My husband and I have just argued over our new laundry. He wanted top cupboards along one wall with a washing machine/laundry tub underneath, and a void up one end for the broom and vacuum cleaner. He wanted the cupboards up there for data storage, plus ordinary storage. I wanted only a broom cupboard beside the laundry tub and washing machine, plus somewhere to fold and iron washing. I came up with something we can both live with. There will be along one wall a washing machine, laundry tub, broom closet. On the other wall (where the back door is) there will be a two door bottom cupboard for storage, plus where I can fold and iron clothes. I intend to put a hanging rail in between the broom cupboard and wall beside and over the washing machine/laundry tub where we can hang washing on coat hangers during the wet season, and or dry our swimming cosi's overnight. It is a beach house. .We still both get what we want, but it is more workable. The data cupboard is now at the top of the broom cupboard. It is a walk through two metre square room. There are no top cupboards in the kitchen either. We opted to utilise the island bench as a pantry instead. I should add there is a open doorway from the kitchen into the laundry, then a sliding door between the laundry and two way ensuite bathroom, plus the back door, and no window. I just thought top cupboards in such a room would be too much.

If the rumpus is going to be used as a family day care room, then I think the powder room should be accessible from there. This will make it so much easier for one person to supervise the kids in the room as well as the one who is heading off to the toilet. Perhaps you also need a wet area in there for cleaing up after messy activities. I know someone with a similar family day care set up, and they have toilet and laundry attached to the back of the garage/daycare space. And then the kitchen is adjacent, this makes life a lot easier for the sole person in charge of the kids.

Great ideas - love the play pen concept, ha! Good point about finding another location to iron but I’ve asked for the washer/dryer cavity to be moved inwards by 120-150mm so I do have a spot I can slide the ironing board into instead of taking up space where a broom might otherwise live in a broom closet. I’m keeping the stacked arrangement bc a) I have a condenser dryer that can’t be wall mounted anyway so the stack arrangement currently works fine and b) I too wish to use baskets under benchtop for storage. I can’t see much use for cupboards the way I use my laundry and I like that I won’t have to bend for one more appliance (if only it could be the washer since I use it more!) I’ll have to deal with the washer door opening the wrong way for a while but she’s a teenager - at least 14 years, we reckon - so how much longer can she last? I’ve since researched the doors on my brand and they have all changed to the RHS opening now. So it’s a good thing I didn’t locate the machines next to the door! That would have been awkward. My dryer door can be rehung to suit any side for opening. The more I think about it, the more a centrally located sink makes sense to me in a small space and I’m happy to have come to this positioning. It’s arguably the only ‘appliance’ you’d need to stand right in front of while using, and therefore be standing comfortably in the middle of the room, not off to one side. I’ve realised that when loading a machine, you have to stand to one side. And similarly if you’re either opening a lower cabinet or pulling out a basket from under a bench. So putting either of those items bang smack in the middle of a galley arrangement means you’re cutting off your space while using it. Thanks for your input. Appreciate it!

Thank you Geluka and Margot, the breakfast bar won't be 2 level, the app we used to draw up this design doesn't allow a single piece of bench (to wrap around the support column) hence the split level look. We will have a glass door for our mud room/laundry entrance. Probably won't have a pergola as the courtyard will be quite small and narrow post extension. I am considering moving the oven tower to the end of the bench housing the stove top. Assuming a 900mm stove, 600mm oven tower that will leave 600mm clearance on either side of the stove top. Many thanks, Ee ;)