Luke, This is a hard poll Although I voted timber as we have an amazing hardwood sleigh bed that we love, iron beds can look sensational too!!! I wouldn't hesitate to choose beds for our spare rooms when my home is finished, that combine both features with solid timber and strong steel set into some sort of design!!!

So true Interior blank. I don't know why white needs to equate to cheap looking in Australia. I drool in envy at some of the stoves in the US. Beautiful styling, retro looking, they have it all. You know what I'd like is for someone to be able to say exactly what needs to be done to convert their appliances to our electricity, or plumbing.

I agree with several other commentators. I love the look of your house, arches & all. Retro is in! I would pretty much leave as is & concentrate on cleaning concrete & landscaping. You will be amazed at what a difference good landscaping will make to the street appeal. With the right colors in your planting you might even come to like the look of your home like most of us already do. In a busy world the last thing you want is more upkeep & I think you would be making a rod for you own back if you render or paint the brick. And keeping it true to the era could add to its resale value. The only things I would change is the color of the garage doors & facia to either Dulux Natural White or Antique White USA whichever you prefer & the gates black if you want to be safe or a bolder contrasting color. As for the window frames I keep tossing up between the black & the white. Maybe black window frames with black gates would look good. Good luck with it all & look forward to seeing the finished result. Cheers Jenny

Gorgeous already and so much potential. Arts & Crafts, c. 1920s. Often referred to by real estate agents as Federation but the roof pitch on this style of home is lower than Federation homes. This style was generally built between 1910 and 1930 at the same time as Californian Bungalows. Most homes, especially in country Australia, are a combination of styles depending on what materials were available locally and the further away from Sydney you go, the later the styles continued to be built even if technically an era or style had finished. There are lots of timber homes like this throughout the Hunter so you should be able to find some ideas and inspiration locally as well as on the net.