go for irish oak

We have a similarly sized window and after much research and deliberation opted for 3 x silentgliss roller blinds inside the window recess plus wave curtains. The blinds are in a translucent fabric to screen the sunlight and are electrically operated so there is no chain hanging down. They can be adjusted individually to suit where we need to screen the sun. We went for black fabric as surprisingly it is more translucent than white so we can still see out on a sunny day when the blinds are down. The curtain tracks are quite long so we can draw the curtains right back and they don't obstruct the door or block the view/light. We have a wonderful view and are not overlooked but find that much bare window is not comfortable feeling at night (just a big black shiny space!) so the unlined linen curtains make the room cozy and also provide acoustic softening which prevents the room being too 'echoey'. The wave tracks are great as with a big window you have a lot of curtain but they need less fabric than standard tracks so stack more compactly. Enjoy your home!

@Janet Cogley Wouldn't be completely blocking up the existing FD just putting a window in the existing same width opening but yes blocking from below that new window. And opening up the lower portion of the existing dining room window to fit a new french door - we got a quote for all jobs plus the wall pushed down that don't seem too high. However it does require a building warrant, architect and Structural engineer that adds up too.. I am starting to think it might be a good idea to check the reverse as you are suggesting - would it be more or same or less expensive to do a replumbing for the sink, rewiring for the appliances etc if we were to flip the kitchen to the dining side hmmm, thank you.

Colours look a lot lighter on the outside of a property to the inside. It depends on how much contrast you want and how traditional you want it to look. Cool greys can look urban but crisp, yellow greys (such as Light grey 17) look quite Cotswold, natural and lovely with stone. I like Little Greene Colours best, they seem to have some 'gaps' that F&B don't do. For example, Slaked Lime by Little Greene is a yellow grey, but muted enough to not to too colourful, I would be tempted to start there and use it as a benchmark for other colours.