Thanks architect! Love that design. I considered a similar layout, but decided to go a different route. Mostly because moving the fireplace down the wall would result in 8-9' of cabinetry on one side. Maybe it would have looked ok, but I wasn't sold on that piece being so LONG. So unfortunately, at this point, fp stays. Womp, womp. Do you have thoughts on where the shelving should stop in relation to the mantel? Does just below seem odd to you? Will cutting the 10' tall wall exactly in half look off?

Patty - thanks for your perspective! We do need the lamps as they are arranged, because we use them at different times - usually not all at once. And no, the room doesn't feel like a Starbucks with a small chair in the corner; in fact, it feels perfect and complete with that chair there. I'm really excited that the new chair has already shipped and should be here on Saturday. Last night I arranged the books on the shelves and am amazed at how few books we actually have in contrast to the space now available to put them on! I love the look though. I especially love that we can now easily locate our reading material. In our previous home the books were scattered all over the place - upstairs, downstairs, and all points in between. I really like storing them in one central location. I know I do tackle and complete projects quickly. I just can't stand to have things that I want to do and not do them if the budget permits. Having recently closed on our old home, we are in a better position to move forward on the new house. DH really can't stand unfinished projects, and actually stresses when things aren't worked to completion. So that kinda works to my advantage as well. ;-) I know we all do things differently though, at our own pace. There's absolutely nothing wrong with taking one's time! Anitamo, thanks for asking about our kitchen cabinets. That job has been completed, and they look fantastic. A crew came out and pretty much dismantled the kitchen, rebuilt a few things and redid the finish on the cabinets. We are very pleased with the way they addressed the problem.

Post this in the Home Decorating forum, where there's a lot more activity.

Thanks Ci_lantro for the code info! I looked up our local code and it's only 6 inches from the firebox for mantels and trim and combustible materials within 12 inches can only protrude an 1/8" for every inch away from the firebox. We have appx 22" of space now. Good info to have it we plan on putting the trim around it. We peeked behind to see where the drywall ends. We could take out the first row of brick but there is no drywall after that - and my drywall skills aren't such that I want to get into that mess (or pay someone to do it). Thanks everyone for the ideas. We have plans in the next week with a friend in the fireplace business and a family member familiar with the code so we'll pick their brains with some of these ideas!