I would start with her bedroom, that's the area she wil rest. Keep it neutral and and peaceful. Make the curtains cheerful that will be the first thing she'll see when she wakes up. A four feet bed will be comfortable for her and find out how much it will cost to raise the bed ...at a certain age it is more comfortable to get in and out of. Table lamps which by a touch will light up a big alarm clock... Older people always want to know the time! Two bedside tables. Soft carpet for her feet and a big collage on the wall with photos of her family. I would get rid of the wardrobe is is so huge and if you look on your local ebay and put you postcode in you will be able to get a good bargain. Look for a comfy chair too with a floorlight for reading. If space a nice little table (local ebay) will make it complete. Your mum prefers her wall painted but again a roll of cheerful wallpaper for one wall in her bedroom will make it special for her. Try to get rid of all the clutter like those two shopping trolleys perhaps in a cupboard in the hall? I have done a lot of houses up on a shoestring and it is a challenge but can be so satisfying. One thing I have learnt ....ALWAYS finish one room completely before going on to the next room. It helps when you feel a bit down about the project and one look in the finished room gives one a big boost to continue!!! Good Luck.

Hi everyone. We are now progressing with the house bur need some help / advice. We have decided to take down most of the wall between the dining room and kitchen & build an island that will sit half in the kitchen and the other half in the dining room. (See plan). In the dining room we decided, instead of a formal dining table, we would place a log /bench type table (the kind you get in a pub outside or in a canteen) - right in the corner where by the wall between the lounge & dining room (where they meet the corner or bedroom 4 as in the plan). The table could be a great idea for a more formal meal as it would be for to sit more socially. But we want to use a storage bench / box (maybe an Ottoman style) along the walls with plenty of cushions to sit on / against the wall. This type of seating would continue across both walls in the corner, skip past the opening (leading to the shower / bedroom 4) and continue on into the corner where the dining room & kitchen meet (in front of the shower room). So it looks sort of like this (more like the second picture with the brown table) So it looks sort of like this (more like the second picture with the brown table). We love the type of seating / cushions in the first picture (white & blue). Since we do not know where we can buy such tyoe of seating. We thought we could, perhaps, recreate it by buying some wooden storage benches / boxes and add plenty of cushions on them to make them more comfortable to sit / lounge on. Not sure if our ideas are cominf across in my posts but in case you do understand. Does anyone have any suggestions / ideas?

I’m struggling to find a way to have a kitchen/island (really would like an island to have useable counterspace), generous dining table (seating for at least 6 people) and a sitting area in the same room if we don’t open up the wall between the current front and back living rooms. Would it make more sense to have part of the garage incorporated into the kitchen? There is a slight difference in floor level though between the garage and kitchen (Step down into the garage). Or block up the current kitchen door and have the access to a dining/kitchen through the current back living room space and then somehow fit in a dining table and seating area?

If it were me firstly I would have one switch for task lighting- I think your planned 4 spots in the island boxing is enough but would have them in a row. I would have an additional 4 in a row in the ceiling above the walkway between the island and the main run of kitchen cabinets plus an additional two behind the sofa (but put a softer bulb in these). I would have two in the ceiling above the sink as I think it is tidier than having a wall light. Don’t forget to put a few in the laundry cupboard too. Since your extension ceiling is sloped I would have inset spots that you can angle. Personally I think that when you use the desk you switch on a desk light. I would have a ring of 3amp sockets so that you can switch on two table lights in the sitting area and two standard lamps in the dining area (or two table lights on a console table) and the LEDs above the bookcases. In my opinion you specify more than you need as you don’t have to plug something into every socket but the flexibility is useful. Personally I don’t think you need the coving light in the sitting area and think the idea is odd in an area with sloping ceilings. Next I would have additional kitchen lighting - I would have a run of LEDs under the base cabinets near the plinth and around the base of the island- these are nice to have on at night when watching TV as the kitchen is not fully lit but is light enough to navigate. Additionally I would have lights above and below the wall cabinets. I also like your idea of the boxing above the island having a shadow gap to conceal further LED strip lighting. Pendant lights- I agree that you won’t want one in the sitting area. I think it is messy to have pendants over the island with the additional boxing. I would have one over the dining table and choose an oversized fixture later- ensure that this lighting flex is near somewhere strong enough to mount a ceiling light of some size. Additionally I would have walk over lights in the floor near the garden doors. Remember these will reduce the focus of the garden at night- you might prefer to put these on the outside of the door to reverse the effect. Don’t forget to specify at least one socket behind the cabinets/ under island should any of the kitchen cabinets include lighting- this is especially useful in pantry cabinets. Don’t forget that you will likely need additional sockets in the laundry cupboard as you might well have a charger in there for a vacuum or drill. Personally I would have extra sockets around the desk and contain the router, you home answer phone, etc etc all in the same place. Don’t forget you can also get sockets that include a USB charger inlet. Since you are doing a plan for electrics don’t forget tv/ satellite aerial points. You should also take this opportunity to consider outside lights and power- consider sockets outside for garden lights, outdoor heaters, awnings, water features, mowing the lawn etc. LEDs unless you like decorating in very dark colours choose warm white lighting- a lot of strip LEDs can be adjusted to color match other lights in the room. LEDs- Last time I sourced these I was disappointed with the quoted costs from the electrician- do your own research online about price. Pay attention to the lumen levels and consider if you want disable LEDs. Boxing over the island. Choose your extractor before specifying the size of the boxing- I think the shallower extractors are deeper than the 20cm you stated.