Hello Megan, i have read the comments, and I agree practicality is paramount, also it's a large investment and would be not be ideal to have purchased this with an awkward setting. Particularly entertaining. i think the 1200mm diameter table is a great spot. It loses a dinner plate in depth, meaning it's a seated table not a serving one. So it will work to have a shared centrepiece maybe a glass vase of flowers and the pendant over. It will suit your family, it would be an intimate setting, and ideal to have the luxury of an upholstered chair. Certainly far from a compromise. Being that your dining table is only a hop away from the kitchen, the table itself doesn't need to have a large top for serving setting anyway. Yes, centre it, even though you may be tempted to allow more room in the walkway, don't, by having a visual space equal to walk around will make it feel less intrusive in the space, and you will quickly settle into walking around it to suit. Just position your chairs on the diagonal axis meaning so they back out to the corners of the room, so you can get around them easier, they won't block in the space. Having a glass top, it won't look over scaled, and it will make practical use of every square inch of your homeow. Good luck, I'm keeping myself posted on it.

I have the same question really, except I know I have to have laminex and don't know which would look best. We live in the country where it's hard to inspect sizeable samples in situ

Ali your kitchen looks amazing. The colours are wonderful. I have a question for you about the Rugged Concrete. I’m thinking of using it on our island bench but I’m a little worried about finger marks and cleaning. I’ve read lots of bad reports about the other Caesarstone concretes like Fresh,Raw and Sleek. And I’m hoping Rugged Concrete is easy to clean. How is yours now that you’ve had it for a little while?

I hate painting or rendering brick . But those columns make me shudder ! So a relatively budget option would be to paint the columns , or render them , in an English Cream or even a white . NOT Gray . It is trendy , it is industrial , it doesn't suit the brown , in fact it doesn't suit the house . I'd follow through with the gutters in a white or sandstone too . The 'front' would look lighter , the columns are technically then a feature , it would have a slight bit of character . I'd get 2 or 3 big 1 metre by 1 metre black/charcoal tiles , and set into the stones , leading out from the terrace by the door . Add a couple of big , bright glazed pots , with a variety of plants . Tile the whole terrace in the same tone black/charcoal tiles , but 250 x 250 or 300 x 300 . The terrace tiling is 'optional' , or could be done later , but lighten the columns and gutters , and it will take some of the chocolate sameness away . Then , as everyone says -- landscape . Turn the carport into a bedroom ( personally , I wonder how you will insulate/do a ceiling/seal the walls to the roof/work walls around upright poles/remove bricks/add a door/add an ensuite plumbing/etc , but worth asking about ) .