With poor quality windows, insufficient HVAC, and no insulation, the typical "sunroom" like mine will be nothing but an oven attached to your home that darkens the interior. Good quality triple glazed windows are expensive, as is spray in foam insulation, and the extra HVAC system needed for a sunroom. That's why this fall's project is to remove the wall between it and the home and rebuild it as an open room that is an integral part of the house rather than as a separate room. I will have more windows in it than the rest of the house, but less than when it was a sunroom. The windows will be of higher quality, and there will be wall space with actual insulation in it. We are having to redo the 30 year old HVAC, so it's not a stretch to have the additional space calculated into the new requirements. We also had to pour a new footing and rework the roof and it's support with LVLs and I beams in order to remove the wall between the current sunroom and family room. It's not a cheap project to do this, roughly 30K for materials alone with our DIY labor (labor would probably be at least 40-50K in addition to the material costs), but I'd recommend that you think of doing something similar rather than doing a "sunroom". It will still darken your kitchen to make it the interior room rather than the exterior one, but if there isn't a wall between the two, and it's one large space, it can keep most of it's brightness without the direct light. And, as any addition, it's a lot more expensive to remodel than move if you can't DIY the project. If you are looking at doing such an extensive remodel to your home, take that 100K that it will cost and see what you could buy with it after you've sold your present home. Major remodels are only for people who are going to live in their home long term and who don't care about spending extra money for their comfort while living there. Remodels lose money if you look at it from a purely financial standpoint rather than the intangible benefits one.

I think bamboo shades would be really nice in your space. I would consider the top down bottom up option because you say the room will have a television and this will help you adjust the shades for the best light and no glare. Something under the window, a nice bench with storage would be a great option. If you could find something that could provide extra seating and a comfortable cushion even better. I can envision something with cubbies on the bottom with nice natural colored storage baskets. I see toys in the room so I assume that children will be using this space, as well. The baskets would be a great place for storing toys, books, games, etc. when the kids aren't in the space. Regarding a rug I would consider an indoor/outdoor option. If the room gets a great deal of sun this would be a good option b/c it wouldn't fade and would hold up to lots of traffic and kids. Home Decorators Collection has some really nice ones for a great price.

jane ny, I was in a similar situation last year. For me the sequence was paint first, then flooring, then baseboards, But it looks like you may have baseboards already installed. Painting first worked for me because I did it myself and there were spatters on the subloor before I was finished. You might want to check on whether your subfloor is indeed covered with plywood, because you may need an underlayment before installing your floor, depending on what you choose. Best to check where you buy the flooring. With some help from a friend who knew what he was doing and owns a Skill Saw, I installed a plywood underlayment in less than two hours. I too wanted tile with a slate or similar look, but the room was already over budget (long story) and I chose to spend my money on high end French doors because the floor could always be changed later. I got some advice from the flooring forum while deciding. You can always post a message there before you proceed. We narrowed floor choices down to either loose-laid sheet vinyl or vinyl tiles. My friend chose the tiles because the color and pattern seemed to fit well in the sunroom/porch. The original intention was to keep those tiles for about a year while I shop for tile and find a good tile installer. But the floor has held up well, despite some abuse like beach sand, rain coming in when some airhead (

I have a grey kitchen that opens up to a yellow-green sunroom. I would like the rooms to have coordinating decor--feeling like an extension of each other. I am planning to incorporate a more buttery/mustard yellow with the grey in the kitchen...so the sunroom yellow and window treatments as they are won't work. I'm thinking to add the buttery/mustard yellow and white window treatments in the kitchen. But not sure what to do with sunroom. Should I paint the walls in the sunroom the same color as kitchen and change the window treatment to a coordinating pattern with those in the kitchen? Or paint the sunroom more of a buttery/mustard yellow...a paler version...and then do grey toned window treatment (maybe same pattern as in kitchen but grey)? I'd love any suggestions for best way to tie the rooms together with those colors, without feeling overwhelmed. Note: The furniture in the sunroom is NOT what I'm planning for there...it's only temporary. I have shared some pics to show layout, and colors. You will need to look beyond the kid art and clutter! Thanks for any help!