First, get a certified chimney person to inspect and clean the chimney, if you have not done that yet. He should be able to advise you on the safe placement of a mantel shelf (I think you mean a mantel shelf). If you decide on a wooden one or one made of some other combustible material, its placement would need to be a safe distance from the top edge of the firebox. Even if the shelf is not made of combustible material, distance from the firebox is still an issue because you might want to put combustible things on the shelf. Extending the hearth will probably mean changing what you already have there because matching what you have will be next to impossible. You might want to post your question on one of the interior decorating forums for more suggestions.

I love it all. I love the deciding...feeds the control freak in me. And I actually found it easier when I was doing the whole house as I seemed to get my rhythm on and pieces and parts were coming together...like exercising a muscle, I got better with practice. Once the house was done, I did repaint the kitchen, the bedroom and added an accent wall in the library, but overall, the decisions worked really well. Of course I couldn't have done it without my trusty "blue book"...a notebook with tabs for each room and the exterior full of notes, paint chips, room sketches, swatches, etc. It became an essential for every meeting with architect and project mgr... I can walk into a warehouse of fabric and be absorbed and not at all confused by it. But I did feel overwhelm when looking at tile...I think it's because, unlike fabric where you are presented with a "fait accompli" of color, pattern, texture, shine; with tile, you create your own "fabric" from the building blocks of stone, porcelain, glass, metal and even wood. Fortunately I found a couple of really helpful guides in the tiles stores I went to who steered me through the morass. And that's something else I learned...to rely on the help of the experts at the stores....while some of them aren't helpful at all, the right person can be a godsend.

Thanks for your feedback, working with an Edwardian layout is quite tough, I agree with everything you've identified however we are working with a tight budget so we are ok with making some compromises (read the washer dryer way down the hall) I'm attaching an image with yellow highlight showing what we cannot move, the second bathroom (guest bath) is a completely new addition in what used to be a bedroom earlier. We didn't want guests to be walking in to the living area from the kitchen hence we decided to move the entry all the way to the end. The current opening is about 6-7 ft down the hall which is literally three steps. The kitchen and living room is totally open and a large space that is south facing and opens up to a large deck and yard so lots of light comes through in this area. Also attaching existing plan.

as a guest, I wouldn’t feel comfortable going through a kid's bedroom to use the facilities. As a household member, I wouldn’t want my parent's friends going through my room. I have a very very strong bias against bathrooms with 2 doors. I absolutely des jack and jill bathrooms. I’d leave the guest bath where is is. The kids can still share it and it’s available to guests. As for the kitchen, I’d rethink that. The counters near the window should be your cleanup area with a large sink (double or single, depending on personal preference of whoever does the dishes). The sink on the island is in the cooking zone and doesn’t need to be as large—just large enough to wash vegetables and wash hands while cooking. It appears that you have room for a larger island and I would recommend that.