Dang! Drat! : ) Show the rest of the living floor, please?

The space is too tight for more than a cup of coffee with a couple pals.

There are adjacent rooms? Show them?

It was a table in a hallway at the start, and it's a table in a narrower hallway now, and a bit worse.

Jan Moyer, hi. There was a counter starting in the same spot at that same window previously. Unfortunately we just didn’t think about the fact that the counter previously came out but then curved and then set back. It’s a bad mistake and should been common sense but wasn’t caught unfortunately. There are a host of other things too that were bad design flaws but what is done is done and we have to work with what we have now. I will update my post when the crew is out of our space in a couple of days to show a better view. This kitchen and dining space are at the back of the house. Through the framed opening in the dining space, by the built in corner cabinets, you enter in to the living room. Out of the living room at the side of the house is a hallway and off that hallway are two bedrooms and a powder bath. This space is totally separate from the living room. Maybe the bad photos made it look like a hallway previously but it wasn’t. It was a lovely, functioning dining area with a substantial table and seating for 8. I’ll update with better photos assp. Thank you for you comments.

Diana Bier, no. This is the back of the house. That is a door to our covered outdoor living space.

Ratherbesewing, yes, we have considered this idea. We need to nail down the dimensions we have work with but has been challenging with the crew but looking forward to having the space back.

Kim R - if you go the route of circle table, with a bench along the wall, could you get a folding table/rectangular card table to bring out for guests? Could a skinny one fit up against the peninsula amd gice you 3-4 extra seats for large parties? The bench would give 2, is there enough space to seat on both ends? Table cloths that match on both tables to cover up the temporary table?

We have had to creatively seat people at lots of parties and dinners, totally understand the dilemma!

And it will probably be easier to look at the space as an entirely new space, instead of trying to recreate what you had before. Almost like you’re moving into a new kitchen 😀

Rachel M. Frazier, great suggestions. Yes, we could totally do that. Thanks for your comment!

I’m curious about the other design flaws you ran into? Were you working with a kitchen designer or cabinet seller?

Shawna, here’s some context.. we live in a 1940s home on an acre in a very urban area full of family friendly developments so one of the few pieces of land left which is also just up the hill from our downtown core. When we bought the house that was partially remodeled in 2005 we hated the kitchen. Because development is coming further up the hill including apartments we know that when our last kiddo finishes high school we will likely move and that will probably mean a developer will move in. All this to say, we want to enjoy our home while we live here and couldn’t stand the kitchen so wanted a remodel
To make it better and more functional for only our family’s needs in mind. So, we didn’t want to break the bank on it knowing it will likely come down in 8-10
Years. We had met with a very skilled designer whose work we love but we just couldn’t justify the cost. So next best thing, since we ourselves didn’t have a clue what to do, was to
Work with a company like Home Depot with in-house “design consultants”. The first one was terrible and I left upset because he had no vision, we tried again. The next one was much better but she got promoted. The third one was left with her ideas and worked with us to put them into a drawing. We should have paid more attention to the actual dimensions but figured they knew the layout and what they were doing, but alas, I guess not so much. So we are left with this awkward dining area, a cupboard and a drawer that do not quite open all the way because she mis-judged the depth of the stove even though she had all of the dimensions, we have a counter that marks and scratches like crazy even though is granite and we’ve always had granite. Anyway, we are not willing to rip anything out after being in this over a year from start to finish. And, in the end it is still 1000 times better than it was and I know we can figure out the dining area somehow! Sorry for the long winded explanation.

For anyone who might still be following along, here are some better pictures now that the crew is gone. Still some finishing work and lots of paint to do.

At 7 1/2’ wide and the Main passage it will never be wide enough to have a dining table in that spot. Maybe a round table closer to the corner cabinets but hard to know.

It looks like enough space for a little bistro table with 2 - 4 chairs. I wonder if it would be possible for that door to be switched so it opens outward instead? I think you mentioned that it goes to another space, not directly outside.

Hallet & Co., That’s what I’m thinking too. Thanks for commenting. I’ll never know unless I play around and mock something up

Wendy H, that is certainly something I could look into! Thanks for that idea.

