Thank you for the courteous response, Annie. I love yellow, so I might give that some consideration. I've always been partial to colors that are bright or soothing. It's a psychological thing with me. Dark colors tend to depress me, so the "dark color" allotment will be limited to my charcoal-ish floors and the black hardware on my white cabinets.

I have to say that I am not crazy about the round table in the middle of the chairs. It feels like the arrangement is fighting the shape of the room and the rug. Don't know if this would work, but I would turn the rug to run the other way in the room - long side running parallel to the double windows on the end. Then place the chairs side by side on each of the long sides of the rug - on square, not angled. Tables and good sized lamps between each set of two chairs for drinks, etc. No table in the middle. By keeping the seating toward the left side of the room ( as we look at the last floor plan), it would allow bookshelves to go on the long wall to the right of the window at the top of the floor plan. One other thing, just for grins. If the four chairs are identical in size and design, just different in color, I might try switching out the cushions - light cushions on dark chair frames, and vice versa. I think it will create a sense of greater continuity between all the seating.

I like the inspiration pic in the Domino magazine a lot. So, if you kept your windows sitting on the shelf (are we thinking about 15" off the counter or so??), this would allow for a really cool tilebacksplash (or stainless, or whatever you had in mind) and save some $$$ of not having to tile the whole wall. How wed are you to two sinks? this would be a place to save a lot of money, between the sink itself, the faucet, the extra work to template and cutout your countertop, the extra plumbing work, the extra garbage disposal (if you have one). This would probably add up to the price of putting in the new windows. In my kitchen I considered a prep sink but my space is not big enough for it... there was really nowhere to put it, except the island which would have meant not having the MW in the island, or not having the bank of draws that are the most useful in my whole kitchen. BUT, if I had the space, I would have LOVED to have a prep sink. just something else for you to consider. btw, there is something a little awkward about the Domino ktichen's hood... seems too high and the shelf from the range, combined with the shelf on the wall, combined with the hood being up so high is a little off to me, BUT I love the feel of the kitchen.

Very pretty table. I'd like to see a big rug under that coffee table to break up the wood on wood tone, if you hadn't already considered that. I'd hang the TV if you can. Run a shelf under it for the cable box or devices. Don't try to matchy matchy woods. You could also place a couple of club chairs kind of flanking the shelf with a little table between them. Or place a few stools or poufs under the shelf to create more conversational seating. Just so all seats in the room aren't pointed at the TV, even though the majority of seats are placed for viewing the TV. The additional seating under the shelf can be utilized for the conversation purpose of the room or the watching TV purpose. If you want a longer table under the mounted TV, I'd go with a painted piece vs. a stained piece.