The kitchen is 21' x 9'. I also want to go as high with the cabinets as I can. I need storage!

Okay...you asked :)

First, I would move the old freezer out of the garage and put the new one in there...you need the space! And, why do you have two fridges? I'd take out that corner one (awkward and probably too small?) and move the dishwasher to that side of the sink.

Then, I would move the black fridge down a bit and put a pantry on the other side. Between the fridge and range I would move the microwave (either on a shelf or under counter) and put a proper vent/hood over your gas range.

This should give you a fairly good layout with more storage and counter space. Then, I don't think you won't need any more storage on the other side of the kitchen. If you don't want a table and chairs, what about a comfy upholstered chair (not too big)? It's nice to have somewhere for company to sit and visit, while you're in the kitchen...or for you to sit and wait for cookies to come out of the oven. Burned cookies are the worst!

Hope that helps :)

My freezer died because the heat in the garage killed the compressor. I got this one as a replacement but I can't put it in the garage or it'll die again. The black thing is actually a cabinet/pantry. I have most of my dry goods in there, hence the need to get more cabinet space.

I don't have a way for a regular hood to vent out but I've been wanting one there. Do you think I could build a box above it and vent it through the roof? I'm also not too sure about moving the fridge. The plug and water inlet are already right there so I'm not sure how much it would cost to move those?

Here is a link that might be useful: Hood in vaulted ceiling

How extensive a redo are considering?

You plan to do it in pieces, but you still need to plan it out now. While implementing a project in stages can be easier to take both financially and emotionally, you don't want to haphazardly do it.

First, determine the scope of the project - replace floors, replace cabinets, move appliances, etc.

Then, break it down into "pieces" that make sense. Don't do something now that will need to be torn out and redone down the road in a later stage. Worst case scenario is that you have to wait another year or two while you save more $$ to do it in bigger pieces and to do it right.

For now, rearrange those items that you can to make things easier and help aesthetically...and start planning that new kitchen!

"...My freezer died because the heat in the garage killed the compressor..."

Both heat and cold will kill a refrigerator or freezer - that's why you should always put them where the temperature is either normally around normal room-temperature or where there is climate control (heat in winter/AC in summer)

Note that this applies to refrigerators and freezers built since the mid-1990s or so. If you can get your hands on a very old freezer, it may work fine in the garage.

Do you have a basement you could put the freezer in?

I want to do a full redo with new cabinets, counters, floor, appliances. I was thinking buy the floor now.. wait until summer and get the cabinets, floor, and counter installed. Then over the next couple of years get new appliances as needed. All the appliances work really well and it really only seems like they used the oven and fridge. I'm one of those people that would deal with ugly as long as it works.. but this kitchen doesn't work and the tiles are cracked in multiple places.

I had the freezer (new in 2012) in the garage because my dad swore up and down that it wouldn't kill it. Well 2 months later and I'm lucky I had a warranty. Now it stays in the house!

No basement. It's a 2 bed 2 bath duplex on the concrete slab. The garage is finished and insulated but it doesn't have heat or A/C going to it. I may put this in down the road and move the freezer out there if it stays at a stable temp.

Personally, I would source some rustic beams for the ceiling to give a warmer feel due to the very high ceiling....probably replace the windows....keep a small efficient footprint without a freezer. Get a new fridge freezer with freezer drawer because the drawer will be the correct volume and efficiency for a 2 bedroom 2 bath unit. Do something with an electrical upgrade and stylish lighting amidst the beams you would place..keep the eat in area.Is this for you or renting or re-sale? Adding a stylish element will set the unit apart from others...the working kitchen will flank the two walls so deal with the height and some lighting and windows as your feature.....individualization is needed.

Fun problem.

1. I'd lower the ceiling. That height just feels wrong with the dimensions. Would coved on the four sides starting at 8' and rising to 9+ work, I wonder? I'd play with what I could do with it, but I put it as #1 because it's the big item I'd want to ultimately address to create a space I enjoyed being in. Other rooms can have lovely high ceillings where they feel right.

2. This one's really easy. I'd change the label on the space at the end and use its small size as an asset to use it as an intimate sitting area with excellent upholstery and a small table that could be used for snacks while chatting or reading. There'd be a book case or cases somewhere for cookbooks.

3. Also easy, I'd move that black cabinet to the garage (that'd be either 1 or 2, actually). My pantry's in the basement, so a stroll to the garage does not put me off. :) Since storage space is apparently an issue, I'd go through my cupboards and move anything I didn't use on average once a week or two to the black cabinet in the garage. My crock pots are in my basement pantry too since I only use them when feeding groups.

4. Actually another 1 or 2: The refrigerator that dies would be sent to the dump and replaced with another $150 one off Craig's List -- in the garage.

