Id have Raised planter boxes put in around the outside of our yard so my mother in-law doesn't have to spend hours on the ground with a bad back to do the gardening!..

Same as Sharon, under mount sink all the way!... had an inset sink in the old house and I too couldn't stand the food getting caught under the edges, so in the new house will definitely have an under mount! :) See previous similar discussion for your info: https://www.houzz.com.au/discussions/3079672/need-help-for-my-kitchen-sink?n=11 If you're still unsure about the under mount, there are now also "flushmount" sinks where the edges are paper thin and sit flush with the bench top, very sleek look... And for the ultimate edge-free and fuss-free luxury, you also have integrated sinks, moulded/shaped into and with the stone: http://www.silestoneoceania.com/quartz-products/integrity-quartz-sinks/

@JWA Electrical - I forgot to point out, I did hire a pro to do the toughest parts of the fence - acquiring the hardwood, measuring the timber, sinking the posts, and levelling everything. The business is called Treescapes - who I have reviewed here. My neighbour and I simply found the metal mesh and fixed it in place. We are now planting plants and still need to tension some wire up the top of the posts to enable plants to grow taller.

I have one of those Monika and I would venture to say that you wouldn't be able to cut it flat because with everything around everywhere having the waved top it would look really odd I think, and I doubt whether you would be able to paint it at least until the development is well over or you could find the developers all over you, along with residents who like yourselves have signed to agree to the covenants. A lot of people enter into these developments because there is a better chance of people looking after their properties however I will say that I am the only owner occupied in my part of the street, and I am forever weeding everyone else's garden, picking up the rubbish blown from the sea breeze on new builders not looking after their rubbish and the renters chucking empty beer bottles where they have sat on the steps drinking and throw the bottles into the garden and I actually water the rental alongside me as our gardens join, as yours probably does, and they refuse to water it. I want my place to look nice and if left to these renters it would look like homeless shelters. I think the tall pots and something like the black bamboo could look really good :)