Additional photos

Arched openings between the spaces might work.

You really need a professional on site to review the structure and talk with you about your wants, needs and budget.

I like arches too, but architectural features like arches need to work with the architecture of the home.

First, I am astonished by the number of corners in the kitchen area. But that's not the question. Do you feel you have lived there long enough to know how you want to live in the house? I see that dining room, and think what a great home office and who uses a formal dining room these days anyways? But you may be formal dining people and bought that house so you could entertain in that room.

This is out of my league, I'll look forward to what the other pros have to say.

I plan on hiring a designer/architect, but I would like to have some ideas first because I just have no clue. I am adding an office on the other side of the foyer, so I'm wondering if this space could be the dining area for the entire kitchen and add a large island with kitchen stools. The bump outs on the drawing are an error - it's a kitchen window and oven.

The obvious solution is to reconfigure/ eliminate the shallow closets and access the dining room through there but there are several ways to handle that. Looks like a fun project.

@hallet & co rHank goodness for folks like you who enjoy this :D. My contractor keeps sending me to a kitchen designer, but I feel like

I need someone to be in person to feel and see? Your thoughts on this and how to find someone with my same type of vision? I was totally burned with a landscape design (an online site) and so I'm really gun shy.

I definitely think having a professional walk the actual space is the better way to go - they can also actually meet you and pick up on other things in the space that indicate how you actually live.

Where are you located? General large city is fine? Some here might have a good person to recommend for design and/or remodeling.

Thanks. South east Michigan

With the heat and humidity down south right now Michigan might suddenly fall in my service territory. ;)