I like your bannister and it fits with the rest of your house and decor.

I would have the contractors close up the niche on the wall opposite your fireplace. You can take the painting that is now over the fireplace and move it to the space where the floor mirror is now.

I don't think you should try to open up the dining room to the kitchen without a serious plan for a kitchen remodel. In the meantime, I think your dining room could look more open if you removed the rug, the plant and the art work. It's a very nice art work, but it looks cramped in that small area. I really like the blue abstract I see on the wall outside the dining room. Maybe that would work over the buffet plus perhaps more prints of a similar size, or just a trio of very substantial tall candlesticks with the blue abstract might be nice on the buffet.

If it's not too complicated or expensive, I'd ask the contractors if they can create a bit of tray or raised ceiling in the dining room, following the contours of the molding in the ceiling. Then I would get a much lighter modern chandelier -- not this exactly but this vein

or even something that is very much like your dining room artwork but has more space to float around

Thank you! I never wouldve thought about closing the niche up there.. and you make great points about the dining room... I think youre right.. Its looking cramped and I couldnt put my finger on it. appreciate your time!

You have a lovely traditional home. I would not,open up the kitchen to the dining room. I would definitely do wainscoting up the steps and in the hallway. Make sure it’s a traditional one.
Here are some examples.

Others.

Another vote for not opening the kitchen/dining. You have lovely formal-ish dining room furniture which I wouldn’t put in the same room with a sink and oven.

Wide open floor plans seem so very casual, Little House on the Prairie, to me. ”Let’s put the kitchen sink here so I can see out the front window while I wash dishes, the table beside the refrigerator so we can get our drinks quickly, and put our couch in the leftover corner over there.”

Ha youre funny. and 100% correct. never thought about it that way

The only thing I'd have the contractor do is close up the niche in the living room. I really appreciate how the bones of your home are traditional, but some of your tastes lean more contemporary. It is very refreshing and well done. I'd continue to play up that contrast with styling tweaks instead of construction tweaks:

Living room - Shorten curtains, larger rug, more contemporary sofa to match the style of chairs, donate the artwork above the fireplace and remove the candles. Get a large simple mirror for above the fireplace. The chest next to the kitchen door way seems shoved in the corner. Center it on the wall. Put the lamp on the left side of it. Replace vertical mirror with vertical artwork.

Dining room - Great chandelier and artwork. Remove doo-dads from the buffet and place plant in another room. This will take care of the crowding problem. Shorten the curtains.

Staircase - Replace current carpet with more interesting runner.

Lastly, pet your dog for me. He looks like a big love!

Thank you so much for all of the ideas!!!

I really appreciate all of the feedback. Its difficult to see a space youve lived in for 10years with a new eye.

I would change the kitchen floors to what is in the rest of the house and stop there.

Any chance the contractor can scrape the popcorn ceiling in the kitchen?

I would recommend closing LR niche- it’s odd looking and detracts from the room.
Wainscoting would be nice in the hall.
Your stair runner looks very “tired”, I’d replace that with a new one, probably patterned to hide dirt, stains, etc., going forward.
I think wallpaper could do wonders in making your dining room a really wonderful space.

You have a really lovely home but it does look a little cluttered. I have a suggestion that will take a lot of work but I think you'll be pleased with the result.

You (or someone you hire) should clear out your rooms except for your big furniture items. Empty shelves, take things off walls, remove small furniture, clear off tables, remove pillows and throws, etc. Stage everything in a garage or hallway.

Then "shop" your things for each room. Only add back the things that you really enjoy and give the rooms the fresh feel you are looking for. I suspect you'll have a lot left over. That's fine. You can keep things to switch out later or send them off to the consignment store.

The other thing that I see is that your curtains are dark and heavy looking. I think switching them out for a lighter color will make a big difference.

Thats a great idea

Contractor said it would be $40,000 most likely to clear out the entirety of the popcorn ceilings (home was built in 1992 & theyre in every room). Im not sure its that high on my list, but agree it would clean up my rooms alot

My preferenceswould be:

1. Carry the hardwood into the kitchen.

2. Close up the niche.

3. Keep the art above the fireplace.

4. Remove the runner from the stairs, and keep the stairs bare ( maybe you have it because of the dog?)

Whoa. That’s a lot of money. Maybe just one ceiling?

I love what @deegw suggested. It will help you to “see” both your house and your possessions in a new way.

You have a lovely home!

I agree with most here. These are my suggestions:

1) Number One: Definitely remove the popcorn ceilings everywhere. You will be surprised as to what a big difference it makes. Benjamin Moore Decorator White paint on ceilings no matter what the wall color might be. It's a bight clean white.

2) Dining room to stay as is. Wonderful ceiling. Change the dark drapes to something classic, stripes or light print, with trims and borders.

3) Please don't open to the kitchen. But I agree to carry the wood floors into the kitchen. and family room, unless there is an issue with your pup. If so, change the tile floor to a classic tile. The existing tile is more southwestern or Tuscany and not Classic Traditional.

4) Close up the large niche in the living room.

5) Straighten the arches of the doorways to match the heights of existing doorways.

6) Remove the existing wall unit in the family room and consider updating with a new unit (without the arches).

7) Remove the cabinetry on either side of the fireplace. Replace with matching cabinets, art, lamps. All the built ins date your space.

8) Again, change the curtains to compliment the dining room. I'm not a big fan of "puddled" curtains. They should be 1/2" off the floor to stay neat and operate properly. Bring the curtain rods in the living room to the ceiling. The advice here is to streamline all the architectural features with little corrections.

9) If you want to some improvement in the kitchen, consider removing the recessed "buffet" and making that a pantry wall with the refrigerator and wall oven. Remove some overhead cabinets at the sink wall around the window and enlarge the window. You can have a full height pantry 18" wide and the same depth as the counter on either end (where the fridge and the wall oven are now located. Not too wide, just well fitted. Filling in the countertop can be butcher block, instead of trying to match the marble.