Hi, all I have used Garden Web for years for remodeling, never thought to use it for quilting/sewing. I am widowed now, and have 2 bedrooms, one slightly larger than 11x15, serves as a sewing room/guest room. Currently, I have a duplex bed w/frame taking up lots of wall space. My family are all out-of-state and can't visit very often. Perhaps once a year single or couple friends visit. Bed is used only occasionally. I have inflatable queen and twin size mattresses (a couple of years ago, had the family down for Christmas). I'm trying to decide whether to a) lose the bed and rely on inflatables; b) trade the bed for a double or queen-size bed which would gain some wall space, or c) deal with what I have. The room will be repainted soon; there's a very pleasant view outside the window, so the sewing machine stays there. Opposite the window wall is a closet, and a small wicker vanity on a short wall. A wicker dresser (partly seen in pic) and the entry door is opposite the bed wall. I'm left handed, so it's cut, stitch, press; from left to right. I'm looking for a better table/cabinet solution for the area, but this works for now. I'd love room for a 36" cutting table.

gr8day ... the house is a 2 and a half story back split built in 1977. While I wanted all stone when it was built, cost considerations led me to settle for a stone front entry and massive interior stone fireplaces but the rest of the exterior is entirely brick. At the time no thought was really given to future matches of the brick for renovations and though I saved a half pallet of bricks, they were later used for repairs when the earthquake we had in the mid 80s cracked some brickwork in one corner of the house. Nothing is impossible of course but I don't really want to think about (or pay for!) the exterior architectural complications of moving the window. Given the basic plan that Lisa drew and incorporating Rhome's suggestions of maintaining the L shap from the earlier plan, I spoke to the gas appliance installation folks. The devil is always in the details. As a prelude to this renovation, I had gas installed this past summer and replaced the old furnace and water heater. My plan is to install a gas range that will give sufficient BTUs for high heat cooking since I stir fry often with woks. I haven't ordered yet but am prepared to place the order for a (Costco Canadian version) 36 inch BlueStar range. The installer told me that the local building code demanded that there be 36 inches vertical clearance and 18 inches horizontal clearance from the elements of a high output range to any combustible (ie cabinet) surface. He also recommended a 42 inch range hood and said 48 inches (900 cfm) would be much better for high heat frying. That would change the location of the microwave from between the fridge and range moving it perhaps back to the corner (angle mounted?) between the range and cleanup sink. Again a minor detail in the original plan but all requires thinking through. Lisa said it best ... dreaming and planning on paper is cheap. I really like the plan and am still working on the details which I roughly grouped into 1) cabinat details (cab choices and special features/inserts etc) 2) lighting and electrical requirements (I have made a first cut thinking about LED lighting) 3) structural details (I have thought of a way to frame in a second steel beam and elinate the posts for support at the end of the island)(plumbing appears straightforward) I am definitely a function kind of guy and have not worried a moment about decor ... but the ceiling will be a style problem for sure - it is 8' as that was the norm in the 70s and it will have an awkwardly placed 8 inch steel I beam to be framed and hidden ... the ceilings in this open planned house are all stippled ... but that is not an option for a kitchen ... in any case, there will need to be some thought given to that issue as well as of course cab style, hardware, floor finish, backsplash, and countertops. Regards ... Doug

Amazing how stuff on counters irritates people, but cluttering other surfaces in the home doesn't. I think that's presumptuous and I perceive value judgments in your statement. If I'm mistaken, mea culpa and my apologies. My dining table has a pretty lazy susan with napkin holder, salt, pepper, and sugar shaker on it. My end tables each have a lamp and a couple of coasters. My coffee table has a couple coasters and, currently, my Kindle. My buffet is 8 feet long and only about 3 feet of it have items on it, two of which also functional. I have several display shelves in my home, inset built-ins, and all of them more open space than items as I think the things I'm displaying look better with space around them (similar to good graphic design in which white space is considered important in creative a good visual piece). My 7 foot long main bathroom vanity has a pretty bottle of hand soap next to the sink and a cute little "statue" that is a nightlight. The only two places I have that could be considered cluttered are my bookshelves in my office but this doesn't bother me since you have to walk all the way into the room to see them and my back is to them when I'm at my desk which, BTW, only has a library-style lamp and a small basket with pens and notepads in it on it. The other is the previously mentioned coffee/tea/snack/smoothie bar in the pantry/laundry. I do have a couple of art walls covered with art but I have tried to keep these cohesive so they don't seem cluttered to me. No one way is right or wrong. Each person needs to be comfortable in their own home and do what works best for them.

Annette Holbrook(z7b), I will have to get dimensions later as I'm not home at the moment. It's not a deep room. One of the benefits of changing the TV location is that we could move the couch into the recess where the TV media stand now sits. If the TV were mounted over the fireplace it would allow for more space between the couch and the TV. If we were to go this route, then I think we'd need to add something like this behind the couch. We still need a spot for the digital receiver. And we could put forward facing shelves on the end of the sofa table. It would need to be deeper than the one below, but something similar. Here are the listing photos from three years ago. NOTE: not our furnishings. Looking at these photos, I'd think there is plenty of room but that's not the case.