You have very high walls so I would do a tall wainscot on the walls to create some warmth and decoration at the same time. Take everything off the walls and remove all the small little shelfs and decorations, leave only the big furniture. Then start over with the wall decor. Need some bold statements to create some balance and interest but not clutter. Add some larger shelves if you need shelves, something hefty and interesting. It's hard to see wall color and how it works with the upholstery. Do you need all that furniture in the space? I would thin it out. Remove one of the sofas and place the chairs across from the other one. Open up the space in front of the window. Add a sofa table behind a sofa along the wall and decorate it with a couple large vintage style lamps with some accent color (pull a color from the rug that you like) on each end and tablescape the middle of the table. Add a huge mirror above Bring that same accent color into the space with some bookshelf decor but not cluttery. I am not a fan of the drapes; something more neutral in a grommet panel style that can easily be opened. Hang them at the ceiling. They will look really nice because they create nice gentle folds if the fabric is a bit heavy for weight. Good luck [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=] [houzz=]

Formal living rooms are rarely used from my experience. I can't tell you how many times I have "re-done" them for clients because after living in a home for a while the home owner realizes that they are wasted space. My advice to you about a formal living area is to leave it undone for 3-4 months and utilize the rest of your new home. See what is missing. Do you need an office, a den? A library? Quiet reading area? An exercise room? A craft room? Or maybe you really do need a formal entertaining area for your multitude of guests that come around every weekend where you entertain very high-brow style. But figure that out first otherwise your investment will be wasted. Part of why you and your husband are drawn to different furnishings is for these reasons: 1) The function of the room is not well established. So he envisions sitting on a big bulky comfy couch watching TV, and you envision sipping tea on a gorgeous ethnically inspired piece of furniture and chatting with your friends. This can only be vetted out with time and understanding how you as a couple will use all of your house. 2) You have different ideas about home design. Your husband is interested in comfort and you are interested in style. You will need to find a happy medium. Instead of saying well his style isn't going to fit with my style, think about how he can have a comfortable piece of furniture in the room that is perhaps tailored enough to go along with some beautifully wood carved, ethnic pieces. And this may actually enhance the look and make it look less "themed". And at the end of the day you may want to consider hiring a designer to help you through the process - often times that can help you weed through the process of balancing out form and function and his wants and your wants in the space. Best of luck!

For the living room, the focus should be the balcony area. So flipping the couch to face the wall and not the dining table will help. Kind of like this pic. Even if you already have the sectional that is in the diagram, you should be able to flip it. In fact a sectional would probably work better than the couch in this pic. I also really don't like the style of this pic, but it showed what I meant, For the girls' room: No matter which bedroom you choose, you should maximize floor space so that they have the biggest play space possible in their room (as they get older you can add desks for school work and such). To get this space, I would give them bunk beds. This configuration gives them an open feel and more storage, essential for girls. You posted two different kitchen designs. This makes it hard to give you advice. I agree with other posts that your sink should be away from the wall. This allows you to have stuff to the left of you (drying dishes in my house), while you wash vegetables on the right of the sink. You need the same space on both sides of the stove, also. At least 24 inches on both sides is good. 36 is better, though. The first design has a nice little countertop space that adds a place for your daughters a space to sit a watch/ talk to you while you're in the kitchen. When they added this to the first design, you lost cabinets on the other wall. This is bad, as the space is already storage limited. Try making the rounded countertop bump out into the living space more. If you play with the shape, you could make it work without losing the cabinets on the other side. It doesn't have to be rectangular or a perfect circle. You can see how this one isn't confined to the floor plan of the kitchen. I think this is what you would need to do to make it the most functional.

1.Remove Door and Trim If you're adjusting an existing door frame in your house, first, you will have to remove the door itself and all of the trim surrounding the frame. The door is simple enough; just pull the hinge pins out of place, tapping them from beneath with a screwdriver and mallet if necessary. For the trim, wedge a flat pry bar underneath the edge on one end of a section, and gently pull the casing away from the wall. Do the same thing for all of the pieces around the door frame and carefully set them aside to reuse later. 2.Square the Opening Off It is difficult to ensure that a door will be level and square if the rough opening is not (the rough opening is the bare bones structure before any work is done to begin a door install). So, before you begin, use a carpenter’s square to check the upper corners. This will save you time and effort later on. Remember, the more accurate your measurements, the more level your door will be. 3.Shim Door Frame Placing a pre-hung door in the rough opening will give you an idea of how it will ultimately fit. This type comes complete with a pre-made frame surrounding it, so all you need to do is carefully slide it into place and shim wherever you need around the frame to level it in the opening. Remember that wooden shims can simply be made of wedges or blocks of wood. Place a level against the door frame in your existing installation to see where you need adjustments. Then, like before, place wooden shims until it sits as it's supposed to. To keep the shims in place, nail them to the hinge. Make sure you trim any excess pieces with a saw so they sit flush with the wall. 4.Get a Level Sill Next, adjust the door sill with a flat bar or wedge until it too is level. Place the wedge or bar under the latching side of the door frame and have your help hold your door so you can check to make sure whether the top of the frame, or lintel, will need more adjustment. 5.Double Check It is important in every project to double check your work. Take the time to measure the gap between the door frame and the original rough opening. Use and nail in more wedges where necessary. If you have the extra set of hands to spare, have someone re-measure if you feel it could be adjusted differently. 6.Secure Door Frame in Opening Place your blocks of wood and/or shims into the open space over the lintel, and begin attaching the door frame to the original rough opening. Again, double check each corner to be square, before completely securing it into place. Note: Do not worry about the finishing touches just yet. You can add framing to the door after applying the paneling or drywall. Also, head and side casings will finish off a new installation nicely, covering all your small shim adjustments. Thanks & Regards, Cathrinfrancis URBELITE Bangalore