Okey dokey, here's what I did. The sink, before the Bondo. I have gaps all around--down both sides, the corners, and at the bottom where one side had to be shimmed up almost a quarter inch. Note: I haven't painted the cabinetry yet. Supplies: I used a flexible spreader (about 3 inches across), razor blades, baggies, paper bowls and plastic spoons for mixing, acetone (nail polish remover)for cleaning my fingers, and HomeFix Universal Repair Filler (at the hardware store I just asked for "something like bondo that can be used to fill gaps in wood). The bondo has less than 10 minute work time, and as it firms, it gets much harder to work with. So i only mixed up teeny bits, and did all sections of my sink separately. My husband tries to tackle bigger jobs in a hurry, and the bondo gets stiff on him and he gets frustrated, and it looks lumpy. So take your time. Mix in paper bowls and with plastic spoons to make cleaning up each batch simple. My first attemps at bondo were on something else. I tried to apply it with the spreader (like I do with joint compound), and it was a mess. I'm a slob, and it looked bad. So while staring at the cracks around my sink, and knowing how bad it would look if I used a spreader to apply it, I had a revelation! I suddenly saw those cracks as edges of cake to be decorated, and I saw the bondo as buttercream! I would use a baggie, and pipe the stuff on! (For all I know, bondo actually comes in a squeezable tube. But hey, I prefer to think I was brilliant in inventing this!) You need to put something in the corners to hold the bondo, and stop it from squirting endlessley into the sink cavity. Crumpled newspaper would probably work. I glued little triangles of wood scrap in there, and I put pieces of shims in the gap under my sink. My side gaps were narrow enough to need no filler. When that dried, I mixed up one small batch, and put it in the baggie. I cut off the corner, and slowly began piping. For the corners, I zig zagged back and forth slightly past the surface. Then, I smoothed it with a pass of the scraper. Some of the bondo smooshed onto the sink. I very slowly took a razor blade and scraped it off the sink. Slowly and gently. Wipe excess as it accumulates on a paper towel so it doesn't gunk up your corner. If any is left on your sink, it will come off easily later with the razor blade, so don't worry. After it dries hard, you can sand it. I was very careful to keep the sandpaper away from the sink (I basically wrapped a bit of sandpaper around my finger). After sanding, I had a few depressions/dents so I went back and added a smudge of fresh bondo to them to level the area. It isn't all level, but one would never know that without squatting down and looking right at it. But I could have done a third pass with the Bondo. You can't see much detail in these photos, but if you run your finger over these areas, they are very smooth feeling. And they dry rock hard--not flexible like caulk. Right side of my sink: Left side: Bottom: I wouldn't have trusted my particular workers with this job. They looked very nervous at the prospect of using sandpaper against the sink. I knew that if my sink were to get scratched, it had to get scratched by me! But it was not a problem at all! Easy peasy! Now we need paint! Let me know if you have any questions! Francy

Grover - thank you! Just extending the curtain rod really makes a huge difference. I'll be changing the curtain, but I love how it softens the space and makes the slider look bigger. I think a snake plant would look great on the stool. Right now I just put what I have on hand. So excited about the new floor. Trust me, you'd never step on our dog - he's part Mexican Jumping Bean and still a puppy.

Sofikbr: the idea is the lower ceiling change inspires people to sit, lounge, rest and talk - so the expectation is not for your husband or other tall people - or even short people - to be standing in those spaces. It is a detail also used for example in Japanese tea rooms (chashitsu) etc. OP: as others pointed out, the issue here is that space just looks big and open for sake of first impressions. Ditto with the beams. It is all fluff, and no substance. Functionally it does not work either. In big open spaces variations in ceiling height are important. Sometimes that is done with beams but in this case even that fails, the beams are just as high and lack little rhyme or reason. Drop ceiling in kitchen to 9-10’ at most. You don’t have to take cabinets all way to ceiling even then (I have 9’ in kitchen but left a gap as I prefer the look, many others prefer cabinets to ceiling) but you can. Either way, it will better define space - creating a more intimate space - and deal with that awkward pantry “plant shelf”. High ceilings can be lovely, but in open spaces they really need lower heights in adjacent room ceiling heights to give them that lovely feel, lest they end up feeling somewhat uninspiring and cold. That is evident in the example kitchen you pictures.

I can say drywall is pretty darn cheap. Sometimes, it's a lot easier to just make it go away. This was uglier than yours, frankly. Orange oak, cheap build spindles etc. There's a long run on the second floor overlooking first and for that we used lass. . .....split into thirds . In the context of a huge remodel.........it was also the easiest, fastest. A lot went on..........walls came down, new kitchen and a lot more, You can use glass..........have done that many times..... ( not mine below, but you get the idea. )