There is contrast between the traditional furniture and the focal point of the floor which pops, draws attention. I would recover the sofas in cream colored soft fabric - suede. I would leave the curtains grey, and put down a large neutral area rug. The edges of the room would show the pattern of the floor. I would color the wall and add texture to it, but not too dark as the room will appear smaller. Add a picture and put a nice plant holder, large vase in the left corner of the room - an oriental-style vase. Or, a cream-stripe fabric on the sofas. You could go soft or bold in this room - depending on your taste.

I wouldn't put any water under there because of potential mould issues (in fact, there looks like there's a bit of mould already -- is there?). You could tile the bottom of it and put a strip of LED lights under the glass. What did you have in mind when you initially thought of the idea?

do you have any drawings of how it will look when complete? If I were you, I'd go through the houzz photos, search for "exteriors ranch" or whatever style home you have. Create an ideabook of what you like, save pictures in it. You will find something you love if you look at enough pictures.

I love the exterior lights in the first photograph! It's a great and simple way to give your property a major makeover with something so settle. We talk about exterior lights and 8 other ways to easily add curb appeal to your property in our latest blog post. Read about it here: http://goodfellasconstruction.net/blog/9-ways-to-add-instant-curb-appeal