5. I wouldn't do anything serious with the floor now since any change to the layout later on would be a problem. I might get on line to Home Depot and order some boxes of lime green linoleum tile at $0.79 per tile. :) Or maybe the counter color and gray or ? for a broad stripe or checkerboard layout. Depending, of course. Whatever fun thing I chose could go down quickly right over what's there, and I like polished linoleum, so I'd do that too.

6. If I wanted to change any appliances, I'd get good-as-new high end for a tiny fraction of the price off Craig's List. I'd do white--people are STILL dumping great white stuff so they can do stainless. Also, in a small kitchen I wouldn't want to chop up the space with contrasting appliances located in functional but hardly artistic locations.

7. I'd want to upgrade cabinets someday, so I'd leave the lowers alone, merely paint the walls the same color so they blend together and aren't particularly noticeable.

I'd remove the uppers between sink and stove to create a pleasant place to work there. I'd put 2 levels of low, open-storage shelves in their place and hang art on the open wall above. If ambitious, I might tile below the lower shelf, or upper maybe, and carry it around the counter areas.

My workhorses could never be this gorgeous, but I can't resist.

I might put handsome, hand-painted shutters on each side of the opening over the sink. Or conceivably curtains. I've seen both done really charmingly. In any case, with all this, since my husband cooks incidentally and really doesn't care, I'd decorate that space down there to be a special hangout. A solid lime green or yellow or boldly patterned floor would give it plenty of identity anyway, and if I basically left everything else white that'd work great.

Couldn't find the shutters picture I wanted, but this one is from the "Bewitched" set.

The curtained passthrough could be charming without fireplace or fire hazard.

8. If it got a little boring or lonely in there at times, I'd put in a computer screen and watch old episodes of my favorite shows. I always have a radio tuned to NPR, anyway, and this way I could stream my favorite Pasadena station, 3000 miles from where I live now, in while I chop onions, or chat with a friend. Been meaning to do that for some time.

I'd have fun and over time firm up my ideas for the future, but I might end up liking everything but no drawers in the lowers a lot. Enjoy.

Is that your dining room through that pass-through above the sink? If not, where is your dining room and how do you access it from the kitchen?

A measured drawing, showing wall widths, door and window locations and their widths - and window sill height, would be helpful. We also need to know more about you - who lives in this home and how do you use the kitchen, etc - to give you suggestions that will be useful to you.

I have an idea but I need the above info and to see how the kitchen relates to the rest of your home to know if it will work.

I'll draw up a lay-out with measurements as soon as I get home :)

The pass through goes to the dining room. I usually reach through there in the morning to fill up my dog's water bowls.

It's just me in the home. I do a decent amount of cooking and decorate cakes on the side for extra money. So I have a lot of pans and decorating supplies. Right now the extra supplies along with my serving pieces and a few small appliances are in a hall closet. I feel like I should be able to fit more in my cabinets than I can, it's frustrating. My drawers are too shallow to really hold a great deal of stuff so I'm forced to put them in a basket elsewhere. The bottom cabinets also have a half-shelf halfway up. This makes storage awkward as I really want a pull-out shelf instead of this half-shelf that I have to get on the floor to access.

I like the idea of putting the storage closet in the garage. I worry a little about bugs but if I keep a good enough eye on it I think I can keep them away. I just need to clean out my garage first. I've been doing a lot more renovations so my garage is full of.. stuff right now.

Here's the kitchen layout. Not really to scale.

Something to start thinking about. Here are three versions.

Notes:

1. In layouts 1 & 2, the range is in the same place as it is now. This allows you to begin working around the range immediately. To move it will most likely mean electrical work to install an appropriate electrical outlet. I don't think you will want to start monkeying around with the electrical changes yet.

   Layout #3 has it moved to where the refrigerator is now.

There is plenty of work room for prepping/cooking a meal, baking, and cake decorating.
Pantry....there are two options: Pantry cabinets or a built-in pantry. Both can be installed now. They are in the same location in all three layouts, so if you decide to go with one of these layouts, you can install the pantry now, regardless of which one you decide to use..

1. Option 1, Pantry cabinets: The pantry cabinets I show are 30" wide, but you could put the two 24" ones there for now.

2. Option 2, Built-in pantry: This could also be installed now. The advantages of this option are:

3. You get more storage space overall (floor-to-ceiling storage, no cabinet constraints)

4. The setup allows you to see all of what you have at one time without having to open/close doors/drawers

5. The shelves are shallow enough that things will not get lost.

Freezer: It can go where I show the MW center for now. It won't look "pretty", but there's not much you can do to make it look nice at this point. I do think you would be better off getting a different refrigerator with better freezer capacity and configuration.
Refrigerator: In the layouts it's a 36" counter-depth refrigerator. It could be a standard depth, but it would stick out another 4 or 5 inches into the kitchen - you have the space, but I don't know if you'll like how it looks. Finished end panels on the sides would help minimize the effect somewhat, but it will still look big.

