I really agree with all the folks who have recommended losing the headboard in favour of bolsters and pillows But the best advice of all I attribute to William Faulkner who cautioned writers to "kill your darlings" http://wendypalmer.com.au/2008/09/25/writing-rules-misapplied-kill-your-darlings/. In the context of interior design, I take that to mean that you should mentally strip it down to the bones and start again. I love your window seat/bay window. I love the valance sorta thing. But maybe you should lose them. If those are your darlings, maybe you should kill them and free your mind to think of other possibilities.

Definitely add a rug with some pattern and texture to break up the conglomerate of dark colours both with the tiled floor and chocolate modular lounge. The rug you choose will then dictate what scatter cushions to select for your lounge. You may want to consider asking your landlord if a art hanging track can be installed this way you could hang a lovely print or artwork behind sofa. With an art track it is usually powder coated white and installed just below cornice and looks like part of the cornice. You are then given by the installer acrylic hanging wires that slot into this track making it versatile to hang either a series of smaller prints or one large one and you can change as often as you like without any damage to the walls. Your artwork can also be the basis for selecting a rug and scatters. You will be amazed how by adding the rug, scatters and artwork will give instant warmth and personality to your room. You may also want to add a coffee table too. If it is a particularly beautifully patterned rug that is a real feature think of a glass coffee table so the rug can be seen. This may also keep heaviness out of the room that is happening with dark floor dark lounge. All the best! Camille Interior Designer Australia

Are you asking what to call the thing that hides the curtains, or what the name is for the kind of curtain? Curtains that hang from a rod and close off the window by sliding left to right to center are technically drapes. The kind that closes off the window by sliding down are called shades, typically Roman shades. The thing above that hides the track of the curtains or into which the shade recesses is called a soffit if it is dropped down from the ceiling, or a recessed pocket if it is cut up into the ceiling. This is an example of a shade in a recessed pocket:

I will start with an admission - I have read nothing of the comments. However I have helped a friend design a compact laundry. Here was how we did it. 1. Start with a list of everything - and I mean everything, include pegs, those little lint ball things for the washing machine, buckets, mops, vacuum, airers etc - that you want to store in the space. 2. Break that list into where you want to store it - drawers, wall, or cupboard - and then rewrite the list as cupboard, drawers, wall etc.As you are doing this, see if you can store those items elsewhere - we added a ceiling airer in the bathroom using pulleys. Also mark any item that a special storage gadget might help. We added to the back of one door (I think they were custom made 925mm and 2300mm high) a hanger for the vacuum hose, and in the cupboard a hanger that slides out for the brooms and mop. 3. Go measure the space you have, and be exact - if the measurement is 1457mm it is 1457mm. Also, see where you might "borrow" space from. We managed to add another 650mm deep, 750mm wide cupboard by swapping the two bedrooms around, and using space in the guest bedroom wardrobe. 4. Draw up a plan, and be really specific. If you think you need four drawers and a top mounted sink then plan that way. Whilst you are planning think over whether you want top spec and not hide it, or to hide it behind really nice doors. We used reasonable quality from Bunnings and modified because it was behind doors. Also, don't be afraid to "borrow" something from a different zone. In my laundry I used a round kitchen sink, because I didn't want a really deep laundry tub so I could use the room underneath. 5. Go and find a really good quality cupboard manufacturer or builder and ask them to look over your plan and ideas. They may tweak to assist, but remember you know your space and what you will be using it for better than anyone. In my friends case, she had a brother who assisted and made a super looking set of doors. As to resale value, that depends on who you want to buy it, but I have one piece of advice - don't go for the resale value, do it because that is what you want. In my friends case she turned her laundry into the bathroom, and then turned the oversized bathroom into a very natty study. Good Luck.