benjesbride - the house is a typical city "shotgun" layout - each room is the width of the house and leads to the next w/o and halls, etc. There is an enclosed porch = office, living room, dining room, then the kitchen is at the rear of the house. We can add some room to the kitchen from that end if we take space away from the DR, but cant actually change its location. mama goose_gw zn6OH - I haven't figured out appliances at all. I was planning to just buy the most affordable pieces that come recommended here : ) The hood and range is on an interior wall separating the kitchen and the dining room. I think we probably could reverse the swing on the basement door. What benefit would that add? blfenton - The window across from the range faces south, and the one over the sink faces south west. The two by the table face southeast, however they look out to the neighboring house, which is barely 6 feet away. sena01 - never thought to alter the space in front of that long hall! A pantry would be amazing. I didn't think I could get one in, but was hoping increasing the number of top cabinets would give me enough storage. Another idea I had was to take the exterior landing (upper right) and enclose that so I could add more footage to the kitchen and change the point of entry. Just not sure if I would be gaining enough space to warrant the cost of adding an extension. I was planning to increase the opening leading in from the dining room, but worry that would make it even harder to maximize space. The funny thing is that this kitchen is quite literally double the size of our last two, but somehow doesn't feel as though it can look or feel spacious due to the doors and window placements. Also, wondering what steps to take first? Architect, KD, GC? Will the architect understand kitchen function? If I go to the KD first, will that person have enough knowledge of structural concerns in order to take moving walls, existing gas lines, etc into consideration? Do I see a GC to price out the cost of changes with moving walls and adding an extension? Hmph - no idea!

I would do a switchback staircase with a landing. You could keep it along the outer wall...or move it so it is inline with the hallway. It could open to the living room or the entryway. You would then have room for both a coat closet as well as another room space if you better utilize your entries on the lower left of your plan. (which are also taking up a lot of space! By using a switchback staircase to the basement, you are keeping the staircase space as part of the volume of the entry/living room space, making it feel larger than it really is.

so, after talking to our kitchen person for pricing, the two options we are considering for the garbage pullout are: A - similar to A S layout, drawer (15"), garbage pullout (15"), sink (36"), DW(24"), cabinet (6") I like that the sink stays centered here and the Garbage-rinse-DW ease of use I don't like the loss of drawer space, it is appprox $200 more expensive than option B, which isn't a big deal B - drawer bank(18"), sink (36"), DW(24"), garbage pullout (18") I like the more space in the drawers, but unsure of the sink placement. The biggest issue being that support post that goes to the ceiling/bulkheads. I am afraid to move the sink too much in case it looks off. 🤔 but if I have to move the sink, I would prefer away from the post closer to the range rather than the other way around I think. I think we are passing on side or back cabinets sadly. I want them but apparently the side cabinets would cost a bunch, plus a different trim kit to hide unsightly seems, on top of expanding the island a bit to get the shallow cabinets... is a few thousands of dollars more than our budget. 😪

The existing has odd proportioned rooms, quirks, and sub-optimal circulation and adjacencies. Your 2 proposed plans have odd proportioned rooms, quirks, and sub-optimal circulation and adjacencies. So it doesn't seem you would move the needle much after so much work and money spent. This house appears to be too complex to communicate with only a diagrammatic floor plan, and too much information missing to really help in a constructive way. Unknowns about bearing walls, 2nd floor footprint, exterior elevations, living patterns, etc. The best scenario for this particular project seems to be had with an on-site architect who can do a proper as-built and go through your budget and programming points. I would also recommend that if you have not lived there long to have patience to gain an understanding of the house and how you live with it prior to blowing it apart.