I am not the best person to comment on lights but would a few downlights be the go or one of those integrated heat/fan/light things be best in centre. Also a lot of people have task lighting......so lights just above the mirror for makeup etc. Personally too bright lighting while doing makeup sends me into a spin as I look like i have about a month to live! I hadn't thought of approvals for my proposed window - so thanks for that. Must keep that in mind. My bathroom is very hidden and looks nowhere in particular. It is all looking good. On another note my friend got a heated towel rail and much as I hate wasting power it is fab. Our towels seems to stay dampish in uninsulated BV '60 box in Melbourne. Also i would have a look in bathroom showrooms for some ideas too if you have any handy. Or buy a bathroom specialty magazine. It is going to be so nice this bathroom. What tiles etc?

Well here we are yet again! I've not changed my opinion. The toilet-loo-privy- whatever one wants to call it needs a room of its own. Makes no sense to me having a "privacy wall" behind which to hide the pedestall if it is placed in a shower or full bathroom...the locked bathroom door is all that's needed. Seems to me that the concept of a separate toilet room or "Powder Room" (Why that title is anyone's guess)...was a sensible and accepted concept of homes in the 50's. It wasn't in need of any "polite" title, it was simply referred to as "The Toilet"..meaning basically -".where to freshen up". My idea of a perfectly sensible toilet is a separate little room housing the pedestal (toilet bowl) and a little basin with running water. Optional- a paper hand towel dispenser or one of those blowers...or a small towel rack and/or a nook for toilet paper...mabye to accomodate wet wipes in the absence of a basin or even where there's a basin....a nice comfy little Toilet Room..

Hi there - a few things stand out to me... yes keep bedroom sizes no less than 3000mm wide, offset the door to the laundry so you can't see the toilet from the front door - yuk! Minimise/simplify number of piers by turning front porch 90º. Keep the footprint as simple as possible. With oklouise's plan, which i think makes more sense, cut 300mm into each of the bedrooms and push out towards the left into the deck. Much better use of space. If west is to the left put a whole wall of cupboards along in bed 1 and get rid of the others, and add door out to deck on the (new) north wall. Do you really need a bath? Living in country they are wasteful of water even if it goes back onto your land. Alternatively have a combined shower/bath? Babies and toddlers wash quite well in the laundry tub then learn to shower with you or on their own quite happily. I'd make the shower a big bigger (and the cupboard on the hall side) and get rid of the bath. Make sure you have excellent insulation in walls, ceiling and under floor. Consider hebel panels as flooring (also, the reinforced ones span great distances) and walls for both fire safety and insulation value. If possible look for ramp potential in case of disability and also for getting furniture into house. If you're in a fire zone make sure all windows and doors comply with your zone rating. And if you are building high up on piers make the external cladding is something that never needs painting and is minimal maintenance.

we have tiled over a wall that encloses a cavity slider by adding an extra layer of reinforcing to the internal wall that also allows for installation of grab rails that double as towel rails..we chose a solid core door and extra heavy duty tracks and the door slides inside the tiled wall with very little sound but, to allow for the extra reinforcing panel, the wall is 125mm thick excluding the architraves