Well, first get your cooking appliance in. It's a kitchen. You have to be able to cook the way you want to. Second, I don't know if it's to make the drawing easier, or a true change: I don't like losing the angle on the outside of the house, so I hope it's the former. As to the cabinets, they can always be made useful. I have a necessary 9" lower between a bank of appliances and the corner. Can't be helped. When I first saw it labeled "tray" by the cabinet maker I kept saying "no, I don't want that" because it's the wrong size and location for trays for me. It might make a great tray pull-out for you, however. Think cookie sheets, carving board, cooling racks, etc. Or a spice/oil/wine pullout. The alternative I came up with for my location is cereal and crackers. I would have otherwise put them in an upper, but it's a good use for the pullout. I like the looks of the one with the angle better, however. Would it be more useful as drawers? Perhaps have a cabinet on the far side of the cooktop? Are you willing to consider asymmetry? Move the rangetop to the left a little so that it'll fit? If you lose an inch and gain your preferred appliance is it worth it? The uppers look good with the angle. Have you considered a corner style cupboard there? With a door with a center hinge you'd be able to open up that whole upper corner space. It might not look as sleek, but could be useful.

Dojey - don't be embarrassed, I think sometimes that we can become so accustomed to having our homes in a state of disruption and dysfunction that we forget how we used to cook and have real food in the house. I think that happened to us last time. We still have not reverted back to getting into cooking everyday, and it has been two and a half years since we got the kitchen back functioning. Sometimes renovation just sits and we do other things instead. I still have one kitchen cabinet door to sand and stain. Out of 30 doors and 20 drawer fronts, I missed one. Turns out it was sitting at my carpenter's shop. Two summers I have not gotten it done. THIS summer, I am going to do it. And I will sand and re-stain old trim and install it, too. I used a re-used kitchen in my remodel. I like your plan. The work area is big enough to not feel cramped. You have the island to "defend" your space from interlopers, you have extra space on the right side of the stove, and you have LOTS of storage. The horizontal upper cabs are nice and modern. In my first kitchen remodel, in 2003, I had 6 running feet of 8 ft. tall pantry cabinets. They were just cabinets with shelves, no pull-outs. We only had room for 12 inch deep cabs, and they worked fine. I did have room at the end for a utility cab, and it was 2 ft deep. It held the vacuum cleaner and other cleaning supplies. In my experience, a 2 ft deep cabinet that is just shelving is TOO deep for storing foodstuffs. Cans and boxes will get lost. Your cabs by the garage look like they might be that deep, so I wanted to warn you. If you use pull-outs for food, that deep is good. Deep cabs are good for appliances, but not for food. My current home had a horrendous 40" deep by 30" wide pantry cab. I had to stack foodstuffs on stair-step shelves along the sidewalls, put anything in the middle in baskets, and use a grabber to pull baskets to the front to get things. It was one of the reasons we remodeled. They should make the builders who create such stupid designs live in them before they sell them to an unsuspecting public! Welcome back. Are you feeling excited to get working on your new kitchen?

Thanks Homepro1. I think what you're suggesting is what I was more or less leaning towards. The toilet in the upper left corner, facing the diagonal wall. The sink along the lower wall, closer to the door. (Standing space would be more or less the same for both facilities...just pivot!). The rather narrow boxes you've used, have me a bit confused though...so not sure if this is what you are suggesting The window is about 40 inches off the floor. No real worries about "viewers" in any case... it's not in the eyeliner of neighbors. The pocket door is,in fact,likely to to be a pocket door, but a frosted glass slider...barn door type hardware. But no worries about where it will be. If there are guests in the house, it will be closed, to keep the mess of my bathroom private!

I find coffee tables to be a huge waste of space and hardly ever used. I much prefer tiny side tables at each end of each seating unit. Another problem with coffee tables is that if they have sharp corners, I'm certainly going to run into them and get nice big bruises on my legs! If you insist on having a middle coffee table, get a round upholstered ottoman and put a large tray on it for drinks and remotes. It can double as seating if you have guests. Regarding lighting, ceiling lights don't do anyone any favors in the living room. Much better (to start off with) is a table lamp or wall sconce in each corner at chest height. Lighting is very important for atmosphere. Please give it the respect that it deserves. For wall decor, look for a local artist, art gallery, or some colleges have their own art museums. Art is very personal. Take your time and get pieces you really love. If you don't get anywhere with my first sugegstions, try art.com. Get a print from them and get it framed locally in plexiglass (lighter and safer than glass) where you live.