Well, at last we are happy with our choice, a single duvet each, all seasons type, goose down from John Lewis. My husband feels the heat, so he uses the thin summer one all year, except when it is very hot, then he just uses a sheet, or when it is very cold then he uses the thicker one. I use the winter one all year, the two together, except when it is very cold, then I add his spare one to mine, if it ever gets too hot for me in the summer, then I occasionally use the lightweight one on it's own! To make the bed look good we have a bedspread from John Lewis over the top. Regarding bedding, the best cotton fitted sheets come from John Lewis sale, they are cleverly made to stay put and they do. I have excellent cotton pillowcases which were from the late 1950's, the quality is unbeatable, my mother had a number which she hadn't used and I just wish they were still available, from memory they were made by a firm called Finlay's and they were made in Scotland. The duvet covers I am using came from John Lewis and Debenhams, both cotton and both in the sale. On our spare bed I have White Company sheets etc. and on the twin beds in the other room I have feather and down duvets from Argos and the covers were from the Sheridan seconds shop, very good quality and great value. I prefer to have reasonable quality, if I was very rich I would have freshly laundered linen bedding ironed correctly and an army of helpers to do the donkey work each day, never mind saving the planet, nor the crumpled look!

I see a lot of windows where the pole bracket or the end of the track is very close to the window opening - the loss of light can be huge. The actual amount depends, as Zoe says above, on the effect you want, but also on the fabric and linings. If you have a thick fabric that is interlined and a big window you may need 40-45cm or even more. I'd always have a minimum of 25cm. On a window that takes up a lot of the wall, I would look to see if it was possible to have the pole or track going across the full width of the wall - it can look very generous and that's always a good thing!

Hi Emily and Jonathan! Thanks so much for the feedback. Emily - I didn't manage to attach the image that shows the new parking we'd have - see new picture I've just uploaded above of a birds eye view with additional hardstanding driveway in the front garden. - thanks for the vote re tall narrow west window! I'm coming round to the idea though my husband is unpersuaded and thinks will interfere with furniture too much. I think one in the corner just before the family room could work really well. Jonathan - yes the kitchen hasn't really been designed at all yet, the architectural technicians just showed the hob and sink for a rough idea that that area is the kitchen. But we can do what we like with the space really. There are already 2 sets of patio doors on the back of the house though so I think we can't really justify a third! (It might not be clear on the plans but the dining room ends in a modern glass box with heat resistant glass and within-the-upvc-double-glazing-blinds, which includes patio doors ?bifold depending on budget. Then the snug has more standard patio type doors and will probably be the main back garden route.) - generally I think we'd err towards a peninsula rather than an island, not for any real reason just tend to prefer the look of them. So probably a peninsula with a couple of bar stools, coming from the garden side of the room at the junction of the kitchen / dining area, and finishing where the island ends now. Think @Emily sounds like I haven't explained myself very well re eventual layout with train room - see attached jpeg to see what it will end up as (we haven't got the plans drawn this way for planning application, but the aim is to end up with this at the end of the works).

Your place is lovely and welcoming. I would suggest putting a large mirror above the sofa facing the garden to reflect back in some light and the lovely garden. Your TV wall looks great (accent wallpaper could be indeed a lovely add on but I wouldn’t hand anything) and I agree with you putting a table between the sofas (round and height of chair arms taking up the full space) with a nice table lamp in the corner would be lovely. People can put their cups and glasses on it. If I might suggest a colour that’s not wood such as red or white it would break up the wood and make everything pop. Great job, really nice 👍