Blank slate:

We rarely use the front door. Groceries come in via the Garage off the Mudroom.

personally I'd get more stools at the island ..I'd make an opening between dining room and pantry and create more of a butlers pantry.....go a little glam or eclectic....its ripe for something.....have some fun there . I think that may mean locate the freezer in what is called HALL and recess it into the little wall w bath.....just as handy to kitchen if not more-so. Not sure about 3 sinks....have to think about that.. Are the gray and dark espresso colors going to be altered? the place could have a warmer feel. I'd put thought into the tones of cabinetry and surfaces ....floors are really great.

more "butlers pantry"....opening to dining....you can figure out your aesthetic later [details]. I think youd like it.

Martha's Vineyard Modern Barn Butler's Pantry · More Info

NEW CANAAN CT - Graceful Elegance - Butler's Pantry · More Info

Lovely kitchen. I'm not sure I'd spend money on it while it's so new and job loss could be in the cards. I am very fond of the extra freezer space you have going on.

I would first just try unfastening the island from it's moorings, unhook the electrical, etc. and using some sliders or car dolleys, and lots of large muscle, TURN IT AROUND. That ought to offer 100% improvement to the room, with minimual effort. And that's about it, until the courts rule that all the firings are overstepping bounds and due process. The rest isn't ideal, but it is livable. Unlike the seating in the hot zone.

I agree with beesneeds. Invest now or after a job loss, it's still the same pot of money that you may not want to spend if someone loses their job. While it may not be your ideal, it is a lovely kitchen.

Thanks everyone. While I agree about now or wait might normally apply, the reality is that we can pay cash as we go along without dipping into any savings or taking out any loans if we do it now. If either of us loses our jobs, we will retire. Ageism is alive and well and no one will hire us b/c we're in our 60s - especially me b/c I'm a systems engineer (specializing in software requirements and testing). Retirement is probably my only option and likely my DH's as well. So, potentially it's now or never. Our goal is to make it to the end of next year (2026), but if we don't, we want to be prepared and have all "elective" major expenses taken care of.

@beesneeds - thank you! One of my "dreams" for my new Kitchen was an all-refrigerator, all-freezer and I got it with house without having to do a major remodel. I freeze a lot.

@Minardi - The seating is completely unusable for our family. 15" was barely deep enough for my daughter (5'11") and me (5'10") and not comfortable at all for my husband (6'5") and son (6'7"). My husband would like to actually be able to sit comfortably this time! (In reality, he rarely sat at our 15" overhang b/c it was too uncomfortable for him. My son never sat there once he got his adult height.) I'd also like to have a prep sink with plenty of workspace on one side and not have to cross that busy path b/w the cleanup sink and cooktop. That aisle is a busy aisle - for both people and dogs!

@herbflavor - Your idea of a Butler's Pantry is great, but...

• We don't want to do any major structural work. The room labeled "BATH" is a Utility Room with access to the crawl space that is under the entire original house (i.e., not under the Spa Room or EZ Breeze room). There's barely enough room for what's in there and all the walls have something on them that would be difficult to move, if it is even possible. See picture below. The tankless hot water heater is on the wall shared with the Laundry Room.

• The "HALL" is the Mudroom and, unfortunately, there's no room for the Freezer without tearing it all out and even then it isn't deep enough to house the Freezer and still have room to move around. The Mudroom is one of the most-used areas of the house b/c it's the only access to the MBR, Garage, Laundry Room, and the Spa Room (outside of the Bedroom access). We're in that hallway on & off all day. See picture below. (The Laundry Room is just barely big enough, so we don't want to steal from that room either.}

• Dining Room - this house has a definite lack of usable storage, so we've already installed shallow cabinetry on the wall shared with the Pantry. Making it a Butler's Pantry would also eliminate not only room for the Freezer, but also most of the storage space in the Pantry. Honestly? If we were willing to spend a lot more on this remodel your idea would be great - I would gut the pantry, put the Freezer and cabs on the opposite wall and open it up like you suggest. I'd then flank the doorway with additional storage inside the Pantry. Another option would be to remove the cabinets on the left wall, including the sink and just install shallow pantry cabinets. However, my DH and I have discussed both options and have decided not to go that far. It is nice to have a place for the coffeemaker and tea paraphernalia in the Pantry and out of sight.

• Most of the cabinets aren't changing and I plan to match the island to those cabinets. I plan to add color with accessories. I'm a "technical" person and not great at aesthetics, nor is my husband. I've been debating hiring an interior designer to help us decorate the entire house.

