Hello Lauren, Marcie here. Yes, this is a challenge. Can you do me a favor and take some more pictures? Please start with your back to the wall that the TV is against and then move around to fireplace to capture your dining room. Please give me the measurements of that space including the area with the shelves on the wall and your dining room. Marcie

The advice of the Practice Advisory Committee is the same as my earlier advice which is what an architect would be expected to do in the US however CAD layering is a gray area. With the recommended procedure, there would be no additional liability created for the designer for a project that cannot be built from the drawings in question that have previously been issued to the municipality and multiple contractors, presumabaly bearing the name of the designer. But it would be foolish to terminate an owner-designer contract without a written agreement documenting the change in responsibilities. As for layers, AutoCAD's use of endless layers has always seemed like an unnecessary complication now that paper drawings are no longer created with pen plotters (I once had a pencil plotter). The only layers in my CAD drawings are for lines, notes & dimensions and occasionally reference lines or poche. To me its important to avoid becoming a slave to CAD. I suspect the new designers will have little difficulty using what the original designer has provided but we don't know much about the scope of the work.

Ah the joys of NYC apartments... that said you have a good amount of space. However I think you have too many pieces for the space or not quite the right scale/size. Do you really need a dining table and desk, could you downsize to one for dual purposes? Would definitely move the larger sofa into the living area. Is that where you watch tv? is that what is mounted on the wall? Do you need the three chairs and velvet sofa? Do you need the various end tables that seem too big for the space? Why is there a mirror randomly placed in the LR? For the bedroom area, do you have any closet space or shelving? Could you add an ikea cabinet to give you storage options to visually streamline things? Or add a shelving unit as a divider at the end of the bed so it makes the bed space separate and again gives you some storage/display space for your things. Could place your printer and office requirements here. Could you move the desk into this area? If adding the shelving to block the view of the bed, could make using it as an eating area not as awkward for guests. Or add a curtain from the ceiling to divide.

Living room dining room combos make me really happy. How many in your household?Do you eat at this table nightly or most commonly eat in the kitchen? Do you sit at this table and do other things like projects, kids with homework, gather with friends? Do you have another living area in this house that you chill out in or is the seating in this room going to be the makn ha g out space in your home? Who will sit here and when, what time of day, to read, be with guests, hang out? I’d love to see the table turned 90 degrees so it is parallel to the window and living in that area next to and along side the window. It just makes sense to me for the layout and lines of this room. It may or may not make sense though for who uses this space and when. Main question, do you want the daylight and view from the window to be enjoyed as a table space or sofa space? The buffet /cabinet is a great piece but looks super bad next to the wood where it is currently located. I’d put it on the long white wall near where your desk is currently located and use it as a visual bridge between you window/dining area and a sitting area where your sofa is currently located. Light fixture is fine where it is do not use it to determine furniture zones. Stone area is a lot of look. Don’t put furniture or other things over there. Just give it space to be what it is. Nice that you dont need desk, piano, or TV in here.