hi lexmom:
for some reason I am not able to enlarge your layout so I can really see what you have planned. anyone else having same concern?

Let's see if this is any better.

And here's a closer pic of just the kitchen.

I feel like the countertops at the corner will be isolated. What will you ever use them for (other than plunk space coming in from the dining room).

How about moving the 36" pantry cab to the bottom wall, just to the left of the DR doorway?

For such a big kitchen, there isn't anywhere to actually work in it. The proportions are off. It's too long and narrow. I'd wall off the entire lower bit of the kitchen next to the DR and create a pantry and butler's pantry there. That would take care of most of the storage needs of the kitchen and allow the main kitchen to be very open. If symmetry is important to you, I'd also nix the cabinet pantry (which is duplicate space) in favor of separate fridge and freezer's which you place at either end of the wall cabinets instead and will give you the same look of tall cabinets enclosing a cooking zone. Or, a cooktop and wall ovens for the second tall cabinet.

Or,actually my preferred approach would eliminate the redundant triple eating space and move the kitchen into the current breakfast area. Then eliminate that covered porch so it could be get natural light. (That whole end of the house will be DARK because of all of the exterior overhangs.) Then I'd combine the breakfast area with the dining area to create a much more used multi purpose dining area that had a small sitting area at the front end and could expand to seat as many as you need.

I'd also add at least 3' to the left side of the house. 21' is pretty shallow for a garage. If you evened up that whole side of the house, that would allow the mud room to expand and serve as a pantry to the kitchen. I'd also combine it with the laundry room area in order to increase the versatility of the area.

Other areas that I would address are the large number of hallways. I'd eliminate the one in the utility area entirely and look to rearrange the master to shorten the other hall, especially since the master shares wall space with the family room with no sound buffer like a closet or bathroom in between. I'd eliminate the jog in the master bedroom. There's no logical reason for it, like a window in that corner, and it'll cost you a lot of money. Just bring out His closet to the same plane. ore storage and less money spent is a winner for that. It's the same thing with the living room jog. I'd either even up Her closet with the living room, or actually in this instance, to keep the interest in the home's facade, pull the closet back further to allow a window in the LR corner. I'd also look at the master space with an eye towards eliminating the sitting area in order to decrease the square footage. It's about 1/3 of this floor, and that's a lot of $$ to dedicate to space that is used that infrequently.

(everybody's priorities and feelings about space are different)

This is a kinda different view of the space. Somewhat it's just to see what you feel like about stuff. Somewhat, we all see ourselves trying to cook in whatever space is proposed. Somewhat, I'm thinking that the dining room door is in just about the worst possible location.

For me, I would HATE being buried in a windowless place - so I got rid of a lot of it by formalizing storage and a separate cleanup area that wasn't within view. I personally don't spend a whole lotta time doing cleanup - I figure that's why the gods made dishwashers.

There is now a sink in the island.

Because there would be so much storage available close by, I wouldn't worry as much about having a lot of cabinets - the kitchen area is now "just" a prep/cooking space. I'd be placing more importance on having the right amounts of surface.

I don't like having tall things in between me and the views I'd like to see so there is no way I would put the ref at the end of the range run towards the table. I might put it where shown below or in the alternate position or I might flatten the "L" shape, move the ref close to the pantry wall and move its door right beside the ref.

I personally wouldn't have seating at the island because there is much more comfortable seating about 4 feet away. If I was going to have some, it would just be a couple of stools - drawn as an elevated counter around a corner.

And another version. I'm hoping between the two of them - you'll see that your new kitchen is a fairly big space when its not laid out with a corner pantry.

Thanks for the replies. I really appreciate your thoughtfulness. I was planning to eliminate the seating at the island. It will be approximately 3'x9'.

Hollysprings, you've hit on a number of the things in the plan that I am addressing with builder. As for the kitchen, both you and bmorepanic have a similar idea and I like the new placement of the pantry. I currently have my sink in the island and like that placement. Unfortunately, there are no windows in this kitchen and I just don't like a sink in a counter space without a window. The island will not be used for seating so it should give me more work space. I'm going to give this design more thought. Bmorepanic, thanks for the drawings. I'll let you know what I decide. Any other thoughts are welcome!

