Your first photo is typical of how one must arrange a narrow room. A chair could be placed on either side of the fireplace, but the center of the room needs to stay open. Put an etegere in the corner where the chair is sitting. If you want to use this room for dining, put ONLY a dining table and chairs here. Your second photo shows that a dining table with a sofa makes for a cramped space that is no longer easy to walk through. How wide is this room from window wall to fireplace wall—10, maybe 11 ft? Sofas and chairs are around 3 feet deep. Their width starts around 25 inches, but arms can add 6 to 12 inches extra to the 20 inch average cushion size. Always take a tape measure with you when furniture shopping to make sure the piece will fit where you want it. Your description makes me think this room is seldom used. Perhaps 2 chairs facing each other in front of the fireplace with a small coffee table or ottoman between them. Place a chaise in front of the window. This might cause the path to meander just enough to avoid a bowling alley feel. For more possibilities, draw a floor plan where 1 ft equals 1 inch on paper, and place doors, windows and fireplace as accurately as possible. On a separate sheet of paper draw the outlines of furniture you want to place in this room. Label each piece and cut them out. Set them on the floor plan and move them around until you are happy with the placement. HERE is a site that offers a printable room grid and furniture pieces.

I agree - lower R front corner will give you a wall on the R that you can arrange "foyer" type furniture on (hall tree, breakfront, narrow table with mirror above). Furniture can group around fireplace more easily then, and the area on the R side of the living room becomes a traffic area leading into the house, to the stairs & back of the house. That's the way the traffic wants to flow anyway - don't break up the living space by having the door centered and traffic flowing right into the center of the room. By moving the door to the R, you'll also have a bigger front porch area at the left end for chairs etc. Widen the front porch gable so that the front steps are centered on the new front door location. Another idea is to delete the R side of the porch that wraps the corner - it looks as if it isn't covered and seems like an odd & awkward space to me.

Your floor plan doesn't seem to indicate any stairs and I'm sure you're not removing them. Are the laundry and powder to be separate spaces or are you simply putting a toilet and sink in the laundry? Can you show where existing plumbing and electric are in that room? Are those closets on the garage wall? They would make a good mudroom if this is the main family entrance at the garage. I would leave them in place and put a door from the garage further down the hall, so the entry remains clear of the muddy stuff unless guests show up in the rain. You might need to change the door swing of the door at the end of the hall for that. Your floor plan looks like you are closing the door that is past the stairs at the back of the hall. There isn't much of a match between the pix and floor plan. Perhaps you need to provide more information and a floor plan as it exists now, and as you home to achieve with your reno.

It’s a busy little area so I’d aim to make it feel less broken up/larger. If your kitchen is a dark blue/grey, suggest using the same undertone but in a mid range shade - light enough to brighten, but dark enough to hide scuffs. I’d paint the trim, baseboards and back door the same color. To avoid wear and tear on the floor, but also to make hallway fun, consider a vinyl runner. https://www.vmathome.com/collections/best-sellers?page=2 Add some prints and you’re done. https://www.etsy.com/listing/1146145088/sailboat-prints-set-vintage-nautical?epik=dj0yJnU9ZGhZSEJnLV9pYW9BSGxxM19QRmN6WkRIQnVNcUh5a2kmcD0wJm49V3lKM3RRUmVKZC1VRGtkcE5LTXl6ZyZ0PUFBQUFBR1RkSExB