We got the IKEA shelves that are pictured in the butlers pantry photo I posted when we were on holiday in Melbourne, Australia. We don't have IKEA here in New Zealand! Hubby is going back over in May/June so will get him to get more of that sort of thing when there. We would pay about 4x the price for that sort of thing here in NZ. I need to work out what I will do now where the fridge was and there is the angle change (does that make sense?).

value to you or value when you put your house on the market? it depends on the project. yes, a well maintained driveway and tidy yard will *help* sell a property. elaborate/hard to maintain landscaping won't. many people actually will think 'wow that will take forever/cost a fortune to keep looking like that.' i think more people want easy care as their first priority, and wont pay any extra for an overdone yard. so these days, i'd go all minimalist for resale value. small grass area with automatic sprinklers in areas where expected rainfall will support it, more stone mulch and low water plants in areas that are dry. ticks are a problem and mosquitos as well, so a wildflower border needs to have a defined edge with grass/stone before sitting areas. the nice night lighting no one will ever see when you are selling your house unless its the sort that has its photos taken at night with all the lights on. we've just overhauled our pool area at our vacation home; our theory there is that we want the house to be at all times 100% ready to put up for sale when the day comes that its not fun to own any more. so that $25K won't improve the value of the home, it will keep the home saleable. and we'll get to enjoy it til then.

@Tribbletrouble44152k7 Trek, no not necessarily.. it fulfills it's purpose if you buy the one that is correct for what you want it for.. a bit of a catch22 and up to the store to point out that the thin stuff may dent.. in fact any of it can... there are many things that will void warranty of laminate floors.. here is a good website dealing with the cleaning and care .. http://www.baneclene.com/articles/laminate-care-consumer.html Remove shoes with spiked or damaged heels before walking on the floor. Spike or stiletto high-heel shoes may cause denting and related damage to wood floors due to the extremely high compressive force they generate. Such footwear can produce dynamic loads in excess of 1,000 pounds per square inch, even when worn by someone of slight or average build. Worth reading the whole thing.. Just worth reminding people that laminate flooring is mdf with a picture of wood printed on the surface with a couple of protective layers of clear coating over the top..it cannot be wet or steamed.. it will swell. Make sure you ask questions.. Wood vinyl planking is very durable and hardy, and bamboo is considered to be one of the strongest timbers.. if you choose to have floors redone with any of the above products please look them up on google and find out the qualities.. I vote for wood vinyl.. looks brilliant, can float or be glued (recommend glue for wet areas such as bathrooms, laundries) is hard wearing and cost is comparable with mid range wood laminate flooring and hardier. Hope that all helps. If you must have wood laminate then go for 10 - 12 mm.. anything less will flex. Must have underlay and be laid on a level floor.. There are self levelling compounds you can use to make this easier... hope all this helps.

It all depends on what you want to do in your laundry and what in your bathroom I guess. I appreciate the fact that there might not be enough space to do this but I store outdoor shoes in the laundry and the dog's leash and cleaning stuff. I need room to sort the dirty laundry into piles before washing it. I keep the ironing board in there and I need a tub to wash things in and to do flowers in and to put the odd cloth that wiped up the cat sick before it gets rinsed and washed.. heaps of things other than just washing. Couldn't manage with a cupboard laundry ( piles of washing on the hall floor when using it) and think these kinds of laundry functions might not make a gorgeous lavendery bath or shower feel that luxurious. So I am for as big a laundry with tubs, cupboard and bench nearest the outside back entrance and yes washing line as poss. And a lovely fresh warm bathroom near the bedroom separate from the dirty clothes and boots and all that other stuff.