Do I need an Architect or Kitchen Designer?

RubyHouse

We have been debating about how to remodel our kitchen since purchasing our first house 2 years ago and are still no further forward. 
The house is a standard 3 bedroom, semi-detached, bay window mid-50s property with a slightly younger extension which houses the current kitchen
The house needs a full re-wire before we start renovations as the electrics have not been touched for looong time. However, before we can commit to getting this done, we need to decide how to move ahead with the kitchen.
There is currently a large second sitting room which runs horizontal from one side of the house to the other, and a small U shapes kitchen attached to this in a separate room leading to the Garden. 
We would like create a kitchen-diner using the existing space but have no idea where to start   

I don't know if a kitchen designer can help to this level of detail, or an architect to suggest some designs (My Dad is a builder and has yet to come up with a solution we like). 
And with my naivety - is this something an Architect would do - or are we wasting their time with a simple kitchen/diner refit? 

ka7e

Without a drawing or floor plan it's difficult to advise. A kitchen planner really only looks at available space for units and appliances and it sounds a small job for an architect unless you plan on extending again. Could you use the second lounge as a kitchen diner with patio door or bi-folds to the garden and convert the present kitchen to a proper utility room? A utility room can house washing machine/dryer, freezer etc and provides a second sink area for hand-washing items and garden/pet paraphanalia.

TELLIT01

If your dad's a builder and he hasn't managed to come up with a design you like, I think it unlikely that an architect will come up with anything, at least not at reasonable cost.  Many architects have high flown ideas about changing layouts, but with little or no regard to the cost of doing it. 

Have you put your own ideas down on paper and discussed those with you dad?  If so what were his reasons for not liking them?

theonlywayisup

What you need to do is close your eyes and imagine what space you WOULD like.  Draw it.  Then look at what you have and see what you can change/move to facilitate that.

Your cheapest option is to upload a floor plan, state what you think you want and ask for ideas here.   If you can't upload a plan then just draw your floor plan with dimensions, there are a lot of us here who cad draw and can add it for you. 

Ectophile

If you're going to buy a new kitchen from a kitchen company, then they will have a designer on their staff.  They will be able to suggest ideas to you and tell you what will work well in your space.  They can also do 3D modelling of it on their computer, so you can look at the design from any angle.

The design should be to a level where it's possible to order all the bits in, ready for a kitchen fitter to fit.  It will be more than just a pretty picture of a kitchen.

peter12345678910

I think the last 2 comments are pretty good, create a vision thing, close your eyes put some Bowie or Sisters Of Mercy on and see what ideas come. It is also true when you buy a kitchen they will work it all out on a 3d model program for 3.

suki1964

When we done ours, husband who is a builder, took out the walls, built up windows, built new window openings , put in the patio doors and side lights ( couldn't afford bi folding, we were on a tight budget ) then we went to Ikea and sat with a kitchen designer to discuss the kitchen. I knew where in the new space I wanted the kitchen to be and I knew where I wanted the kitchen sink and fridge, then it was a question of juggling everything else I wanted into the space available. We had two meetings with them and I got everything I knew I wanted and a few things I hadn't thought of. From those plans we done the tracking for the electrics ourselves to save even more money

Going to Ikea really was very helpful for me because Im the sort that has to be able to see the finished product, plus being able to see storage solutions I hadn't thought or even known about. Also I loved that they had different heights and widths available so every little space was used with a purpose. We got a paper plan and a 3 D one that we could log into when we wanted which was very useful as I could play around and move things 

We had gone to other companies, small independents as well as the big names but I was very happy to go with Ikea. My kitchen is 11 years old and still looks as good as the day it was finished. I had to claim a new hob 2 years ago under the warranty and which wasn't a problem and they even paid for the electrician to fit it

RubyHouse

Thank you all for the responses, and sorry for not replying sooner. 

I have drawn out the current floor plan in excel to show you what we are working with, the blue lines denote current windows. 
We live in a corner plot on an oval cul-de-sac so the back garden surrounds the whole property.

My thoughts are to open up with wall between current kitchen and second sitting room and 'extend' the kitchen into this area which is currently just a walkway but has a beautiful view of the garden.
Replace that window with french doors which would open out onto the patio.
And then build a wall to section of a second sitting room / cinema room. This also has a window the garden so it shouldn't lose much light - possibly having pocket doors so it can also be opened back up if we are entertaining?

I dont want a separate utility as I feel its a wasted space when there will only ever be 2 of us living here. And as such, we dont need an extension as there is plenty of space but it is not best utilised. 

bris

Take away the wall between the current kitchen and the second sitting room is the obvious answer. You dad being a builder will know if it's load bearing or not as to the cost of this.

You then have a kitchen designer to to work the space available.

peter12345678910

The new wall to the cinema room would need sound proofing if you like loud movies.

I used to have a very impressive cinema sound system in my other house, big speakers 7.2 meaning 2 subwoofers with a £500 dts HD ma amp Sony amp connected to a computer and ps3.  But now I watch films in VR with headphones connected to a dual valve headphone amplifier.

Doozergirl

An architect would look at the whole house, not just the two rooms, to work out the best use of space. 

As it is, if you want open plan, then taking the wall out is a bit of a no brainer.  

If there's a scale of 1 square to 10cm then the current kitchen isn't wide enough to be a sensible dining room, so a galley kitchen makes sense.  I'd look at what potential views are available from the walls that don't currently have windows and if those could be opened up.  

People seem to want open plan kitchen/dining /living at the moment.  Based on that, I'd be looking at some kind of breakfast bar arrangement that is a continuation of the worktop from the 'extended' kitchen facing into the second sitting room so that people can sit at it on the second sitting room side and benefit from the view onto the garden through the proposed doors.    It seems a bit of a shame to close it off if there's views on most sides. Presumably the other lounge is already closed off.  If there's only two of you then you can't exactly be bothering each other if one is open-plan to the kitchen.