Two easy fixes: window where RF is and maybe enlarge by removing one adjacent upper on either side. Move RF to pantry. The rest you could implement as many of the options already suggested as you like.

I'm just going to throw this out, although it may be all wrong for your situation.

I like a lot of natural light...and I only use one dining area, so I'd be tempted to rework the laundry/mudroom. I would include the dining room into the laundry/mudroom/pantry, with the kitchen moved down into what is now part of the laundry area. This would give you more space in the nook, for a proper dining room and more light in the kitchen.

Where you have the range now, I would try top open that up to the great room, with a post or two, for support. You could have the range or sink here, but I would try to put a few windows on the outside wall, for more light.

I like Plllog's ideas about a traditional kitchen, on the other post...so I think I'd try to do something like that...with a larger dining room/bay window and maybe make the left window (not shown) a door to the deck and take out the one in the bay. If you need access from the great room, I'd put a door on the left window (closest to the door you have now).

This would give you a beautiful great room, with a traditional feel. You could have a large pantry and even a small office/craft space, where you have the dining room now, if you made that part of the mudroom/laundry area. Maybe leave half of the laundry area as is...and move the washer/dryer sink down closer to the garage.

Like I said, maybe all wrong for your lifestyle, but that's what I would do :)

Abundant, you put it so simple, but actually that is so true.

Lavendar, I've thought of somehow incorporating the laundry room into the kitchen. I like having the laundry so close to the kitchen, and I've been reading that there is movement to have the two rooms join together anyway. The narrowness of the laundry room makes it difficult. We were hoping to maximize the laundry room, by placing kitchen/household overflow in one closet and home improvement equipment in another closet. We like being able to close the area off since after working on a project we can just stuff it in this room and close the door. Opening it up would make us have to clean up much more quickly.

We use our dining room almost every family gathering except in the summer. I know the room doesn't seem so big, but we actually comfortably seat 10 (and can squeeze 12) at the table. Without a window in the current dining room, it does substantially limit our options for using it for anything else. My DH sometimes uses it for an office. I've thought of making it into an office/dining room but not sure how to make that work (perhaps another thread in another forum).

I was blown away by Plllog ability to provide abundant ideas no matter what style we go with. Her traditional ideas were awesome but then so were her modern ideas. For this house we are going more modern.

Cool, I find modern easier to live with, though I like many styles and have a few more trad pieces here and there. In the kitchen I enjoy sleek surfaces so gravitate to the pedini/poggenpuhl look. Definitely not everyone's cup of tea, but that's ok. We all need our homes to reflect whatever it is that makes it a welcoming place, for ourselves as much as our guests.

I'm sure you're researching like mad to see what look you truly want as much as what layout suits you best. Are you ready to share your initial thoughts yet? Sometimes I feel badly for those who do as there are so many variations possible, and some are adamant that their way is the best. It may be, but most of us have to compromise in one way or another, and not all of us have the same needs as how we actually turn out meals might vary quite a bit. OTH, fresh perspective is always good as it allows us to sift through, reject the chaff and incorporate the best. So I hope you don't feel intimidated as some have expressed.

Yes, plllog has wonderful skills and the ability to share her creativity in a manner that others can visualize easily. Thnx, p.

I'm blushing here. Really, they weren't anything particularly original. Just taking ideas that are out there in the world and applying them within the context.

It's good to know that your dining room functions for you. In that case, it's easy to leave well enough alone. :) I wouldn't mess with the laundry room either, unless you're prepared to pull out the whole pantry and desk area. Laundries are being incorporated into kitchens for a few reasons, none of them good. First, and obviously, there's the confluence of plumbing. For gas dry, by/in the kitchen is the logical place. Then there's the ever shrinking American home which is being asked to do so much more, leaving the raid of the laundry space a natural. Add to that that the machines are getting quieter and there's a propensity to have a single open space where one can never escape oneself... Having that door to shut on projects is a good thing.

All of this speculation is entirely without knowing the style of the house. The bays could be very traditional, or symmetrically modern. I keep thinking I should know what it is, because I'm sure you've said before, but I don't want to cheat.

