Swapping kitchen and dining room: flooring transitions and materials?
Hi - this is my first time posting, though I've read about 50k discussions here. Really appreciate all the helpful advice and expertise!
My question: My husband and I are remodeling the kitchen/dining room of our 1920's home. It's close to the beach, but we're leaning more into the *hopefully* timeless look of the era rather than the fact that it's technically a ~beach house~. That said, goal is to keep it light and natural.)
After much deliberation about layout (there were too many doors/windows in the current kitchen, and we didn't want to lose the light by closing any up) we're essentially swapping the location of the current kitchen with the dining room and adding a coffee bar (in the style of the kitchen) to what will soon be the dining room. (Attaching images that will hopefully clarify the major/functional changes:
Lower level floor plan:
Kitchen/dining area (most recent printout from Home Depot, but slightly out of date):
Current look:
Our cabinets are ordered (https://www.kraftmaid.com/browse-cabinets-products/cabinets/color/rainfall) as well as the wood floors (https://www.llflooring.com/p/builder-fts-pride-3-4-in.-walnut-hickory-solid-hardwood-flooring-3.25-in.-wide-10029561.html).
We'll likely go with a Silestone dark grey/blackish countertop but haven't pulled the trigger as we want to decide in tandem w/ tile.
What we're trying to determine now is what flooring to use in the kitchen/dining area and how/where to transition it.
My husband feels strongly that we should have tile in the kitchen. I've proposed other options like LVT or continuing the wood, but he has a hangup about vinyl—I choose my battles—and we agree that the moisture in the kitchen and around the doors wouldn't be ideal for our brand new hickory floors. I tend to lean toward hex penny tile (I know this is not a recommended choice for kitchens/cleaning) as well as long/skinny tile (3x12, 4x16) maybe laid in a double herringbone pattern - haven't seen this much outside of bathrooms...assuming there's a reason for that.
My father in law (a plumber by trade) is doing pretty much all of the work for us, (which is incredibly generous and we are eternally grateful.) He is of the mind that we should transition the tile at the opening from the kitchen to the living room as well as the living room to the dining room... I think it'd be odd given the coffee bar is almost like a continuation of the kitchen (or at least that's my hope!)
I've devised an alternative where we use the island to divide the space and put tile along the back wall of the house (which has 1 exterior door currently, but will have 2 by the end of the remodel.) The second door will be one side of the double window. I'm going to try to attach a bunch of photos. I also mocked up a REALLY ROUGH sketch of what I'm thinking:
I'd love any thoughts at to:
1. If this will look totally bizarre and is a complete no-go... thinking about how it'll look when you walk in the door, which is in the bottom middle - off the sunroom, I honestly do not know. I also have no idea if it'd make the space feel cramped, awkward, cut off?
2. Thoughts on how to address the transition that'd be in the middle of the dining room (my thought was a built-in with storage in the back, but maybe that's terrible?)
3. Alternative suggestions for flooring layout... Is my father in law correct? Should we just tile the kitchen and be done with it? I fear it'd make the living room feel smaller.... or like the kitchen is encroaching on it, but maybe there's something I'm missing?
4. Tile options that would work with our color scheme/style. Want to keep it light, but feel overwhelmed when it comes to tile given the seemingly endless options.
Thank you so much in advance!
KT
Comments (19)
2 years agoRelated Discussions
Dining and family room transition help! (lots of pics)
Comments (27)patches_02: " Didn't they on the end of the piece make like a square pillar style thing, then put the shelves in open area." Yes, they did. I had forgotten about it. I don't recall if it was a structural thing (load bearing) or cosmetic, to "anchor" the display area to the rest of the wall. It looked really nice, and I think would be perfect for this area. I don't remember the episode. It was probably Designed to Sell, which is on at lunchtime here and the only time I am likely to watch because of the time of day. IÂm pretty sure it was one of their "fix it up to sell it" shows. It might be the show with the British guy (Clive?) as host. I think I remember the show ending with an open house, and people oohing and ahhhing over those shelves. IÂm not sure about how to search their website; IÂve had problems tracking down shows. As far as the angled table: we always had to turn the table around for big dinners and extend it into the foyer. But I wouldnÂt want to compromise my daily environment for the sake of occasional events; and take out the walls just for that. Someone (usually me) is always squeezed in the corner, no one minds. We also serve buffet style rather than having the serving dishes on the table. That saves space for seating and place settings....See MoreDining room- more transitional, less traditional??
Comments (73)I like moody colors for dining rooms too, but I think this one can have that on the walls and go with the lighter chandelier ( I am faviring the capiz and you have said several times you love it). The capiz is not clear like crystal and you only need to do crystal once or twice a year -- and some folks say they do quick cleanings of those with a blast of compressed air (in a can, sold with office/computer supplies). I replaces a brass and porcelain chandelier that I thought needed rewiring (discovered some loose fittings when we went to take it down -- opps!) with a crystal chandelier. I get lab fur everywhere on the floors, but have never noticed a single hair at light fixture level -- even on the crystal. I think as long as the dog doesn't dance onthe table, you will be fine. If you love something, come back to it a couple of times adn it is still singing your song, I think that is the one you should go with. That's how it works for me. Have you done a mock up -- paste the photo of the chandeliers into the photo of your dining room. I had to do that with my kitchen island fixture so DH could "see" it, and there is a help me pick a chandelier thread going now -- I think it really helps sometimes....See MoreOpen kitchen flooring transition?
