I see this is a very old thread , with lots of comments . I've just skim read them , but I haven't seen anyone suggest anything like my 'top-of-my-head' idea -- I love the wood , and the white contrast , but pretty boring . Whats your favourite colour , or what ties in with the other rooms ? It might be blue or red or yellow or orange or green , as examples . So paint the skirting board and around the door a pastel shade of your choice , and add a small 30cm x 30cm abstract painting featuring that colour as the primary dominant one , above ( or possibly below , or maybe even get 2 matching/complementary ones ) the control panel . One lighting crowd suggested glass shades -- I'd actually go for someothing large but wooden , in much the same shade as your floors and steps , with LED bulbs -- you can get some stunning ones around 80-100 cm in diameter ( sort of a star ball shape ) for $300-400 . Total budget then $500 plus a painter and maybe electrician , unless you DIY .

We're building too this year and our exterior colours are light & dark grey... couldn't afford the timber cladding :( ... and we are having black alum windows, so I say go for black! :) Black windows suit most facades, from the contemporary to the more traditional... Plus what's your alternative, the alum silver? That would look even more blend against the grey exterior colours... whereas black will make the windows a stand out feature of the house... If you're concerned the facade may look a bit drab and if you're game enough, then be bold with a pop of colour in the front entry door... Internally, the black windows (against white/light walls?) will frame the outdoors looking almost like a picture... And no, you are not stuck with a monochrome look inside... you can easily introduce timber (floors, furniture, etc) to create warmth, or any colour you want as black goes with everything... Good luck :)

Charcoal will give you more scope to mix in other items around the pool and is much more modern.

Nik, They're not cheap. We got them at an independent tile shop in Melbourne for $169 per square metre. Which was a lot cheaper than the big stores!! We off set that cost by using $25 on the walls! At 200 x 200 there was barely any wastage and cutting. Our big wall ones at 300 x 600 had heaps of wastage and cuts. So, they were expensive but also in many ways quite cost effective in that we had minimal waste and somewhat easier in labour. Hope this helps