rhome: Yes, the Feb. 22 version is the one being worked up. The little yellow band is the current opening to the LR, which will be widened to 11 feet (almost to the little brown closet). Also we will probably shorten the island from the current 8 feet to about 6.5. I had not really thought of things the way you describe, probably because I never have used a prep sink. I wasn't really planning on using this one much - that was my wife's idea, I figured I would use the main sink. Perhaps my tune would change if I had the option, but the concept of a separate prep and clean-up area is foreign to me. Would swapping the prep sink and the microwave make more sense? The only alternative is moving the fridge down and putting the window on the other side of it, but that leaves no light coming in that corner and a big window next to a really big door. As for running into people helping cook or doing cleanup: does that *really* happen in other peoples' kitchens? I should have such problems!! holli: Thanks for the plan and comments. I wish I had the extra width to have a pantry on the one side. I am still debating the small closet we have in that space. We may put that in the adjoining living room to keep a clean line along that wall/sightline. Your distances between prep fridge and stove are similar; do you find them problematic? Also: Does the dining area serve as your dining room? If so, how is that working out for you? Thanks, all!

This is a nice room, but it does need some personality and color. I would definitely involve your son and incorporate his interests. Here are some ideas from Target to get you started. I'm sure PB Kids and others will have similar looks. A bulletin board over the desk is a great idea, along with colorful art. Sports, Star Wars, oceans... you can always preselect several pieces you can live with that he will like and let him make the final choice. The mirror can go over the dresser if it will be useful, otherwise stick with decor that appeals to him. It is hard to tell from your photos if there might be a better furniture arrangement since that big bed doesn't leave much space for playing or storage for books and toys.

"I think Ethan Allen went overboard with their symmetry recommendation. Too much symmetry looks quite static. I would go slow with your acquisition of artwork to acquire more original and less commercially available pieces." I completely agree with this. What struck me about your first set of pictures and your early comments was how much matching stuff and symmetry there is--and, frankly, how uninviting it is. Please do not get me wrong; the pieces are nice but I don't sense "you" in there at all. In looking at it I see intentional design, I see boring symmetry, I see determined coordination, and ultimately I see a shelter magazine interior--bland. What I don't sense, and I think this is where you might be going wrong, is that it is missing you. Who are you? What is your personality? What do you love? What do I learn about you from your home? Right now, I get almost nothing. And I miss that. What can you do? First, stop. Stop buying things and moving things and worrying. I would suggest maybe thinking about what you really love. Don't think about whether something works or not. What do you REALLY love? What colors? What themes? What are your most treasured possessions and what memories do they have that they mean so much. In other words, try to discover and bring to your consciousness what makes "you" you. That one piece of artwork over the sofa is gorgeous! I love it, but do you? As part of the entryway to my home, defined more by visual hints than any architectural definitions, there is a wall that goes to the ceiling but only part way in. It was two or three years while living here that the first piece (of what has become a beloved gallery wall) went up. During that time I thought seriously about how to decorate it, but it stayed blank. Eventually. I realized that a gallery wall would be perfect for me. I already had one original pen drawing of the booksellers on the Seine that I found a gorgeous frame for on CraigsList. I put that up--and it stayed up there alone for at least one year. Then slowly, very slowly, I added things as I found them, only things I loved. One was an expensive piece of art, others not. They include photographs, drawings, maps, canvas prints, a huge oversized iron "key," and a small, silly but beloved repro of a teardrop trailer next to a canvas reprint of Jerry Bywaters' Oil Field Girls. There is no theme (such as birds, or a certain frame or any consistent idea) but there is consistency: each piece is very much loved for its own reason. I can see that wall from anywhere in my living room and it makes me so happy to see it. But it took, as I said earlier, five years to come together, a bit at a time. I was willing to wait as I have done as I did my home. I think it might help you to do that too. Take your time. Keep what you love, truly love, and get rid of the rest. Be willing to go slow, be patient. Discover you and make your home into what you discover.

Is the whole space 17 x 25 or is that only the space in front of the FP. If 17 x25 that is the space of my LR and I have no idea how I would set 25 people in that space so maybe just post all the measurements . I can squeeze in 15 if I bring some other chairs into my space but 25 not happening.