I can only speak from experience of tiles and Karndean. We have two dogs, live in the country, we and the dogs are in and out all day. The dogs both used to slip even on terracotta ( back in the old days), and, i'd be worried about shiny tiles, especially with larger dogs that could slip far more easily and cause themselves damage. The tiles were dark and had to go, as they showed up the dirt. The grout was the biggest problem, as it was easily stained, and just not practical with dogs. We swapped to Karndean around 5/6 years ago and haven't looked back since. It's simply the best, unscratchable, hard wearing, versatile, easily cleaned surface ever. We live in an old cottage and it had to fit in, so we went with Van Gogh, a floorboard effect look, complete with etched woodworm holes! Love it.

Hi, we at Dual Designs are often designing kitchens up to the ceiling. It is usually because of the client requiring more cupboard space, along with making sure the design will suit their beautiful dream kitchen. We have designed cabinets up to the ceiling in large and small rooms, both work really well. It mainly comes down to person taste, some people would never leave a gap at the top, with the 'dust trap' word mentioned. Others who don't mind a gap would often say they can't reach high units and don't want to use a ladder. We always consider both the practical side along with the design and give an honest assessment to help our clients. I would think taking the cabinets up to the ceiling can work though a good designer will confirm this for you, so I hope that helps and good luck

Hi Minnie, thanks for your lovely comments. Our supplier has suggested brick slips so am just about to google them! Yes the existing fireplace is nice but always looks cold to me. I have chosen a lovely light grey coloured log burner that I think will brighten up the fireplace instead of the black surround that is currently there but I take your point of unlit log burners looking cold too! I had also thought about an oak mantle and have seen some very nice ones but thought I would wait until the chimney has I been opened up to see final effect. I also take on board your comments regarding adding texture and colour and struggle with this, on the one hand during the day when the room is bright I love the 'minimal' look and the black tops look lovely and reflect daylight and I don't like any clutter and try and keep them clutter-free but in the evening the black granite tops and splashbacks do seem dark although we have recently installed more spotlights which has helped. Thanks again for your helpx

Can anyone recommend a good matt varnish for original victorian pine floorboards? We used bona mega matt last time, but we need to re-sand as our dogs have completely scratched the floors. I know with the dogs we are going to get scratches, but we perhaps need a more industrial strength product this time to try and avoid damage as much as possible. Any recommendations?