One of the things I think I've been picking up is boredom with the layout you've come up with. I'm not sure if that's because it's divorced from finishes, or if it's because it's too conventional, or if it's you telling yourself that no matter how good it looks on paper it's not really working for you.

Given the possibility that the house might be more Italianate, which would also go with the bays, here's a more original idea for you: Construct a colonnade. Take down the wall/peninsula, and replace it with a row of narrow columns from the doorway to the top of page wall. This opens it up, while enforcing a division between the great room and the rest of the space. Optionally, have curtains or shades between the posts so that you can completely close it off at will.

Unless you really use the desk, transform it into a staging area for the dining room.

Echo the pillars of the colonnade on the left of page wall with tall windows. Perhaps even floor to ceiling, but at least counter to high up. Maybe even arched on top.

A continent sized island down the middle topped with marble or marble-look quartz, with refrigerator drawers underneath. Range at one end of the island with hood. Sleek, large Euro drawers, extra deep (30" rather than 24") for the rest in shiny lacquer. Zero radius, large stainless sink with angular, interesting faucet. Stone floor. 36" horizontal DW drawer. Drawer microwave.

Very continental with ancient cues mixing with up to date.

Something ultramodern and interesting for the eating nook.

Wire or glass shelving, perhaps with doors, both in front of the windows and between some of the columns.

I swear, I hadn't seen AP's finished post when I posted the above. :) Not that it's not a known type, but interesting coincidence on the columns.

BTW, if above picture isn't obvious, it's a concept kitchen table with integrated lighting fixture and six chairs.

Abundant, I think my thought that the plan that I had come up with (with GW help) was very good, and it is, I think. It's the nagging thought thought that I put on too many limitations early on. Had ideas been eliminated because they weren't really good or because I too quickly dismissed them in the first place? I've read threads from others, when it's fairly clear a better way might have been best but for whatever reason, the OP holds fast to their decisions. I don't want to be too narrowly focused and miss the obvious.

Plllog, I've never seen most of the things that you refer so casually as out there in the world - not in my world. You really have exposed yourself to an array of decorating styles and it shows. When someone is really talented in an area, they make it seem so simple. It's not simple, it's just that you are so good at what you do.

Our home is more on the contemporary side. With some of the material selections we are choosing, it is becoming even more so to a contempary/modern. Your table is what I would classify (for myself) as the ultra modern. They are fun things to see but I don't think I would want to live like that day in day out. I think just like the island that you presented it's just too much out of my comfort zone - not "home". That said, I'm going to check in to how I can refigure my island with more of a "flow".

I'm becoming more and more a minimalist so modern seems to be a natural outcome. I chose contempary sofas because I was unwilling to have leather sofas (typical modern sofa material). I want to feel comfortable in my home. I want it to be simple, sleek and sophisticated but not so much that I feel it's not a "home". Not sure if that even makes sense to anyone else but me.

Though I wanted the kitchen to look like a non kitchen, I am concerned now that it has turned into the very thing I was seeking. Is that what I really wanted in the first place? Simple, sleek yes, bland, maybe, maybe not. Modern doesn't hide itself behind awesome granites, exquisite cabinets, etc. It's very simple and in it's simplicity is beauty. It's a bit scary, but a bit exciting to be so daring. I've NEVER been in anyone's home that has had anything close to what I'm projecting. I've seen it only pictures.

Oh, right! The doors thing... It's coming back. :)

Ignoring the pod table, with just a regular modern table and chairs in the nook, especially an octagonal table, I think this latest idea might work for you, scaled back to reasonable. It's a very non-kitchen type of kitchen.

Big questions: What kind of fridge and what do you want it to look like? What kind of cooking appliances and what do you want them to look like?

I can dream up all kinds of thing, as you know, but those things are big and crucial, whereas most sinks are pretty normal and interchangeable.

Unless... Stages 45? Galley? I forget who it was who first showed us the Galley, but it could totally change the way someone considered a kitchen...

How about that as a room divider with an island or bar back? Fridge and range or wall ovens against back wall. Staggered narrow windows between the fridge, range/oven stack, pantry cabinet, et al.

