Mona you have seen exactly the dilemmas I'm facing with this room so I really appreciate your comments. I was focusing on no1, but really 2 and 3 are on my mind too. In terms of getting some continuity between the rooms I was planning on recovering the dining chairs in a fabric to tone with cushions/throws on the white couch, ottomans in a matching tone, and pulling this colour scheme through into cushions in the formal lounge. I love the spring colours at the moment (greens, blues etc) which you can see i'm playing with at the moment but you might be able to see the painting in the formal room which is orange, red and yellow with a blue/purple base. So I'm very keen on colour and so tired of the brown carpet and neutral walls. I was also going to restain the dining table and chairs to a dark mahogany colour, and change the bar stools to something more modern. re: rug closer to sofa, I've done this and it looks off-balance with nothing else in the space. It seems to work better in the middle of the carpet area at the moment. Perhaps thats because I haven't ordered the ottomans yet. I don't want to add a coffee table to this room as prefer Ottoman to put feet up on. I've attached a pic of a rug, do you think something like this would work better? re the wall: yes this is the major for me at the moment. It is a TV room so tv and speakers stay and I wont be adding any custom cabinetry. The idea was to increase the space in this room by removing all of the cabinets and they are now in the adjoining room. The speaker covers have not been painted as I needed to work out what wall covering to apply, and colour etc. so once they are painted the wall colour they will blend in better. The idea of shelving has merit, I'll have to have a think more about that... Any other thoughts you have are appreciated.

Clear any shrubs / trees / weeds, away from around the house - not saying go out with a chainsaw and slash everything down to the ground but make sure there is nothing higher than the window frames directly around the house or even leaning on the house. Taller tree's may be able to be pruned to allow more light through e.g. lift the bottom of the growth up higher by removing lower branches or thin out branches from within the canopy. Bring in as much sun as you can during the day. If you are planting a new garden, always look at the height of the tree's when they mature and if possible mix some trees that lose their leaves in winter so you obtain maximum sun. Check your insulation e.g. last year I added a new layer of insulation onto of my existing ceiling insulation. If you have dampness under your house maybe look at channelling water away from the house with what ever means you can afford e.g. professional drains right around the house or just dig trenches. You may wish / need to add black plastic over any clay / ground under your house if you are not on a flat concrete block based house. Open curtains during the day. Dress to the conditions. If you can't afford to heat the entire house just heat the room(s) you are using but make sure the non heated rooms get ventilation from time to time (especially lovely sunny days). Pile the blankets on the bed and even use a blanket over your legs if you are sitting watching TV or working on your computer. Think SUN SUN SUN. If you are renting and the house you are in gets very little sun, now is the time to start looking for something that gets more sun. Winter is the best time to look.

Love the blue carpet. It's such a nice colour and you rarely see blue carpet!

Live in NZ near Christchurch. Am trying to find an alternative to tile as a wall covering on the walls OUTSIDE of the shower areas. These are already acrylic as did not want to clean grout lines. Has anyone used any of the panel products on the market for covering the whole room? Has anyone found any to replicate LARGE tiles. James Hardie has hardiglaze but the tiles are small . I really like T&G panelling, again seen A Hardie product but would like a narrower width tongue. Also I think up to ceiling will be a bit much........pHowever what height to end it? Are there less ornate dado rails available? The house is a new build and the fittings are contemporary. TIA for helping.