So many questions from my point of view. The furniture all looks a bit squashed. Is it correct that you want a circular kitchen island bench, or do you mean to place stools around an overhanging bench in the kitchen? The raised section near the dining table would have to be removed, or are you planning a new Kitchen? What is happening down the other end beyond the small mat? is this an entrance from a deck or back garden, or does the room venture further? If you are to change your sofas, make sure they are sympathetic with the new chairs and as the chairs look a plain creamy colour, should go with most fabrics or leathers. Due to the room not being over spacious, be careful not to select furniture on the larger scale. Have a look at Jardan furniture and Globe West, both these organisations have great furniture at not too exorbitant dollars. Arthur G steps up the ladder, made in Melbourne. I would prefer you started with the dining furniture, as this is quite cottagy moving forward with your new armchairs. The dresser too - although you could paint this an interesting colour so as not to apologise for it's heritage, again with the new chairs. Hope this assists, but a floor plan would help me.

In removing so many internal walls I would suggest you get a professional to check the roof structure to see which walls are load bearing before getting too far down the track. If the walls that you are removing are from floor to ceiling then you should allow for new flooring, and a new ceiling so these elements don't look patched. Apart from these concenrns my only issue is the use of a cavity slider, they are not great in keeping the heat in or out, and can be draghty due to the air gap you need right around the door. I would suggest a pair of hinged, glazed, french doors will do a better job in controlling draughts (and noise), and also allow you to see through to the backyard even when the doors are closed. Make sure that you get your designer/draftsperson to draw all of your furniture into your plans at the correct scale so that you can see that it all fits, and works, and that there is enough circulation around. This is so crucial to get right in smaller homes. Best of luck with your renovation, Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls

The stained glass windows seem to be at odds with the exposed brick, but probably match the original part of the house. If the stained glass windows are giving privacy from an overlooking neighbour I would keep them, and work to make the brickwork more like the original part of the house, so it seems less incongruous. This could be done using a traditional wet plaster or solid plaster technique, which you would need to complete befor your gas insert fireplace is positioned. I would finish it of with a traditional timber fireplace surround and mantle piece, which would be the focal point of a more contemporary room, but link in with the original architecture. Best of luck, Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls

Hi Georgia, The brick is quite dominant. You could paint out the 2 small side walls to match the rest of the walls in the room. The main fire place you could do the flooring; up to the mantel height you could either leave the brick as is as maybe white wash it to make it less dark, or you can clad it with a tile of stone. Replace the mantle timber wish something that is the full width of the fire place so that it creates a separation point. Paint the brick above the mantle either the same colour as the rest of the room or something complementary. There is always the option of plasterboard so you don't have as much texture visible. Let me know if you need more help. MKG