Hi, I'm really enjoying your plans, nice job. I have a few thought I wanted to add :) if your still looking for feedback. Just some elements I think would really work. The garage opens to then entry. I think it would work really well opening through the laundry area. I'd love one like that in my house, as really your just lugging groceries etc through the house to the kitchen. Freeing up the entry to make a nice uncluttered space. You've got heaps of space in there, that you could incorporate a mud room / laundry and still have the small powder room. Basically flip the rooms on their sides. Your kitchen is wide but not a lot of workable space. I don't think you can actually fit that little round table in there. I personally would be considering a butlers pantry or a large regular pantry in some of your space. How about against the laundry wall? Then you could maybe have the fridge and oven in a wall of cabinets on the same wall facing the open kitchen. Then add a long central island. No cabinets against the side walls the island could hold a lot of casual seating if you wanted. Front entry. I personally find a hallway nice, so you don't have the lounge room becoming thoroughfare. How about some double cavity sliders or something similar? Then you have the openness your after but still get the division of space. If your only using a formal dining table occasionally, that might look good placed in the far end part of the original lounge room. You could open the wall up there to the rumpus like you show on one of your plans, it would be a nice flow through. I think doors here would be handy too. You could add a lovely pendant over the table and there is the windows there already, could look nice. Rumpus area. I think just add a big modular lounge and a telly on the far wall, your bi folds and you've got a really comfortable space right there. If you go for a kitchen island, and can't imagine having many meals at the taller height table, you can drop part of it to regular height for dining. Hope that's clear, good luck with it all!

Thanks everyone - your comments and diagrams have given me plenty of ideas I hadn't considered. Perhaps shifting the wall is a little drastic! I'm now thinking of going a long U shape like this. I'll add a few upper cabinets on the left side too for the most frequently used stuff from the pantry (as the pantry is still a distance from the stove/oven). The fridge as you can see is now right amongst the action. We also have a chest freezer hiding out in the laundry which I can move into the old fridge space...alternatively I might convert it to a computer workstation as suggested. I'm leaning towards a peninsula rather than an island, just because I feel like it will give me a slightly more efficient/seamless work space, and we don't expect seating at at the island/peninsula will get used much given how close the dining table is. Any thoughts on this revised layout?

I would prefer to have the pantry and fridge close to each other so that you’re not trekking from one to the other when taking food out to prepare. Then have all of them near the prep area and sink. Bins/compost bin close to sink for disposing if food scraps when making food and scraping plates after eating. Keep ovens and cooktop close to each other. And you need adequate space beside the sink for stacking dirty dishes and draining dry ones (even with a dishwasher) and space beside the cooktop. Minimum of 30cm bit more is preferable. Good luck. Exciting time.

my suggestion would be to keep the new kitchen in proportion to the size and scale of the whole house so i prefer option 2 with cabinets only as high as the top of the window, tall narrow fridge (less than 80cm wide) next to the back door with wall mounted mw and wall cabinets all round, no tall cabinets, more counter on the fridge wall then stove, sink and dw along the window wall to make sure that there is counter on either side of the stove and sink and locations for a toaster, kettle and other appliances..but exact location of appliances depends on budget and sizes of all the cabinets you want to use.. but, if you plan to remove gas in future, why not start with electric appliances and best insulation ready to add solar power at a future date? ...eg check out the electric air sourced hot water heaters and consider an electric flame heater for the kitchen fireplace and save the gas heater for the hew rear living area although it may be possible to have one heater with hot air connected to the other rooms with an in roof ducting system and, if you have long term plans to alter the rear lean-to research options for renovating the whole house and then plan all the work in stages...eg i would have the new laundry/bathroom next to the refurbished bedroom (master suite?) and have the future new rear living area with the north aspect