Sorry, but I couldn't support any of these plans for you, including the original. By the time you have doors/drawer fronts and counter overhangs, your aisles will only be about 33" wide and you have very difficult work paths...I don't see a prep sink in any of the plans, so it is not at all efficient to get between fridge and sink, sink and stove, and fridge and stove. The routes are awkward and/or blocked in most cases, made more difficult by tight aisles. In 2 of them the oven opens across a doorway, which can be a hazard, and if possible, nice to avoid.

The last plan is backward compared to the rest, right? (bottom is the same as top in the others?)

Can you tell us exactly where the wall will be required on the first layout? It will be easier to work within properly drawn walls of the plan to make changes, instead of the line drawings that don't include the morning room, so it will be helpful to know where that wall comes in. Also, can you label the doorways so we know what kind of traffic is coming from each direction in the plan?

You have a lot of nice space to use. I think you're just trying to fill it a little to much, and need better work paths. But with this space, you should be able to have a nicely functional kitchen.

In the last plan, where does the doorway on the upper left go to? If it is not a high-traffic doorway, you might consider putting the refrigerator on that short cabinet run where you have the wall ovens. You would have to shorten the run where the range is, and the island would become shorter from left to right.

Have you considered layouts without an island? The last layout, with the peninsula, seems to have the most functional space.

I second what rhome said about the plans and the aisles. I hesitate to suggest anything cause I don't feel like I have enough information.

If I could ask what it is you want by specifying two islands? Like more communication with morning room, to be center stage while cooking, efficiency over a large island, easier to cook together? If you just think it looks cool, thats ok too.

It is possible to label the doorways? And bearing walls if you know along with the location of the required beam and the suggested post locations?

Do you guys cook together, separately at the same time, alternately? Professional chefs or pro grade cooks or big microwavers and salad makers? Do you entertain? Got kids? Elderly relatives?

Thanks for all your input. The last drawing is reversed (which is funny, because late last night, I thought I reversed it so I flipped it. Oops.) Here are the updated layouts with the hallways labeled. The 2nd and 3rd drawings contain a prep sink in the center island.

To try and answer everyone's questions, I have 2 boys, 4 and 2, and a third boy on the way. I would like to have seating at the counter for them. I am the only cook, but I love to cook. My boys also like to "help." I don't want to be isolated in the kitchen while I'm cooking. I like to entertain, which was the idea behind all the seating and the 2 islands. Maybe we need a whole new layout and we're just stuck in our brains because of what we originally wanted.

It also may be possible to close off the doorway to the dining room. The current living room could become our new dining room and the dining room could become an office (there's a separate entrance). That would give us more wall space, but I'm not sure what we would do with it.

I am definitely concerned about the widths between islands and cabinets. This is something we continue to mention to the kitchen designer, but he assures us is not a problem. Which doesn't mean much, considering his drawings were off by 15 inches. UGH. Do you recommend that we plan 40 inches in between as a minimum? What's a typical measurement for planning purposes?

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The designer sent me 2 layouts today, but of course did not include the aerial views, so I'm waiting on those. When he sends them, I'll post them as well. If you have any other ideas or comments, I'd love to hear them. This is very helpful for me!!! Thank you so much!!

Regarding the width between cabinets, the 36" is a true 36"... the drawings are based on the width of the countertop, so the 36" is from counter to counter.

Oh, I see now that those little squares say 'small sink.' I was reading it as trash for some reason. Duh. But first of all, a 12" sink is way too small for prep, IMO, and you need prep space beside the sink. The way you have it, you could wash things in the tiny sink, then have to move it to do anything with it. Particularly if the island is 3 ft or less, I'd like to see the long side of the island facing the stove.

Recommended aisles are 42" - 48". Some people make 36" work, but helpers, especially on stools or chairs, or moving around underfoot, take much more room ;-) and you don't want tight aisles, which might lead to burns, tripping over each other, etc. I think it's always advisable to draw plans with things that open (like dishwashers, fridges, and ovens) with the open door area visible so you can see how an aisle or doorway might be impeded.

I will post some plan ideas later.

I have a question...Is that the only access to your living room? Do people come through your foyer and into the kitchen in order to get into that room?