For now, you will probably leave the refrigerator where it is since you don't want to move the water...unless you can do without a water line for now. It's not that difficult to make your own ice cubes for a year or so while you save $$ for plumbing & electric work.

One final note - have you considered using IKEA cabinets? They are much less expensive than cabinet lines such as Omega, KraftMaid, etc. You might be able to afford to do it all now if you're willing to consider IKEA. The last time Consumer Reports rated cabinets, IKEA was rate highly. Many GWers have installed IKEA cabinets and they look wonderful! If you're even moderately handy, you can even "hack" IKEA cabinets to get even more options (check out IKEA Fans - linked below.) What's also nice is that they come standard with soft-close drawers and other options that other cabinetmakers either charge quite a bit for or don't offer at all.

Layout #1:

Layout #2:

Layout #3:

Here is a link that might be useful: IKEA Fans website

given your expressed concern about storage of your items it is really useful and important to lay it all out and calculate the volume and type of storage you will need/want....basically what will go where. Have you looked closely at the pdf files of any cabinet line's storage cabinets-deep drawers/roll out tray cabinets/pantry cabinets/baking center cabinets/laz susan/etc/ I think you can bring up Kraft maid online for starters...and have a look at Ikea and frameless in general. Without an island going in your space you can extend the depth of all/some base cabinets to 27-30 in and the uppers to 15 or 18 in and get improved storage for bigger things on the uppers as well....and deep counters!....some interesting style for the space can be had with varying depths along the main wall for interest.

I have one with the fridge and DW (nearly) at the same place. Moved the sink to the right of DW. Sink base is 36" but I don't know if you plan to use the sink you have now or what size it is. Range moved closer to the window and freezer is at the end of that counter. Pantry is across the loong counter.

I guess fridge cab can be added later when you decide to have a new one.

I've been looking at Ikea and Medallion (at Menard's). I love the fact that the Medallion comes in 42" heights! I was looking at these today and all the options (pull out shelves in base cabinets especially) make me so excited.

I think I like layout #1 the best. I like having a great deal of counter space on either side of my range for food prep. I also found a fridge with more freezer room that may work. Right now I have so much food in my 42" chest freezer that I don't think I could fit it into any regular fridge. The fridge that I think would come the closest is an LG french door. My freezer is 10.5 cu ft and the freezer in this fridge is 10 cu ft. So I just need to eat that cheesecake and turkey to free up space lol.

After cooking dinner tonight I decided I want some under cabinet lights... and to change my flush mount light to a pendant. The chandelier will have to be the same pendant. I keep hitting my head on the chandelier!

Buehl those layouts made me so excited to start planning this! Thank you!

Here is a link that might be useful: LG french door

Wow that's a nice configuration Sena01! I do have one question though. If they need to move the gas lines and plumbing do they just take out the lower dry wall and move it, or is it more work than that?

I don't really know much about gas, plumbing.

We moved our gas lines about 6.5'. Apartment and load bearing wall, so I think that is the worst possible case. I believe it has to do something with the code here, gas lines pass through the uppers, (at the top of the cab with nice boxes around them, so don't look bad, and I can still store a lot under them. just lost a shelf in 2 uppers). Then the line goes down to the counter, uncovered (required by code, so I keep some decoration in front of it), and reaches the cooktop. Plumbing goes behind a base cab. So it can be either shallow cabs or cabs pulled forward with deeper countertop.

With dry wall I guess you won't have to do any of these. But even the worst scenario is much better than an unfunctional kitchen imo.

Good luck with those angled walls. I have a lot of them in our summer house:((

Love watching the layout ideas flood in, you now have lots of things to think about!

My offering at this point is based on my own preferences of course, but I would vote... if you move that fridge... to not have a corner upper cab but to run the upper cabs straight into the pass-through wall and then make the opening bigger to the DR and frame it out with some chunky trim. I think that would help contribute to some proper visual 'balance' in there.

The beams (or something to bring it down visually if not physically) on the ceiling is a neat idea, too.

With a duplex (or any multi-family home), you often run into greater restrictions regarding taking out walls, etc. If you can fiddle with the walls, then I think Deedles is right....change the doorway/walls and gain a better functioning space. But, it will be quite a bit more expensive to change the walls, especially if that wall is a load-bearing wall. You could probably leave the wall as-is and still have that counter die into the diagonal wall.

I think the most important thing to plan for is prep space - and in the most useful space. This is especially important b/c of your cake-decorating business. You want most of your counter space b/w the sink and the range (and oven) - not on the opposite sides.

Also, if you're willing to move the range - other plans are possible (as Sena01 showed) - but then you may not be able to do as many things ahead of time (b/f you move the range) b/c you don't want to spend the $$$ and effort on a change that you will have to tear out/redo later.