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 think a comfortable distance between the island and the counter is around 42". It seems that you have only 30" between your cook top and the counter. I might be a little too tight. The wall between the entrance and the kitchen could be 4' long instead of 6', you would then be able to move the island a foot which would give you more room between the cook top and the island. Could you switch the location of the toilet and vanity in your dad's bathroom so your enter facing a vanity instead of a toilet which is a lot nicer.

there is no perfect dimensions for an island. Try to organce space subdividing into smaller cabinets of 60x60 cms which is the max space for a structural division and works for seating area as well

Hey!! You could go about this two ways, First, is to upholster the bench itself (making the change semi-permanent), or the second would be to place cushions, or a think upholstered piece of ply atop the bench and secure it with fabric straps across the four legs. If you want to upholster the back as well, you'll have to glue the foam and fabric onto a plyboard and attach it (in both cases). Read on for instructions. For the first option, you have to follow the same steps with the exception of 12, and do it all directly on the bench and not on a plyboard. Procure a 6mm thick plyboard and cut it to the dimensions of the seat. make it a 1 or 2 mm smaller than the seat so that you can slide/drop it in when done. sand one surface down to make it smooth. Get 3" foam, again cut to the size of the plyboard. get foam batting =, and fabric if your choice, 6" larger on all sides. Spray adhesive on the ply and foam (check manufacturers instructions to see whether you need it on both surfaces or just one.) Glue the foam to the board, place weights on top, and leave it to dry. Lay down the fabric, face down on a clean workstation, play the foam batting on top. Place the now glued seat upside down on the batting and start pulling the batting upward and staple it in place. Do one side at a time (opposites first, not adjacent) Repeat the 8 and 9 with Fabric Cut off any excess. Tailor longish strips of the fabric and staple them to the four corners of the ply and use it to tie and secure the board on the bench. Hope this helps!!