pure. magic. i enjoyed browsing your website. everything is so well thought out. love maximizing all views. i wish more architects would use interior fireplaces rather than putting them in the center of an exterior walls. putting the FP off center leaving room for the large flat screen as you did would solve many peoples decorating dilemas.

Carleenimlach your fireplace is stunning. It is infact original in bungalow detailing, and the bricks are not painted. I know this treatment very well. They had a brick stain applied, which is a red oxide painted to give the appearance of an even red brick face, this was done when tuck pointing is applied to the mortar course. I can see yours was. It looks as though it was charcoal, also another Edwardian bungalow detail, and the lines accentuate the archway. The mantel itself is absolutely beautiful. I myself would restore the brickwork, and let this period detail return to being the heart of the home. The hearth bricks definitely need to go, in their place I would lay a single slab on stone, which is a little costly, but overall, is worth the expensive you save in defacing the brickwork anyway. I suggest a rough sawn bluestone slab that will further enhance the charcoal tuck pointing, and grey is not only a current interior colour, but it is also what edwardian bungalows often featured. So you get to have a current, updated interior whilst preserving the beauty and character of a period home. This is where the homes value lies.

We are the Suppliers of QuantumSix+ 6mm & 12mm porcelain...perfect for wall cladding. We have 4 industrial inspired colours that would suit your project. QuantumSix+ is heat, scratch, stain & mould resistant. Sustainable. Made in Italy. Massive sheets measuring 3200x1600mm for a seamless look or can easier be cut to size. This is Costa Concreto on the splashback & benchtop This is Nuovo Concreto on the splashback This is La Roche Blanc on the walls This Grigio Concreto on the outdoor fireplace Please visit www.quantumsix.com.au to discover more colours and view the gallery OR contact our Melbourne office for more info (03) 9585 4706 Goodluck with your project!

We've just installed roller blinds. We're on acreage so privacy is not an issue. However, we did put block-out blinds in the bedrooms (for sleep purposes) and sunscreen mesh fabric blinds in all other rooms. Re the latter, you can see through them whilst still retaining privacy. They stop 85% of the sun's heat and up to 99% UV. We moved to the northern rivers area of NSW earlier this year so we'll see how we fare in the summer. I suspect the see-through blinds will be down most of the time but because they're almost transparent they don't block the light.