Ok are we talking architectural designer or interior designer? Architects are more about lines and form and they grumble about the interior designers but that's who they hire to do the color boards. Either way you are the client and it's your house. It may be a great color scheme for the design but if you don't like it change it. Those sample of paint are worth every penny because you need to see more than a little chip. With your asymmetrical design you have room to vary more than the usual field or base color and a contrasting trim. I'd make a tracing of the design and copy a bunch of pages of it to use as a coloring book. (yes use crayolas:-) Another shade from the same shale grey paint chip and a one more accent color would be a good bet. If you are going subtle neutral, make it 3( not 50) shades of grey and play with where you put the darks and lights. Remember sunlight and shadows will create alot of contrast for even a "pale monochrome houses. (the computer rendering doesn't give you that.) You could add a pop a smoky teal, plum or coral if you want color as bold as you design. These would just be accents or trim. If shale grey it a really light silver you could make a monochromatic scheme with blue grays and a navy blue door and trim. The tan/beige in the rendering needs a darker grey to work. I would keep my midtone color on the lower level and a lighter shade on the second level. The top part that pop out could be a bolder accent color withe rest of the upper level almost white. Lot depends on your roof and window frames and whether you want them to blend in or pop out. Try a bunch out on paper or one of the computer programs before choosing any changes.

Yes we are replacing treated pine with a hardwood this time but I just want to make the right choice. Still it's nice to hear you are happy with it . Anything will be a big improvement I do like the idea of an Australian hardwood that is from sustainable sources though . I gather it's been down a few yrs and you haven't experienced the shrinkage someone else complained of ? Thanks for the feedback . This site is great :)

Hi annalisa 86 -- I see the lounge as your living room with sofa's, TV and in general, the place where you relax. The rectangular openings in the wall between the two rooms are beautiful, and are a unique feature in a home! Can you please provide more photos of each room to help us see the bigger picture and properly recommend where to place the furniture? Georgina has provided great options for the rumpus room: 1) cinema room, 2) home office, and 3) formal dining room. This is a large room with a sliding door to the balcony, which makes it a room that should be used for a purpose that makes a special statement. Do you love to cook and entertain family and friends? Do you have a barbecue grill out on the balcony? If so, a large, formal dining room would be perfect for this space, particularly during the summer when guests can go outside and enjoy being on the balcony too. Another idea is a game room with pool table, poker table, bar and small pub tables, which again, would be good if you like to entertain. You could give it a sports theme and have another TV here for friends to hang out and watch the game. This idea also goes well with having a barbecue grill and outdoor patio furniture on the balcony, so guests can move between the two areas. Or, you could make the living room a formal room and use it only on special occasions and use the rumpus room as the family room where everyone hangs out, watches TV and relaxes. You could even turn it into a multi-purpose room, where you have the family room, a sewing area (for example) and a home office. Can you tell us if your lifestyle fits any of these suggestions or if any of these ideas interest you? Christi, on behalf of Thos. Baker

Hi fb57, Great charming federation house, retain the front and fix the back, then maybe later you can put in a granny flat - depending on cost and local council bylaws. I would not put in an attic - stairs are a good place for mishaps and as we age it might have limited functionality - but if its something you have your heart set on it might prove worth while. It appears that you are competent enough to do a decent measure up plan, going from what you have posted - you might need to take a few photo and a few other dimension to get a good design from someone working online. The idea is to get a design that you are happy with and then get a local competent Drafts-person to do your working drawings for a Building Permit and then get it built with a Builder of your choice. This would result in my opinion in a significant saving and a design of your choice, especially if you are willing to do some of the legwork with council and other authorities. To get a good design that you feel is a solution to your requirements, you need to produce a variety of design schemes (plans elevations perspectives etc.) and this can be done online with any competent Building Designer that you can get along with. It will not take one go at it - and it will not be quick, as you need time to digest every scheme but generally it works out in the long run. These are some of the things I would look at: 1. The possibility of breaking up the build into stages - maybe stage one do the renovations at the back and the stage 2 place in a granny flat. 2. As you have good access on both sides of the property I would place a new garage on the largest width and possible gate and walkway on the other side to give individual access to the granny flat. The new garage would be as closely to the front as possible, with the new fence an gate on the other side it would greatly improve security. 3. Depending on budget I would provide a bathroom shower and toilet with a walk in robe to the main bedroom and redo the kitchen and laundry if required. 4.The area next to the lounge area I would develop into an external entertainment area. 5 Since you mentioned that you have a "Fibro Extension" it implies to me that you may have asbestos on the property - get an expert in and determine if you need to remove asbestos when you renovate - this is a dangerous material and you should take all precautions possible to avoid long term damage. 6. An indication of the position of your neighbors windows and setback might also help in providing a design that complies with your planning laws and respects your adjoining neighbors. Like all things it will take a few revisions to get it right , but if you are willing to work at it, it will payoff in the end. The first thing is to draw up the existing conditions to scale so that an initial proposal showing possibilities can be worked on. I would be willing to work on this project with you online, I hope this is of some help. Regards Michael Manias mm407p@gmail.com