sink in the middle and a hidden dishwasher next to the range. I think it will look clean and be functional with access to the stove and sink and fridge from both sides of the island, and a lot of island prep space. As for the cabinets issues, the designer worked with the contractor to tighten the area behind the wall so the counter-depth fridge will only stick out 3-4" inches past the cabinets, which should work. I think this kitchen will work. They did suggest a small prep sink on the edge of the island closest to the fridge. I loved that idea but it added a few thousand to the project and budget is so tight already, and I wasn't sure if it would make the kitchen "awesome" or just end up being a pricey semi-error. So we didn't pull that trigger. As for storage space, the contractor is building closets on an angle into the space next to each pocket door, so we get storage without losing flow. I can't picture it but hope it works well. desertsteph, I thought of your suggestion so many times and ultimately rejected it because (1) the bay window in the dining room is perfectly symmetrical and a gorgeous look from the dining room, and an angled door would ruin the detail and look (if anything I'd put a door between the 2 bay windows, and make our deck wide enough for the door there, but I priced it out and it added some crazy number that we can't afford (turns out neighbors with decks who have converted windows to doors all have doors off the kitchen or middle of bay windows, none on the angle) and (2) the kitchen window is long and lets in a lot of light, so putting the counters in front of the windows would mean bricking up the window partly and losing light which is so important; I couldn't pull that trigger.