While I definitely want to make changes, I don't want to spend close to 100K on remodeling the Kitchen & Pantry. If money was no object, I'd probably gut the Kitchen & Pantry and create the Butler's Pantry, replace the painted cabs with stained or natural wood, etc.

ETA: Forgot to add the pictures!

Utility Room:

Mudroom:

Well, that will make turning the island around easier, if you don't have to worry about retaining the top. Plan on some legs and stretcher bars to create a large overhang table there, but reuse the cabinets. You can notch out the drawers on one for a small prep sink, if you have access from below to run the plumbing.

[edit - this was posted before I saw the recent replies]

The freezer taking up most of the pantry bugs me.

Depends how you cook, of course, but I only go to my freezer every couple of days to get out some meat to defrost, as we don't routinely eat frozen convenience food. Removing the freezer from the pantry would free up the pantry for lots more storage, for which a combination of deep roll-out shelves on the south wall (treating up as north) for bulk stuff and drawers plus shallower upper cabs in the north wall for frequently grabbed stuff would be good. I can see a small undercounter freezer in the pantry for ice cream, plus a countertop or undercounter icemaker.

Opening the pantry to the dining room would be terribly cool and maybe DH can pivot to butler should he get caught up in the dismantling of our country's essential services. It would take away pantry space, not vs "current" (doorway simply replaces freezer) but vs "possible".

So where to put freezer? Closest place is the hall, demurely tucked behind panels and borrowing space from the end of the garage bathroom. Why does your garage have a bathroom, by the way? Is it more of a utility washup room post gardening and working on cars, or an OMG-that-was-a-long-drive-I-gotta-go thing? Anyway it is huge and could donate space. Other close-enough space is the garage, and of course that would cost nothing but maybe adding a receptacle.

As Minardi said, rotating the island would be easy (is there an HVAC vent there, might need to re-orient any associated duct) and probably the single biggest bank for your kitchen function buck. You can then assess if you need/want a prep sink in the island, considering that you have a sink in the pantry and Jeeves can dice chop mince between mixing your cocktails. Can one of the island drawers be replaced with an undercounter microwave? Is the house on slab, crawlspace, basement? How much work to get water, drain, power to the island?

If you want to increase the island counter overhang, you could move the existing island countertop over X inches and put a section of butcher block on the side facing the range. That would save the money and time of finding stone matching or complementing the existing counters which i find lovely, visually tie in with the wood floor, and be a nice prep zone. Have the butcher block attached such that it can be easily removed, refinished, flipped over, even swapped out in future (like, to match a future floor).

The other thing that bugs me is the kitchen is like Grand Central Station in the house layout. Nothing to be done about that, maybe no big deal when it is just the two of you. but the aisle between sink and island is an arterial. When you replace the dishwasher, maybe consider double dishdrawers; an open conventional dishwasher is a real traffic barrier, while dishdrawers are much easier to slide in/out and can be loaded when only partly open. If/when you replace the island, consider making it smaller to open up that aisle and the one between island and refrigerator.

Finally, saving the best (or worst) for last, here is my weirdo idea, which may sound like my commercial kitchen fixation run amok but I think actually merits consideration even for normal people. Presuming you replace pantry freezer with a doorway . . .

. . . How about moving ware washup and storage to the pantry? Hear me out. Puts the prep zone at the counter that has both lovely view and sink, slightly improves the traffic issue, negates need for a prep sink/plumbing in the island, ware moves from storage to dining room and from dining room to wash in a few steps, then from wash to storage in no steps, and your dirty dishes are out of sight. Maybe DH is Jeeves pre-dinner, plongeur post-dinner, then he's out of sight too, but sacrifices must be made. You don't lose any storage, the ware has to be stored somewhere after all. At the new prep zone, you'd replace the current dishwasher with a drawer stack and maybe get a 36-inch "workstation sink". I've mocked workstation sinks sized like lap pools, but 36" is perfectly reasonable. In the pantry aka "dish pit" you'd get new lower cabinet for the D/W, while you might keep the existing pantry sink/cabinet. 24" is plenty large enough for routine washup and if you need to soak a sheet pan, you have so many sinks around, and the one in the garage bathroom is probably seldom used.

Buehl, I hear you on the job uncertainty - my friend in DC just quit her job at the Treasury Department because of all the upheaval there currently.

This looks like a great house! Luck for you the kitchen is not an immediate gut - I'm sure kitchen function was high on your "must have" list, just like it was for us when we bought our current house.

