Ettel you wouldn't have to change the off white walls if you went for whitewashed/limed pale wood or used a white oil or wax on it Scandi style. I haven't seen it done but I was thinking of kitchens and floors in this kind of wood that I have noticed on Houzz. I also thought of the slightly rougher wood cladding used externally on buildings that you may be able to get from a wholesaler in a smaller quantity. This could give you a nice kind of rustic effect but then it would be up to you if you wanted to follow that into full country style or go with a more modern rustic aesthetic. I have seen nice things from habitat that would work with that. Just a more minimal look than country. Sorry, I've never attached a photo on houzz.

If it’s a gas fire you will need a Gas Safe Engineer to remove It and cap it off if you no longer want a gas fire there. If you want to remove the fire surround then a builder should be able to do this for you if you don’t want to remove it yourself. If you want to open up the fireplace then again a builder can do this. Good luck Juby and Merry Christmas!

Rub some lemon or orange peel on it. Disclaimer: I know cats don't like but your plant might not either, probably best to try in one area first.

Hi Luke, I was just kidding! I don't think "rusty" would make for a nice flavouring. In reality though, the only bit that actually needs cleaning is the grill i.e. the part that comes into contact with the food and the best way to clean that is leave in a container of warm water with lots of washing up liquid. The longer you leave it the easier the muck will come off. Not worth buying a new one as this one will work perfectly fine and because you've not done it before you could use this one to practice on. If you enjoy it and can see yourself doing it often, you can upgrade to a bigger and better one later on. In terms of germs and bacteria, they all get killed off once you start the fire and it gets hot enough.