easier to read:

{{!gwi}}

The two things I am least fond of is having the tall, double oven cabinet breaking the countertop....I think I would put that at the end or closer to the end of the run. Also, although there is 48" between the island and the cooktop, I personally dont like lining up the sink and cooktop directly across from each other...in plan it looks good, but Im wondering if two people were there, would it be confortable to stand exactly back to back?

I would almost switch the location of the double ovens and the cooktop. Usually someone is only at an oven for a few minutes taking/putting things in, so it wont be a problem for it to be across from the sink, although I'd make that end cabinet smaller and push the ovens even further down so they are slightly diagonal from the island sink.

These are just some of the things I take into consideration in my own kitchen and well as while designing for clients.
Good Luck with your renovation.

Good point about the double oven placement.... not quite sure what to do with them. If they weren't there, that would be an awfully long run of to-the-ceiling-cabinets and counter.. I thought that might look boring. I know what you're saying, though..... I'd prefer them to end a run of cabinets. I really don't want to move the sink in island or the cooktop lined up with it. .... but now you have me thinking... :P

Hmm

I was thinking along the same lines as archnista: sink and cooktop back to back aren't practical, and I'd rather have the double ovens at the end of the run.

What would you think about moving the ovens to the bottom of that run, moving the cooktop further up, and shifting the island sink down just a bit so it's more of a prep sink for things you take out of the fridge? I can understand the aesthetics of lining up the cooktop, sink, and center of fireplace, but for actual usage it doesn't seem practical.

Where is your trash pullout going to be?

I'm redesigning right now with double ovens at bottom of run..... not sure how I feel about it. I like the ovens there, but didn't want to move the cooktop. Oh well. I agree this likely makes more sense.... I need to look at photos online and get some inspiration, I guess :)

I'm not sure how I feel about a trash pullout. I've never been in a home where people have one! I'll likely either have a can in the pantry or just use the space under the large sink. Otherwise, that space is mostly wasted. It won't even have a garbage disposal in it. If I were to put in a trash pullout, how big would the cabinet need to be?

Ok. My DH haaaaaaaaates the idea of the wall ovens being parallel with the island. He thinks there is not enough space...... ? help?

How about putting the wall ovens next to the fridge? Your pantry would be a bit smaller, but maybe you could put some food storage at the end of the cabinet run. This might be a god place for something specific like baking supplies or snacknfood.

We can't make any changes to the framing at this point, so that isn't an option. I really like the idea of having it at the end of the cabinet run, but it throws off my everything-is-balanced obsession. I'm working on the design with the oven at the end :)

I'm not sure what 'ovens parallel with the island' means? Do you mean that they open toward the island? Our ovens are across a 4 ft aisle from our island and it's PLENTY of room. We could do with less if it wasn't a pretty major pathway through the room.

I would move the island toward the sink, so the seating overhang is not in a work area. I would also move the island toward the stove for a 3'6" aisle there. (I actually prefer 36", but would leave more for the oven.) I would move the put the ovens on the fridge end of the stove wall run, and move the cooktop toward the window/sink wall. I wouldn't line up the sink and cooktop, as I like clear counter for prep directly in front of the stove. Moving the island will make the oven and island only overlap by half, so there is a little more maneuvering room in front of it, if that's what your dh is worried about. You could shorten the island a little more, but I don't think it's necessary.

Do you need a pantry by the dishwasher if you have a walk-in pantry? A full-ht, full-depth cabinet there will enclose that counter run, while just counter and upper will help it feel more open. For more interest, you could have an upper that comes down to the counter but is less deep than the base cab.

I see that you're trying to line up the stove with the fireplace....But you can't see both at once...So I wonder if that might be less necessary?

Anyway, this is what I would do, in a sketch:

"I'm not sure what 'ovens parallel with the island' means? Do you mean that they open toward the island?"

Yes,... but I don't think it's a big deal. Really, it's almost a good thing to have the landing space right behind you. I'll work on him :)

"Do you need a pantry by the dishwasher if you have a walk-in pantry? A full-ht, full-depth cabinet there will enclose that counter run," It isn't a pantry for food. It's for dishes and larger items. With inset uppers, a lot of large items, like our dishes, won't fit. This was our attempt at creating a space for all of that stuff that was near the cleanup/dishwasher area. Your idea also works, if the uppers are deeper than normal. I think that's what you meant.... :) I went with my option over your idea because I'm guessing it costs less!

As far as moving the seating area, I'll ponder that today :) However, I don't want to move the island closer to the main kitchen wall. Among other reasons, we have dogs that are constantly underfoot and shadowing us. We're in a tight kitchen right now and any tight space would drive us crazy!

This is what I have currently:

{{!gwi}}

You are not going to fit a lot of large dishes in 22 inch wide cabinet, even at 25 in deep - the interior will be only about 20 inches wide. What about a upper that is 37 (15 + 2) inches wide, 15 inches deep. That size cabinet will hold a lot and in general be more practical. It could have glass doors, sort of continuing the glass from the window above the sink (and the door, if it is glass). I also don't like the way the cabinet as you have it unnessarily closes in the space and blocks the door.

I just assumed from the overhang on the sink end that you plan seating there. That's what will really fill up that aisle. Without it, as in my plan, I don't think you'd need 6 ft of walking space, even for the doggies. :-) We have 2 large dogs constantly underfoot ourselves. Unless you've had it before and found it inadequate, I find 48" aisles to be very roomy, even in a house with 2 large dogs, and 8 kids. I often think we left them larger than we needed to.

I still wouldn't want someone seated in the dishwasher area, but otherwise, I like the changes you made in the plan. And I was hoping that was the purpose for your 'pantry' in the cleanup area. I think a pantry for dishes is a great idea.

I like this alot better! I'm with rhome on the overhang by the DW; I'd rather see it on the other end so that your trash pullout is closer to the main sink and DW. It seems like alot of steps between the clean up area (sink, DW) and the trash.

You had asked earlier about how much space is needed for a trash pullout and whether it can go under a sink. I don't know the answer but I think that idea is worth exploring so that your trash is closer to the sink and then you can use that space in the island for other storage, or for compost and recycling pullouts.

Someone here has a trash pullout under the sink; can't remember who but if you post a new thread on the topic maybe they'll see it.

I could have another trash in the big sink. It is a 36" cabinet and no garbage disposal. It should have plenty of room. I suppose I could try to put both trash cans over there only.... but that is something I'll ask the cabinet guy about. I've seen pics on here of trash pull outs under the sink, and they look great. :) Thanks for the ideas.

I'm hesitant to put seating near the refrigerator.... mainly because our master suite entry is the door right above the pantry. I guess this would never be a big factor from day to day as we are just a family of two. I'll run it by my DH for his thoughts.

I meant to close off the cabinet end with the 22" pantry.... I like countertops closed off like that, but your comments are making me reconsider how I approach it. It could very well block off that door too much..... and reduce the light. As for the size, I don't have that many dishes.... 22" W / 20" W by 9 feet tall would be far more room than I would ever need.

If I do something like the following picture where the cabinet sits on the counter, would it still be too closed off?

{{!gwi}}

{{!gwi}}

I meant something like those, although was thinking of something nearer 15 or 16" deep. The deeper it is, the more it blocks, so you just have to weigh which is most important. We also made ours only that 15 or 16" depth so we could set plates in front if we ever needed or wanted to.

Since a seating space on the fridge end would be tucked in a bit behind the oven, I don't see that it should be a problem with the master suite entrance, even if there were more of you? Don't know why anyone might usually sit there while the master suite was in use? It'd still be preferable to me than having someone seated in my way in the kitchen...My priorities! :-)

It's obviously not finished yet, but here is ours:

Here's what it's supposed to look like ;-)

I think that is great, and I appreciate the photos. I am going to copy! Thank you! :)

{{!gwi}}

Ok.... I flipped the seating to the fridge side thanks to your suggestions. I agree, now that I have had a day to think it over! It is a lot better this way. It also makes our great room more open..... WIN! :)

The sad part is I have to move my faucet now... I wanted a bridge faucet that was centered in the island.... (it just looks so beautiful!!) Will a bridge faucet look silly where I have the faucet planned now? I could change that faucet with the other one,.... I just really wanted the pretty one in the island :P

Well, if you move the cooktop over a little to where the ovens were in the first plan, then your island sink could stay centered and you can center the bridge faucet.
BTW, I really like the look of the cabinets sitting on top of the countertop in that picture.

I wouldn't center the sink and faucet in the island, as it would leave too small counter areas to each side. I think the faucet would look fine off-center. I think, though, if you decide to have that particular bridge faucet at the main sink, it'll also be seen and appreciated there.

I think this plan looks good. Much improved from where you started. The only remaining suggestion: I'd encourage you to consider moving the island toward the cooktop so it's not such a wide path to move prepped food from the island to the pan. Here is a photo with 2 full-grown daughters and another with kids and dogs sharing the 36" aisle between our rangetop and island:

why did you move the microwave to the inside of the island? I think it would be more useful to have it facing the frig on the outside of the island.Oh, now I see, you have an overhang there. Do you need the overhang? Can the micro go in the pantry? Or, can you move the sink to the other end of the island? I just think the micro is better out of the way of cooking and prepping.

We need the overhang, and the micro could go in the pantry. :) That was our original idea..... might still happen. We don't cook enough for micro vs. cooktop to be a concern, but I am concerned for when the microwave dies.

Rhome..... thanks for the photos. DH really wants a wide aisle, but I think I can move it in at least a couple inches. Your photo definitely helped to see that. LOL at the dogs :)

lolauren, I'm so glad to see you relinquish your need to have island sink and cooktop line up (and it's all about me, you know ;-) ). I really think your latest plan looks great and should function very well for you. I wish I had as much space.

How soon do you begin remodeling?

lisa_a ----- thanks for your advice! :) I am stubborn at first, but I do think everything over. Turns out, you kitchen-obsessed-ppl are normally right ;)

The house is currently being built, so it's not a remodel. (I guess I 'remodeled' their floor plans A LOT.) I think it should be done by Sept 1st or so :)