Hi Neryl, A great little project that you can get a lot of satisfaction from. I wouldn't treat this room in isolation and instead look at making sure the rest of the house influences your decisions. There are some great suggestions here. My thoughts: - Replace floor tiles and tile the walls to the underside arch of the window. Use a white Johnson tile in brick format with black grouting, very economical. - No curtain on the window but I like the idea of the shutter, or use a film on the window but only if privacy is an issue. - Paint window frame white - Paint the rest of the room a feature colour - something rich and in keeping with the house. From the door handles I get the feeling the house is 30's/40s??? This will warm & tighten up the room with class. Could be a deep grey or green. - New wall hung vanity unit, keep it simple. Caroma have a great vintage range that are timeless, not faux replica. - If budget permits, a new toilet suite. Porcher have some economical models from discontinued lines, like the older style Cygnet. They come with the full warranty and are close coupled to reduce cleaning in nooks and crannies. - a new light fitting - say a simple frosted sphere, almost like a cotton ball. - a wall hung mirror in frame rather than anything contemporary. - wall mount everything including the toilet brush. All the best, and enjoy the transformation! Rebecca

So we painted it black to match the other sides of the fence. It needs to be reinforced as its falling backwards but ok for now. I've bought some creeping Ivy to grown over it too and I'll get some boxwoods or similar to carve into spheres or balls.... Also founds some nice light teak / grey bench seats. If really like to do a few vertical gardens here but the fence won't hold it for now so this will have to do. Could be something we add to later. It'll take some time to even look remotely good but we're getting there. At least we have a plan! Thanks all for you suggestions!

In my early twenties I designed kitchens for my mother and two aunts (Uncle built them and they worked), but when it came to designing my own - had to fit a constrained space and no possibility of extension - I chewed my lips for ages - like Nicole, I drew and measured ad infinitum, and used graph book walls, views etc. I did one extra thing - which I think worked - I listed all that I wanted to store, and tried to analyse how I liked working in the kitchen. Some things I had to settle for because of space (such as a smaller dishwasher) but most of it has worked. We have a corner pantry, which I (and the cat, husband a bit larger) can walk into, but have not put small appliances in there - they sit in a large drawer beneath the main working bench, which also works well. It all looks good to me Nicole and thinking carefully about needs and how things work in advance usually results in something you'll be happy with. Good luck!

Face it - gravity sucks. Your house was designed to be supported by the "poles" or are they stumps? You will need to carefully assess the value in removing them all. First you will need to engage a structural engineer to advise you, and he may suggest long steel beams that run across from one side of the house to the opposite side allowing the supports to be removed. However the financial cost in installing these long beams (and additional structure to support the beam ends) will be significant - there is no cheap fix. Once you have paid tens of thousands of dollars (maybe more depending on the length of the spans and ease of access under your house for installing them) you will have a large, open, low-ceilinged space with the proportions and feel of a shopping centre carpark. The structural engineer will need deep steel beams depending on the span between the walls, and this will reduce the clearance under the beams to much less than your current 2.1 metres. Save your money and engage a clever designer to find a clever solution that works with keeping the supports, and you will get much better value for your spend. Best of luck with your considerations, Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls