help me with the kitchen-diner layout (floor plan attached)

[mum2015]

Cant choose between these two layouts. The garden is where sofas are.
Ideally would have liked an L shape with dining table in the middle but due to size of room and sofas, will have to keep sofas where they are and can switch between dining table and kitchen.

Why specifically Fiesta? It wouldn't bother me so I'm interested to know.

From the OP's pictures, there are two sets of doors to the garden along that wall. If the doors haven't been put in yet there is the option if running kitchen units under a window there instead anyway.

Also interested. We have a big kitchen diner and have a kitchen in a similar place to bobkat's design. I am always littering in the kitchen / cooking/ making coffee and it's fab looking out over the garden. In fact, we have bifolds which have been pretty much continuously open for 3 months and it's lovely.

If the bottom square of the plan (ie where you have your kitchen in design 2) will be the middle of the house - then it'll be the darkest probably once the extension is on. Of course you can use artificial light etc, but think about how you & your family use the space. Personally for me I'd want the kitchen in a naturally bright part of the room (I spend waaaaaayy more time in there than either a seating area or dining part) so it's about planning the space for you.

*loitering in the kitchen, not littering!!!

I think you may be trying to get too much in and would get rid of one of the sofas.
What distance do you have between your units on option 1? It doesn’t look like it would be comfortable to walk around other people.

I think there are better solutions-have you considered a concept planner?

2nd one would be way better.

In the 1st one it looks like the distance between the units along the 2 sides is about 1.2m which is the bare minimum but will still feel annoyingly crowded if there are 2 people trying to do stuff in there. The 2nd layout appears much wider - is it about 1.6m between units? That will make a huge difference. It's OK for the dining area to be in the smaller lobe of the L as people don't need to move around as much in a dining area.

Second. You can have big windows in the dining area. Like how open kitchen is

Really great thanks to everyone. I was quite stuck with only two options and now i can see lots of other options. I like the idea of getting rid of one of the sofas and have armchairs so it doesnt feel like blocking off. Also i will see if i could move kitchen to the center of L, there could limitation on how far sink/dishwasher move to right as the drainage is on left.
This isnt extension though it looks like the usual 3m extension L shape layout. I will post full floor plan.

I'd go with option 1 but only have the sofa along the wall (perhaps replacing that with a L shape one and then some spinny bar stools along that but of the kitchen units. Then those having breakfast or a coffee can still see out into the garden and if you have a bunch of people hanging out in the kitchen, some can be on the sofa and some can be on the bar stools with the bar stools facing the sofa.

It is bungalow at the moment and we are removing two walls to create a kitchen-diner-family room.
I am attaching plans from architect as existing and new layout. I could make utility room in the room marked as study if it makes more sense to not block the hallway. Also can change window to door where current kitchen is, if i put sofa or dining table in that area.

In terms of light it is the current lounge, the middle bit of room has less light, other two ends of L (current bedroom and kitchen) are very bright with large windows west and south facing.

The proposed floor plan changes my comments a bit - are you keeping the conservatory?

Yes keeping the conservatory. What i could do if it helps with the layout

• change window to patio door where the plan shows kitchen. That is where patio is. We currently access patio from conservatory or side door in kitchen.
• not blick hallway and make utility where study is.

I now added extra worktop to peninsula and barstools. Changed sofa to L though it is showing as two sofas in pic because cant find right L sofa in kitchen planner tool.

I think dividing the dining area from the kitchen like that won't work. They need to be together.

We never had dining table so cant imagine how much we would use it. I can swap the table and sofa like how it is shown in architects plan if that would work be Anyway that is furniture so not so expensive to change. Main thing is if kitchen location and layout is ok or not.

Because of the flow of the house would feel very wrong. Because you’d forever be bumping into someone in the kitchen cooking if you were going in/out and because you’d be sitting in the darker bit of the house. When you sat down, you’d be looking back at the messy kitchen and countertops to see the outside.

Besides, I’d rather enjoy the view when I’m sitting down to eat or on the sofa than when I’m standing cooking and even then- I don’t have a view, as the counters don’t face the patio doors, they’re to the side. It would work maybe if there were lots of skylights and the ceiling was double height so you had that narrow, tall feel as you then go out the doors.

I took BobKate to be suggesting this type of extension, but that’s not what the OP’s plan is and it wouldn’t have that open airy feel with a small L shape

We had a plan for extending 4m back and 2m side but it meant a large loan. I was very upset when DH said no for such an extension due to cost, but now i am back to sensible and trying to get max out of existing space.

Fiesta,

You have very valid point about main prep area facing garden, else sitting area facing garden. In my current kitchen, i have sink on left corner unit and hob ob right corner unit with main prep area between the two facing garden window. That is one thing i am going to miss in new kitchen.

Look at banquet seating for your dining table. You’ve added even more in with the bar stools and I really think you don’t have the space. I think I recall that you should be allowing about 60cm for pull out of the bar stools; which means you will be squeezing between the bar stools to get to your doors all the time.

Yep - looking at the total plan changes my thinking on things...although I can't think of a good solution yet. I thought it could be like the photo fiesta posted up thread.

Get some kitchen companies round and see what their ideas are. That's what we did with an awkward but large space.

How do you use your conservatory at the moment? It looks like you’ve got 3 different areas for casual seating on that floor at the moment. Will you have a TV in the kitchen diner?

Most likely we wont have TV in kitchen diner unless DH and kids start eating dinner in separate lounge due to TV being there.
We use conservatory for drying clothes . Joke apart we mostly use it like a covered patio. It is nice to sit there and feel like being in garden when it is slightly cold or rainy. It is decent quality one, and usable from april to october. From nov to march, i keep some tender plants in conservatory.

You're right that kitchen next to conservatory wouldn't work but the latest design just looks cramped and agree that it's odd that the dining area isn't next to the kitchen. I'd put the dining table where you have the sofa with benches / fixed seating on the RH wall, then push your peninsular further to the right - you don't have enough space between the 2 main rows of base cabinets. Put just 1 small sofa on the RH wall where you have the dining table and a massive mirror on that back wall to reflect light.