You said the bath was 7' x 7' so those grey squares on your images each represents a 1' x 1' space. Right? If so, neither of the two designs you just posted is going to work. First, you aren't leaving enough room in front of the toilet or in front of the sink to actually use them. You HAVE to have room to stand in front of the sink and knee room in front of the toilet. (Men need standing room there also!) The 18' or so that you have just is NOT enough space. Building codes require a minimum of 21' of space. But, anything less than about 26' is going to feel decidedly cramped. Second, you cannot use a pocket door in the location you show it because that wall will have plumbing pipes for your vanity sink in it. A pocket door simply cannot go into a wall in the same spot where plumbing needs to be. I know you want a larger shower so I hate to say it but I really don't think a 3' wide x 5' long shower with a 4' wall around it will ever fit into the space you have available. If you went with a totally glass-walled shower and forgot about the half-height walls, the shower would take up less floor space. You might be able to manage a 30' wide shower. You might also consider a neo-angle shower that would fit into a corner of the room. Since both windows can't possibly be on the front of the house, maybe you could move or eliminate whichever one does not actually face front. Or, turn it into a glass block window and incorporate the window into your shower. A wall- mounted toilets with the tank (water cistern) built INTO the wall would also take up less floor space. If you put your toilet against an interior wall, that might be an option. And, while they don't provide under-sink storage, pedestal sinks make small bathrooms look and feel larger by freeing up floor space. Here is a link that might be useful: NKBA planning guides (clear space in bathrooms)

Have you considered a MW drawer? They work great for tall people (I assume you meant your DH is 6', not 6"). Our family ranges in height from 5'10" to 6'7" and a MW drawer has been perfect for us. The controls are angled up, so you just have to look down to see/work the controls. Opening/closing is easy as well since it opens/closes automatically and softly - a gentle pull starts it opening, a gentle nudge starts it closing. Accessing the food is also easy - just reach down to pick up the dish. I don't think I'd go any higher than 42" for any counter - not only does something taller defeat the purpose, but I think it would look awkward or as a "make do" for an issue. It's still 6" higher than normal counter height and you could easily put wall oven in it and have it higher than an oven in a range. (Thank goodness you're not suggesting installing a wall oven under a 36" counter - doing that put an oven even lower than an oven in a range!) A 60" (or even 48") tall wall reminds me of cubicle dividers/walls in offices... . Range hood...I would definitely not do a downdraft, they don't work well overall and an effective hood is going to be crucial with the extensive openness you're planning. A hood hanging from the ceiling will be fine - but, you will need to be sure it's... At least 6" wider than the cooking surface 27" Deep Strong cfms - I recommend at least 900cfms for the fan. The more turns it takes to get the duct to the outside, the greater the cfms you need since turns reduce the effectiveness of the venting. -- The hood should definitely be vented to the outside -- Be careful that your duct work does not exhaust to a location where people will be sitting. Installed properly - which, in most cases, means no more than 30" above the cooking surface. If you want to install it higher, then increase the width of the hood and the fan power. . Range/Cooktop Island...For the island with the range/cooktop, if there's seating at the island, the seats should be 24" from the back of the range/cooktop. If there are no seats, then you only need 18" to protect passersby from splattering grease, billowing steam, etc.

It would require near surgical precision to demolish a home without some damage to the foundation. An experienced contractor would have included in the contract price an amount for any necessary post-demolition repairs (this is a good application for a cost allowance.) The lack of insulation in the crawl was something that could have been determined during design and the cost included in the contract price. Taken together, you're getting hit with costs that could have--and should have reasonably been anticipated and included in the contract scope of work. I'm not sure that removing any courses of block makes sense if the plan is to run ductwork in the crawl space. The crawl isn't all that tall and there doesn't appear to be any differential backfill, so I don't see the need to go crazy with rebar.

Thought I'd post an update on my window progress. I went with Kolbe Forgets (Sliders; Glastra/Wood option). The windows seem to be well made and they are very nice but I have issues that I did not expect. 1. I did not realize that when I chose wood interior that the inside frame would still be white (exterior is bronze). 2. For some reason, the windows come with trim on the bottom and right side only. I guess these are casing stops. I have no idea who would want trim pieces on only 2 sides of their windows. Kolbe told me that's the way they come. That make absolutely no sense to me. 3. My sliding glass door arrived with only the stationary panel, not the sliding panel. Now that will take a while because the interior is stained wood. 4. Received one window that was not notched to slide so it's very hard to open & close. The salesman did ask Kolbe to replace that one. All in all, they are pretty and substantial windows but I am really disappointed in the above issues. It may be partly my fault but I would never have expected to see bronze Glastra, white Glastra and wood on my windows from the inside. The Kolbes I've seen in showrooms don't look anything like that. This was my first experience ordering windows but I looked around and researched for 2 years. I think Kolbe could do a much better job with the information in their literature. Thanks again to everyone here for all of your help & feedback!