I love this room, quirky character. I like the idea of those vertical boards around the stairwell to be continued between those engaged piers, and paint them out white, I would also do the stairs but perhaps black to stand out and become a re modern statement. I would utilize the brick ledge around the remained of the room, and purchase off the shelf slim white bookcases, and install them entirely along this back wall, leaving room in your configuration for the tv etc. You can buy these shelves in varying width and depths cheaply, so play around with your arrangement. I'd fo as far as leaning a nice old ladder up against the wall for interest, and who would love their own library complete with a spiral staircase! Shelving the entire wall would make this space flexible for e entire family, and create a great entertainment hub at the least. On the other ledge wall, I'd build a bench seat on top, then add upholstered cushions to create a built in bench seat so you don't have to fill the room with furniture, and still utilize the open area for parties, and still have a casual place to relax and read etc. Floating floors sound great topped off with a generous rug, as click clack floorboards will add to the cold dungeon feel of an underground room, and carpet would be impractical with amp issues, a rug would give you the be's of both options.

The lights! Not to my taste... Then the pale timber cabinetry, this is a great alternative to boring laminex! & it looks good with the brushed stainless. I wonder if it would show fingerprints... my greatest bugbear in the kitchen

I found it here...but God knows how much it's worth... http://www.notey.com/@contemporist_unofficial/external/788254/volver-by-studio-14-for-terzani-raquo-contemporist.html

Hi Sandra, what a beautiful room you can make, I would love your fire place, my thoughts would be to go the lighter colours including painting you panelling, as a few others above have suggested keep the trim and wall colour similar, big floor rug as suggested also. Our sitting room is 4x4 metres, when we first moved in, I painted it quite a dark pink shade and had way too much dark furniture from our downsize that I thought I could not live without. After two years of trying to make myself like it, I finally heavily culled furniture and changed paint colour to a very light grey tone. It probably isn't my perfect colour choice but heaps better, I also purchased some lighter profile furniture, I sit in this room so often now, I just love it, it has gone from a room I tried not to look at, to a room I really like being in. I will put a couple of before and after in for looking at darker colours to lighter colours from very similar angles