I would suggest you take out the cabinet that is to the right of the stove and use it elsewhere in the house -- perhaps in the bathroom or dining room with a hutch above it. Then, I would suggest you have someone install a lazy susan cabinet in the corner between the sink counter and the stove, meaning you would move the stove down a bit and have a small cabinet/counter top to the right of the stove. I would suggest you have the cabinets refinished in white and then paint the walls a pastel you like. If you would prefer white walls, then add white-painted crown molding and paint the ceiling a light neutral blue, such as Sherwin Williams Niagara Falls Blue. Then, I would suggest you choose a favorite accent color and use this sparingly in accessories like towels, pot holders, small vases or floral arrangements, and a valence above the triple windows. For a genuine 1940s look, you might have white ceramic square tiles with a rectangular red border installed as a back splash behind and above the stove. If you are replacing counter tops, I would suggest a light color such as white with a beige or light grey vein or striation for some sort of pattern. You might be able to find the same color and design in floor tile OR opt for a wood floor as another poster suggested.

Thanks Orangecamera. It's still a work in progress and mud everywhere Sorry we did look at having the steps' off set' but it didn't seem to go with only three steps and a small area. And about the zen well the cats are doing that for us much to our disappointment (it's still like a litter box to them). We went to the garden supply place still not knowing what kind of stones we were getting. We stood in front of all the bins (there where many). We even looked at mixing some. The grey stones had a bin more the size we wanted but we ended up getting the golden fleck. It was a little smaller, which was a shame, the bigger ones were so mixed in their grading it looked too messy. So this is what we finished up with. It was seagardens that got me thinking away from grey and nwduck mentioning the drainage. So this has really helped. Also everyone seem to think the wooden steps needed to go a lot lower. Next it's figuring out where the large river stones should go

We just stained our section fences with Wattle Ebony from Mitre 10. Was looking for a charcoal color too, not much flexibility in color options with stains from the shelves at store. We sprayed on, rather than brushing. Is cost a concern? One of our to be neighbours was doing there fences at the same time with paint, he said he used nearly 100L of paint for 2 coats, we used nearly 50L in 2 costs - had similar amount of fences. I've included photo of it after the 2 coats

It sounds like you've been through quite the rollercoaster with your building project! That's really frustrating to hear, especially when you had a vision that you were attached to. Construction dilemmas can be a lot to handle, and I can only imagine how the stress might have piled up over time. If you're feeling stressed (and who wouldn't be in a situation like this?), you might want to consider working off some of that tension. Since you're into home design and creating beautiful spaces, you might appreciate the aesthetic and functionality at Hitsona's fitness studio. Sometimes a little self-care and a change of scenery can inspire new ideas for other areas in life, including home design.