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 have tumbled travertine (basically a form of marble) in the master bedroom and a marble mosaic in the master bath. It is higher maintenance. It stains and it wears differently in different areas. I am not doing natural stone in my new home. There are some fantastic tiles now that mimic all the stones, and a good quality porcelain tile will be very durable. Some ceramic wall tiles are "weaker" but I have had excellent luck with porcelain tile. Granite floors. Sure. But as people have said they also require maintenance like periodic sealing etc. In a house that size you don't want a different kind of floor in every room. I would stick to one or perhaps two types of floor tile in the main rooms. You can get away with additional types on walls in the bathrooms but I would keep the floors consistent. As far as cost goes, there is a very broad range of tiles and stones. In my shopping I have found some very good high quality floor tiles for reasonable prices. Stone has priced out higher...at least the ones I have looked at. Good luck!

Hello Sarina, Love the chair style and the natural look. If you decide to buy them as shown here and you still want to stain them, be sure to find out what the wood is and what the existing finish is on them. Then consult your local paint store to advise you on the correct product to use and how to use it. Good Luck!

Instead of wood and glass installed permanently, consider two options. First, an open cube made of stained wood - 6' high x 6' wide for books, display, as a screen but not fixed. Ikea has expedit, but here is the nice version http://www.smartfurniture.com/products/LAX-Series-Bookshelf.html?st-t=Google_Campaign_PLA&vt-k=&vt-mt=&gclid=CMeu25rNuMICFYhefgodbHQAAw OR - use a sofa table behind a 7' sofa with its back to the dining area, and place tall buffet lamps with a standing sculpture between .. . divided, but flexible ..