Like the lamp although the shade could be bigger, I had to change it on my lamp for a more substantial one, generally the base of the shade should match the size of the base of the lamp or more. The plant you have on the other console need lots of water don't let it dry out. I was thinking of your mirror choice and I think the round one would be better . Keep looking.

Thank you Lizzy, I can see your point. If I had my way, the speakers would go and I would have more discreet. I am not sure what you mean about moving the right hand couch closer. Do you mean move it closer to the right side? The heaters can't be painted however I realise we need to paint the walls. Not sure whether we could just do the same colour down the bottom as what is on top, which would be easy. If it is a complete colour change, that would mean painting the window frames etc, the blinds would have to come down, and it is all too hard. I would like to make the side table more of a focus however that is where my husband sits, so I can't crowd it too much. A new rug is definitely on the list once I get back to work. I would also like to change the coffee table, however it is great storage. I know I need to work on dressing it up a bit. Lizzy, I love your idea of the shelves. Thank you for your inspirational photos. I will look into that. I will also look at changing out the speakers. Thank you so much ladies for your input, I really appreciate it. I find this all very difficult and wish I could just wave a magic want.

If you need to achieve a home generally along these lines, seriously, don't bother trying to customise some form of layout with a drafty or any form of designer. Practically you have little choice but to try and find something suitable with an off the shelf plans, (or version of) available with one of the volume building companies, some of which can be quite helpful with working through this process, but you have to accept a certain "formula". It's the only way to achieve something of this scale for that type of money. For what it's worth, generally you'll find most draftspeople have no idea about designing to budget - it's not what they do. They are a technical drawing service, nothing more nothing less and unfortunately over the years we've been doing what we do, we've had countless of examples of projects come into the office that have resulted from people trying to get a draftsperson to design something to budget thinking it's a cheaper road, only to be bitterly disappointed once the builder has come in and delivered the bad news, and then they're back to square one & we have to pick up the pieces somehow. This is why it's so important to have a robust discussion about budget limits as the first part of any conversation around a building project, to minimise wasting time and money going down path that will prove to be somewhere down the line unrealistic. Good luck! PD

We have been building our house for over two years now. The supply chain downturn has made it a nightmare. We are camping on the mezzanine floor of our warehouse so it isn't costing us to wait, but if I had rented a property while building we would be in trouble now. I purchased most of our plumbing supplies early in the build so at least those items have not gone up in price, but many others have. We ordered and paid for a cantilever pool awning in February this year, and it was sent in three lots. The last delivery was two weeks ago. I suspect the company was having a hard time getting it out of China, so not their fault. We had quotes for fly screens/security screens that totalled over $25,000. We had to forgo the security screens in favour of fly screens for most of the house. We had a quote for a large aluminium mesh panel to place on the front left corner of the house which was over $25,000 also. The fencing company got an order wrong and we ended up with the wrong colour louvre panels on the front driveway sliding gates, plus the wrong colour for a fence. We have managed to turn it into a positive by keeping the wrong coloured louvre blades, and they will now be put up vertically on the front corner of the house, instead of the aluminium mesh. They are six metres long, but the house is two stories, so all good. We had to keep the gate panels the same, so the wrong colour will have to be exchanged for the right colour. People are still building houses here, and some of them are going up very fast, so I don't understand why ours has taken so long. We have purchased most of the goods locally, but I suppose the suppliers are having trouble getting them from overseas. I am at the point where I am losing interest in this house, which is a shame because it will be a beautiful house when finished.