Not sure where you're located, but a gravel driveway may help to soften the house versus asphalt or concrete. Soften up the area with grasses. Here's a link to a photo of grasses with a hot color palette http://www.spacemakerpress.com/catalogue/catimages/st05imgb.jpg You can always choose a more muted color palette as well. I would definitely tier the plan heights so they're taller against the house and gradually get lower. It would help to bring the house to human scale and not appear towering above. The pathway could be in a natural stone - the same color as the gravel driveway (if you can do gravel).

Yes, measurements would help. Thank you aldrea1 for other explanation, though. That helps too. It sounds like you are going into a total gut-job! I love this! Great opportunity for your creativity. Also, it looks like you have a petite sized stove. With total remodel you can upgrade to a standard size range. Is this part of your plan? Are you going to replace any appliances? It would be good for you to keep sink and stove in original locations. It is complicated to move the stove's exhaust fan and the sink's plumbing. Not impossible, but probably $$$$$$$ and a lot of hassle…. So, I would start planning with those items--stove and sink on current walls. Wherever you put your refrigerator, it would be best to be sure side view is hidden. If refrigerator stays in current position, you could make peninsula a little smaller, so wall on the right of kitchen entrance could extend further and hide refrigerator edge----Or, move refrigerator to another location… Not too far from sink and counters, though. That would cause you inconvenience. You want a work triangle with not that many steps in-between. Do you currently have a dishwasher? Or are you planning to add one? Not much creativity in placement of a dishwasher---needs to be near water source and drain.. Are you doing the work yourselves or hiring a contractor?

Thanks :) Yeah decided to go with tile. So sand cement is ok over existing tiles if I prep them first? Only problem is, the new pad can only be about 30mm at it's thickest (leaving up to 15mm for tiles) otherwise it'll end up being higher than the hallway floor. So I either need to make the fall shallower or not bother with the waste and make it all level. If I made it level, could I use levelling compound at that thickness or would deck mud/sand cement be the best option? Also, should I be putting in mesh for strength? (I know I should (and will) ask the local hardware what they suggest, but it's great to have suggestions from the Houzz community also)

There is no common link, no continuity that each dwelling share. i would introduce an element to both structures, borrowed fm the other, so for example the red brick and windows are the most striking design elements in the house, however the rendered garage with a parapet and no visible roof may as well be from another planet, I would brick up the front piers aside the door, with matching red brick, and then I'd install some post and beam rafters that could extend over beyond the garage door, almost like a flat eave, however just beams, no roof, and paint it chacoal, I'd then link a path from th garage to the house, and create the same detail at the porch entry of the home, same beams, colour and materials, so it looks like they belong on the same property. also, perhaps a little scary to consider, i would render the wall in between the door and the first window only, and paint the front door in the matching blue. Windows I'd go charcoal as per th beam structure, and apply a stained timber batten to the flat parapet above the garage, so paint that black, then fix timber battens vertically wh enough spacing to see that black shadowline, it will modernise it, emphasising the elongated design, which is both contemporary and popular, and tie this timber detail into the house with a generous deck. Both timbers will link, over scale th deck, perhaps stagger a step or two, as the garage is over scaled also. remove the fence, and landscape the corner with over scaled shrubbery, a meandering path to help invite ppl between the two structures., the visual disconnection is the fence, but it translates into everything else. if a fence must be, then consider a half height one, or an informal row of sleepers as uprights, to softly define the yard.