We got a custom made flat pack kitchen from a company in Queanbeyan, not sure of where you are. Much better quality, Australian made and you can get exactly the dimensions you want, which is important for a kitchen with so many corners. You might be better off holding on until you get a little bit more money together and put the kitchen in the existing living room and opening up the kitchen dining to the new kitchen for a better flow out to the backyard. The room looks lovely and well lit with high ceilings, paint it and change the handles now and don't miss the chance to do something a bit better later on. Does not solve the dishwasher question though. .....

i think using the old dining room window as the doorway will be perfect and perhaps you could have "bar room" swing doors that could attach on the kitchen or pantry side and sit flat inside the opening? The plan shows the original walls are 250mm thick the later extension is 200mm thick but only an on site inspection will determine the fine details and you will see on my plan that the corners labelled numbers 1 and 2 will be the portion of walls that need to be retained to support the beam that holds up the ceiling and roof! (beam could be installed inside a lowered ceiling and disguised to match the family room ceiling or left as an exposed beam but decision for builder and engineer?) the corner at 1 if left at 60cms would be ideal space for a base cabinet (600mmm x 1100mm for a coffee or appliance station?) and allowing 90 cms between this cabinet and the island OR kept as a continuous counter about 4 m long? although i suggest the super long island will be out of proportion to the room and NB there is up to an extra 4m of counter in the pantry to think about as well!!the exposed brick and weatherboards sound perfect or we've just installed fibro cladding with battens over joints that would also help retain that vintage look of brick and fibro

PS - Get a La Pavoni europiccola, Elektra Micro Casa A Leva or Olympia Cremina coffee machine. They have half the footprint of your current one. I have a Cremina and love it, but the Micro Casa is a lot cheaper and very pretty. The La Pavoni is the poor cousin, but if needs must. Lever machines are much easier to use and cheaper to maintain than a pump machine like your current one. Solid state technology does not wear out. My cremina is 50yrs old and the only thing I've replaced on it is seals (5min DIY job)

Hi jh13, I don't know what you are using for your cabinet faces or your other bench tops, or how you need your island bench top to perform to give a fully considered reply, however based on your just your question, I would suggest using Blackbutt tops or if you want lots of this "rustic" effect, then you may also like to consider as an option. Hope this helps, Malcolm.