Wendy, that goes to our covered outdoor patio

How about adding a curved counter to the island at a lower, table height with some low profile chairs? That wouldn't be much different than adding a wider counter would have been. A curved surface would give you a little more eye contact than a straight counter for everyday seating. Neither of these photo configurations are right for your space, but they get the idea across. (My photoshop is even worse!) You'd still have to add a table in the larger space for more capacity.

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L. D. Johnson, love the potential. I was just telling my husband this very idea earlier today but couldn’t figure it how to achieve it. The visuals are so helpful. Something to look into for sure. Thank you so much.

I love your green cabinets. I think the round table is a good idea.

Put a round table down by the bigger end. Not by door.

HU-402831377, thank you so much. I love them too. 😊

WestCoast Hopeful, so far that is on the short list. Also, contemplating maybe our living area because dual living dining for when we need to host more than just our family. With contractors having just left that area is still a mess but I will post pics of it too. It is adjacent to this dining area

Kim, if you search Etsy for wall mounted folding table you'll see all kinds of shapes and mounting options. I bet you could find a custom solution. I saw one half moon free standing folding table as well; you might be able to use that half open against the counter for daily use, and pull it into the larger space when you need more surface/seating area.

Good luck!

L. D. Johnson, great suggestions. I’ll look into that. Thank you!

Kendrah, thank you for your words of encouragement and for the wonderful ideas with a visual. I really appreciate it 😊. Aside from the hiccups I’m very happy to have a new to me kitchen.

Agree with kendrah - it’s a lovely space! I also think that ghost chairs could fun -

I wonder about a vintage table in that space, FWIW we had a narrow area in an old house for dining and found a terrific *old* table (it might even have been a desk tbh) that was pretty narrow but still worked great for informal dining - just another idea

I recommend adding a panel for the cabinet that faces the door.

There really doesn't seem to be enough width to have that area as a dining room especially if you add chairs at the peninsula. You could possibly incorporate a small dining top (with legs) on the side of the peninsula but it would have to be limited in order to provide passage from the door to the rest of the house.

What is the plan for this wall? Continue shiplap? Paint chalkboard paint and write your grocery list? Paint same color as cabinets?

The kitchen is beautiful. I like the oval table idea.

Thinkdesignlive, thank you for commenting. The plan atm is to paint it the same color as the cabinets and then add some art. Love the chalkboard idea though! Thanks for the suggestion.

auntthelma, thank you so much!

Norwood Architects, yes, agree. Certainly less of a dining room now and more of a small eat-in area. Perhaps using the space that is more open between the two corner cabinets, or as suggested here an oval dining table in front of the window on the same wall as the door, or something in front of the back of the peninsula. This weekend we will play with ideas and mock up something. A friend who also has a good idea for design has suggested perhaps converting our living room that is adjacent to this area into a living/dining area. I am open to that as well and will see what we come up with. Thank you for commenting.

Can you post a whole floor plan?

You might be able to have 2 tables - do one that is only 30" deep and push it against the back of the peninsula. That will keep the area by the door clear .

Then find a nice round table to keep down the other end.

Try to mock this up using some of your exiting furniture or folding tables or boxes or even take your chairs and set them up like they were around a table.. It will give you a much better sense.

I am sorry you had a bad experience. It is too bad they didn't catch the issue with the corner cabinet before the tops went in - that would have been an easy fix.

The kitchen is beautiful though! Love your floors with the green cabinets. I hope you can settle in and enjoy it.

Would love to see a simple drawing of your living room. I'm a big fan of combined living and dining space and had it in our Chicago apartment and NYC apartment.

If you do it, consider also adding by the big kitchen window a drop leaf with chairs on either side. We used this daily for coffee or meals for one or two. Used dining/living room set up for 4 of us. Brought the kitchen drop leaf into the dining room/ living room for 8+.

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If you opt for an oval in the kitchen, you could have extra chairs in another room that you bring in for end chairs to seat 6 total.

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Awesome ideas! I will post a photo of the living space asap. Thank you!!

When you're having guests over do you put the meal on the table or serve buffet style? If you serve buffet style you can have a narrower table and use the peninsula for the buffet. It's right next to the table so is convenient.

