A houzz contributor, not too long ago, had made a wine rack out of 4'x4' wooden pallets, that are used in the US to move a load of goods with a fork-lift truck. Perhaps they have them in your country. He cut them in half so they were only two feet deep and stacked them up to high counter height. The wood would be a nice contrast with your concrete, might add a little warmth to the space. cascio.offsite@gmail.com

I am so happy to see you here! I will have to go back and see if i can retrieve my posts... thought I would make them into a little book for my daughter, with photos. Quick run-down on the bathroom (not travels, no time) - The kitchen has a rather elegant sliding door with beveled glass panels. Painted white, since this was the original colour. GD's new bathroom has the doors I had picked earlier; i thought of polishing them but decided sprayed automobile paint (on a resin primer) would wear better. Especially since it is such a small bathroom, and she is so splashy. I have this finish in my kitchen and it has lasted 15 years now. A tad chipped here and there, but only needs a wipe down once a week. Same finish for the balcony doors, also split like the bathroom. We have a new wardrobe, a study table with built-in shelves, and a small chest of drawers for her odds and ends. I want to re-tile the tiny balcony, more as a little statement. Currently we are looking at Portuguese tiles, though I did think a mosaic with a funky cat might be nice. Let me see the costing. The room will be painted a neutral adobe, with bright white woodwork and an off-white ceiling. This means she can go wild with cushions and covers. Other changes in the flat; We have changed the glass in the master bedroom and living room from small cramped panes to a single pane for each section with a 1" bevel all round. Doubles the cost of the glass, but looks so elegant! The air-conditioning is being re-located. The compressors were all mounted in the bedroom and living room balconies, which looked terrible and meant the balconies (very narrow, only 30" deep) couldn't be used for anything. Not even plants. So they are being moved so that the compressors can be mounted at the rear of the building. two down, one to go. Now we can put in some nice plants, fishtail palms etc. The kitchen counter on one side came out intact and will be reused elsewhere. I am planning overhead storage, cupboards, and a draining cupboard for plates and glasses. Right now there is no dish washer, though a place is earmarked, but for now I will put in a cupboard with steel racks for cups, glasses and plates, all hidden behind pressed glass doors. This is all in the planning stage.... Pictures in a little while, they are mostly on my ipad and don't transfer well to the mac. They come without numbers... so I have to rename the or something. Somebody tell me how to do this!

Hi Zainaba, If you are looking for a wooden look in your bedroom, here are a few ideas you may like. Concept 1 - Wooden flooring with solid coloured laminate for wardrobe, bed and dressing table. Concept 2 - Rustic tile/marble flooring with veneered wardrobe, bed and dressing table. Concept 3 - Wooden flooring with veneered/upholstered bed and laminate/ duco paint finished wardrobe and dressing table. Tip: Choose wooden textured laminates wisely. Avoid choosing from catalog and visit a store that has laminates on display. That way you can get an idea of the entire sheet of laminate, its colour, grains, texture and effect. Follow the same for veneer selections. If you do not want to take risks go for reconstructed veneers with straight lines. You may choose similar laminates as well. Avoid laminates with bright colours, heavy textures or floral prints. They look extremely gaudy and wont go with the style you are going for. All the best! Regards, RnD Atelier Nagpur

@ sam ser. I have been designing and making kitchens both budget and high end for over a decade and I can tell you with confidence that mdf does not suit indian weather and cooking habits. If you can source water proof mdf or prelaminated you can alleviate the pitfalls to a small degree. These are not easy to source in india yet. Here are some of the major pitfalls: (more available online if you perform a simple google search) mdf will off-gas small amounts of formaldehyde (causes cancer). MDF which has been painted reduces health risk but doesnot eliminate completely MDF tends to be high maintenance - if you chip it or crack it, you cannot repair or cover the damage easily as you typically can with solid wood. The chemicals used in making MDF make the material less child-friendly than other materials. Direct exposure to water will cause MDF to swell, guaranteed.