Does anyone actually play the piano? If not move it out of the room. If yes can you move it to the "awkward space"behind the "awkward door", I hope it wont hinder access to the 2 light switches in that corner. Can the door near the armchair be made to open outwards instead of inwards into the living room? If yes then move the piano to that area instead repacing the armchair. Once piano is out of the way try and see if dining table can be rotate to fit in that space, if so you will have gained some space in the living area. Get rid of the fireplace and mirror and wall-mount the TV in that position. Will allow TV to be seen from seating position and minimise glare or backlight in case you open the windows in the dining area or in the sitting area. If you placed the piano in the armcahir's place you can keep the current sofa and its configuration. Move armchair to current TV console position. This will create a centre area for kids. It would appear to me your kids are quite young. You might consider investing in a thick heavy rug to place in the central place area. For side tables i would suggest nesed sidetables which you can keep in one area and remove and use as an when needed. (inserting an image later) If you moved the piano in the awkward space. I would suggest investing in a new slimer sofa or instead in a series of discrete seperate armscahirs whcih can be moved about easily. Oh and too maximise space i would have gotten rid of the table based lighting and preferred wall mounted ones. Similarly wall fixed shelves rather than tables, especially with babies to avoid the risk of things being pulled over. (one of the other reason i would suggest wall mounting the TV rather than getting another console).

Hi Clare, Looking at the image, there certainly isn't a huge amount of space from top of tile to bottom of window. But that, to my mind, isn't a particularly convincing "excuse" - that would suggest the contractor has done what was easiest, cheapest and most expedient for him, rather than reprofiling the sill to do a more professional job. Again, I would have expected any contractor to flag that during the build before tiling. That would have given you an opportunity to discuss the pros & cons of the different approaches and make a decision. If it were unforeseen and only came to light once the room was stripped out, I would have felt it reasonable for the contractor (if done at that stage) to request a small additional payment to cover a little more labour and any minor materials, had you indicated a desire to have more of a slope or to perhaps have had a solid sill installed. But puddling at the back of the sill really isn't ideal. The other aspect that leaves me suspicious is that it looks as though the sill has been set at a height whereby there is an exact number of WHOLE tiles in height from resting on your shower tray to the bottom of the sill. It is most unusual that spacing falls like that! Normally I would expect to see the tiles lust below the window trimmed around it. It may be the contractor couldn't be bothered to do so, so has packed UP the window sill - again a short cut - but you could not know this without taking it apart. And it just might have been the tiler got lucky and everything aligned perfectly...

Have you worked out where your furniture goes? Asking because I'd have the snug wall further over to allow for two sofas in there (and rehang the door). Noise wise, I'd recommend checking the decibel levels for all your new appliances. My kitchen / dining / living room is fine wrt to kitchen sound because I got quiet appliances but I prioritised cheap over quiet for the washing machine in the utility and it's very intrusive despite the utility having brick walls and a fire door. For keeping the kitchen tidy two dishwashers have been brilliant. If you're concerned about losing a cupboard, the wall alongside the utility (behind the stairs) could be perfect for storage. I've a kitchen adjacent space where ikea billy bookcases are working as a brilliant pantry because they're shallow so we don't lose much at the back. It looks as if the bar part of your island is already raised? That's a great idea because not only is the hob safer but the bar will screen your worktops when you're sat on the sofa. Bifolds are great if you want to connect to an outside space. But a two pane bifold like the one in the kitchen isn't a great everyday door - I went with French doors in a similar spot but never open the second door, so if I were doing it again I'd have a door and a fixed pane which would mean less frame and more light. If I had the width, a sliding door would be even better. The large bifold could be amazing depending on what's outside it. Think you have to have an odd number of panes to have one that works as an access door - which younger children would need for when the bifolds are shut. Is the North on the floor plan wrong btw? Conflicts with you only having morning sun.

Hi Daisy, I don’t want to have a TV in our living room, so it will be in a separate TV room. I haven’t bought any sofas yet; I’m not a big fan of corner sofas, so I’d prefer to get a three-seater/two-seater combination along with armchairs. The three-seater could be placed opposite the chimney, but I’m not sure whether I need to put anything in front of the radiator. If I don’t, that part of the room might look quite empty.