Hi Cassie, what colours are the rest of your walls and furnishings also your kitchen cupboards and benchtops, it will make a big impact of your decision. Be very cautious when painting with paving or epoxy floor paints over tiles, your surface will have to be prepared extremely well or the paints wont adhere well and will soon start to lift and peel. A mild acid wash and abrasive sand to take away the glazed surface and old contaminants like grease and cleaning product residue would probably be advised. It would be a shame to go to all the trouble and inconvenience of painting to have it peeling away a few months down the track.

Thank you every one for your input! We are very grateful for such great ideas :) VanessaL - the space next to the garage is the 4th bedroom/study, yes we have considered the dog leg in the hallway but we actually preferred it over a long straight hallway, to allow a little more privacy at the back of the house when the front door gets opened, people wouldn't be able to see all the way through the house to the back fence.. also the toilet your referring to is accessed via the ensuite so wont actually be walking past it on entry into the master Andy Pat & Liz Henderson - we have considered the northern alfresco blocking off the winter light and we are intending on having liz's idea of a angled roof over the alfresco or windows above the alfresco roof on the raised ceiling of the living included in the building design.. Liz we would love to see your photos Girl Guides - yes our cool breezes would come from the S, the garage is locked into being on the west as that is where the driveway access already is and changing it is a cost we would like to avoid Oklouise - this is a great plan thank you for your input we have considered having the ensuite on the external wall but then realised it is either going to be the toilet on the exterior (forcing still to have a sunlight) or the shower, where being so close to the fence (1m) the window would most likely only be a long high window - possibly being less effective than a sunlight window anyway? We really like your layout of bedroom 2 & 3 altho we are planning on having a window on the external wall above a sink in the butlers pantry.. and we really do think we would like to keep the dog leg in the hall Please note as well - the estate we are in requires re-assess that is why we have the rear roller door from the garage up the side of the house

Such a great opportunity for a project! We've done these before, and like everything it should always be all about connection to the site and celebrating the lifestyle that comes along with this location. Here is a (larger) residence we developed for a similar golf estate context, with restrictions on setbacks and an odd shaped allotment: And the floor plan, although the plunge pool/landscaping changed a bit: The thing is on yours, it feels like it's missing opportunities and could (should!) be better.. You're on the right track with your instincts about the entry, and the living kitchen dining, as well as the front....... The issues I see are about distinguishing of the private and secondary spaces. Eg You shouldn't be walking past a bathroom or laundry to get into the main space, or approaching a kitchen from behind. Do you entertain / have friends over? The BBQ is so clunky - on to a wall that BACKS onto the beautiful view (!!!???!!) The approach into the kitchen/dining is particularly poor, and it like there are aspects of the house that don't capitalise on the best outlooks to the golf course, like the kitchen & master bedroom. This outlook needs to be maximised and if the master is to outlook more privately, then fine, but the view needs to be given to something better than the walk in robe..... The kitchen/dining should be "speaking" to the view, not tuning it's back on it like it is Without picking it completely apart I'd suggest considering perhaps a bunch of broadform concepts that are rough, but quickly look at options of how to configure the spaces in different ways, before then honing in on fine detail. you need to get the main "skeleton" in regards to zoning and connection to place/outlooks and north light properly sorted first. With such a fantastic small scale brief and amazing context there is really no excuse not to have this close to perfect from a design point of view, and to do this the design needs to be more responsive and tuned in to connection to the context and outlooks and simultaneously managing/distinguishing the main living from the private spaces. this is the type of house that should "embrace' and "open up" to the outlook/environment, with expansive southern glazing aspects and views from the entry through, interesting little internal pockets, and perfectly balanced and discretely managed private zones considering the scale I'd be thinking about the value factor in that if this ever needs to be sold then the hobbies and study can function as a true 2nd or 3rd bedroom and so the bathroom needs to be managed accordingly. It's kind of on the right track, but my feeling is that whilst it "ticks the boxes" with the spaces on paper, it's needs rethinking in terms of the overall and the key will be in sorting the flow and zoning with sensitive consideration and prioritisation given to the specific outlooks from every single aspect internally As you say , this is your "forever" home, and so it deserves to be exactly that, which at the moment, conceptually, it's falling well short of. Apologies if it's bit harsh/firm, comments well intended & hope considered helpful :) Best of luck PD :) www.pauldistefanodesign.com

I'd say it's an easy min. $250K minimum flagfall on a relatively basic/not fancy spec/fit-out in a super good package deal. You're essentially renovating an entire house including moving plumbing, walls replastering, new floors throughout etc....not to mention lights, rewiring etc etc, it goes on and on.......This scope would still cost a builder themselves $150K, not factoring in their own time/labour, paying cash for sub-trades and getting super deals on all materials....and then you could only really potentially roll this type of operation out if you actually have the money in the bank. If you need to borrow then you'd need a building contract which then brings in market rates, profit margins and GST. Take profit and GST out from $150K and there's barely enough left to cover materials alone, when the labour/materials ratio (of a construction cost) these days, particular for renovations is labour being the most significant cost involved.............you can fine tune and perfect a floor plan like you have (which I reckon is pretty good as a plan), but when push comes to shove it always comes back to budget and costs, which is why we always are encouraging people to utilise design professionals who manage the challenge of designing within budget limits. If you separate budget/costs from the design process (rather than integrate it) more often than not it will leads to disappointment and misalignment of your expectations of what is realistic.