why leave the alcove empty lke that? the small window on the right....could that be removed to wrap cabinetry around / or maybe change both small windows to use those parts of the walls before the diagonal cuts ....the side sections probably add up to 9 feet or so.....then put non essential storage for brooms/recycling / etc on those two side walls.....the value of two 15 inch windows is low compared to other things you need/want.....place fridge on range wall....eliminate things on fridge wall and push island down and readjust it for a more comfortable seating set up.....

How far from the floor do the windows start in that bay? what oyu show is IMO bad design but maybe pics of the space and a bit more info will help. Post the pics and added info her ein comments DO NOT start another post. Is the plan to have this as your only eating space ? The island in red is a huge barrier to function BT

That L shaped thing is horrible. Awful. Repulsive. It cuts off circulation and just isn't good design. You need an actual table in the bay, and a smaller island in the kitchen, so people can move between the two.

The "alcove" is basically where the patio door is. We literally live in our kitchen and we are a family of 7. So yes this is where all meals are eaten homework is done and midnight hangouts take place. I wouldn't incorporate a table except that I have parents living with me and bar stools are an incumberance esp when they are eating here regularly. I don't know what other option I have to incorporate an island and another 8 seater table seperately. The space isn't optimal. But there's only so much my budget allows on reno ing a 4 bedroom house. We have a seperate formal dining for big occasions but for now this is where the action is at.

I'm open to ideas. Please don't dis. Critique I'm open to. But disgusting blah blah...I'm here for advice. Thanks!

Current plan is disfunctional to the max.

Once you arrange ice water stone fire flow,all the rest will become an efficient design that will help you reduce superfluous motion and walking around.

Put the fridge on the range wall, possibly, to get rid of the barrier island. 3'-6" is not enough space in front of a fridge unless you get a built-in fridge (you might want to consider that anyway given your space). If you move the fridge to the range wall you can reduce the cabinet depth of the pantry to be 18" or even 12", which is better for food storage and will give you extra space in that aisle, which looks like it might be a busy one.

Put a pullout trash in the 2'-2" island with recycle.

Not sure what you mean by "spice cabinet". The only thing I have ever seen with something like that was a built-in 3" deep wall cabinet in a 1920s apartment I lived in awhile back. That was amazing, but you need a big blank wall for that. I don't see that in your plan. Pullout spice storage is awful so don't get that. If you have a lot of spices that you use consistently, put them in a drawer. If you only have a few they can live in an upper cabinet (personally having done all versions of spice storage imaginable, the drawer is by far the best).

Pullout drawer for pots and pans can also go in the 2'-2" island, or adjacent to the range. You want at least 3'-0" for that.

Definitely do not do an L shaped island. Your kitchen - probably what is there now - works best with a table. Sorry if that isn't what you want, but an island with seating is not in the cards. I would get a nice oval table and put it in that bay. Or round that can be easily expanded. You could maybe have 2 stools at the very end of the island (opposite sides) but that's it. The only way you could get more is if you remove the entire fridge & pantry wall of cabinetry and put 4 seats on that side of the island - but then you'd have to find another spot for the pantry. We can't see the rest of your floor plan, otherwise we could give you ideas about the broom cabinet and pantry locations.

numbers are what they are, unfortunately, and when we're working with existing space we can't have it all.

Terrible design. The bay needs a table. Period.

If executed properly - there is a chance this could work

Get with a good designer!

Like this. This is better and will seat as many people as you need. Aisle behind the island is a bit tight. Really only 12" overhang and 12" pantry cabinet would fit. Not sure if that works as we can't see adjacent spaces. Note that the space remaining is less than recommended for a busy walkway (48") or to get past people sitting there if not a busy walkway (44").

what is the current situation ? please show . always best to know the starting position esp if budget is a concern. offering overhead of adjacent spaces would be good. partition walls can be altered

If this house suits you so poorly, you may be better off doing a big addition, or buying a completely different house. Just don't ruin the kitchen and tank your resale on this one.

I also think a table is better suited to the space than the L island. And I would shorten the other part of the island so it doesn’t block the traffic flow. I am assuming that the pantry and fridge soace are bery important so I would make adjustments that they can be kept.

Where is the dining room? Could you switch to eating your meals there, instead of at an island? I would use a round table in the alcove for homework and hanging out, and a rectangular island with no seating.