Oh, but that would look like a kitchen.

Try again. Fridge drawers along back wall with under counter mounted oven and drawer microwave, small sink with disposer and DW. All integrated. Galley facing as half of large island.

See a recurring theme? I keep wanting to give you a really big island?

Another large island idea I had which doesn't seem to fit your aesthetic is a wide, double island with a trough sink down the middle, running for about 9 feet, a three foot channel bridged by butcher block that can flip up for passage, continuation into the nook area with knee space underneath, angled end to follow the bay, and rare usage storage underneath.

I'm usually anti-continental islands but I just see them so much in your space!

plllog, for an anti-continentalist you're coming up with Eurasia, not just Asia, with spaceship capsules once we cross the pond. LOL!

Aloha, you've unleashed a lot of creativity but don't worry, I know Plllog will have wonderful reduced scale ideas if you prefer. Though mine is a bit more pedestrian than plllog's concepts for you, I'll tell you what I like: No hardware, radius edges, white lacquered cabs though interesting wood grain ones can be nice too. Cooktop on the island, a peninsula with the sink. I already told you about the solid wall for appliances and in your house might align them along the rear of the long wall, add the window(s) or even a french door depending on what's outside the house, then uppers and lower cabs toward the nook. Although I gave in to DH's request this time and went w/ a SS sink and all granite counters, I much prefer our previous homes' Corian integrated triple bowls as I don't like to clean SS and hate crevices for gunk to hide. I do like the island to be stone though, not so much for its beauty though I've picked really pretty Blue Eyes, a greenish black Volga and my current Volga Blue as I like the iridescence but because I prefer granite's ability to withstand hot pots better than solid surface. When we had galley kitchens, I just had Corian and used trivets. I also like really like offsetting all that sleekness with a beautiful 6 x 6.5' H burled MCM cabinet, still streamlined but warm. That would be on the wall separating the LR/DR in your house, and is also in ours, to store our stemware above and overflow dishes below.

I don't like huge islands having had one once. Impossible to clean and impractical to use. I don't like too many people invading my space, so I'm not as interested as most in allowing space for multiple chefs. Two side by side is often an intrusion, but sometimes may be welcome. More than that, and I'd rather socialize, not cook. Same with clean-up since I don't have young children that I need to prepare for independence, the dead-end peninsula works for me.

I also know I've mentioned that I like having a bit of privacy from the foyer, but your & plllog's discussion about the laundry room prompts me to add that
I like being able to close off other areas so would not want the laundry in the kitchen if space permitted otherwise. As plllog said, too much openess translates to having no place to escape from oneself. I'd add, or one's guests +/or loved ones too sometimes.

If you've found a picture of your preferred style, please share.

Ok w/o having changed anything, I've included what I had come up with before with GW help.

I included my inspiration of my ideal kitchen. Bright, dramatic, functional, while maintaining a warmth.

I've always been a white kitchen girl, so this diverts from what I've liked for many decades (don't ask). I'm a bit nervous, to say the least, on diverging from the known path. I thought I'd use IKEA since it lends itself so well to modern. I figured if for some reason it weared on me, I could just replace out the fronts for a maybe $500 (VERY inexpensive to change the look completely).

Abundant, glad to hear you like your Corian. I wanted something bright and easy to work with. I LOVE the intergrated sinks too.

Here's so far what I came up with PRIOR to this thread...

Here is a link that might be useful: Coastal_Modern_Love's Kitchen

Yes, I liked solid surface when I had it in previous kitchens, but I still picked a surface that could better withstand heat for the island once I had one.

I can see why you like CML's kitchen. I don't always spend as much time on GW as I have in the past month so I miss a lot, and even when I'm here I seldom open the finished pix.

I take it you're okay with wide open sight lines and are removing the LR wall in your plan. It's a good layout if it works for you. I'd suggest drawers in the island except on the ends. The 12" door I might widen if you need a space to stash larger/taller pots or other items. You could make up the difference by decreasing the width of the trash pull out if you didn't lengthen your island.