Ok, so here's a hybrid of bmorepanic's two versions. It gives me a smaller island as I'm trying to keep the island out of the walkway to the back hallway. I haven't worked out all of the dimensions so this is just a rough sketch. I think I really like this layout. I've worked with other layout for so long that it's a little hard to give up some aspects of it such as the larger island but overall, I think this flows better. Initially, I planned to make the large cabinet that matched the fridge an appliance cabinet with a small microwave, coffee maker, etc in it. We don't use the microwave but once or twice a week. Now I think I may put them in the butler's pantry. I like them somewhat hidden. :) Also, just to give you an idea of my overall vision for the kitchen, beekeeperwife's kitchen and Michelle16's kitchena are my inspiration. Any thoughts on this new layout?

I love lots of pantry space. I also love a butlers pantry. So I really like these changes. I suggest putting the door to the pantry on the side closer to the dining room and flipping the shelves from the dining wall to the kitchen wall. Use 6 inches of your pantry space 36" wide to recess the fridge into the pantry. Then you can have counter depth look fridge for the MUCH cheaper price of regular fridge. Plus, the interior will be deeper so you can fit that large pizza box. Lots of people on GW recess their fridges. You will still have shelves behind the fridge, but not quite as deep as the rest of the shelves.

Do away with the pocket door into the dining room. On the dining side inside the pantry, have "1 can deep" shelves built between the studs. This would only be sheetrocked from the dining side, but not inside the pantry on that little section. There are so many pantry items that can be stored one deep !!! Gotta love found storage by using the space between the studs. There is lots you can do between the studs with open shelves or hooks or built in medicine style cabinets such as ... beside the toilet for spare toilet paper roll, toilet brush, comet ... In the master closet for jewelry, hanging scarves, belts (think behind the door where it swings open or at the end of hanging facing hanging or shelves) ... In a bath for a full height version of a medicine cabinet ... Under an upstairs bedroom window for a chain ladder which can be rolled out the window for a fire escape ... I've even seen a between the studs mini liquor cabinet ... For a wall safe or gun cabinet ... For a cute little display niche ... I could go on & on !!

I would recommend doing at least a small overhang (7-8"?) on the back side of the island so you have the option to pull up a little stool if you ever want to. Personally, I ALWAYS want to be able to pull up a stool to the island or peninsula. Even if there is a table right next to it. When we have people over and when we go to other's houses, everyone always seems to gravitate to the stools at the counter rather than right next to it at the table. You certainly have enough space for an overhang. Also, when I decorated a wedding cake for 300, I was on the stool !!! No way I wanted to stand for hours.

You have a lot going on in the last plan with the range, sink, and DW all opening up into one little space. I would like to see these spread out some. Like putting the DW on the other side of the sink and moving the range a little ways down the wall toward the pantry. Dishes could be stored to the right of the range - easy access unloading the DW and easy to access from the breakfast nook.

What do you have planned for the section of cabinets across the aisle from the end of the fridge ? You could have an appliance garage there for the coffee maker and things you want to keep hidden.

Agree with evening up some of the jogs around the sides and back side of the house to save money on construction costs. Also, continue the living room wall that is shared with the master BR all the way to the hall/living room bath wall. Having the door into the master opening there gives you a little ante-chamber into the master BR and a place for the door to swing so it doesn't use wall space swinging into the BR. It also gives privacy from the sounds of the toilet in the master bath. Can you give up a foot or so for the shower to recess into her closet so you can have a larger master shower ? The back side of the shower could be shelves in the closet which take up less room than hanging clothes. I think the garage is deep enough at 21' but I would add to the length to make it 35 or 36 or 37' long to allow storage on the sides.

I am at the football game ... Gotta go !!

Angela12345, you are a true and loyal GWer responding to my question from a football game! I'm watching Tenn vs GA on tv. Anyway, you're absolutely right that the dw needs to be moved to the other side of the sink so as not to interfere with the range.

As for eliminating the pocket door so that I can do can deep shelves between the studs...That's an excellent idea. Not sure DH will do away with a door altogether so I may have to change to a standard door. The doorway is somewhat in line with one of front windows. Can't have the neighbors seeing DH in his underwear. :b

As for a place to pull up a stool at the island, I agree. I don't want everyday seating there but I was thinking of putting a small overhang just for visiting with the cook, so to speak.

Everyone keeps mentioning all of those jogs. I agree and asked our builder if it was much more expensive because if so, I'd eliminate them. He said that they weren't. I'm going to ask again, though. We're trying not to change the footprint or roof lines because if we do, we'll have to have a draftsman redraw it for us. This is a stock plan. The changes we're proposing can be done "red-line" per the draftsman we've consulted and the builder. Any savings gained in making the roof lines straight may be lost in draftsman fees.

I was typing while hubby was driving ... we live about 1.5 hours away. So, I was shutting down as we pulled up to the game when I said at the game. Rained almost the whole game, but we won !!