As a guide - the bigger the room - the bigger the furniture needs to be ! I have, for example , a pair of 8' ( four seater ) sofas in my lounge and the day I ordered them, three times they asked/checked I really had room for two of them, as they were the biggest sofas in the shop !! My lounge is about 6mx5m with 3m high vaulted ceiling - and the sofas actually look the right size, anything 'standard' would look too small in there !!!

We considered all of your ideas and more, to the point where we had a sure plan, quoted and ready to go - only to be surprised when we actually saw it. That plan was to make the current ensuite the main bathroom and enter off the end of the room, to reconfigure the WIR to a third bedroom and to make Bed 2 the new master with a walk-thru robe to the new ensuite - currently family bathroom. The issue was that despite taking room from the existing wardrobes between the WIR and Bed 2, the area was just too small - so back to the drawing board. What we have decided to do is keep the same floor plan, knowing that if we choose to sell and return the WIR to a third bedroom it will cost approx. $4K - we think this is a great return on investment, but for our needs the WIR is a big benefit. It turns out our draughtsman missed some vital space where our current pantry exists so we have been able to utilise that space and move the pantry. This has allowed us to change the opening to the main bath to be adjacent to the back door/hall area which removes it from the kitchen/dining/lounge. Despite our best efforts we couldn't make room for a separate shower and bath, so we will have a shower over bath (island style) larger vanity (1200mm) and a concealed cistern toilet. Our finishes will do the talking with exposed brodware michaelangelo shower/bath mixers, beautiful marquina carrara and nero mosaic floor tiles and subways together with a statement wallpaper. We will retain the ensuite as is but we will make the shower significantly bigger, add a large vanity and concealed cistern toilet as per main bathroom. Same finishes. The trick in the ensuite is that we will cover the existing windows opposite the existing shower with the vanity and shaving cabinet (they are frosted from the outside) so we can utilise that wall and it makes no difference to the outside of the house - plus they are double glazed and don't open on that wall so it makes no difference to light or function. Here are the floor plans and the before photos , demo has occurred and we'll be framed and lined prior to Christmas, so stay tuned for more updates!

Wow, what great feedback by everyone! We are happy to spend a bit of money to make it a modern, usable backyard. Balmain is quite a close packed neighbourhood, but we are lucky that our yard is quite private, even if there were no plants. I realist that there would be 3-4 months of the year where we would not use it at all, but those other 9 months we really want a space for outdoor dining, bbq-ing, sitting outside reading. Our personal taste is modern. Plus the property is worth well north of $2M, we want a space to reflect that valuation. The bricks pavers are nice, but require constant work to look good. Still leaning towards what they have done to that Bondi property above.

Get a cabinet maker to custom build a work station across the entire width of that blank wall. As it is on full show I would recommend incorporating mainly cupboards and drawers so you can hide stuff away. Consider using a coloured polyurethane and nice stone bench top and cabinetry hardware, as it will be the first thing guests see when entering your home. Contact me if you would like further design suggestions.