Friends you have been wonderful, thank you for your honest opinion. Maybe all I need to do is change the handles and re-wax the pine. I know once I paint it, I will not be able to go back. It is wonderful having such a supportive and active community. I will re-think the plan, maybe should paint the pine dresser and the chefs block and choose some new flooring . The tiles are handmade in Italy with the odd bumble bees and admiral butterflies. However could re-think the work surface and the floor too. Thank you colleagues you have been very helpful. Christine

Hello Jennifer, Sounds like a lovely idea! For wood stain, it may be that you can just sand the doors to remove the stain. If it was painted I would have suggested a heat gun, scraper tool and sanding or Nitromors scraper tool and then wire wool, water and sanding.... Hopefully the wood stain might be a lot easier to manage! Especially if you have animals or nippers around... For the locks... It could be straightforward If you can align the rim lock and door jam so it's in line with the holes in the door.. I'm no chippy here! So maybe you might want to hire one to do it for you, it's a small job really but one you want done right.. I have a collection of old doors someone didn't want with loads of holes all over the place from previous owners....(I made them into a screen).. but I could see all the botch jobs that had taken place over many years...... : )) The box lock as they are known is a surface mount whereas other styles aren't so you may have to do a bit of filling depending on what is already in situ.. There are lots of helpful tutorials on youtube one here you might want to have a look at too..So a few ideas.. : )) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlCnfI64zgs

I think picking out the handrails and treads in a contrasting colour (and the rest in white) would look very elegant. Whilst our staircase was a dark stained, timber 70s stair case, we did this and painted the treads in Farrow and Ball's 'Railings' (floor paint) and although I say it myself, the result was great. I think the look of the picture posted above would be perfect. A very dark navy is slightly softer and more elegant than black or brown.

You have some great features there. I love the bullseye architrave and panelled doors. One of my favourite hall transformations on Houzz was this one: [From dodgy pink to elegant grey[(https://www.houzz.co.uk/discussions/from-dodgey-pink-to-elegant-greys-dsvw-vd~2942113) If I was lucky enough to have a hallway like yours, I'd be getting a skip for the dado rail and wallpaper (as already suggested). The dark brown carpet would also go in. I'd then be wanting to use white emulsion on the doors and walls. To add some interest, how about creating a feature using either a coloured chandelier or mirror? How about a stripe carpet going up the stairs?