Oh C'mon V Richards...every epoch has its treasures. B4 you make a mad run for it stop a while and consider the period and the reasons for the style...it can be extremely enlightening....unless its not the period you want to escape from but from some of the opinions. I spent many years of my youth outside of Australia living surrounded by old ruins in Europe. I forgot what it was like here. When finally I returned to Australia and found myself living in some of the 60s and 70s places..I found much to admire and wonder about. I may not have fallen in love with much of it but there was a certain mistique and a feel that I can still conjure when talking about certain places. Not saying that it was all romantic and pleasant but it conveyed something of the era and the kind of Aussie from those days.

I have just read an article that says that open plan living has had it's day and people are wanting to return to more separate 'zones' and one of the suggested ways to achieve this was a sunken living room, it continued by showing photos of recent houses constructed with them, and as I quite like the idea! But I do wonder about all the extra unnecessary trips and falls that will happen! And it's not practical if there are elderly friends or relatives who visit regularly.

I agree with many of the suggestions from georgi02 and have used Kerrie Langloy 7's idea. Here are a few more ideas that we live by: 1. Get rid of the credit card. We have a debit card - cannot spend what you don't have. 2. If you can't pay cash for it, then you don't really need it (except for a house and car). 3. Work out a menu for the week and then write up a weekly shopping list. This way you have less waste. 4. Never go shopping when you are hungry. 5. If you don't get the supermarket pamphlets in your letterbox - go on line for the specials. 5. Growing your own herbs is great but they are not all available all year round so you can buy tubes of herbs that you can keep in the fridge or freezer. 6. Yes, you should have an emergency fund. But don't leave it in the bank - hide it away at home. Why? If the power goes down, ATMs don't work or are empty and/or banks closed - you are in trouble. 7. The old adage about looking after the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves is still true today. All that loose coin in your pocket at the end of the day adds up to a healthy amount if you put it in jars, money banks, etc.

Go with your gut Tracy..... it is a big investment but I have found that if it makes you smile every time you walk into your kitchen you'll never regret it!!!! I've recently moved into a smaller downsized home with my 3rd black kitchen, with drawers, no cupboards, except for the pantry which we use as the crockery and wine glasses stash. Mine is matt but no handles = no hip bangers! I chose to use snow white stone bench tops, the walls are painted natural white while the floors are pale oak hybrid vinyl.