I have another interior design challenge here for a kitchen remodel where I submitted 3 options.

I don’t do that often, it is normally one solution and I’m pretty sure about that being the best option. However, with this one, it really is more about how much they want to spend.

Since construction pricing varies soooo much in regions across the US and since people might have a certain budget range in mind but almost always spend more when they see that it will get them a better result, then I decided to go in at 3 levels here.

Interior Design Challenge - Kitchen Remodel Layout

In this Designed in a Click consultation the homeowner said they wanted to remove some of that wall between the kitchen and living room and do a major reno. They also wanted to move the cooktop to the back wall of the kitchen with a range and get rid of the wall ovens. (I do like this idea and present it often with kitchen remodels.)

What is major and expensive to one person is minor and inexpensive to another. It is really hard to judge that feeling of the budget flexibility via email (this was a Designed in a Click email consultation), so I just offered different levels.

Here was the existing kitchen with some basic dimensions.

Existing floor plan with some basic dimensions.

View of existing kitchen from breakfast room.

A few challenges I noticed:

It is a really narrow kitchen for an island. The island they have is 2’ deep, but even then, it only allows 3’ aisles on each side with 24” deep counters on the perimeter. I have a similar layout, but mine is greater by about 18” and it feels tight to me.
The flooring is wood in the living room and tile in the kitchen. She commented that they had some left over tile to patch the floor, so they weren’t really considering replacing that.

Option 1 - $$ Kitchen Remodel

Okay, the dollar signs just mean this would be the least expensive here, I’m not associating it with any real cost amount because of the reasons I mentioned above.

In this layout, I am keeping the existing flooring and it should work if they can patch the tile floor with what they have.

The wall is somewhat cut back above the counters. It might need a new beam across the opening, depending on if that wall is load bearing.

The angled peninsula is removed and the cooktop is moved to the back wall.

I am putting an island back in here, but would likely go a little bit more narrow to get more space around it. Something like 21” would be better than 24” and would still add a worksurface and some storage in here. The kitchen is almost too wide to be efficient without the island, so I do like it in this layout.

Because of the 12’ depth of the kitchen, I don’t think it would be advisable to do a range here. A range sticks out from the counter’s depth an inch or more, depending on the range. That, accompanied with the opening of the door, etc. would crowd this space with an island.

I have done this exact layout in a job with a similar angled peninsula and we did a narrow island like this. It worked really well.

I’d keep the oven cabinet then and do a fridge cabinet on the other end, then center the cooktop on the wall. They don’t have to do that tall cabinet on the end, depends on how it feels in their breakfast room.

This option isn’t cheap, it means new cabinets and appliances, counters, etc., but it does keep the floor and the beam may not have to be included here. At least it would be a smaller beam if one was needed.

Option 2 - $$$ Kitchen Remodel

Here’s another option that keeps the floor but really gives a new layout that I think just makes this kitchen more interesting. It will also let them do the new range, as there will be more room in the cooking zone.

They would probably need a new beam for structural support from the pantry to the exterior wall, but that could be done. (Get a pro involved locally, please!)

Here, the island is designed to butt to the edge of the wood floor. An applied baseboard could overlap the wood. I really like an island vs. a peninsula kitchen and I like a bigger island. It just opens everything up more and will make the living room feel bigger too.

She can do pendants above the island then and seating at the end of the bar.

I wouldn’t do seating in front there, as the cabinet needs to hit the floor at the line of the flooring transition.

She could get more counter space here on the back wall because of no tall oven cabinet.

Option 3 - $$$$ Kitchen Remodel

This option means new flooring in the kitchen. If you can match your wood, that would be great for the budget, but it is likely hard to find. I just had to throw this idea out there anyway, just in case they were even remotely considering new flooring.

I can’t even count the times I’ve presented or even just mentioned the “way over” budget idea to people and they go for it, so here it is.

Honestly, I rather don’t like the tile floor (I think the angled layout dates it the most for me.) I always hate spending good money designing something you love and then having one element in the room that signals the former space.

So, here goes.

This gets a useful island with seating, a range and no wall ovens and a more open kitchen. I prefer this island shape to the deep island in the other option. I would not transition from tile to wood here where the wall was, it would be awkward looking.

In conclusion:

This project still needs further development. It needs local pro involvement, with a kitchen that is drawn up to scale with their wants and needs in mind. It takes a deep dive with the client to get the proper info to render them the results they want and assure things are done properly according to local codes and standards.

However, this does give them 3 options to consider and maybe helps them see their space in a new light. It gives them a solid place to start on a project of this scope.

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This blogpost was thoughtfully written by me, Carla Aston, and not by AI, ghostwriters, or guest posters.

Interior Design Challenge - 3 Layout Options For 1 Kitchen Remodel