I had a similar situation in a house I moved into years ago. I did a quick fix of painting all of the walls, woodword and the cupboards the same shade of cream. Sounds a bit OTT but it really knocked back the cupboards, which in all honesty are not something you want to make a feature out of, and created a calmness to the whole space. In your case, I would go for an off white so that the gang plug wires, radiator pipes and covers hiding the wires for the extractor fan etc., are disguised as much as possible -- that will tie in with the palest of the tiles in the splash back, and then you will have a pretty basic colour scheme of a very place colour and the dark worktop, fireplace and floor, which will stand out more. I think you need more storage with doors -- that bookshelf isn't doing anything for the kitchen. If you could get something in there that could hide lots of clutter -- even if just something cheap from IKEA, that would help greatly. Or work something around the filing cabinet that you have? A huge cheap mirror over the fireplace would bounce some light around too. If you don't want to go for undercupboard lighting, and if you have enough plug points, how about some lamps on the worktop, especially at the FF end with a floor standing lamp at the end with the chair. For the table, I would go for a table cloth and reupholster the chairs if they are not to your taste. A new blind in a much fresher colour would be great. Depending on the colour of your filing cabinet (if you use it), I think a petrol blue could add a nice vintage vibe to the chimney breast, and make more of a feature of it. I would try and go down a vintage/slightly industrial route rather than country. You may have some stuff lurking around that you could use, once you have got the base colours right -- currently it just feels a little cluttered and a bit of a mish mash. Best of luck. Looking forward to seeing some after shots :)

Not at all, the clients completed a thorough house refurbishment over 8 months, including wall removals and extensive upgrades to services. The kitchen took a month, including fabrication of worktops, which takes approximately 10 days, electrical and plumbing connections.

Thanks Alison. I'm thinking fitted toilet and sink with storage built around it, I hate things *on display* and I like it all to be packed away, so much storage is definitely a plan. I was also thinking possibly of putting spotlights in that are adjustable so I can vary the light - it's expensive but I put them in the kitchen and the light quality is fantastic. It's really the bath that's my issue - I want it to be full size but I can't see how - I'm thinking the only solution is to change the layout but even then I can't see how it can all fit in without being cramped.

I was initially thinking about a countertop cupboard for the boiler but with en having to do something with the extractor I changed my mind to something smaller. The extractor wasn't fitted well initially, it doesn't extract for a start, and the plug isn't concealed. Given that it needs refitting, and the lights keep blowing and all the fittings have burned from the last time the bulb didn't just blow but shattered all over the kitchen, I think it's time a new one. I know I don't want the same style again because but just don't know what to replace it with.