Here are a couple of ideas to start:

On this one, I couldn't decide whether or not to swap the fridge and oven...But I think either could work for me. I don't know if you need a straight path between dining and morning room, but I thought I wouldn't and would prefer a lower surface for baking and for kid helpers. If it was a table, as drawn, instead of cabinets (another option), the kids could have stools that tuck under there. I like this one, except for not being a particular fan of having the cleanup area, where dirty dishes and glasses collect, on grand display. Just a preference of mine. Also, dish storage is an issue.

In this one, there are possibly a couple options for the oven. As drawn, I'm thinking of making that wall look like a wall of cabinetry with doorways through to garage, pantry, and living room. The pantry door could actually be built out, as drawn, or be accessed through cabinetry, as I've seen talked about in other forum discussions...Kind of like a secret door. :-) The other option might be to put it beside the fridge, but I don't know if it will fit, or if you'd have handle conflicts that way.

I LOVE how the cleanup area is tucked away and you have great dish storage right around it. The island is gargantuan, but does offer a great place for you and helpers to gather around with room to prep all around (or prep and visit), and do baking projects on the oven end.

What is really amazing is that I drew something very similar to these this morning on the back of a scrap of paper! However my husband pointed out that the work area at the stove is a major pass-through for the kids (trucks and kids zooming from playroom to living room).

I don't need a straight path from dining room to morning room. I love that you have the sink off to the side...I hate to expect more work of myself in drying all those dishes to try and keep it neat. That corner would be a great place to "hide" dishes.

The pantry is going to be a walk-in pantry, so it doesn't need to bump out. I can move the doorway to the pantry into the hallway where the garage and powder room are if I need that wall, or if I just prefer it out of the kitchen.

Thank you so much for taking the time with this! I love that it's different from what I've seen, too. A fresh pair of eyes, so they say ;-)

Well, moving the pantry door would offer more options, but that heavily traveled play room to living room path does indeed make it a bad place for the main cooking work area. Will that traffic pattern change once you have the new family room?

No, the playroom is currently our family room. When we add the family room, the kids will still be in the playroom. All the entryways are probably the biggest obstacle to a kitchen layout.

Here are the "official" drawings (upside down from how I've been posting)

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I haven't looked too closely at either of these yet, so I'm not sure why this second layout doesn't fit...the walkway into the morning room is too small. Ugh, this is so frustrating.
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This is for ideas - not a workable plan. I'm taking you up on the offer to close the old dining room door, move the playroom door a little - so the start line is beyond the cabinets. For once, I'm suggesting a little smaller kitchen by bringing the pantry and mudroom doors out flush with the hall. Would like to see if the pantry could be expanded to more of a butler's pantry including the entrance to the dining room.
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Cooking is edge on to company and allows for peaks into the playroom, prep faces company and allows a fleet of seats. The island is secondary space - cooking with kids, big buffets if you'd like, massive cookie pileups, etc.

Here's another layout. Similar to what rhome410 posted, but it keeps the stove off to the side. Unfortunately the sink is still in the island. I added some cabinets where the pantry door is currently located.

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I also realized why the 2nd drawing above doesn't fit...because he put the sink in the corner, he bumped that peninsula too far to the left. If you move the sink to a side, we don't need the 45 degree bend, we could have a 90 degree bend as I had drawn.

I don't think I ever mentioned that there is a step-down into the morning room. I mention it now because he drew a chair directly on the step, so obviously that doesn't work.

I can't read everything on the 2 latest plans. The island in the first one seems way too long and narrow...Seems like it's more hindrance than help. Does it have a sink? The 2nd one looks maybe better...Perhaps the sink set up could be shorter on the side toward the stove so you can widen the aisle on the left...Of course, you wouldn't want seating on that side. Also, the oven in that one opens across the doorway that you said the kids come running through... It'd be nicer that if the oven had to be on that side, there was a cabinet first, so maybe more time to see the open oven.

Here are some plans I've been playing with, trying to get the stove out of traffic. Unfortunately, changing the stove location meant giving up the orientation toward the windows in the morning room while prepping. The sink is still somewhat on view, but obscured more at the back, and not a focal point in the center of the room.

Not sure if you'd be willing to consider undercounter ovens:

Bmore, thank goodness you've joined in! But, you lost me about combining the pantry into a butler's pantry with the dining room entrance, when pantry is on the east and dining on the north...What am I missing?

Here are a few more. Sorry to flood you with plans, but when I play with ideas I get another one to try. Nothing is screaming to me, because they each have downsides. Can any of the doorways be moved, closed, combined, changed?

