Here's an update on the work. I've finished the pebbledash first coat, and the painter did the fascias, soffits, door and window. The green I chose came out a lot darker than I thought, but never mind. What do you think? What's left to do is add some nice pots in front, put up the guttering (I'm going to do that now), another coat of the white masonry paint, and of course the most important part, put a cat image in the window!

Hi! I travel to Langkawi, Malaysia, often, and I see a great many houses painted in 'Sahara sand', and other colours. Personally, since your house is large and beautiful, I would choose to paint the rendered parts in brilliant white. Glass balconies would possibly be safer, particularly for children, so long as you can be sure that the glass used conforms to world-wide safety standards. But the steel balconies look nice against fresh, white paint. Indoors, I would paint the woodwork white, and consider painting any dark furniture as well. Choose light-toned, neutral colours for the walls: you could even use white with a 'hint' of colour. Keep your use of strong colours to accessories such as bed covers, towels, cushions and so on. Think about house-plants, and flowers too. That way, changing a room's colour is quick, easy and cheap. In Thailand, you are lucky you can buy lovely fabrics and colourful accessories for very little money. When you are thinking about colour, consider where your guests will come from. Europeans, on the whole, associate bright, clear blues and turquoise as 'beach holiday' colours, while forest green hues are jungle-like. Conversely, guests from mainland China think red is lucky, while honeymoon couples from India like purple tones. Also, guests like to feel they look their best on holiday, so remember some wall colours are not kind to skintone. Yellow and green tones in the painted walls can have an unfortunate effect when you look in the mirror! Pink or warm beige work better. I would fit ceiling fans in every room, and louvred shutters to filter the light in the bedrooms. Anyway, you have a lovely project! Can I come and stay when it is done?

I have just showed this to hubby who has many years experience in the construction trade. He says they’re a pattern. Did you say you wanted them? You cannot remove them. I would get back on to the supplier/installer and discuss with them.

It's not in the UK but I have an idea depending on your budget. The only way would be to have solid spindle panels between the posts. This could be done in a variety of ways. Laser cut custom screens, curved to suit. Corten steel could also be used and perforated sheet steel. Smoked glass maybe although I'm not sure it would conform to safety standards. Perspex comes in many colours and a dark grey might work. I think the curved shape would be an issue though. Why do you need the stairs to be private? A full height structural screen might be an option.