I think you are talking about a vanity to put in the bedroom, not the bathroom. Is that correct? If it is correct, then I think your idea of cherry wood for the vanity is a good one. It certainly doesn't have to match exactly. In fact, we mix a lot of wood stains these days. If you're interested in a vanity for the bathroom, that's a totally different thing. I see part of the bathroom in the photos. You could have a faux artist come and paint the existing bath vanity to match your bed if you want to go in that direction. But you state that you want a modern bathroom, so maybe you have something else in mind. I've selected 4 different baths that might appeal to you. Please let me know if you like any of them, or if it's the bedroom you're more interested in. Thanks. Carolyn Albert-Kincl, ASID

I agree that there is too much going on, however some of the suggestions are costly and in my opinion don't completely take care of the problems. I like the design approach it is fresh and updated. I agree that the chimney cap is out of proportion and just needs a simple band at the top. In order to make the exterior remain timeless over the years, Now Sit Down for a minute, I would make all of the exterior the white color. I know you love red however this will tie the different components of the architecture together more than any thing else. You can still have high gloss red doors and red tile pavers on the ground. It would also be very classy the use white tile in place of the brick look. You could even mix gloss white tiles with matt finish tiles to give an interesting sparkle when you ride by. I like the wrought iron upper railing, but the vertical blocking on the right side looks too heavy. So I would continue the same railing around the corner and back toward the house until it connects to the other balcony railing. This also ties the house together. It would look much more classic to not have a grid in the tall window and instead have a solid piece of glass down to the transom and then from there down be solid glass as well. Glass block in the courtyard column sections with back lights would look unbelievable. I would arch the closed in section on the second level as it would show up more there than the window being arched does, so save the money and don't arch that window. I would either hang a long contemporary light on the right elevation to dress it up or insert a long strip of glass block lighted from the interior to achieve the same effect. I charge for renderings, because I list the materials as well. Best, Leo Dowell Interiors.com

A good beginning would be to replace the walkway up to the house. A new brick walkway or stamped concrete in the same color as the brick on the house will pull all of the elements of the exterior of your home together. I made my walkway 3 feet wide with 2 feet beds on each side of the walkway in stamped concrete. Create the walkway at a distance from the house in an organic natural flowing pattern up to the house with planting beds flowing beside the walkway. Take the brick right up to the from door. Soften the entrance to your home by opening the planting beds up by the house into large organic shapes. That's what I did with my home and it changed it dramatically! It's a lot of work but what a difference!

Hello Ms Vijaya Yes, I was referring to the old post wherein you gave the details of your requirement. But it is somehow missing in the feed now. Installing a chimney (T shaped one) shouldn't be an issue even if you have a window. You could ask the carpenter to take a vertical support plank (of 18 mm ply) from the wall just above the window. Just to not let that support plank hanging, the bottom of the plank should be fixed to the grill of the window. In this way, you do not have to compromise on the ventilation from that particular window. Make sure dimensions of the plank are aligned with the hood of the chimney and also the height at which it has to be fixed. Something like below. Backsplash gives a splendid look to the kitchen as well as it is easy to maintain. You can also have digital prints to suit your taste, instead of a plain one. The negative sides of a glass backsplash are that it is relatively expensive and prone to shattering. Few things to bear in mind are before going ahead with glass backsplash - the electrical points and any other fixtures on the dado wall should be decided along with the dimensions as provisions have to be made for that in the glass before toughening it. Stick the glass to a ply panel and do not fix it using studs. Now coming to the overall design keeping in mind the aesthetic appeal, below are my assumptions: 1. West facing flat. 2. Your sink tap is on the East wall, near to the toilet. 3. Provision of pooja unit is not required in the kitchen. 4. Crockery to be placed in a separate unit near dining. 5. Kitchen should have maximum storage capacity. A look of a kitchen is decided by parameters like color combination, lighting, quality and type of the shutter material. In the below edited pic, I have given the possible spots for fridge, sink, breakfast unit, platform. You can have two L shaped plaforms (in red) along all the four walls. The placement of sink is indicated by orange boxes and you can opt for either of the position. It is not suitable on the East platform as it will be very close to the cooking range. Never have the sink at the extreme end of a platform, it will impede your movement near the sink and the space underneath is partially lost. The fridge's position can be either on the West side or South side. If you opt for placement on the West side, place a partition unit made of ACP/MDF fret work to hide the back of the fridge (line in yellow) and also to enhance the look of it when viewed from living area. Breakfast unit is indicated by brown box and take care that the dimensions will not hinder your free walking way to the kitchen. Place pendant lights over the breakfast counter. The space/wall to the left of the breakfast unit can be either used for storage or for placing some decor items/artefacts. Tall unit on the North-West platform has two options - in either of the platform corners. I would suggest to have it on the North side corner (beside the utility door). This tall unit can either house your microwave, oven etc. or just use the entire unit by placing shelves. Please refer to the below link for my suggestions on the color combination https://www.houzz.in/discussions/we-want-our-kitchen-to-be-renovated-dsvw-vd~5386939 Go for high gloss laminates/acrylic/PU finish for the skin of the shutters as per your budget. To further enhance the look: - Use under cabinet lighting, profile doors with spot lights inside, some contrast color open boxes in the cabinets (above the platform) to break the monotony. - Go for simple plain false ceiling and place track lights wherever you want to highlight. - Go for ample LEDs with daylight temperature. - Plan to have a handle less cabinetry (both over and under platform). You have the provision to use corner units, tall unit, rolling shutters, wicker baskets and even an island if you really want it (though I would not recommend). If you need help in designing your kitchen and putting it all together in a 3-D view, contact an interior designer. Srikanth Meticular Interiors