I think this might be my favorite, because it seems like a more cohesive layout...but the aisles and island with sink aren't as roomy as I'd like. The little appendage on the righthand end of the island is a lowered surface for baking and kids' use.

Wow, thank you for all the layouts! This is so helpful! I missed bmore's post earlier. I like the idea of moving the sink away from the island, but on the other hand I like seeing the backyard (and kids playing) while I'm doing dishes or preparing meals. Now the drawing with the sink next to the beam might work well because I could put the dishes to the side behind the wall where they won't be visible from the morning room. I also like that it still leaves it open to the morning room. The seating could not go around the corner though, because there is a step down.

Rhome, I had mentioned possibly closing off the doorway into the dining room and moving the dining room to where the living room is. The dining room could become an office. About the 2 under counter ovens, what I plan on getting is the GE Advantium microwave/oven on the top and a regular oven on the bottom. Otherwise I'd have to squeeze a microwave in somewhere, too.

I'm feeling hopeful! All the different ideas are really great and giving me lots to think about. Thank you!!!

Ms. sparky offered to let the old living room become the dining room.

When you have a prep sink, preparing food moves to the prep sink (view of backyard) and the cleanup area can face in any direction.

Ah, I knew I missed something! Wish I'd seen that, because I was having a hard time finding a long enough wall for the cleanup area after moving the stove.

This is syncronicity or something. I drew in a matching column for the other support column to frame the prep sink and provide some support for a little storage above it.
sabjimata recently posted in-progress pics (her blog linked below) showing her ranges behind a wall in the same sort of location. Its an interesting take on range placement and the wall itself will be a wonderful, dramatic feature in the room. The wall is prepped for tile or stone.

What about something like that for a range location?

Here is a link that might be useful: sabjimatar pictures so far.

Oh, I see...You're putting the prep sink on the island. I like that, and I'm definitely interested in the "slop" sink on the back wall.

Did Sabjimatar post a floor layout? That might help me figure out the room. Is the sink on the opposite side of the wall of the range? Is that still part of the kitchen?

I should also mention that we could move the doorway to the playroom...I've shown it moved 2 feet from the corner (that's where it is now), but it could move along that wall. Just not sure if that helps matters.

Here's another layout. It has the sink against the back wall, with a prep sink at the center island. The oven was put on the wall with the stove, but leaves the wall so that when the oven opens, there's no risk of someone walking into the open oven. Any suggestions for what to do with the 6 feet of space? Should the islands get laid out differently? Does having the 2 sinks where they are interfere with the walkway and kids coming in and out of the playroom?

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Sorry not to like it, but there are big problems with this plan. The prep sink and island (prep work area) location have no relationship to your cooking area, which is what they should serve. --A prep sink and island should offer you as the cook, a sink for your use (washing veggies and filling and draining pots of -hot- water) and expansive work counter. You should, ideally, be able to easily reach this area and get back and forth with the stove without too much walking around, and without traffic interference.

The prep sink is back to back with your cleanup area (so possibly 2 people and an open dishwasher door in the same spot) with aisles that are, again, too narrow, even if it wasn't such a main, boy-and-truck traffic aisle, as you'd explained. The 3 ft you show between cabinet runs will really be about 33" when countertops are on. Your goal should be 42-48" in traffic or multi-worker aisles, and no less than 36" for a one-person work aisle. Between the cooktop and the prep counter on the island, I'd want no more than 48", but prefer 36".

I talked to our contractor today, and he was a big help. He had some ideas and pointed out some problems. In this latest drawing, we moved the playroom door, and closed off the door to the dining room. Where the doorway was located, however, we will put the refrigerator but sink it into the wall a few inches so it doesn't stick out so far. Also, we made an angled corner at the L by the stove so we could bump the sink island out into the morning room and it lines up with the new angle. The island in the center can be changed around shape-wise or its size, and we can put in a prep sink if we want. There is a lot of space on the back wall if we wanted to put a clean-up sink there, but it was pointed out that it's a pretty far distance when you're cleaning up your kitchen table (which will be in the morning room).

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sabjimata has the largest sink in the universe on the same side of the wall with the range on the other side of the galley. You probably didn't see it cause its so much bigger than you'd think a sink could be. Not knocking that sink - more like feeling lust and envy.

Not liking this a lot. Partly, I got this thing about oven doors opening into kids running spaces and partly because I think you're going to be running around the island, even to make spaghetti sauce from a jar and pasta from a box.