@Karen Hodge, I hear you!! Sometimes I think the estate agent should carry quite a bit of the blame actually. If they do their job correctly like you see in the adds on TV, they should bring these discrepancies to the attention of the sellers, stand on their morals and say if you can't get it better than this, then you'll have to find someone else to sell your home!! I know you can't make everybody "house proud" but the saying "do unto others" springs to mind. I bet if these same people bought a house not up to scratch, "a current affair" would hear about it but they don't think it wrong to simply walk out on a house that isn't being left nicely for the next family!! I have some friends that recently sold a house in Essendon, Melb and whilst the buyers were back and forth selling their own home, my friends kept watering the plants and even did things like painted out the wardrobes because of the scuff marks made over time!! They cleaned the entire two storey house from top to bottom and finished by mopping the floors as they were exiting. The buyers were so taken by the entire home, they bought it with almost all the furniture that my friends had in it!!

Luv yr ideas as I'm doing my kitchen exactly the same colours and same natural oak as a contrast except I have existing black granite bench tops ,so doing large drawers in a matt black!! Just getting quotes now! Have u had yrs done yet? I'd luv 2 c it!

How funny. I just renovated (on a budget) my small kitchen and added exactly the slate look in tiles you have, though they are in fact porcelain. And I placed them throughout the house for continuity. The tiler asked if I was after a retro hippy look but it doesn't look like that at all. My cupboards were the same colour as yours and I utilised the bones of the kitchen and had the doors and Benchtops changed only. I also have plenty of light in the kitchen but chose white doors and as I was on a budget I chose granite look Benchtops, they are very serviceable and it looks great. The blue backsplash was the colour lift and here you could choose any colour to your liking. Basically the kitchen ended up with white cupboards and appliances other than cooktop, with the stainless cooktop and coloured splash back being the focal point. The paint colour are: whisper white walls, integra splashback, white ceiling and for increased contrast I used the same white above the splashback on the rear wall. I would consider painting out the brick but leaving the texture.

I have a house that is tiled in a multicolour slate tile all through the living areas. The house was built in the 90's and was only 4 years old when I bought it in 1996. I am assuming your tile is also a natural stone?? if so it will need sealing as they are porous and may need resealing down the track, we have only resealed our floor once. Make sure you keep a note of the brand and type of the sealer for future reference.I would not take it through to the bedrooms - too much. The floor is very forgiving of dirt, dust, food splashes etc, if you have a busy week and don't get round to washing or vacuuming the floor no one will notice. The multicolour will work with your hamptons inspiration, careful choice of wall colour is needed, you may need to have the floor laid before you make a final choice to see what the colour it throws. A wall colour with a slight hint of colour works better with the multicolour than the bright whites or yellow whites. Hope this helps.