when coming in from garage to mudroom then to narrow area, I would make a change. this is off your first plan from june 5...place the door from mudroom into kitchen at the lower end of wall [a move to the left] with a walkway that will be wider as the cabinets will be removed on left side..... the main work surface will be the window wall and order this setup at increased depth which is better for"baking", anyway. You will have one deeper run of counter and storage and a wider walkway behind. A family friend did a reno with such layout and the kitchen itself went into a long rectangular space that used to have a small table...it worked-it was cozy-this was their complete workingarea of kitchen mind you, BUT, there was no passage of traffic thru the space to other side to enter/exit. That is my concern with what you show-a lot of criss crossing with 2 walls of storage and work surfaces-a kitchen person or 2, and a "travelling through" person down the middle on this narrow aisle. With deeper storage you may still need to compensate some, so i would flank storage furthur down the wall around hood. The aisle wall that gets a clearance could have some shallow depth shelves between studs-not imposing on the walk aisle -can be done later with local carpenter.Is the island all you want it to be-the circle and all? I wouldn't segment your kitchen up anymore-keep as open as possible, and I wouldn't go into garage. You have separated rooms-as in formal dining/living/family room/etc so as open as the kitchen can be as in your 1st plan is how i would try to do it. Nice move with bath features yet set back thru a bit of passage-sustainable living for "getting mature" phase of life. Not sure about laundry upstairs tho-never lived with that. I need a lot of "piling and folding" space and drip dry/etc.It's in the basement.

Late to the party, but here are a few thoughts. Did you lose the pocket door to the kitchen? A swing door opening against the powder room could get you back a few inches in the kitchen. Have you considered a 48" range rather than a rangetop and wall ovens? Seems that counter space is precious in your house, maybe something to think about. Maybe think about adding a door to the backyard so that there is a straight shot from the dining room through? I like the idea of having a defined "food" space and a separate "family room" space. Is that idea dead? OK, this is against the conventional wisdom but if you decide to go with the defined space approach, maybe consider having a narrow table for eating in place of the island. You could make what is now designated breakfast area into cleanup and dish storage/snack storage, with a big window over the sink. 48" range on the short wall, Elux twins at top by family room, and add a prep/pots&pans sink in between. I am just thinking that might make it easier to get dishes to the dining room. If you keep the island and the proposed "big wall/one room" kitchen, I'd want to get rid of the island seating and use the back of the island for storage. Good luck!

The layout is pretty good, with only a few issues. It's very good for a first layout, btw! . Wall of Tall and Barrier Island... Your island is a "barrier island" - a barrier b/w the refrigerator and the Prep Zone on the island as well as a barrier b/w the refrigerator and Cooking Zone. To fix it, I'd rearrange the wall of tall to be: Utility (where it is now) Refrigerator Ovens Pantry cabinets This helps with the "barrier island" effect. You no longer have to run around the island to get to the refrigerator. . Hood... The hood should be 6" wider than the cooktop - especially if you plan open shelves anywhere in the vicinity. You want to minimize the spread of grease, steam, etc., so you don't develop a layer of grease or "gunk" on whatever you store on the open shelves. . Open Shelving... Anything you store on open shelves will need to either be used every day or two or you will need to dust/wash them b/f using - each time. Also, keep in mind that the shelves themselves will definitely need to be frequently dusted and, if near the cooktop, washed frequently to reduce the grease/gunk buildup if your hood is undersized and/or under powered. (And please be sure to follow the manufacturer's recommendations for installing it - don't install it higher.) Just so you know - the advice I'm giving you about the shelves and the dust comes from personal experience. I have two open cabinets with open shelves (not by design, long story) - one on each side of the cooktop, but not directly adjacent (there's another cab b/w the hood and open cabs) - and I have to dust the shelves frequently. It seems no more than I dust them, the dust starts accumulating again! I don't have grease/gunk build up b/c my hood is 6" wider, I use it every single time I use my cooktop, and I have that cabinet b/w the hood and open cabinet on each side. I also put my electric kettle under the hood when I boil water to reduce the steam on my cabinets and the open shelves. . Trash Pullout... I would place the trash pullout on the end of the island closest to the Cleanup Zone (and cleanup sink). This puts it in the Prep Zone (where it's used/needed the most), near the Cooking Zone (where it's used/needed the 2nd most), and near the Cleanup Zone. . Island Seating and Aisles... If you plan seating on the end of the island, in front of the wall of tall, then you need more aisle space. Right now, you have 36" b/w the refrigerator and island. Ideally, you should have 54" tor a decent aisle b/c it will be a work aisle as well as have seating. If you rearrange the wall of tall as I recommend, you can probably get away with 48" - but it may be a squeeze to use the pantry when someone is sitting at the island. If you don't need that beverage refrigerator, I would forego it if you want seating on that side - or forego the cabinet to the right of the prep sink in favor of the beverage refrigerator. . Island Seating and Overhang/Linear Space... Seating overhang...The minimum recommended overhang is 15" of clear leg/knee space - after accounting for the cabinets + 1" decorative door/end panel on the back and/or sides of the cabinets. I can't tell for certain what you have, it looks close for the seats on the long side, but you don't have that much for the seat on the end. Remember that two seats cannot share leg/knee space on the corner. Linear space...Each seat needs 24" of linear space, again, the two seats on the long side have enough space but the one on the side does not. . Keep in mind a few other things... If you are going to have 30" wide ovens, your tall oven cabinet will need to be at least 31.5" wide. Normally, they're put in 33" wide cabinets, but you can get away with 31.5". If you're using IKEA, there won't be a 31.5" wide cabinet. The refrigerator will need a bit of air clearance around it, so be sure you have room for that. It is going to be difficult to access items in the 36"W x 24"D cabinet under the overhang. Normally, I would recommend no more than 15" deep when under a seating overhang. You won't be able to do a drawer on the top b/c it would be inaccessible. You will need to do roll out tray shelves as best you can to be able to get to anything. Blind corner cabinets are the least efficient types of storage in a Kitchen, as well as the most difficult to access/use. Personally, I'd rather void out a corner than have a blind corner cabinet. What does work well is a corner susan. Corner susans provide excellent storage for pots & pans, small appliances, and anything else heavy or bulky. Items on corner susan shelves are easily accessible b/c they're always in front - just rotate the shelf until the item is in front and lift it out. Vs a blind corner that required either crawling into the cabinet or using swing outs that can fail and allow things to fall off (which then require a small child to crawl inside to retrieve b/c the fallen item will prevent the swing out from closing). .

Are you worried about "line of sight" for the aesthetics? Is it b/c I suggested closing the right door most of the time to prevent people from cutting through the main working area of the Kitchen? Is it just "line of sight" or is it also the ability to walk through the doorway that you want? If it's just the view, then how about closing up the door but creating a pass-through where I have the door in Layouts 7 & 8? I also have to question whether you really have enough space for the table in the LR long-term. Maybe it will work, but can you have all 8 of you sitting around the LR with the table in there? You say you can fit two sofas -- but the reality is that unless those sofas are extra long, only three people will most likely fit comfortably. The other thing to think about is that most people don't like sitting in the middle of a sofa, they like being on the end with an end table within easy reach -- and to be able to lean on the arms if they'd like. The middle people are like the middle seats in a plane -- you don't really have much space sitting b/w the window and aisle seats. . I'll be honest and say that I prefer Layout #7, but if you really like Layout #8, then think about whether the DR table in the LR is really going to work long-term. (It's new right now, so let the "newness" wear off b/f deciding.) If it will, then I think it's time to ask yourself what's more important -- aesthetics or function (regarding "line of sight)?