Definitely add a rug with some pattern and texture to break up the conglomerate of dark colours both with the tiled floor and chocolate modular lounge. The rug you choose will then dictate what scatter cushions to select for your lounge. You may want to consider asking your landlord if a art hanging track can be installed this way you could hang a lovely print or artwork behind sofa. With an art track it is usually powder coated white and installed just below cornice and looks like part of the cornice. You are then given by the installer acrylic hanging wires that slot into this track making it versatile to hang either a series of smaller prints or one large one and you can change as often as you like without any damage to the walls. Your artwork can also be the basis for selecting a rug and scatters. You will be amazed how by adding the rug, scatters and artwork will give instant warmth and personality to your room. You may also want to add a coffee table too. If it is a particularly beautifully patterned rug that is a real feature think of a glass coffee table so the rug can be seen. This may also keep heaviness out of the room that is happening with dark floor dark lounge. All the best! Camille Interior Designer Australia

If you have not already made this kitchen I would like to help, it lacks adequate storage for good pantry space. If you need a lot of fridge space I am not sure that is the best method as it takes up a lot of space. The idea of adding the bench for the kids is a good concept but the high back means the kids can't see you all the time and they will end up on your side of the bench so they can see you. Incorporating space for the kids at the end of the island bench would be more functional for both you in the kitchen and the kids would be able to see you move around and feel a part of things. Also how will they use this space kids don't just sit still they will want a bench or something they can use to draw do homework etc. Colour contract of light and dark always looks good. If you need help call I have a kitchen company called www.louisdivine.com.au. My kitchens are more traditional styles but I can do whatever is required and given the detail used in my kitchens my prices are competitive. P.S white bench tops are not hard to keep clean and they don't date, the nature of the stone itself is easy to clean.

Start by spending a portion of your budget on the various dream feature items that are relocatable and can be used in your final design anyway. e.g. Buy the firepit you really want - it can become the focal point of your future garden. Test it outside in your backyard for a few months. Are heaps of mozzies annoying you while you're sitting outside around the firepit? If so, then you'll know that you're going to need a gazebo with flyscreens as well as privacy curtains so you can really enjoy lying outside in your hammock year round. The hammock is another relocatable part of your design. First, lie outside in your backyard on a swag or a rug for a few hours. Is it too windy? Is there road noise? Keep experimenting until you've found the perfect location for the hammock. Then buy an inexpensive hammock and suspend it from a couple of sturdy RL4 poles. If it's working, then this is the place where you should build your future patio, that's going to shelter your hammock. Keep testing inexpensive versions of your other ideas out. Trial tea candles or a string of inexpensive white Christmas lights as garden lighting. Do they create the feel you want or do lights just attract moths or unwanted insects? What about relocatable solar garden lights? Or a portable floodlight from Bunnings? Where's the ideal place for your garden table and chairs? Test it out with inexpensive camping chairs - or chairs you already own for a few months to be sure. Then invest in the perfect outdoor table and chairs. Same with the water feature. Start with a wine barrel with a waterlily or a second hand pond off Gumtree. Can you hear the trickling water in the garden or do other noises crowd it out? Keep in mind big goldfish need deep water and space to swim. To help you in your choice of plants,look around your immediate neighbourhood. What purple, blue and scented plants are thriving in your immediate area? Who has the best garden in your street in your opinion - and why do you think that? Do you always see a particular neighbour passionately working outside in their garden? That's the person you should strike up a conversation with to get advise about suitable plants for your immediate area. Chances are they will not only give you heaps of free advise but they will probably give you plants and cuttings as well. Markets are another source of perennial plants that grow well in the local area. Plant these smaller plants into large plastic pots and garden bags and allow them to grow for a year or so. Consider herbs as filler plants - many are highly scented, can be used in cooking and often have interesting foliage e.g. choc mint, fennel, rosemary etc. After you've been using your backyard for at least a year and you've experienced all of the seasons, then invest in your big ticket items like your gazebo. Buy or build a structure that's truly practical for your local microclimate - incorporate glass, windbreak fencing, shadecloth, mozzie mesh or whatever you need to make your hammock shelter ultra comfortable. Build this structure where you've tested it and know it will work - not where a stranger who designs gardens thinks it should go. Spend the remaining money on the things you know you need and want - the stones, plants, irrigation, a birdbath, etc

Absunitha, I would love to know what you finally decided. I’ve just noticed you posted this last year. I actually love terracotta tiles. They are a funny fashion. I’m nearly 60 and have watch people embrace them with great enthusiasm, only to pull them all up a few years later, claiming they have no idea why they ever thought to use them. This is usually as people decide to wall to wall carpet everything and so the fashions change again. Tiles of any style are the most durable and easiest to clean. They add colour and texture. I also loved your very comfortably cushioned couch. I thought the blue complemented the the tiles well. I found a picture that proves this, that I’ll include. I also have a design for your living area that you may not have thought of, that would allow for a larger group to gather and watch sport, concerts, or non gender biased movies together. I based my measurements on approximates, by using your tiles as a rough guide.