Ok my question then is which side....when you look in the room your eye is probly more drawn to the left side as thats where the vanity is....but perhaps the towel rail would be better on the right side away from the bath spout? Here are some more pics.

We too live in a cold winter climate with our bathrooms all on the southern side and faced similar issues as you do. One smaller bathroom does not have a window so we put in a Velux skylight which provides amazing natural light through the day. This may not be to your liking, especially if you have a period home. We also use heated towel rails and under tile heating (just enough to take the chill off and stop mould) in winter. Although we have a light in the shower recess, a bonus is the large fixed shower head with inbuilt LED, which at night gives the feeling of showering under moonlight. We chose light colours and mirrored recessed cabinets to reflect as much natural light as possible.

Hi AndrewJason, I love cavity sliders. they are there when you want them but not visible when you need the space open. Having said that they cost more, take a bit of wreckage to set up and in you WA case you will be wrecking brick walls to put them in which might be a stretch of mess too far. BUT you will need to weigh up if they are worth it in the end. I do not think the build will be too bulky in the kitchen/dining because it will be superbly practical on both sides and it maybe just a matter of what you are used to. Not sure about "Average Joe...…" we are all good at somethings, mine is plans, function, practicality, solar. Yours might be brain surgery, empathy for unwell folks, kinda or you make the best seafood lasagne in the world... we are all needed to make for a great world: and it really is that!!! Good luck with your splendid home: I think it is beautiful. And PS if you do make the best seafood anything I better have your address....!!!!!!! MK

I'd talk to a plumber , not a builder ( but get the builder to pay ) . Depending on the tubing/pipe quality and material , it may be possible to get a good engineering business to cut it near the top , a bit below the bend , and weld in a new piece of pipe -- even if you have to buy a whole new one to get exactly the same pipe ! If you plan it right , you may only need 1 weld if using 2 complete units . It will need polishing or re-chroming , but I suspect that would be the cheapest and easiest course of action .