Honestly, you just mirrored what I was thinking! Great minds think alike, huh? ;) keep it light and natural with a few earthy accents and small pops of rich colour (like my art easels, Paint, throws and cushions ect) I checked underneath the ratty carpet and there are some beautiful floorboards underneath but my worries are: 1. Without the carpet I might make to much noise in the night (I have been known to stay up painting until early hours of the morning) and 2, it gets freezing up there in the winter WITH the carpet to act as an insulator, so I wonder if, with bare floorboards it might be even worse. It would look so nice with the floorboard so if you have any thoughts on how to tackle that I'm all ears!

Here's the same version, but with Colourhappy's suggestion, Pigeon, which is probably a bit warmer and definitely lighter and brighter. Colours will be different in real life, but it'll give you sort of an idea of how it will look. I was thinking that although blue is a cold colour, your floor and furniture are warm coloured, so it would be levelled out, so to speak. And I don't mind dark colours for bedrooms, but it's a personal preference. I also think that you might want to try a different ceiling light, before installing recessed spotlights. I think your current one is small and only lets out light on the top and bottom? A larger shade that is more transparent and perhaps a brighter bulb, will make a lot of difference. You can add lighting inside the closets (if you don't have that already). There are battery operated LED strips that react to movement, so as soon as you open the door they will light up.

Hi. I agree with Karen re the layout. It's a great space btw. Personally I'd go for a right hand facing chaise and use a chair to the right of the tv to hide the bin from the living area. If you wanted a touch of modern oriental have a look at the attached link, the orange sofa comes in colours that would work with that scheme, they also have one that matches the dining chair legs. The art can also be made in bespoke colours if you liked the colours on the link. It's a bit out there but you could consider a hanging rattan chair for a slight oriental feel! Excuse my photoshopping but it was just to give a rough idea :) If you don't like that (!) I'd use a rattan armchair instead and then hang a pendant over the sofa as per the 3rd pic, it shouldn't be too difficult with the downlight positions? I'd probably go for a sculptural light over the table. I might also consider layering rugs As I think it would work with the room. You could try the plant by the dining table in that corner and maybe see what the other big plant and shelves look like swapped over? http://townsend-london.com/hannah-bort/elle-decoration-modern-oriental/

I don't know what everyone likes stylewise or colours but I quite like the houses on the wall in the first pic on the wall where your sofa is. The kids could update the characters in the Windows using decals when they grow out of a phase. It's only paint so easy to paint over when they're teenagers. The rest of the walls i'd do in a scrubbable paint. Where the radiator is i'd add a table like pic 2 but with the shelves underneath the table in pic 3 for craft storage (maybe make it deep enough for a games console in the future). I'd also add cheap shelves above for art and pencil storage etc with bins etc. The desk could be raised when they grow but also used as a tv stand when they're older. The eames chairs are kids one, they're easy to keep clean and quite cheap at £25 (seat height is 32cm) for when they grow out of them. I'd add a rug in the middle and the beanbag by the bookcase. You could add a "once upon a time" or a "read" decal over the bookcase And maybe star bunting or Pom poms over the eaves to cosy up the reading area. l'd add clothes pegs on the cupboard door for their dress up stuff plus a couple of toy bags for lightweight bits. I'd keep the rest of the room free for play (although the existing drawers could be handy) and when they're older add a sofa for tv, PlayStation etc. What type of lights do you have ATM?