Comments (17)Chinchette - Your flooring looks lovely. Thanks for the picture. Why am I getting cold feet someone asked? A couple of reasons. We do have pets (both cats and dogs). Dogs wouldn't typically be in the kitchen but the cats would. The wood I like is wide blank, medium to dark in color and distressed. I am concerned cat hair would really show up on it not to mention possibility of scratching. I know even with engineered wood we could always refinish but that will take away at least some of the distressed look. Then there are aesthetics. We plan to have cherry cabinets in a medium to dark finish. I find that when I look at pics of kitchens with darker cabinets and darker wood floors that I tend to not like it. We haven't picked a counter but probably a lighter granite. I've looked at a number of pics of kitchen with wood flooring and I like them when the cabs are painted or the cabinets have a light stain or when the wood floors have a light stain. But I don't want any of that. FWIW at our last house we had tile in the kitchen and slate tile in the family room/master bedroom/master bath and did not find it uncomfortable. We are probably going to have wood in our master bedroom in this house and perhaps in my study. The only eating areas we will have are the breakfast room (which is why we are making it 12 x 12) and the counter height bar seating. We rarely entertain so that is fine for us. Cangelmd - Good point that I've thought of. If we do decide to do something different in the kitchen than the family room I have to make sure that the designer designs it so that the transition works. I've just gone round and round on the flooring. I really want the open kitchen and like the idea of wood in the whole area a lot. On the other hand, I don't want the floor to look constantly dirty due to the cat hair. Year ago I had a very dark tile floor in my kitchen that always looked dirty. I did like the tile before (didn't find it too hard) but sort of wanted a warmer look for this house. So I could do tile in the whole area but then I give up wood (except perhaps in our bedroom). Just really uncertain what to do. I am almost paralyzed by this decision (one of many that I just can't seem to resolve)....See MoreI don't like my new kitchen floors and the transition to family room
Comments (88)I totally feel your pain! Remodels aren't cheap and it's not easy for everyone to picture what something will look like before its done. I had a similar situation - I just didn't feel that I could afford to redo the tile in the entire house - so I only did part of it. Huge mistake. I "solved" the problem with carpet squares. You can buy just what you need, get pretty creative and install them yourself. I'm sure there are many companies, I used Flor. I recommend getting samples - as it's impossible to accurately assess color from the computer monitor. (Samples are free during promotions and sales are frequent.) I would also suggest that moving the sofa to face away from the kitchen will not only cover up some of the transition, but also define the space in a way to enhance the separation of the rooms....See MoreRelated Professionals
Oxford Flooring Contractors · Severna Park Flooring Contractors · Modesto General Contractors · North Lauderdale General Contractors · Northfield General Contractors · West Whittier-Los Nietos General Contractors · Corpus Christi Architects & Building Designers · St. Louis Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Mountain View General Contractors · Poquoson General Contractors · East Peoria Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Ridgewood Kitchen & Bathroom Designers · Eagle Kitchen & Bathroom Remodelers · New Castle Cabinets & Cabinetry · Woodland Design-Build Firms- 2 years agolast modified: 2 years ago
I understand why you want to move the kitchen.
My preference would be to put LVP everywhere, but since you'll be installing wood, I'd put tiles just where the kitchen is. I'd also forego the coffee bar as it cuts the space weirdly, and put in a proper dining table (no banquettes).
I would also consider extending the remains of the wall between the kitchen and dining with glass panels (with or without doors) to help with the flooring transition:
The one thing that would bother me in the new layout is the bathroom opening into the dining room. If that bothers you too, another idea could be to create a bit of a hallways leading to the bathroom for more privacy, maybe using some columns on both sides (skipping the glass panels):
I'd use a fun tile for the kitchen.
Kat T thanked User - 2 years ago
Hey folks - thanks so much for your feedback, albeit at times rather harsh... @User - thank you so much for your thoughts RE: the flooring, I love your solution for letting light in an helping with the flooring transition—and for the record, the bathroom doesn't bother me but I know some folks are put off by that placement. :)
Regarding the constraints, which thank you @sheloveslayouts for requesting additional information, see:
Since most reactions here seem to be RE: the swapping of K&D, I'd love to hear your ideas for how we could make this kitchen work in the existing space. We did work with a designer on the layout and this is where we netted out. Our cabinets are ordered. Feels like there's no turning back, but I'm still terribly curious. Maybe morbid curiosity based on the strength of reactions here...
Note: The banquet can/should be ignored - I was just trying to work out a way to make the flooring make sense, but clearly it's an awful idea... I'd welcome thoughts on how to make that space functional as MORE than a dining room though. We're informal people and it'll likely be more of a lounge/library, table (more for games than dining), record player, etc...
And so yes, I recognize that the room the kitchen is currently in is technically larger, but it's also got the basement stairs to contend with which creates a strange alcove where the built-in is (which houses the fridge) as well as an opening on every side. We could not identify opportunities for contiguous uppers—we don't intend to lose (or replace) either/both windows.
For those who mentioned cost: As I mentioned, my father in law is doing all of the work for us at no charge, so the labor costs associated with swapping rooms is less of an issue. In addition, there was no way we could work out, keeping the kitchen where it currently is, that wouldn't involve moving pipes and electric and running a gas line (which we currently do not have in any room). And we're also replacing floors throughout the house regardless.
I look forward to thoughts on how the layout could work in the current kitchen, as well as flooring suggestions, or any other productive suggestions for how we can maximize the space. That said, if your comment is simply "bad idea" with no "here's a better one" I'd appreciate it if you don't comment. :)
Thanks so much!! 
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Is the closet special? Could you swap the entrance and the closet something like this?
Kat T thanked sheloveslayouts - 2 years ago
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