After I had finished my Archi Masters I was working for an architecture firm who also did a small amount of work for a volume builder. They were actually a pretty good quality builder and at least got the orientation of their 'pre-designed' plans correct. We had the ability to make minor changes to every job and it pained me to see so many simple to implement passive options not being incorporated. Had most of their clients known that they would be saving MONEY over the longterm by making a few minor changes to suit their site, they all would have done it. The problem is unless someone can sell this idea to them as a financial/lifestyle choice, many just think it is about saving the world. It is a no-brainer if you have in interest in it, but for those who don't know, there is no-one there selling it to them, especially on the lower end of the market.

Cleaning the bathroom is a breeze, I have a nylon scrubber that I buy from Coles or Woolies and the cheapest shampoo I can find, after my shower I put a couple of squirts of the shampoo on the scrubber, run it from top to bottom all round my shower ( I have a large double head shower ) and over the floor then spray clean warm water from the top of the wall and let it run down the walls and glass area till the soap has gone, the shower in our 2nd bathroom doesn't have a spray so I use an empty Peters 2 litre icecream container keep filling it up with warm water and run this down the walls, hop out of the shower walk away and let it dry by itself -- once it is dry I have a perfectly streak free shower, for the bath and the vanity basins I use the same method, wipe them over with the scrubber and shampoo, flush with the warm water and leave, wipe the vanity tops, the area around the bath and window area with a damp cloth and hey presto a beautiful clean bathroom, this all takes only a few minutes and I always have a clean bathroom.

Hi SonaandDi, In case you haven't come across it, here is the link to my finished kitchen: https://www.houzz.com.au/discussions/5598603/renovation-of-our-1956-red-brick-triple-fronted-home-all-done This layout has the potential for issues, but I tried to factor those in by noting where the fridge doors came to when fully opened. I should have allowed a little more width for the fridge gap, as the theory didn't quite translate in practice: on the plans I allowed the minimum of 20mm either side of fridge, but ended up with only about 13mm (was not fun getting the fridge in!). So my suggestion is to make sure there is 50mm either side of fridge. eg the fridge space is 1000mm wide for french door fridge around the 900mm mark. Even so, my doors do open fully (vegie drawers slide out unobstructed), as the doors themselves sit forward of the nib wall on the right. If your fridge space is wider, you won't need to sit the fridge out the full thickness of the doors, which may look more streamlined. But make sure you allow for 50mm space at the back of fridge. This will decide the depth of your nib wall. I calculated mine as 50mm plus the depth of the fridge to the start of the doors. You might prefer to make it a bit deeper, as the doors have more room to open due to the extra width of the space. It isn't annoying having the door opening over the pantry entry. It isn't often that someone wants to get to the pantry at the exact moment someone else opens the fridge. Even if that happened, you could get past if you couldn't wait: Good luck with your renovation! Because you can't be on site, I would always factor in more wiggle room. Let me know if I can help with any more info - I could talk about this stuff all day long!

the big windows (can't see the actual dimensions) leave no obvious places for a tall storage unit convenient to the kitchen and dining area and removing walls is an expensive option that doesn't provide any additional space but, if you would be happy with the smaller entry foyer consider using the remainder of the entry hall for a pantry and have free standing cabinets for dining room storage ... the depth of the hallway would make an alcove too deep for a standard 450 -600 mm deep cabinet but would make a useful pantry and a convenient space to stash shopping bags and a broom and you could have a shallow alcove with a shelf on the entry side to make a space for some art or vase of flowers or something to give the entry a little bling?