I'm a novice at naming styles (the usual limits of my decorating vocabulary have been "that's nice") but if I were to give it a shot I would call the buffalo check a western/country/rustic/log cabin look. I think your names for your usual style are pretty good - French, traditional, also maybe formal, a bit dressy. For me, those styles don't have an intersection point with each other, but maybe for other people they do. At the moment with those drapes in the living room, it strikes me like wearing sweat pants and high heels together. That is to say, some people do it, but that doesn't make it a good thing :-) The valance at the "ledge" strikes me as good whatever you do to cover the window, because without it the window is so stark compared to the kitchen immediately adjacent. KarinL

Barb, it's my understanding that true "Texas style chili" has neither tomatoes nor beans. Now I can live without tomatoes, but I'm from the Midwest. Chili just needs to have beans, LOL. I either add beans to this or serve it over rice, because it just screams to me that it needs a starch! It's amazing served over a baked potato too! The recipe is from Bon Appetit, but RiverRat posted it here about 7 or 8 years ago, and it's just as good as it was then. I've made "cheater" versions with leftover roast beef and with ground venison. I've added beans, I've left out the mole, I've left out the masa because I didn't have any, I've cut the ancho powder way, WAY down because I'm a wuss. It's all still good and no tomatoes. Elery likes his with cheese and sour cream, I just want a slice of bread and butter or a grilled cheese sandwich. It freezes well too, so a big batch is good. it's also a great topping for nachos or, as I mentioned, a baked potato topping, in which case it's all I need for dinner! Beef Chili with Ancho, Mole, and Cumin 8 servings. Chili: 1 tablespoon cumin seeds 4 bacon slices, chopped 1 4-pound boneless chuck roast, trimmed, cut into 1/2- to 3/4-inch cubes 1 large onion, chopped (about 2 cups) 4 (or more) large garlic cloves, chopped 3 1/2 cups (or more) beef broth, divided 1/4 cup pure ancho chili powder 1/4 cup Texas-style chili powder blend (such as Gebhardt) 1 tablespoon mole paste 2 teaspoons (or more) salt 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar 1 1/2teaspoons dried oregano, crumbled 1 to 2 tablespoons masa (corn tortilla mix) 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional) Garnishes: Warm, freshly cooked or drained canned black beans Chopped white, red, and/or green onions Grated cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, or queso fresco Sliced fresh or pickled jalapeño chiles Sour cream Tortilla chips or oyster crackers Toast cumin seeds in heavy small skillet over medium heat until fragrant, stirring often, 4 to 5 minutes. Cool; grind finely in spice mill or in mortar with pestle. Saute bacon in large pot over medium-high heat until brown and crisp. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to large bowl. Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper. Working in 4 batches, saute beef in drippings in pot until browned, about 5 minutes per batch. Transfer beef and most drippings to bowl with bacon. Add onion and garlic to pot. Saute until onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup broth to pot. Bring to a boil, scraping up browned bits. Return beef, bacon, and any accumulated juices to pot. Mix in ancho chili powder, Texas-style chili powder, mole paste, 2 teaspoons salt, vinegar, oregano, and cumin seeds. Add 3 cups broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to very low and simmer gently uncovered until beef is very tender, stirring occasionally and adding more broth by 1/2 cupfuls if chili is dry, about 2 1/2 hours or more. Mix in masa by teaspoonfuls to thicken chili or add more broth by 1/4 cupfuls to thin. Season chili with salt, pepper, and cayenne, if desired. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Cool 1 hour. Chill uncovered until cold, then cover and keep chilled. Rewarm over low heat.) Set out garnishes as desired. Ladle chili into bowls and serve.

I think I like the idea of maintaining a 15 inch landing space to the left of the stove. For one thing, it gives me a convenient place to put my Instant Pot (yes I have WAY too many gadgets!) The other thing it does is keep the prep space mostly under the window. I'm coming around on the benefits of a 30-inch sink cab. It allows a larger sink, I can put a cutting board on it and use it as prep space if necessary....all good things. And I saw this cool hack where you can make one 15 inch door into a trash pullout, and the other side can be a regular door (or, I guess, another pullout.) I like that! I think I'm going to start another thread seeing if people might be able to share pictures of their off-center sinks. Seeing this will help me visualize it a bit better. Hi, Rebunky! I'd love to go to Hawaii some day. It is very hard to find an affordable 30-inch, counter-depth fridge, I'm finding! There's the Fisher Paykel, but I worry about reliability and it's at the tippy-top of my budget. There's 33-inch wide counter depth fridges, but at that point, why not just go to 36 inches, you know? I'm not sure if a contractor can build a recessed space for the fridge because that wall goes into a stairwell, but I won't be sure until I get someone in here to look at it. So, it's just another compromise for me to consider -- overly big counterdepth fridge, or correctly proportioned standard fridge that might jut into work space? Sorry that I'm using you all as my constant sounding boards! The limitations of a small space can be frustrating but I find this enjoyable to talk about.

To start no TV above that FP and IMO getting rid of that big entertainment center will free up that wall for a wall mount TV above a lower cabinet and if you want to add some display maybe look at IKea Besta for some cool ideas . Get a sofa and either place it facing the TV or the FP depending on how you watch TV then see how much space you have for chairs. I really dislike sectionals for seating IMO poor for conversation and only 2 people get arm rests which IMO means 2 people are comfortable like a sofa except you paid double.