You are taking down the wall that has the piano on it? If so, reconsider - because that is really a cool feature of how it's cut.

The piano is going?

Thanks! @shirlpp yes the piano is going, it's the previous owner of the homes. The only issue i have with the wall is I would love to open up the kitchen and build out an island

So you need to post a foot print of what the room will look like once this island is in. I too think removing the piano wall is a HUGE mistake. Your room is open now, but you have the dirt and clutter that plague kitchens mostly hidden. I would embrace that.

@arcy_gw That's a great way to look at it and does make sense, absolutely reconsidering my thought process

A completely open room with a ceiling vault, like you are considering, will be cavernous. And extremely noisy.

I’m glad you are reconsidering.

The only logical place for the tv is over the fireplace, and you would arrange your seating accordingly.

Have you lived in this house? If not live there for about 6 months to see how the layout works for your lifestyle before making major changes such as removing the wall

Nice floors! How do you feel about the entry? IMO I would run the hardwood to the front of the entry door so it's not choppy.

Also....Hopefully you don't have one of the huge tv's that won't fit nicely over the fireplace.

I u sweat and why you want to take that piano wall out. It could be a game-changer in terms of expanding your layout options and being able to add an island is definitely worth serious consideration! But as other posters have pointed out, it does have some drawbacks. You are smart to listen to them all and weigh these drawbacks. The best advice is living in the space for awhile before making major changes. Think about what happens on each side of that wall and how you will manage without the wall there. If there are cabinets there, will the storage space you lose in those cabinets be relocated elsewhere, like the island? Will the type of storage function similarly? Island storage is low, and generally not as easily accessible as wall cabinet storage. There are pullouts and organizers that help improve function, but they only go so far.

We’ve been in our home for 34 years and just recently (finally!) remodeled our kitchen. Our peninsula countertops had a stepped up design that I wanted dropped down to one level. I had to weigh the pluses of chopping that wall down: more open feel in a fairly small footprint, better use of space and more prep & serving area. The drawbacks: the stepped up area provided a spot for the coffee maker and other small appliances, had the disposal switch and two pairs of outlets and yes, did hide food prep messes and dirty dishes from view in the family room. I had to rethink where I would relocate the coffee maker and other appliances and how I would address the kitchen messes being more visible. And weigh each thing on MY scale, according to priorities. Ultimately I decided the more open feel and improved function of that work area was most important to me and I worked to resolve the issues that taking that wall down created. I have edited down the “stuff” I used to keep on my counters. We went from a double sink to a larger single bowl to have a better landing place for dirty dishes. Ultimately, after about 4 months time we are very happy with our decision to lose that wall and open up the space.

Good luck with all your figuring and planning. This is such an exciting time!

You will find that a cathedral ceiling is not good for sound. The sound will bounce around in the upper parts of the room and make it noisy and harder to hear clearly. We noticed this increased noise when we removed the wall between our family room and the kitchen, and we don't even have a vaulted ceiling.

Lots of soft materials will help - good size rugs over much of the hard floors, wide curtains, anything that will absorb the sound.

Adding the space from the kitchen will make this issue harder to solve. In addition to giving the sound more space to bounce around, you're incorporating space that is all hard noisy surfaces. Cabinets and refrigerators, not sofas. And the sound from the kitchen will be noisy in the living area.

I wouldn't like being able to see my whole kitchen from the front door.

If you remove that wall I think you will regret it.

Thank you all! i'm planning on living with this layout prior to any big changes, thanks for the feedback!

When looking at the fireplace, any thoughts on how to best decorate that wall considering it shared with the living room? I'm planning on a sofa facing towards the FP and the sofa back facing the dining room, and a large area rug in the living room to help section the rooms off, but do I need something that distinguishes one room from the other in regards to something on/near the wall?

People will know the dining room by the table and chairs, and the living room by the sofas. I think open spaces look best when rooms coordinate rather than attempt to distinguish themselves. You want your eye to naturally rest on the dining room table, and on the fireplace.

Are you going to leave the fireplace like that or do something different?

@shirlpp I would like to make it visully bigger... bigger mantel and/or perhaps building up the hearth. Not sure on the color for that yet!

Maybe some stone.

A nice mantel where you can put artwork above it.