Start with a measured diagram of the space. Graph paper works great to be able to do it to scale. Include any adjacent rooms and their purposes so you can see the traffic flow and what changes can be made in that regard. Then, make a mission statement about how you want your new kitchen to feel. Make a list of what works and doesn't work in the current space. Include must haves for your renovation, like to haves, and aiming for the moon haves. (Not every kitchen has room for an island! LOL!)

Then take all of that and start researching materials and costs. One of the best tools for knowing what an average project costs in your location is http://www.remodeling.hw.net/cost-vs-value/2014/ Sticker shock is normal. DIY ability can help to mitigate some of the costs, as can a stepped approach where you do the project in stages.

Contacting a local Kitchen Designer can also be very helpful to you after you've done the above exercises. They do thousands of remodels in their careers, and you often only do one. Their expertise is usually included at no additional charge with the purchase of cabinetry. A good KD represents many different lines that can give you the look that you want with the budget that you may have to spend. There are always tradeoffs, and that's where having someone in your corner that knows how to give you the best value really works to get you the most out of your project.

Begin with the budget.

Are you trying to design this online? Set yourself a budget and set an appointment with an experienced kitchen designer.

Thanks! Seems I forgot to add the other half of the information! Our budget is $20k. We are traditionalists in style. I have a contractor doing the work but the decor choices are up to us. All the options are a bit overwhelming. I would love to go to a kitchen showroom to see examples but I work 8-5 every weekday and unfortunately the places I know of around here are only open Monday-Friday and they close at 5.