My preference for the width of stile and rail is 40mm minimum. I have a cabinet which has 260mm wide doors with 45mm stiles and rails. Any width less than that wouldn't look right especially if the doors are wide. I think it best to size up all the cabinet doors and drawers then do a compromise as to the best fit. Slim drawers are best left plain without the details.

Hi oklouise, Below is an image of how the houses should fit together. I have included rough measurements for sons house. Shared garage 6x6sq m - shared laundry sewing/ utility/mud room 6x3.3sq m - media room 5x3.8sq m - entry 1.5x3.3sq m - office 2.5x3.5 sq m - bed 4 3x3.5 sq m - bed 3 3x3.5 sq m - main 4x4.5 sq m - wir 4x1.8 sq m - ensuite 4x2.8sq m - bed 4 3x5.4 has linen c/board in hall way - bathroom 2x3.5 sqm - toilet and 1 vanity 2.7x1.7 extends into family rm - family rm 5x5.2 sq m - dining 5.3x3.4 sq m - kitchen 4x2.8 sq m - b/pantry 1.3x2.8 sq m - island 3x.9 sq m - hall 1mtr wide - outdoor 3.5x4.7 sq m may change - front porch 3.5x1.8 sq m - pool behind family area maybe. I will put measurements for my pantry and vac on tomorrow morning. This image might look slightly different to his latest plan which I uploaded earlier he has altered a few things overall still same footprint. I'm pretty new to anything to do with designing house plans so thanks for all of the suggestions and plans so far. I definitely like the way you have narrow shelves for storage in your pantry. but

Hi Susie, yes hand painted finishes do have a place in kitchen design and is generally reserved for specific styles of Kitchen. For example we would never consider using a hand painted finish on a Modernist Style Kitchen, a Scandi Style, or even a Transitional Style Kitchen because their very nature dictates a different type of finish. The key is the style of kitchen and here where your plan is to have a Shaker door Kitchen and vertical paneling, this can work really well with a hand painted finish if you weight your design style more towards Federation / Hampton and less away from Transitional. We do often make Hand Painted Kitchens, with this reserved for Federation / Hampton and French Provincial styles (like those in the top three of our photos below). A hand painted finish does have fine brush strokes which is part of the traditional charm; where these brush stroke directions correspond to grain direction of the center panels, stiles and Rails unlike Two Pack which is a flat uniform finish all over which has no direction. A hand Painted finish done properly, on the right Style Kitchen, looks great and actually costs a lot more to do because this is far more time consuming than spraying on a Two Pack. Your Cabinetmaker is correct, in that the Hand Painted finish is less prone to chips because it is a slightly softer paint, it is easy to clean, is still hard wearing and if it is accidentally damaged it is really easy to fix yourself. Susie I think the key here to your question is the Kitchen Style you are after, if you instead want a Shaker Transitional Style (see our very bottom photo for a Transitional Style Kitchen we have done) then Satin Two Pack is your better option as Two Pack is right finish for this Style, but as said if your Style is Federation / Hampton orFrench Provincial then yes Hand Painted finishes do look and work great with these styles when painted properly. This Houzz site is full of examples of other Hand Painted Kitchens. Hope this helps; Malcolm.

I have an Edwardian villa I restored 7 years ago and my master bedroom is on the street front as well and not that light. I have 2 bay windows in the house. I struggled with privacy too (I can can sit in m bed on Sunday morning with a coffee and see people walking their dogs!) and when I go to get changed I don't want to pull curtains and change in the dark. Also my lounge bay has gorgeous stained glass work that I didn't want to cover, Btu I have a beautiful front garden that I want to be able to see. I looked at several solutions including shutters and had quotes etc, For the bedroom I decided on roller blinds, sheers and also a beautiful silk curtain. Sheers for privacy and to control the sun, roller blinds for darkness add a bump lined curtain for added insulation and sound proofing, The Lounge: I used sheers and a full length curtain with bump lining. I also have placed my curtain tracks quite high up to complement the high ceilings. I decided on this as sheers give you privacy, control the sun; curtains give you insulation and also soften a room; both options can be pulled back off the window so that you can appreciate and see the window; they also complement the style of these older homes, If I was to do this again there are amazing thermocell blinds that can be attached at the bottom meaning that you have the option of pulling then from the bottom up. If you pulled them halfway up, his gives you privacy but still lets the light in.The have amazing insulation properties and they give you a cleaner look if that is what you are after. If I was dressing the windows again I would definitely look at this option as an alternative, I really encourage you to not install shutters or wooden venetians. I think they can darken a room and be heavy looking. I know lots of people install them in villas but I personally don't think they are the best or only option. PS just re-looked at your photo: I would recommend a sheer and curtain on a double track, Place the track higher; make sure the track is wider enough that the curtain can stack off the window; consider a wide heading tape (eg 160 mm is what I used to suit the proportions of the room and curtains). .