the reno programs i've seen show a very unrealistic idea of how quick and easy it's supposed to be... your rooms are so generous that re-arranging the fridge, extra storage and seating at the kitchen bench is easy and i've attached an idea for a walk in pantry for your consideration?? BTW i meant the actual structure of the floor, concrete or timber framed in case you want to try the stove or sink away from the outside walls. I'm glad you like the ensuite and wiw and happy to attempt any variations but, much as i like planning kitchens and bathrooms, i suggest you need to confirm the overall construction, especially the roof, before finalising ideas about the internal fit out eg the yellow gable roof in my last suggestion would probably cost as much extra as the bathroom fittings and neither can be changed easily. The new kitchen cupboards would probably cost as much as the plumbing, electrican and windows but maybe the new kitchen could wait...so its' best to decide where you need to economise before you commit

Just to confirm I have taken the great ideas presented here as advice only and have no intention to do some dodgy diy reno's. With the exception of a couple of quirky exposed timbers as you can see in my pictures there are no other exposed beams. As you can also see from the pictures there is a large roof space on the right (east) side of the house but the ceilings themselves are flat with a slight dip on the north wall. Based on my own personal experiences I would have to agree with Two's Company that there is a tendency towards rendered brick in WA (although there are still many exposed brick houses in my suburb) while double enclosed double garages are also highly desirable. I would also agree that toilets within the main bathroom and non traditional laundries may be considered unusual by many (but not all). Ensuites with toilets however are still very common. Also due to the nature of our work we would prefer the laundry separated from food/kitchen area. For a 4x2 house it is only around 155m2 excluding carport/alfresco which makes the rooms feel quite cramped, hence the desire to open up the family room. However, as Two's Company suggests we will need to first get a builder/eng in to check load bearing walls etc as this will undoubtedly affect what we can achieve within our budget. Having said that I still excited by many of your ideas and with luck hopefully can work some of them into the budget. Cheers all :)

to access the power point through a backboard cut a matching hole in the backboard to access the power point and add a small extension cord to have the power in a more convenient location but storage depends on what you need to store but try the PAX wardrobe (1500 wide x 2100 high) with extra shelves plus a freestanding chest of drawers eg Malm 80 wide to leave a small gap at the window wall for the blinds and use wall hung open shelves and don't forget to secure the wardrobe and drawers to the wall...if you prefer the chest of drawers to be the same depth as the wardrobe you could add an extra counter on top of the drawers (Ikea and Bunnings sell custom cut counters in various colours but consider having the chest of drawers and/or the wall shelves in different colour for constrast and matching knobs or handles to doors and drawers

The kitchen area and alfresco is an extension, so we have furniture already in the formal lounge dining that we are happy with. Thanks for the pics of the Breaky space. I do like the look of that and have the fridge near that end of the kitchen. It would probably make the current kitchen layout more practical.