I have built pullouts using Blum Metaboxes - the kit includes full extension glides and metal sides, in a variety of heights. You purchase and cut plywood for the bottom, front, and back, in whatever width you need. I vastly improved the storage in my Mom's awful apartment kitchen with these.

When my Mom moved out of this apartment, I moved all the pullouts into her neighbor's unit!

Congratulations on your new house! It’s lovely and I am glad you get the chance to make it more functional.

I would consider trying to get a bigger aisle between the fridge and island. I know you’ve lived with a tiny aisle but you have a massive kitchen so you don’t need to. In a forever home, I’d be thoughtful about navigating a big fridge with mobility devices, especially one where the door swing takes up a lot of aisle.

I think you’ve also said in the past that not having trash at your prep sink is something you regret. Not sure what you were planning here but here is an idea. This basically moves the MW out of the way into the fridge section since most things go from fridge to MW and buys you 36” of drawer space for prep. However, it does make the fridge aisle a working aisle so you need to keep the current width.

You could also make the trash 12" I think. Or put the trash under the sink?

I would shrink the island too.

show us the spa room? :)

“my DH . . . was definitely not a fan of being relegated to the Pantry for cleanup.”

HR needs to write him up! Efficiency Uber Alles!

That sounds like a great idea to create a little bar in the spa room. I'm sure I would never feel it worth it to build myself a spa room ...but I would definitely enjoy having one!

The "Spa Room" is just the room with the swim spa. I posted one picture above.

Electric Fireplace:

"I suspect I'm coming across as having "excuses"..." Buehl I think anyone who has been here for awhile knows that you put a lot of research and planning into your kitchen! If you are asking for advice, we know it's for a good reason.

Anyway, congrats on your new home - it looks beautiful! I was thinking like Minardi, to turn your island around. Keeping the same footprint (or making it larger) would hopefully mean that you don't need to patch anything in that beautiful floor. Matching the island counter to the perimeters might be a challenge, but you could do something contrasting if you can't find a good match.

I do kind of wonder why they installed the island that way - purposeful to view the TV from there, or an oops?

That Spa Room with giant TV is awesome! I see why it sold the house for your husband.

Was it the ”Towel Pig” on the kitchen counter that sold it for you? 😂 😂🤣

I mean what are the odds? This house was meant to be!

All the kitchen changes you are planning sound great. I was going to ask about moving the whole island into the spa room. That’s great you can reuse it there.

I think I would skip the drawer MW in the island. And shrink it back to the 42” in front of the fridge. Would you be okay with a small cute microwave sitting on the counter in the pantry? Our could you put one that mounts under an upper cabinet? Do one upper 15” deep? Retrofit one into one of the tall pantries?

MW in the pantry keeps it out of your island prep zone and cooking isle, yet it is still near the fridge and freezer.

I have this little one, but in white, at our cabin. With the rounded back, it fits perfect in a corner. It still fits a normal size dinner plate too.

Now I want a Spa room 😂

I think your changes are great. I agree with herb, give yourself some breathing room and make space for another seat at the island.

Good luck! Give me a holler if you decide to replace the backsplash!

Here is one idea for the island and hood.

I thought maybe a white painted island would lighten things up a little? I think the same countertop on the island would be best, if you can find something that matches well.

What about doing a hood insert with a plaster and wood strip matching the dark cabinets? Or a white painted hood the same color as the island with a wood strip?

I like the 3 bar stool idea. I am not suggesting these exact bar stools, but the image was easy for me to insert into the photo because it had an invisible background.

I would for sure change all the pendants. My eyes can’t handle seeing the light bulbs.

Edited to fix my terrible typos. I need to proofread from now on because apparently I cannot spell anymore! I just had to look up the word ”proofread” to see if it was one or two words. 🤪😂

I like it! Something more to think about. I was wondering how a different hood would look and I like your mockup. Thanks!

FYI...the refrigerator is only 33" wide. I just noticed in Rebunky's mockup that it appears to be much wider in the listing picture! Typical trick of listing agents - making rooms, etc., look bigger than they are!

Light bulbs - the house is full of Edison bulbs! We do plan to change them out, we just haven't gotten to them yet.

We probably won't change most of the light fixtures, though. I have been thinking of the Kitchen ones, at least. I just haven't broached the topic with my husband yet! One thing at a time 😉

Yes, the fridge looks huge! Also, they usually do something to the photos to make everything seem brighter and more intense in color. I wondered if the floors looked different in real life.

The floors are darker, but not by a lot. The knots, etc., are really there as well.

