Okay, so as expected the matt suede surface is more expensive, not sure how much yet but when the builder says price on application, I can imagine it will be a fair bit more. Anyway, we'll see but something to take into consideration I guess... In the meantime, I was going through my idea books and found the photo below, which I kind of forgot about but is one of my absolute favourite kitchens... the point is just like the photo, we too will have a wall cabinet in matt black, the back of the island in matt black and oak floor boards in a natural/textured matt finish... so now I'm thinking maybe too many matt surfaces, interestingly they have gone with a polished stone top which I think is reflecting the light nicely... Our floors...

Could you push the new addition & deck forward toward the north by about 1200 - 1500 mm? New kitchen - (in back of new room) Better for tall kitchen units (south side) plus you gain visual connection, better flow with dining/family/decks, island bench or return from east to west. Laundry - continue shower wall right across toward stairs & move laundry entry to stair side, laundry is bigger? The flow to and from is less restricted & could you use under stairs as storage in here? Dining room - benefits from this longer wall to display art piece etc. & less disruptive flow of foot traffic. Change/remove the nib wall at the bottom of the stairs. Consider the path through this room is to your kitchen which has the most traffic plus laundry/bathroom access through to deck & spa. WC/bathroom placed further away from dining room is better. This option could also enable you to leave the bathroom window as is (cost cut). I know you have already had the plans drawn up but I hope without confusing you I have helped you to see that a couple of changes can maybe improve it a little more. When you spend serious money you have to get the best value from this long term investment in your quality of life. What is your existing house & land like?

Hi Lil, I believe your original plan works much better than the revised version. While the notion of ideal working widths is great, the larger problem here is the post. I worked on a project very similar to this last year where a post could either be connect to, or separate from the island. What we found was that by separating the island the space between island and post became very awkward. It's not enough of a space to comfortably walk through or be seated at the island in front of. Instead of your room feeling open and generous in proportion, it is going to start to feel cramped and awkward. We have a kitchen in our showroom (Kitchen Studio Tauranga NZ) with a 6ft gap between bench and back wall and it works wonderfully. It allows someone to work at the sink and a second at the island with ease. Stick with the original plan. It will feel a lot more spacious, without compromising work flows.

The space already looks quite clinical and I think with your laminate options will be more so. I love the way timber softens grey and white and agree with the comments above. Have you checked about how hard wearing the Diamond Gloss is? You don't want to install it then have it scratched. If cost is a concern, Bunnings have bamboo and maybe also timber options at reasonable prices.