In addition to my post above...having lived with a fire set in a wall for many years with a vent to let the hot air into the room...I'd do neither of the above....except maybe old cabinets of well seasoned timber and not new built ins up against the wall enclosing the chimney. The heat from that fire and from the vent would affect the cabinets, dry them out, make them crack...especially since timbers today are not well seasoned as when the fire place was built....That enclosed chimney/flue would radiate heat as well...There's a reason why the walls each side as well as the timber shelves are a dark colour and there's nothing built into the spaces on either side. Installing the cabinets and painting them a pretty light colour might look good for a while but not if you intend on making good use of that lovely fire place. I've lived in my current 1900s house for 32 years and have come to know the why's and wherefore's about timbers and heat in old homes. One longs for a lighter environment sometimes but this needs to come from other sources rather than anything against the fire place. Its a bit of a blocker to renovations at times but again, with Wuff, "Embrace what you have"...read up about homes of the same period, surf the net...you'll find some beautiful solutions. Here's one....you could clad the walls either side of the fireplace with a fireproof stone cladding...enlarge on that...may not be your 'cup of tea' but for what its worth in making your place "yours".

Thanks for the follow up! I knew this fireplace would be the death of me! We ended up just rendering and painting for this winter, and we have just worked with our cabinetmaker to add some shelving on either side - awaiting design and quote. Im actually really happy with the fireplace, but I'd like to tile it eventually. @C P yours looks fantastic! Argh! I can't upload pics!

Hi Tongaface I assume the idea of the extension is to increase usable area for entertaining With this in mind, think about which space in the back yard you use now when you have visitors You are the one who will be using the space, not the man who gives the quote! I think the right hand corner option sounds good, as this will still give you expanse of lawn If you are concerned about light inside the house, consider translucent roofing instead of solid material Perhaps even horizontal louvres that can be opened according to the weather Or at least white material for the ceiling, as this should reflect light into the building Let us know what you decide - I'd love to see the after shots!

The different directions are good due to level change they give a visual clue to the fact there is a change in floor. In terms of the edge what was your plan with the capping of the bricks? Certainly you would normally finish to the edge unless you have that space to put an edge treatment. Ask the layer why he left the gap.