practicallity wise with young kids shaggy is going to be a nightmare ..wool is good as warm in Winter..and hypoallergenic.. Harvey Norman have great rug sales sometimes 40% off just keep an eye out for them.. I don't buy wool I just buy what looks nice and is practical.. 2 of my kids have eczema and they find wool rugs rough and itchy..we used to have a wool rug at our old place..so I only buy synthetic now..

So is this just for the stair or for the actual flooring? Blackbutt will be more consistent and lighter. Spotted gum has more variation in colour. It's all natural product so it's next to impossible to see exactly/perfectly what it will look like, and the particular finish can make a difference too. But these two are quite different. Blackbutt is a lighter option closer to a Tasmanian Oak or Vic Ash in tone but much harder/denser, with a bit more character in it and much better for stairs than the softer hardwoods. This is Blackbutt: Spotted gum is much different has quite a distinctive/australian look to it as per below: Significant difference. Depending upon what adjacent flooring and also the stair design one or the other could work. It's about choosing the right one for your particular context. If you want an interesting/varied feature spotted gum could be the go, if it needs to be more understated and toned down then blackbutt could be the better option - good luck :) PD

Before choosing any surface, do the finger test, unless you are house clean slave. The finger test is see what marks show with a slightly greasy(hand lotion) fingers. Most blacks show finger marks big time. Same with counter tops. Best test is scatter with bread crumbs, if that disturbs you forget it, otherwise you will be kitchen cleaning all day. The same goes for concealed handles, they quickly get full of crusted much and chip easy. A working kitchen needs to be practical, easy to clean and totally family proof.

So much potential here. Start by buying an interiors magazine eg "inside out". Choose something in a slick modern style in colours you like. Now find a similar colour palette already put together... If you are new to decorating, grab an interiors paint decorating catalogue from bunnings and choose a colour scheme out of it that more or less matches the inpiration magazine pics. Now collect samples of bench tops from kaboodle in bunnings... again use your magazine inspo as a guide for something similar. You can paint the cabinetry with white knight paints..see cherie barber youtube clip on how to. Update tapware to modern black. Curtains ..for starters..try to get off the rack s old sheers from freedom. Black or white or neutral .