Yarnos I agree with Natasha. Your existing architect will have (well, should have after working on your existing design) an intimate understanding of your site, soil conditions and implications of levels on your design. He/She are in the best position (given his/her understanding of your brief and constraints) to illustrate to you how a design solution such as this can work. No one on this forum is currently in a better position than your architect to explain this to you and outline the affordability of it as an option, based on your site, your brief and your budget. You can visualise this concept by letting your architect demonstrate it for you. If they are not demonstrating it, then you have the wrong architect I'm afraid. And if you are not empowering them to use their expertise and provide design solutions for you, then you either need to get another architect, or be a better client. Architects and designers - the good ones - are creative problem solvers. They are design detectives in the art of living well. They spend their entire professional and personal lives and time studying how people live, and how to create environments (and homes) for them to support them living better - more functionally, flexibly, beautifully. The talent of a good architect/designer is invaluable in elevating your lifestyle ... of taking the 30 year mortgage you're about to wage on this bet of building a home, of taking this massive investment, and turning it into a physical building that is your heaven and haven, your place of sanctuary and inspiration. They expand your vision, interpreting both what you say, and what you don't, into a result that is beyond your imagining. That's why you hire them - because you can't do what they can, and you need them to bring your dreams into life in a way that's better than you could have ever anticipated or created yourself. As a client, you have a responsibility to brief them well, trust them to do their job, be open to their ideas, and be guided by their expertise. The not so good architects and designers are simply drawers and documenters. They 'convert' your brief, your expressed wishes and shopping list into a floor plan that fits, and can be built, but that's simply it. It's a house, not a home. It functionally will do the job, but it never reaches its full potential. And so your life in it never reaches its full potential. You unwittingly compromise, never truly aware of how different, how much better, things could have been. The catch is, you've made a massive investment, and created something that will outlast you and become someone else's home too. So the impact is generational. Your responsibility as a client to these architects and designers is to understand the difference, and ideally not work with them - not unless you can show design leadership yourself. Work out which one your architect is and make a decision. Trust them to do the job properly for you (and give them the ability to do it), or walk away and find someone else. Regards Amelia Lee Undercover Architect www.undercoverarchitect.com amelia@undercoverarchitect.com

Hi spmm, "I agree about getting help but be aware that building designers have NO accreditation in Australia and can be appalling practitioners and very expensive. i speak from recent experience in regional NSW. Architects may appear to be more expensive but are capable of delivering a better result." That is an appalling description of an Association that is registered on every state in Australia and has an Australian representative Association in Canberra, based on your personal experience - unless its based on self interest. To the best of my knowledge all Building Designers that do Working Drawings must have Professional Indemnity insurance to provide working drawings for a building Permits, which is the only accreditation in my opinion that carries some worth for the clients, and like all organization they can be included and expelled from their respective associations and are accredited by their organizations. As for them being "very expensive", generally I would say that the buying public is no fool and people that do not deliver are generally out the game very quickly . You might like to inform yourself a bit further on this by contacting any of the Building Designers Association in your state or the Australian body, some are included underneath: Australia: http://www.nabd.com.au/ Australia: http://www.bdaa.com.au/ Victoria: https://www.bdav.org.au/  (may include Tasmania) Queensland: https://www.bdaq.com.au/ South Australia: http://www.bdasa.com.au/ Western Australia: http://bdawa.com.au/ Northern Territory: http://www.bdant.org.au/ Michael Manias - mm407p@gmail.com Manias Associates Building Designers

Alright let's see if we can put this to bed. There's nothing at all wrong or amateurish with your home. Agree seeing photo it's arguably too much of a compromise nor cost effective to move/change the window considering outcomes. The solution here will come in the fit-out and how to balance that as best as possible within the constraints set. You can do it with a 1500 size bath option, 900x1200 shower. and it's essentially a tweak/fine-tune from the idea you had originally. (I shouldn't really do this but here you go/I'm feeling generous today ;) ) You run a ledge all the way around the back and end walls. Mirrored cabinets all along the end above the basin. This will feel massive and luxurious with the ledges/more dimension & interest. But you'd need a concealed in wall cistern. Any privacy concerns (in bathrooms) can be managed by combination blinds/furnishings - arguably much more flexible (and cheaper in this situation) than changing glazing to frosted glass. And then you still retain an outlook/light to your ensuite during the day etc... Good luck & Merry Christmas :) PD

Thanks all for the wonderful comments. Ive made some redesign, and taken lots of points from you all. Big Reader: agree to have some window/lights on southern wall of mud corridor to allow light through. clerestory is a great idea Nik Star: Your suggestion make practical sense about having a dropzone once when I walk through. Ive moved that, move the coat hook/bench with below seat drawers north of it, and added a small cabinet for hooks. Ive made a deep shoe cabinet on the east side where dropzone used to be. this keeps it in all one area. OkLouise: Thanks for big advice on laundry: I know now where to put laundry baskets, and have added in that extra linen cabinet. I might just access the whole understairs from the stairwell entrance instead. The southern bench space Ill keep now: can use to drop groceries and maybe could provision space for a future wide fridge, and great idea to make bench with open knee space underneath so can be a work area. Girlguides: Ive move the tough slight so can have elbow room on either side. I have a feeling the builder would want to keep plumbing/drainage of sink/WM close together. Ive attached the next iteration. Thank you. MB