Hi all, Thank you so much for your posts and ideas. I really appreciate it! Well 6 years have passed and we still haven’t made any structural changes as we started a family instead! But we think we’re ready to make some changes now (just when its become more expensive than ever to do structural works!) A few things I forgot to mention in my original post is that the roof is a butterfly/London roof so its not a traditional pitched roof and would be expensive to make convert it. Plus we had to unexpectedly replace the entite roof this year because it was causing problems and didn’t have the time to think about a conversion due to the urgency 😫. The front door is next to the lounge (floor plan is upside down 🙃) I think we’re thinking of a ground floor extension now but ideally i’d love to separate out the 3rd bedroom so it has its own entrance and possibly make it bigger. The third bedroom is at a split level from the 2nd bedroom ie you have to go down 3 steps. But the roof above the 3rd bedroom is pitched and i’m wondering if its possible to extend into it and make it a study/4th bedroom. The pesky stairs still seem to be a problem! RE: John Botham thanks for your advice to be cautious as the layout differs so greatly to other properties on the street. Any advice, ideas or similar problems solved very much appreciated! many thanks SJ

Thanks guys - we did a lot of experimenting and testing on some old floorboards before deciding on this stuff. The Osmo oil gives a deep and rich finish on old pitch pine that looks very different to varnish - deeper and with more of the grain being brought out. It's more like a beeswax finish from olden times, without the backbreaking labour and maintenance. Interestingly on the new boards (in the top bedroom), it makes far less difference: the new pine just looks yellow and shiny, much as it would if varnished. But the oil should be tougher and lower maintenance. We decided to restore these floors rather than replace as they were actually in remarkably good condition: this house has never had fitted carpets fitted, nor central heating fitted until 2014, and when it was installed it was installed with regard to keeping the floors intact (many systems installed in past decades saw the boards sawn up and hacked about). I wanted look that is obviously original, and can't be mistaken for engineered wood. I did think about a limewashed finish, but bottled it at the last minute and went totally traditional, as I thought less risk of a finish done to a trend that would be hard to reverse.

I'm thinking off white or a very light grey for the brickwork including the bricked up porch. Slate roof on the porch and wooden door to save money. Dark grey on the fence. And use planting to disguise the current render around the window and to add colour. Pub side, pleaching trees look like a great idea though would need to ensure they don't grow roots into the house. I feel so much more confident now. Thank you all.

Thank you for your comments @drpepe101 and @rosemonde. The kitchen on the new plan is how our kitchen is now, the new plan only includes a small extension to the rear. The kitchen is not actually that dark, the back of the house and garden is SW facing so luckily we do get a good amount of light. It also does not feel cramped but that is due to the fact that it has been badly designed with hardly any cupboards - the fridge/freezer and our food is currently in the 'office' behind the kitchen! So I definitely agree that in order to create a kitchen in that space with all the cupboards we need - it will end feeling cramped. I did really want to take out the wall and chimney stack that separates the current kitchen from the office room behind it. We have had three different architects to view the property and they all felt that whilst not impossible it would be a very difficult job. The wall (which is the original exterior wall) is 2 feet thick and is built from large blocks of local stone, as well as having the chimney stack running through the centre all the way up to the roof. I am now thinking the best solution would be a side return extension either for just the width of the kitchen (sketch attached) which would not require planning i believe as it would be under 6m or possibly a longer side return. I wouldn't necessarily need a separate utility if we are widening the kitchen as i could incorporate a washing machine etc in to the kitchen. I would like a downstairs WC somewhere though. Currently our shoes/costs are stored in the cupboard under the stairs. If we went with this layout i would like to create a better opening between the kitchen and existing dining area and put pocket doors or similar in between the lounge and dining room so we can close off the lounge to make it feel cosier when we want to. Will check out the George Clarke shows! Thank you for the recommendation.