@Lynne: thank you for your thoughts and comments. This house was built with some feng shui in mind, thus these roof lines - and roof orientation. We are aware that those columns are in the way. At a first glance, the one in front of that two panel door is not load bearing, this could be removed (seriously-who on earth places a pillar in front of a sliding door?!?!?!). The other one on must remain while both on the balcony are required; although we're planning on redesigning the balcony, thus can remove/ change the location on those columns/pillars can be reinforced and then moved. We're using a 3D software (sketch up or Revit) to play with potential designs to get a feel for the look (as we don't want to waste the time of a drafts person) before commissioning someone. Although I believe we will require a designer/ assistance of where items such as the BBQ could be build (kitchen faces the SE side of the house) to ensure a good flow inside out of the house... Thanks again! Much appreciated ;-)

how big is the alfresco? where is your drying area? my suggestion would be to extend the alfresco floor to within about 1 m of the fence in both directions with an edge of tall shrubs to block out neighbours' roofs (variety dependent on the climate..check with local nursery) and a wide path of pavers in lawn down the side with space for a clothesline

These decking ideas are great - it's always a good idea to consider the practical as well as the aesthetic! Another practical thing to think about is using the right timber connectors around your pool, because unprotected brackets and post supports can rust away very quickly and make decks unstable and dangerous to use. These articles on our website might be of interest: https://vuetrade.com/blog/i-want-a-new-deck-some-decking-tips-and-advice/  https://vuetrade.com/blog/pool-construction-checklist/

Sorry, but from a professional angle It could be so much better, considering the outcome for what it will cost to build. Possibly you're trying to achieve too much contained in a small space in a single level format, or if you want to do that the design needs to arguably push/work harder to achieve it properly without ridiculously squeezed spatial proportions. You don't want to extend a house and feel like you've downsized your living spaces - advise you robustly thrash out the project requirements and priorities. This is a dated design approach, and there's opportunity to be far more creative/clever and push to the south boundary to maximise the potential of the block better, release some under-utilised space/land and more effectively achieve the amenity/residence you desire. Of course hard to comment without understanding the budget or brief, but as a specialist with tight space design I look at this and shake/scratch my head and the logic behind some of the design decisions - the proposed design has aspects of a 50's/60's house that people typically approach us to rip into and get working properly. For a start the kitchen and living should obviously be flipped. This also won't be a cheap project and worse, it actually isn't a very inspiring outcome. Back to the drawing board IMO. Suggest that some alternative design options/layout configurations are considered and weighed up. Either way you spin it the costs will be very similar ballpark, but the outcomes one way or the other could be dramatically different As a comparison attached a plan of a similar project/brief for a Victorian cottage - absolute chalk & cheese And then below our award winning small house that maximises space, light and the feeling of it Best of luck PD :) www.pauldistefanodesign.com