I was thinking along the lines of anj-p. current layout has barrier island and aisles that are narrower than i’d want for 7 people. attaching table to island directs people through cook zone which is going to be chaos. i think you are trying to put too much in this space especially considering number of people that need to share it!! i’d want a prep sink in island as well if possible.

I honestly value all comments in this section. Ive uploaded some more pics to see if that can help. House is sufficient for us. we had a fire and now looking to reno it to our liking. There are a few things I know will and will not work with the current house and I'm not blind to that either. i just want to explore every possible ave. I'm not really looking to resale the house anytime soon. I'm attaching existing floor plan and new proposed floor plan. Currently: firkle stairs are being made straight so that gives us a bit of room. we have a formal dining room for bigger events but its far from the kitchen for everyday eating etc. we've moved maybe 2 feet ( barely) into the room marked office. i don't WANT a l shaped table. id like a work station and a family table. how to incorporate that is what I'm looking for. currently everything ( counters cabinets etc) has been removed.

Why do you need access from the office to your kitchen? I would close that off in a hot minute.

so we are keeping it as it came with the house. i guess originally it was meant to be a dining room but when we moved in it never served that purpose. kids were younger so it was a play room/library/temp room for my mil when she had her surgery.

Would you consider capturing the entire space of the “office” for your kitchen and then reserving the “alcove” as your dining area? In other words, combine your current kitchen with the office. You would be able to get all of the major appliances into that square space and create a row of bottom cabinets for storage in what is now your kitchen along the right wall, but with decorative shelves, art, etc. above them. And flank those cabinets, perhaps with ceiling high pantries.

Id rather not touch the office area if I don't need to.

Do you have a plan showing more complete dimensions? It will be easier to help.

something like this but an L instead of a T

Or this but with a table height?

You are ending up with diningroom really far from kitchen with walls/giant island between it and stove/sink. this really doesn’t seem practical. i would expand into office any day to avoid this if you need more kitchen.

You need to STOP. Your ideas are not good, and they are ruining the flow and use of the kitchen. You would be far better to take in the office as part of the kitchen if you want a big disproportionately large kitchen, that is too large in scale for the home size. But really, your ideas clearly show that you are really unhappy with the size of this house as a whole. Your wants are far bigger than it can support at the scale that it is built to. Your ideas are not supported by the physical smaller size of the house that you own.

Anytime a kitchen tries to take over the eating area, it usually results in a terrible too large island that doesn't allow for proper paths for work or access. This is exactly that. It's a terrible too large island that doesn't allow for proper paths for work or access.

In a house this size it seems crazy to have all that space allocated to a formal dining room that rarely gets used and is not convenient to the kitchen. I would reconfigure the spaces to get your ONE dining area next to the kitchen

If budget and walls allow rearranging the first floor might make the most sence. Kitchen takes over office area. Now large enough space to allow an island with some seating as well as sufficient cabinetry and walk by space. Dining room moves and takes over the whole old kitchen dining area. Now far more convenient to the kitchen, FR, and overlooks a back yard. One dining table space area not 2. Office moves to the old dining room. Office area will be quite large. Perhaps large enough to include a quiet reading/small tv area for this intergenerational family. A 2nd “retreat” place would add quality of life and privacy for this family of 7. Designing this new first floor is beyond my capabilities. I am sure there are others here who can see the vision.

Another vote for anj_p's layout. I think you need to separate the table and island for better flow. I think it can work as they illustrated. If you used the office space for kitchen/dining, could you use the front room for an office instead? Seems like you would only need part of that room and could use remainder for a sitting area? There is nothing wrong with thinking through how your house can work for you.

If you don't want to close off the office, then use it as a dining room and use the dining room as whatever you are using the office for. Kids are only young enough to need constant supervision for a short time but you are making major changes to your house to keep a play room (at least, that is how I read between the lines).

Why are you moving the powder room? Keep the powder room where it is, put the dining room where it belongs, and you solve a lot of your space issues. People will actually sit in the dining room if it's accessible.

Ying's layout seems very functional to me.

Nice work Ying Wang. It solves many problems and creates much more functional spaces especially kitchen. Definitely worth exploring. Even if the wall between kitchen and current office is load bearing with careful design I think that can be accommodated.

The OP is shifting that wall to make space in the kitchen so I doubt it's load bearing. Or if it is, the feasibility has already been considered.