Although it's too soon to have reflected on the merit of a lot of the ideas tossed around, I'm picking up that you may be inclined to change up your layout a bit.

My best advice, unless you're on a self-imposed deadline, is to take a week or few to dream. And I'm not suggesting you succumb to analysis paralysis. Then have fun getting what you want. Ikea is a good possibility for clean lines, and I doubt a custom cab guy could touch their price, but I know there are some that can compete with big box stores. So set your budget and work backwards. I posted my appliances preferences on pal's post a couple of wks ago, but I'm a bargain hunter and the previous yr's models work for me now that we're retired. You can bring your dream to fruition! So dream big, and compromise as necessary.

aloha2009, fair warning, i think you might wear out the crowd; it's like overstaying your welcome. It may not happen now, it may not happen soon. But it will happen one day and sooner rather than later if you aren't directing the crowd in the right direction. Your latest image posted is hard to fit into the whole house plan (how it affects the nook). I think it's better to stick to the same scale when posting and to show more what your current thinking is rather than what last week's thinking was. My opinion.

David, I totally understand what you mean. Plllog and Abundant have been so insightful, that I thought the least I should do was answer their requests.

I had no plans to post any pictures other then the layout of my home. I started this thread because I thought I may have unintentionally in the past stifled the creativity of others when critiquing my layout. Abundant and Plllog have shown me that I indeed had.

If I am the last to post to this thread, I will feel lucky to go away with the ideas they so graciously provided.

I get what David was talking about, but you're not in danger right now. You're doing a big rethink, and it's always a good idea when you're in the paper stage rather than mid-construction.

I agree with AB about Eurasia on that last continent. In these what-ifs I've just been going for looks cool, not practical. :)

What you've done in the plan you worked out is come up with a very practical kitchen. I was trying to avoid the fridge in the pantry spot as too obvious, as in you'd already be there, and sure 'nuff. :)

So...are the windows in the nook down to the floor? If not, I think you could add shallow cabinetry all around, or maybe shelves for cookbooks. That would tie the spaces together.

Does this plan get rid of the wall to the great room?

What you have here is pretty conventional. Two things you can do, that come out of the speculative ideas, is round or angle the ends of the island, and enlarge the hood canopy to follow the shape and contain some of the lighting. Both of these things can be done with some fairly simple carpentry. You can just put some little spice shelves under round/half-hex island ends, for instance, or go deeper for shelves for lovely things.

I agree exactly about the practicallity that my kitchen screams. In part that is great. I had already given up extra cabinets to provide for a large window. We had originally kept the left wall solid. The large window reduced upper cabinets to a bare minimum (sometimes I think too few). We were going to use our existing cabinets (thus the odd sizes on the layout) but later decided to reuse them instead for the laundry area. When I count the cabinets that we currently have and what we are going with, we are substantially down space. That said, many of our current cabinets are empty/near empty and we are going with more efficient use of cabinets )drawer bases and a pull-out pantry).

The frig in the pantry, though obvious really worked for us since we were able to "borrow" slightly from the laundry and sink the frig into a 30" spot giving it a "countertop" depth w/o the the price tag. Being that the frig being the centerpiece of the current kitchen, hiding it anywhere was a MAJOR plus.

It seems like with every "special" thing in the kitchen I have to give up more space. I really like the idea of the curved island. There are some practical issues (none I wanted others to be concerned about when coming up with ideas) with venting the house that we have to be concerned about. We were going to have a short wall under the island that will house all the venting, electrical, etc. I'm going to sit down with pencil and paper and see how I could make that work.

I love the idea of wrapping cabinets around the nook. The windows are 22" from the floor. We'd need an exit to the deck, so I'm not sure how it might look if it wasn't continous cabinetary. This is one of our favorite spots to sit in the house.

If you wrap the left and front sides of the nook with cabinets, are you thinking of topping them with cushions and using as a window seat either instead of or in addition to your chairs? If it's your favorite place to sit, maybe you need to rethink its use to maximize comfort. Would you be better served putting comfy chairs or settee, a desk along with left side, and redefining the space. If so, then you may want to redesign your island so that it includes a table with comfortable seating for meals that still allows you to look out. That table could be a round counter attached to rectangular island or morph into anything that you like.