The acacia wood is beautiful! I actually like the rustic knots. I just wonder why they did not continue it in to the mudroom so it matched the adjacent rooms. Is it the same wood but just not stained?

Maybe another project down the road? 😉

I just noticed the wall hook are little chairs. Cute!

I like the knots too.

The Mudroom, Laundry Room, one of the extra Bedrooms, and both Bathrooms are tile.

The Spa Room and EZE Breeze Room are water-proof LVP.

The rest of the house is Acacia wood.

The floors will not be changing.

You have all convinced me to just do seating along the back of the island. (My DH agrees with you!)

I'm still thinking about the other suggestions.🤔

Hood suggestions anyone?

I'm thinking about a Modern Air. I haven't seen one in person yet - the closest dealer is an hour away. I plan to try to get to one next weekend (we're out of town this weekend).

If I go with Modern Air, does anyone have any recommendations as to which one to get? I'll be getting a 42"W x 24"D, probably 600cfms. That size only requires a 6" duct, which is what we have. It's also a long duct with two 90-degree turns - one contractor estimated it's 30 feet long in the straight run.

I do like my Vent-A-Hood from my old Kitchen, but they all require at least an 8" duct. I've asked to have a replacement price out. One contractor recommended going with a 10" round duct if we replace it. The outlet will need to change as well. (We're still getting estimates and haven't picked a contractor yet.)

It might be possible to change out the duct since it goes out through the attic, not just above the ceiling (it's a one-story house). But it might mean disturbing the backsplash that goes to the ceiling, which I'd rather not do. So if we cannot change it out, then we'll need a hood that uses a 6" duct.

Any other suggestions?

I will be out of town this weekend, so if anyone responds and I don't reply immediately, I will get back to you sometime during the weekend or, at the latest, Monday evening.

Thanks!

Have a great weekend Buehl!

I have been researching to replace my hood for a few years now. I need to repaint my cabinets, but I refuse to do that until I can get a better, super powerful hood. I wish I could help you more. All I know is a Modern Aire hood would be my dream! Please keep us posted.

With you being tall - how do you like the low hanging pendant over the sink? I think I’d make that a semi flush light as I know that would bother me (as a fellow tall person)….otherwise, good bones to work with and I also love those floors in the kitchen! Good luck!

6" duct for a 42" hood is considered a restriction. Long run is a restriction as are two 90s. Those suggest the quality of the hood is not going to be as important. Possibly using an inline or external blower motor to supply more airflow without a lot of kitchen noise could be a work-around. 600cfm at the outlet is what has to be calculated for blower power. Doing a 10" duct would be the choice if designing for original construction. Both options may require you to think about makeup air depending on how sealed your house is given its recent construction. Maybe it got a blower door test.

Recessed 4" leds should be easy since you have a single-story house. DMF is a source. Kitchen task lighting over work zones gets 450 lumens of more at the counter. If the recessed fixtures in other areas take screw in bulbs, you can use the 17.5W Feit bulbs from Costco. Flood spread, 1300+lumens, 3200K and dimmable

Hi Buehl,

Welcome back—and congratulations on the new home! I appreciate how thoughtfully you’re approaching this partial remodel. Even without a full gut, your list reflects a clear vision of how to make your kitchen and pantry more functional now, which is exactly what a good interim plan should do.

A few thoughts and suggestions based on your goals and challenges:

Island Redesign
You’re absolutely right to address the island first—it’s the workhorse of a modern kitchen and should serve you, not the reverse. An 18" overhang will make a world of difference for comfort, especially if you and your DH are tall. Since you're moving the sink to the island, I’d recommend positioning it off-center (closer to the cooktop side) to preserve maximum prep space between sink and seating. This layout minimizes splashing toward seated guests while giving you a generous landing zone for dishes.

Adding a MW drawer is smart, particularly since your wall oven plan will remove the combo unit. Sharp’s model is reliable and plays nicely with most cabinetry. Just ensure your KD builds in proper ventilation below.

Double Ovens & Hood Concerns
The Bosch HBLP651UC is an excellent choice—great performance and sleek design. For the hood: yes, many 42"W models require an 8" duct for proper CFM. If you’re currently limited to 6", you can still find solid hoods that operate efficiently under 600 CFM (e.g., Zephyr’s Lux line or Modern-Aire with custom specs). Avoid overcompensating with high CFM if the ducting can’t support it—it’ll be noisy and inefficient. You might also want to check if the current duct runs straight up or has bends—those affect performance more than people realize.

