If you are considering using aluminium windows then ensure they are thermally-improved or thermally-broken frames, standard aluminium windows conduct a huge amount of heat into and out of your building, decreasing comfort and increasing running costs. Timber windows and thermally-broken aluminium windows are similar in terms of thermal performance. Well painted timber windows should be maintenance free for 10-15 years, yes they will require more effort over time than aluminium but it is not a weekly event. This is still a major factor for many people in making this choice. Accoya timber (have a Google) is relatively new but does appear to allow a painted finish to last even longer. Double glazing, yes it costs more but not twice as much. If you buy good quality frames why would you not also buy good quality glass (and vice versa). It can be relatively easy to replace the single glazing in your existing frames with double glazing although this depends on the frames themselves. These are probably the largest areas of glass in your home, if you use single glazing you will lose more than 50% of your heat through them (depending the level of insulation in the remainder of the building, possibly more) hence choosing the right glass is incredibly important. Building comfort is a product of many many factors, each decision contributes to the whole. Be mindful of 'death by a thousand cuts'. I hope this helps a little.

I couldn't tick one or the other of the boxes – I think the choice has to be made contingent on so many variables. In fact we have painted timber, double-glazed bifolds (with a fabulous retractable pleated fly-screen) at the end of the dining room leading out onto a terrace and a painted timber, double-glazed slider (with a timber-framed sliding fly-screen) on the other side of the kitchen (but on the same axis) opening onto a raised timber deck. Each works really well in terms of function and aesthetics but they would not be interchangeable as the different locations determined which was more suitable – but they have been made by the same highly skilled window craftsman and have given us nothing but pleasure. And on a hot, steamy evening with both open we have the most wonderful cross ventilation.

they are listed at the end of the article as timber look tiles floor tiles World of Tiles -TIMMAR 159M - timber look porcelain tiles

overlapping comments and questions!!..i would have less glass in the room but more carefully positioned but have the walls already been built? and you said the joiner wanted 1500mm on either side of the heater and with the heater, say 900mm+ 1500 + 1500 =3900mm leaving only 700mm for the window seat along that end wall so don't think the corner position works any better but, assuming that the window seat is essential for seating crowds, i suggest that the western window could be shorter with bookshelves on sides and above the window leaving north and south walls for the couch and heater (although the heater and couch in my first suggestion could also be swopped over) but it's difficult to be precise without accurate window sizes and the orientation and direction of best views ....to have pendants for dining tables would make it impossible to rearrange furniture so i would have ceiling spotlights evenly distributed around the room with pendants only over the island...and i'm wondering about the room outside the living areas (an entry foyer perhaps??) and other options for the heater and piano but we need names and measurements of all the other rooms to make any other suggestions and/or could you use a heating cooker positioned in the kitchen?