@blfelton, We’ve done both and we are not fussy people so that could totally work too. Thank you for your comment!

You have 7 1/2 feet between the counter and the window.

You need 3' minimum walkway.

That leaves you with 4 1/2 feet for table and chairs.

A narrow table against the window will provide seating for you and your family.

This would also balance the window placement and make it feel more intentional - end of the walksay.

A round table at the other end is going to be in the middle of the walkway.

For occasional use you could get a narrow drop leaf table with large leaves. Store it along a wall when not in use as a decorative table.

"A narrow table against the window will provide seating for you and your family."

It is great for a family not interested in making eye contact with each other!

I understand not wanting to invest in built-ins given your time frame. A repurposed church pew centered under the exterior window wall could give you long seating facing into the room with a narrow table in front. We bought an 11 ft. pew on Craigslist for about $100. If you have the tools or know someone who does, they aren't hard to cut down to length. This one is now about 95" long, The table is two Ikea butcher block counters that are 29.5"x 61" each. As you can see from the placemats, one narrow section can seat 4 comfortably on the bench side plus the ends. If you use a cloth instead of placemats you could fit 5. If you had a longer tabletop, you might have room for 6. And then could bring in one of your existing black benches to add seats on the outside when needed. This pew plus half the table take up 50"; a simlar setup would leave you about 40" walkway when not using the outer side.

Kendrah - It is great for a family not interested in making eye contact with each other!

It is easy to say why things aren't optimal, but sometimes optimal isn't possible and we have to go with the best alternative solution.

What do you suggest? How would you fit a table and chairs and allow traffic flow in a 7 1/2' wide space? I couldn't squeeze through a 9" space behind a pulled out chair.

I’d place the rectangular table with narrow end on wall. 2 chairs on either side and hallway end free. if its a 4 ft table you have 3’ for hallway. bring up a second table and reaarrange for guests or use table with leaves.

@Jennifer - My suggestions posted below. I think it is ok to not have traffic flow while four people are sitting down together, and then when the meal is over and chairs are pushed in, and the table may even be pushed in a few inches, there is room for traffic flow. Lack of eye contact is fine for grabbing coffee or cereal in the morning, but for relaxing as a family at the end of the day and engendering good conversation and bonding, I vote for eye contact.

I don't have the length of your peninsula so I'm not sure if the suggestion below could work for you. When bringing the table forward, you'd be able to seat 8 using the 3 chairs at the peninsula.

@ Kendrah - we can agree to disagree. I don't mind a bit of a squeeze, but I'm not sure people could really pull out the chairs enough to get seated with only 7 1/2 feet of width and I wouldn't want to have to be moving the table after every meal. I imagine the damage to the flooring as the table is slid across it every day.

I lived in a home where we ate at the peninsula 95% of the time. We learned to turn our heads when talking to one another. I think many families actually use their peninsula or island seating as much or more than their dining tables.

Wow, you had all of your meals with four people in a row facing front? Do you do that intentionally or just not have space for a table?

The tables I'm suggesting are narrow for sure. I grew up in a house where we had to slide our table back each time we used it and never had any floor damage. Padded feet I guess. When you live in tight spaces I think you get used to having to push things in and out or put a leaf up or down. My husband loves this kind of space juggling and adores a Murphy bed. I had to draw the line there!

I had a small kitchen table, but found that after we got the peninsula everyone ate there and did homework there while I was cooking and no one used the table anymore, so I got rid of it. Our peninsula was the center of our home. Everyone who came over sat there. I loved that peninsula.

@jennifer Hogan same with us. My last home I wanted an island but it was not possible with the space we had. And instead a huge wide peninsula was perfect and the place everyone hung out, from homework project to adult cocktails it was the best.

@Kim R I love the green cabinets. Gorgeous. And I know above are some terrific suggestions for the space to accommodate family. In our hold house we had a table we would push against the wall to create better flow. When guests came we pulled it out to sit around. It worked out nicely. I wanted a built in seat my husband worried we would be stuck with a bench we didn't love if ever we wanted to change it.