Pantry Fixes & Cabinet Functionality
Those 24"D pantry cabinets with fixed shelves are a classic frustration. Your retrofit idea with ROTS for the 21" pantry units is ideal. For the kitchen’s 18", a pullout is a great solution. Rev-A-Shelf makes rock-solid mechanisms for both configurations that can be installed in existing cabinetry or with minor internal framing tweaks.

Adding uppers in the pantry is a smart long-term move too. Consider lifting your base cabinet counter a bit higher than standard to make those upper cabinets more accessible without a step stool.

Appliance Integration Notes
Since you’re on septic, going with the Evolution Septic Guard was absolutely the right call. I’d also strongly recommend using the Kohler air switch in brushed stainless (K-35724-VS) over traditional wall switches for a clean island install.

One side note: the Bosch oven’s trim is fairly minimalist, but if you're pairing it with a Kohler Graze faucet, it may be worth exploring a subtle brushed accent in your hardware or lighting to harmonize the tones across the space.

Aesthetic Upgrades (Glass + Counter Overhangs)
Swapping out the clear glass for seeded or reeded later is a perfect “Phase 2” upgrade that adds warmth and hides visual clutter. You’ll be amazed what a difference that makes without changing the bones. As for the counter overhangs—completely agree with your plan to fix them only on the new island. It’ll look intentional and not worth the disruption elsewhere.

Final Encouragement
You're tackling this the smart way—prioritizing functionality, workflow, and daily use first. Your background knowledge and familiarity with the process already give you an edge. And I have to say, I love that you're keeping a thoughtful eye on budget and future job security without compromising quality where it counts.

Thank you everyone for your responses while I was away. It was a pleasant surprise to come home and see them all. I really appreciate all your comments and insights. They're helping me to finalize plans.

@rebunky - Thanks! We had a busy but nice weekend. We went to a family reunion on my DH's side and then visited with my sister and her husband. Both in North Carolina - boy was it hot & humid!

@thinkdesignlive - we've already addressed the pendant over the sink. My DH raised it so it's much higher and we no longer hit our heads on it! Good catch!

@Rachiele Custom Sinks - thank you for your thoughtful response. I do plan to offset the sink to maximize workspace while still having some counter on the other side of the sink to minimize splashing onto the floor and to provide some landing space on all sides. I think the deeper counter will help eliminate most, if not all, splashing of guests sitting at the island while someone is working in the island sink. It will be used only for prepping, not cleanup, so that will help also. Regarding the cabinets in the pantry, the plan is to install the upper cabs 24" off the counter (including light rail) to give me more "face" room at the counter and to ensure there will be enough room for my KA stand mixer (it's a commercial bowl-lift) as well as my DH's coffeemaker with a bit of extra space above them. By making them only 12"D, I should be able to use my electric tea kettle there without damaging the cabinets b/c I can pull it forward to prevent the steam from damaging the cabinets. Since I'm not changing out any base cabinets or counter in the pantry, the counter will remain the same height. Fixtures - I'm going to be getting the "Vibrant Stainless" (VS) for the faucet and air switch. If there was a "brushed Stainless", I might have gone with that, but the only stainless is the VS. I think they will go well. I actually prefer the Artifacts faucet, but considering the overall aesthetic of the existing fixtures and the appliances, I decided the Graze would fit in better. While all the other fixtures are black (Moen), I am putting in the Vibrant Stainless anyway. I've noticed some chipping of the finish on the existing black faucets and drains throughout the house and do not want to deal with it in the prep sink. It is likely we will eventually replace most of the faucets down the line, but that's not necessary right now. (E.g., all the black finish has chipped off the drain in my sink in the MBA and 1/2 the drain is chipped off in my DH's sink drain!) Regarding the MW drawer - we had one in our previous house and loved it! My DH told me he really wants one here too, so we're in agreement.

@dan1888 - thanks - I'm digesting your reply about both the venting and lighting now!

Update on the ducting & rangehood -- it is a 6" round. However, one of the contractors I'm getting estimates from checked it out and he thinks it will be fairly easy to change to an 8" or 10" duct - he recommends 10" since we're changing it out anyway. The only other change we will need to make is the exit point - it will need to be changed to accommodate the new duct. (He went into the attic and followed the duct from the hood to the exit point.)

Make-up air is another topic we're addressing. The same contractor says once we pick a hood, we will see what to do about makeup air. It's a pretty tight house, so I think it will be needed, even if Code says we don't (which is doubtful it will). While we have only electric fireplaces and have a heat pump and electric hot water (tankless), we do have LP backup heat, so there is still a backdraft concern.

Again, thank you everyone! (If others want to comments as well, please do so.)