Lavender, thanks for the advice, and we really have taken everything into consideration. It has been two months since I posted my first version of our plan, and there was a month I was silent while trying to figure out a way to make it work with the kitchen in the back. There are two alternatives we considered and below is the thought process we went through while making a decision. For each I put together an inspiration board of photos and in the end we decided the kitchen in the front was the best plan for us. 1. Place the kitchen in the back to the right of the dining room (or flip the room) keeping the living/dining room as is. Summerfield did a plan for us with the kitchen in the back, and we seiously considered it as it is a wonderful plan, however that setup had different draw backs. In Summerfield's plan we didn't like the kitchen was more closed off. While if it is opened up then the room feels too long and narrow and we lost the feeling of width created by having windows on both sides. 2. Dining room near the entry, the kitchen in the back with the great room. This allows for a smaller dining room since it isn't balancing out the space with great room and kitchen and allows for more light moving across the house. I like this set up in larger homes with a seperation between formal public areas and private informal areas, however that isn't the way we actually live. For us, putting the kitchen next to the great room and moving the dining room to the front makes everything feel to informal and I hate the competition between the TV and the kitchen. For the plan I posted, with the kitchen in the front, we measured it all out to make certain the space works and moved our own furniture around to see how it would feel. The icing on the cake, on Memorial day weekend we rented a huge home with friends in wine country that had a similar main room layout (only much larger), and it really solidified that we love this floor plan. We actually measured it all out in the rental to see how our plan fits and it really helped us visualize it. We love being able to enjoy both our front and back views/light/breezes, that the living/dining spaces are together, and that the kitchen is at once part of the space and at the same time seperate. All that said, if the new designer (or Summerfield) comes up with a great idea that is different to what we have outlined we are open minded, I just don't see how it would work more effectively. Also, writing out everything here has helped relieve some of my own anxiety about this plan and gain some more confidence in our decisions. It is "different" and I've been worried about that, but it is what works for us, and it isn't so diferent that we need to worry about resale value.

My first question is What is your favorite color? You have excellent neutrals that could work with any color. If you love the cool gray green of Farrow and Ball's french gray I say go for that color. That is a color that can compliment many different colors from the gold warm tan drapes to a fire hot red chair or a deep green alligator. Go with what you like and you will be amazed that it works. If you think the Farrow and Ball French Gray is a little too green based you might consider another FB paint called Light also by FB French Gray FB Light by Farrow and Ball I like mixing cool and warm in different venues for drama. Obviously not all the colors but keeping it simple to two basic hues and working with them is ideal. You have one small wall behind your china cabinet that you could paint in a gold tan to match the drapes but the rest of the walls the Blue gray Farrow and ball you are thinking of would be perfect. Here are some combinations of gray blue and tan that look stunning. Living Pod Dining room rescue blog Clear Skies by Benjamin Moore French Gray Farrow and Ball (The color you love) French Gray FB by designer Brooke Gianetti amazing with the soft cream. Other Neutral colors if the farrow and ball is too scary for you to try Fools Gold Benjamin Moore New Penny by Valspar Blonde Benjamin Moore Skylight Farrow and Ball Camel Hair on left and Gustavian Grey Shaker Gray by Benjamin Moore

Beautiful rooms and paint color, minuscule. I will have a look at BM Silver Mist. I like the Accessible Beige but Dear Husband does not. He says it looks dirty. It exactly matches some of the tones in the flooring and is nearly identical to the fireplace surround, and extremely close to the couch color, which would make the couches sort of disappear and an accent wall color for the fireplace wall necessary. SW Accessible Beige on top, SW Creamy on the bottom. SW Creamy is really yellow. Too yellow. Such a tall wall. Was thinking about adding some trim like this (not in Georgian style because mine is not a Georgian style house) to break up the blankness a bit. I will look at BM Silver Mist and for something slightly lighter than Healing Aloe. Dear Husband liked the look of BM Constellation

what should I do on the wood floors? im doing white oak 5". should I do regular wood or quarter sawn?