Bronan, if you are over 13 and under 21, then the possibilities are really fun with black wood furniture in a room that could be set up with a ballet barre, or used as a dance practice studio as well as a bedroom! Since the floors are dark, you will need to keep the walls light, Usually in a bedroom you start with the colors in your bedding. If you want a new look, perhaps you could start with a pretty floral like this, paint the wall where you will put the head of your bed a deep coral pink to match the bedding and all the other walls a pale pretty coral too. room a soft, soft pink, and hang soft pink drapery panels http://www.target.com/p/threshold-multi-floral-comforter-set/-/A-14982101#prodSlot=medium_1_13 The coral will pop with your black furniture better / a good one that makes your skin pretty in the light - this one for a headboard wall to test - http://www.sherwin-williams.com/homeowners/color/find-and-explore-colors/paint-colors-by-family/SW6878-animated-coral/ this one for the other 3 walls . . a white with the same coral undertone - http://www.sherwin-williams.com/homeowners/color/find-and-explore-colors/paint-colors-by-family/SW6609-touching-white/ If possible, you might hang drapery rods on the mirror wall, so you can hang (with this bedding) white drapery at both the window and on each end of the mirror - it will make it feel a lot softer in the room if you treat it like a window. You can follow watch for on sale drapery until you can get a lot that is the same. Put the rod at the same height over the mirror as it is over the window. You might paint an inspirational quote at the top of the mirror in the dark coral (using a stencil) so that you visually fill the space between the top of the mirror and the top of the window. You could get a sample size of pale green paint the color of the green in the bedding to paint an extra piece of furniture that you need that isn't quite right. A little desk or vanity, or even a round end table or a bench for the foot of your bed. Hope this looks like an interesting option to you. Later, you can go for graphic black and white bedding and put hot coral pillows on it with the same paint job and curtains and get a whole new look with just new bedding.

Hi Michelle - It looks like treated pine to me, and looks as though it has been recently built. If you did nothing it would fade to a grey colour within 6 months or so. This would probably blend in with the house quite well, and you wouldn't have to do a thing! Otherwise I would stain it - there are lots of stains on the market - see if there is one you like. A dark one would create a nice contrast with the house and make the fence look more like a feature. Good luck!

Nick and Rie wanted to up lighten and modernise their tired kitchen space without compromising on storage and functionality. Their outdated kitchen had cream coloured cabinetry & terracotta tiles on the floor. It was given a stunning black and white makeover by Kitchen Mania! The black handles on white cabinetry are a bold statement and the kitchen is finished with an engineered stone bench top with a waterfall end. The geometric tiles and subtle timber elements in the lighting and stools complement this kitchen perfectly. BEFORE AFTER Let us know what you think!

We are about to lay new carpet and before we do I want to tidy up the exposed beams in our lounge and master bedroom - see pictures below. I understand the vertical round beams are pine and the horizontal is macrocarpa. The vertical beams are in particularly bad shape - lots of pain marks, cracks, nail holes etc. I have been told by a number of builders the process is likely to be very laborious - I have the time but I am a complete novice. I would like to sand both beams back and stain them a matching natural medium toned colour - at the moment the tone of each looks quite different. They don't need to be perfect I just want them to look tidier than they currently are. Can anyone recommend what tools I might use for the vertical and horizontal beams to speed up the process? Any tips on materials, process to follow? And how I might fill in the numerous gaps in the vertical beams?