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.

Hi Ni, I just thought of something....did you say you planned to do the stencil motifs on the window wall? If so, I am thinking they will be mostly hidden by the curtains. I wonder if it might be better to stencil the long wall that is on the right side of the room when looking toward the window. I could see this being a pretty backdrop to the prayer box (I think that’s what you called it?) and your wood cuttings. Then maybe the opposite wall (the one with the kitchen doorway) could hold a large piece of art?

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!

Keya, glad you decided to take the one reader's idea about moving the armoires in front of windows that you don't need and giving the bed a wall of its own! And, yes, you can have Roman shades on one wall and layered drapes on the other. When I had drapes made for my tall sitting room windows/doors, I had them use the same fabric for the Roman shades for the smaller windows on the other wall. For me personally, in these older Indian homes with all the odd nooks and niches in the walls, perhaps it would be more soothing to have a light/med tone paint on the walls that blends with the drapes/blinds for an 'uninterrupted' look, and I would use the same color on ceiling and beams. (but that is just my thought) I would start the process with a large carpet with your favorite colors, then choose your Bedcover & cushions, then your wall paint and fabric for drapes/blinds ..Not certain what style you like, but if you really like a particular Ethnic bedcover fabric, you can always have them stitched into curtains or Roman shades too. Can't wait to see the "After" pics!