I'd be absolutely certain how many cabs I needed and then base the size of the opening on the quantity.

How is your current range vented? Yes, the island can house the duct, but a lot depends on whether you have a basement or raised foundation as either makes life much easier than trying to route under slab.

Aloha- After looking at your earlier plan and CML's kitchen (isn't that beautiful?) I'm wondering if it would be better to put the range on the back wall and the sink on the island. I'm sure you've considered this, but it would make venting easier and that hood is such a focal point!

The island sink would be a good location and you wouldn't have to worry about splatters from the stove, hitting people sitting across from you. While I like the dark cabinets, I think all that shiny stainless steel and pops of turquoise and green really make the space.

Since it's just the two of you, on most days...I like Abundant's idea of rethinking the nook space. With the island seating and dining table, do you really need another table in the nook? If you do...maybe pick something small (seats two) and very modern.

Have fun playing around with your options and don't be afraid to really think outside the box. If you want modern...plan on how it will relate to the dining room and great room, too. Are you changing the fireplace surround or furnishings? Can you do anything special in the dining room, to bounce more light around? Something modern, cool and totally unexpected? Apparently, I don't have any real answers, just more questions :)

Aloha,

I am also in the planning stages of a modern kitchen remodel. I don't know if you've already remodeled or are still planning, but...

Your priorities sound very different from ours (we cook a LOT and entertain a lot, so we want a HUGE kitchen), so this advice may not work for your particular needs. Based on your original floor plan, my advice is to delete the L-shaped wall by the cooktop and all the dining room walls except by the stairs, push the L-shaped base cabinets out about 4 ft, and enlarge your island. This will give you a much more open feeling from kitchen to great room, much better flow to the dining room, and a much more functional island. In our kitchen, we only have (tentatively) 1 1/2 walls with cabinets: the exterior wall (refrigerator, ovens, and cooktops), and a pantry wall. We have a large 18 x 22 kitchen with almost all lower cabinets, which is a good thing. My wife, at 5' 3", can now reach almost everything without my help. (I'm not much help, either, at 5' 7"!)

I know you're not a big fan of the huge island, but I wasn't either until we rented a house in Julian, CA with a large 8 x 8 island with bar seating on 3 sides, and fell in love. We had such a great time sitting around that island eating, snacking, and just hanging out. Just a thought!

Aloha- I know you LOVE your layout, but I saw this picture of the bay window and then the other one, from one of your old posts. This may be all wrong, but I had to post it and see what you think.

Here are the pictures and a VERY rough sketch. Since you already have a dining room that you like and want something modern and different for your kitchen...anyway, just an idea :) {{!gwi}}From Kitchen plans
{{!gwi}}From Kitchen plans
{{!gwi}}From Kitchen plans

Oops, forgot to add that the plan is for a 48" range, with two ovens, but a wall oven could be added in, quite easily. Also, the small pantry/desk area could be a beverage fridge/snack area, with the microwave...or it could be undercounter, in the island.

You have so many options, just thought it would be fun, to explore one more! :)

Lavendar, that is a totally awesome idea!!!

I'll have to think about it but I don't think it would be quite feasible because of the need to exit onto the deck from the great room. The great room isn't that big considering it is our only living area. Having to accomodate for a door would chop up the room even more.

Also the windows in the nook go within 18" of the floor so we'd actually loose window space. We LOVE to sit down at the dinette table (seats 4) now because it has awesome views from that vantage point.

I really like the idea though and think it was very creative of you to come up with the idea. Thanks for sharing.

I'm glad you like it, even if it's not right for your space. When I saw that picture, of the sink in the bay, I remembered seeing a similar one in a Home Show kitchen, years ago. It was very modern feeling...tons of windows, before that was really popular.

It is different and seems rather bold somehow, not to have much upper cabinet storage. It would be a huge kitchen and the island would take the place of the dinette. Again, maybe not right for your space, but I'm glad you like the idea :)