Oh C'mon V Richards...every epoch has its treasures. B4 you make a mad run for it stop a while and consider the period and the reasons for the style...it can be extremely enlightening....unless its not the period you want to escape from but from some of the opinions. I spent many years of my youth outside of Australia living surrounded by old ruins in Europe. I forgot what it was like here. When finally I returned to Australia and found myself living in some of the 60s and 70s places..I found much to admire and wonder about. I may not have fallen in love with much of it but there was a certain mistique and a feel that I can still conjure when talking about certain places. Not saying that it was all romantic and pleasant but it conveyed something of the era and the kind of Aussie from those days.

It must depend what you cook. I don't do fried, spitty type dishes and the grout around the largish tiles in my now 10 year old kitchen is as good as new. I rubbed car wax into the freshly laid grout lines, same as I did in the bathroom. It also depends on how much light bounces around your kitchen, glass being so reflective shows up smears with light on it. Just above the kettle in the first photo is a good example. Each to their own, I'm a non-glass girl whenever I can get away with it.

Thank you so much, Julie. I thought you would be interested in the end result, given how much encouragement and advice you so generously gave me. :-) I do love it. It has made such a difference and I think (fingers crossed) the landscaping will give it the finishing touch. We are reroofing the pergola, so will post photos when that is completed. The gazebo looks great after its facelift, too.

Hi Will, we have the Taurus and certainly love the look. We installed it late winter last year so it’s only recently that we have really put it through its paces. We have a huge open plan area to heat and this does do the job but needs a constant supply of hardwood to keep it effective. i am a bit disappointed at how quickly it burns through the timber even when turned down. it is absolutely cold by next morning and does not provide warmth overnight. it also billows smoke whenever the door is opened though this eventually lessens as the heat builds and the timber burns more efficiently. The firebox is quite shallow and it’s a challenge at times to stoke the timber safely as on occasions the coals and logs teeter on the front edge and it’s easy for them to fall out. We crafted a steel lip to sit in front as a prevention. And lastly it’s disappointing that no matter how much we try we always end up with blackening on the glass which requires daily cleaning. i’m guessing this is related to the abundance of smoke that seems to remain accumulated when lighting the fire and getting it going over the first hour. And yes, our firewood is excellent quality and dry but i can’t help thinking there needs to be a redesign to allow the smoke to travel up the flu rather than remain in the firebox.