You have a ton of questions and I will do my best to address them, I also have AADD so if I start to ramble and jump back and forth just overlook that :). We need to simplify this more because there are certain issues you can't change..... being on a slab and the weight issues. Any slab has to be reasonably flat and dry, but in your case it needs to be almost dead flat and dry. We are supposed to always check slabs for vapor emissions that can go unoticed when there is carpet over top that allows the slab to breath and release moisture without any problems. You have an 18yr. old glued down wood floor that has exhibited no problems, in my view that is as good an indicator one is going to get..... so we'll just say you are dry. I don't know how many sq.ft. is involved but it takes some space for an installer to check the slab for flatness and then take measures to correct it. Sometimes a low spot can be a few feet in diameter and with the feathering needed I may need 6', 8' or more to deal with it. If I don't have space I could be featuring up to a high spot underneath furniture. It is best to try and figure a way to go one room a time, clean it out, then go on to the next room. If you have your heart set on an engineered BC, then get it :), life is too short to fret over that as long as you know about this issue and are okay with it. On glued down floors the thickness does not really matter as much as opposed to floating. What does matter is the top wear layer thickness and using the right adhesive. A 3mm or 4mm thick wear layer is actually better in the long run as a 5mm thick . Going too thick with the wear layer can cause a phenomenon called "dry cupping" .... the NWFA and NOFMA are aware of this and it is being addressed. If you go with a glued down engineered wood floor and want to put on a sealer as "insurance" , then do it. In your case I would strongly consider using Stauf 960 which is a quality sealer and adhesive combined in one application. You pay alot more for the adhesive but you only have one labor issue. Imo you could also go with a floating floor. But to pull this off you must use a quality product and (here I go again)..... the concrete must be flat. There is a laminate out there that I have personally installed that is almost bullet proof. That would be Wilsonart , which is a high pressure laminate referred to as an HPL. Putting that down along with using their blue fusion glue in the joinery can take any weight you want to put on top of it. When I do that I recommend to the client upgrading the underlayment to a product Sound Solutions. You cannot walk on this type of install and tell that it floats. You could also go with a floating engineered wood... this is where thickness comes into play. I prefer to use nothing less than a 1/2" in thickness and a where the joints get glued up, or, choose a good reliable click-lock system like the valinge or Uniclic joinery systems. They both hold together well. The wood should also be waht is called balanced.... the top layer equals the bottom. You are very typical of alot of my clients. Quit stressing so much :).

We installed an IKEA kitchen about 6 years ago. It has been a rental house for the past 4 years. The renters just moved out so I went to check. One side of the kitchen was done in Adel Medium Brown and it looked perfect! The drawers needed to be cleaned - but they looked good as new once they were cleaned. The other side - the office side - is Adel White cabinets and I was dismayed that they didn't look quite as good as the Medium Brown since I want a white kitchen in our current house. I've not cleaned these yet - so maybe it is just cosmetic - but wow - the Adel Medium Brown looks like new. We went with IKEA the last time because of cost, we are going with IKEA this time because of function. I am getting non-IKEA doors/drawers but that is because I want white painted Shaker style doors which IKEA doesn't have. I'm starting to be a tad nervous about the white! Buehl - I'm sure your Mom will be very happy with her IKEA kitchen. :-) Jeri

Based upon my HOURS AND HOURS of reading through posts on Houzz, do not buy a love seat!!! I used to own a love seat - and was getting ready to purchase all new furniture for my family room. When I read through comments from pros explaining why you shouldn’t purchase a love seat, it made perfect sense. It’s rare for two people to choose to sit on a love seat at one time. I really wanted to purchase a sectional- but I realized that it wasn’t the best option for my family room. Your room is a longer rectangle - it seems like you may need to have two separate seating areas in order to make the best use of your space. Maybe a sectional would work where the two couches are located in the model - but I now personally would choose two couches over a sectional. HOWEVER - I’m not a professional by any stretch of the imagination - I’m just trying to use the things I e learned so far on this forum. I’m sure that a professional designer will have much more specific insight for you! Looks like it has the potential to be a very nice room!

Not loving those combos either. (Though I’ll try to me more helpful than negative 😉) I think the conflict might be a few things. First, that all your finishes have a muddy sort of effect. The grey wash on the wood, the blended colors with luster in the glass, and the floor is similar too. When combining different elements, it’s important to offer contrast in textures and colors, or they just become a visual melange. Right now the vanity (love it) already has a lot of texture and that visual muddi-ness I mentioned. So far the floors you’re looking at will end up looking like a concrete garage floor (sorry). I recommend a large format hex in black, or introduce a color like deep green or navy (though admittedly don’t have as much longevity.) and make sure they have a solid uniform color. The black will pair nicely with the black hardware. Next is wall tile. I would look for something glossy, but also not blended colors, and save the glass tiles you’re looking at for a feature, not an all-over tile. I would also choose a color way that has a greater contrast in color and tone than the sage you were looking at. It fights with that grey wash.