The bedroom so far! Finally have our carpet in which is lovely (pale silvery grey) and the wall is painted in the engraved locket. I liked it so much that I bought another tin and have painted my dining room wall in it just to give the White a break! Lol. The other side with the silver furniture is the alcove Minnie - which I painted in strong white and now have a small wardrobe there (space to build a shoe rack to the side of it) We are going to get quotes for having a mirror fitted (frameless) next week to bounce more light around. We are off shipping for bed linen now! Then I just need a headboard

Hello Nicola E, How you treat the paint work entirely depends on what you want to stand out.. The fireplace or the wardrobes.. This too depends on what else is happening in the room... If just a bed then it's entirely possible to create a feature of said wardrobes by painting them a bolder colour or the chimney breast a darker colour.. Look at the room and consider what you'd like to have as a focal point and how big the room is.. Shades of cream and off whites are far nicer than white.. So if you decide to include a white scheme, definitely look at shades of off white and creams.. Little Greene has a lovely range of chalky colours.. such as Whitening, White Lead, Stock etc.. These can be chosen for wood and walls.... They give a warm, chalky and sophisticated look which can blend beautifully with colours such as Celestial blue or James just to talk of blue and these are warm not cold blues .. I also like Juniper Ash which is a slightly mauve colour but look for warm versions of a colour you like.. So if the fireplace is to stand out and the wardrobes are a pale creamy colour the accent and focus is the fireplace which will benefit if the room is smaller than you'd like.. If you have a large bed then this might be the best way to consider it. If the room is large and you want something to create a statement then consider the fireplace and wardrobes.. A shade or two darker for wardrobes than chimney breast will create a frame surrounding both the fireplace and for the bed if this is facing on the opposite wall.. Blend the bedding and cushions, should you choose them into the scheme to create a cohesive and stylish finish. Lastly if you want a pale room with painted wardrobes these will form a statement and frame if you have less in the room... : )) Blended.... Contrast... This one isn't a bedroom but you get the idea..

Hi, congrats on your new home! Very exciting. This space appears to be either north facing or just not an area with a lot of warm light...I have been helping quite a few clients with this dilemma lately and here are a few tips for you. North facing/lowlight rooms can be difficult to decorate as the natural light coming through will have blue/grayish undertones. This could make some paint colours look dingy or too cold (which I think is happening now). Warm grey works well in north facing/low-light rooms and here are a couple color combos from Dulux which you can get at B&Q. Just make sure the undertones are warm (not blue or grey). Dulux also has a ‘Light and Space’ paint finish that is supposed to reflect light in the room. https://www.dulux.co.uk/en/products/dulux-light-space-matt. And just an FYI - Desenio.co.uk is a great online place to look for quality/inexpensive prints if you would like to add some art up the stair hallway area. Good luck and congrats on a new home! Carrie

Thanks for your comments so far; it’s really helpful to get other points of view. Maths Wife, I’m with you on the pantry idea! In fact, I spent a long time trying to work out if we could put one there by getting decent-width access to the garden via another route. But coming through from the front door involves a narrow hallway and getting through several internal doors, and coming via the utility room would involve losing washing space to add a door, and a sharp right-hand turn. Apart from the fact that we’ll ultimately re-landscape our entire garden, which will all need to come through the house, I also sometimes use a mobility scooter, and although I don’t intend to take it into the house, I’d rather be safe than sorry in terms of access. We’re compensating for the lack of pantry by planning on turning the area outside those doors into a little shaded patio with small table/chairs. So in theory we could have those doors wide open in the summer, and have garden views from both ends of the kitchen. minnie101, I didn’t explain the meals for 30 very well . We set up another table in the playroom in those cases, so about half the people in each room. So in the kitchen I just want to make sure that we can have table fully extended whenever we need it, which seats about 14. For the drinks area, yes we’re debating having bifold doors so there is max countertop space for a small sink, kettle etc. As you say, it makes sense and saves the countertop space elsewhere, just makes for an expensive cupboard The roof lantern size is indeed limited by the fact that’s the only area of the kitchen that isn’t double storey. Other than squaring out a corner, we are keeping to the current footprint, as it’s just about on maximum extension already. That area, in a bizarre design choice by the previous owners, is currently the utility room, which just about blocks any view onto the garden - we need the lights on even in summer, despite that being a south facing view. I’ve spent most of the last 6 years trying to understand WHY someone would choose that layout as part of a fairly substantial extension, even going so far as to move the kitchen, which was south facing, to the other end of the room. I’ve yet to think of a sensible explanation…. We are going for a fairly timeless/modern country look, hence the orangery rather than bifolds, and also want to maximise the light as it’s a long room. Fingers crossed, it will look something like this, although with a lot more planting around it and step-free patio.