just viewed your imagined dilemma - the jade colour of doors - are they a laminate - if they aren't - yes if you desperately need a change - have white laminate (like the whole neighbourhood). but if the jade cupboards are definitely laminated I would not replace - for the jade is stunning. Furthermore, you would make a good move to extend the black high-gloss laminate to those floor-level cupboard doors which currently have a wood strip (which the previous owner did (I presume)I would suggest you have a single black strip definitely 2inches high inserted as a line in that area. (this job must be done by an experienced laminator - to perfection (this will eliminate the eye-sore strips of wood.( but it must be applied as a continuous band (from a to b) - not bits - Furthermore, the high-gloss black floor-boards will look good so close - meeting each other. I NOTE YOU WOULD DO WELL WITH A LARGISH SLEEK KITCHEN SINK ( YOU SEE BY DOING THESE SMALL CHANGES YOU ARE GETTING A WHOW KITCHEN. Am I imagining the green which seems to extend to the ceiling line is not cupboards up there if that is so do not take the green up to the cornice - the cupboards are the feature not the walls - the cornice in that room should be taken out - having the plastered wall reaching the ceiling without cornice. Your kitchen cupboards are the feature.(it would be good to paint upper walls and ceiling. Just "off white" I am reluctant to tell you the kitchen window should be wider as the kitchen has a message but the window is like a poor relative. If you carry-out these changes - the kitchen should be free of everything else - no utensils on the stove, nothing on benches or on top of other areas - the colour and impact - that is all that is needed (plus it has become modernised) - despite your belief that white is in - maybe in hospitals. Good Luck

For a red-brick period home from the early 20th century I would consider James Hardie's Scyon Linea Weatherboard, which looks like the old fashioned timber weatherboards, (but without the maintenance issues and the cost) as the cladding material for an extension. Avoid rendered lightweight construction as it is inappropriate and too contemporary for your home. Look at your existing external trim colours, and the trim colours of other houses of a similar age in your area for colour inspiration. Best of luck, Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls

Hello, thank you for your response. For some reason the site defaulted to the Australian discussion forum when I posted but I just went with it anyways and didn't think much of it. I understand your point about different perspectives in different countries though, thanks. I know this is all based on personal preference but I like either option of so I am looking for some other opinions. The developer has been very helpful with the different options and we plan to speak to some other local professionals as well. We have seen the materials in person (except for cabinets) in very small sample sizes and all of the colours seem to compliment eachother but for the purpose of this post a digital photo was the only option of course.

Hi, firstly congratulations on your decision to renovate. How exciting. We are nearing the end of a major renovation and choosing the exterior colours was a real sticking point. Most of the houses around us were built in the 1990's and my renovation had the potential to not quite fit in. I had to use a timber cladding to match the existing cedar but the original had been poorly stained and I was never going to get a cohesive match between old and new. I was left pondering my choices. The solution was to paint both but what colour? In the end, I looked at what of the existing was going to be left unchanged. It turned out to be the Karaka Green window frames - not my favourite colour - but in order to work with it I had to pray I didn't offend the neighbourhood. I didn't want the old dirty brown shade and a thousand testpots later, left me with only one really obvious answer. As you can see from the photo, I chose [quite radically] to paint the entire extention in Half Karaka green. It's still a work in progress and in the coming weeks, the rest of the house will be painted to match. I waited for the neighbours - particularly, the old people from the Rest Home at the end of the street - to tell me off for my choice but have been blown away by their reactions. Every last comment has been a major thumbs up. Even the painter - who was highly skeptical - apologised for his doubt, Don't automatically assume your neighbours are going to hate seeing the changes you are about to bring to the area. Which brings me to your planned renovations. I am assuming that your window frames are also going to remain the white colour in the photo. Rather than get all confused about greys etc. Start with them as the basis for the rest of the house and work out from there. If you do that, then I don't think it will be as difficult as it currently seems for you to pick what the rest of the house will be. Don't be afraid to spend money on purchasing test pots. They are around $4 or $5 each and I believe that I probably spent $200. It was worth every penny to me to get a few small off cuts of cedar painted and sit and look at them alongside the existing windows in order to make an informed decision. Good luck. I look forward to seeing some finished photos. I hope to post my finished renovation photos here soon.