Thanks for the help! The hall mirror is 9 feet tall. It came from my great grandparents house (who died before WW I) and was stashed gathering layers of coal dust in my grandparents attic for 80 years, until that house was sold 20 years ago. I got it because I was the only family member who had a ceiling tall enough for it and knew how to restore it (plus my Dad talked other family members into it!). The delicate looking settee and chairs are from the same great grandparents. I never met them nor my grandparents from my DadÂs family, so having their pieces makes me feel connected to my heritage. It was a large family so I feel very lucky to have what I do. 2 other chairs and a table are from my MomÂs family. I just learned how to post pictures this week so my stair runner has not been "featured" before. But thanks for your kind words! We replaced the wall to wall on the stairs a few years ago. We hoped the wood underneath would be decent enough to varnish but it was not. So we opted to paint with oil based and chose a wool runner that would go with all the current Persian carpets, all the rest of which are handmade wool or silk. This was just ordered from a regular carpet store and installed by them. I still want to glaze (or something) the banisters and spindles, as the builder used 1 coat of cheesy minwax on them in a dead color I donÂt like. But thatÂs a lot of surface area to cover and I donÂt know that IÂll ever get to it. I got halfway through moving furniture today before I got sidetracked. I went to the basement to get this beautiful large antique looking mirror I bought a few years ago and saved for this room when it was "ready". I wanted to see which wall it would look best on before I got too far ahead. When I unpacked it to show my husband I found the brass had corroded in spots like it was diseased. I wanted to clean it up right away so I could have his help to hang it: itÂs too heavy for one person to handle. I have this strong copper and brass cleaner that up to this point has always worked. But 6 hours later I was still cleaning it! So much for getting this room put to rights today. My feet are killing me from standing up cleaning that thing all day. Why is it that every project snowballs into something unforeseen??? Why canÂt I get anything DONE???

I have a split style home with a planned layout similar to your last one on 3/31. Looks similar except I have about an extra 6' in the length (kitchen to DR) as well as no door to the garage on that side. I think ideagirl2 has good ideas. You will want an opening on either end for easy access into the kitchen or DR side. If the basement is unfinished, then swapping the steps might be a practical solution. A contractor can order a prefabricated set of steps to put in. If the closet in the hall is basically useless then this might be a good idea. Since its a ranch, then you should be able to flip it since there isn't another set of steps going up to a second story where then it would be impossible to flip them. However, this would mean you could not overlay another staircase on top of this one to expand for a second floor one day. You then would have to add another staircase somewhere else in the house and loose space. Moving the utilities can be expensive and it can affect headroom or remodeling plans for the basement. It depends where the waste lines are located in the home more then anything, since they need pitch from the sink to the waste stack. If that waste stack is located where the steps are then the pipe will have to drop below the floor joists below, since they will run front to back, and you will loose headroom. Not a big deal if this ends up in a utility area. Does the garage run all the way front to back? If so I would do the following to the plan noted above. 1) Move the garage doorway more to where the table is on the LR side. Thus, the door would start roughly where the table ends need the opening between the LR & DR. You then will be flipping the DR table and the door. This way when you come in from the garage you can enter into the LR or walk through the kitchen with Groceries. I would make the back window a sliding door. So the table is looking out the sliding door. It will make the room feel much bigger. I am putting in a nice 10' 4 panel sliding glass door for this very reason. If in fact no furniture could be placed between the right side of the fireplace and the wall as you drew it, my last recommendation is more structural and one I am grappling with now in my own home. That would be to make the opening even wider between the LR and DR table area. If you look at your pic you posted of the fireplace. I would take that opening and open the fireplace side all the way to the wall. This will make it more open and feel less cramped. You could even have them cut the ceiling joists and put the beam up so that you have a flat ceiling in the opening. This is what I am contemplating now. You then can see the fireplace for the DR table and the kitchen area, when facing the peninsula. You also can extend a table out into the LR if you have larger company at holiday times.

Perfect! You found what works best for you and your family! I like the two chairs side-by-side as well. The terrarium over by the kitchen works well. This set up also allows you to enjoy the view out your windows. And what an amazing view you have. Good for you.! You can always put a couch table behind the couch. It’s a nice way to hide the back of the couch, add decorative touches and table lamps. They now have electric/cordless table lamps. If you ever decide to try the other one I would recommend a couch table if it will fit. That would mean you would have to move the couch a little closer. To the TV. No, a lot of people have to walk through their living room to get to their kitchen. We do and it is never a hassle. If we can ever be of any help in the future please let us know. We can be reached at callmaeday@msn.com Best Wishes, MAE

Living room dining room combos make me really happy. How many in your household?Do you eat at this table nightly or most commonly eat in the kitchen? Do you sit at this table and do other things like projects, kids with homework, gather with friends? Do you have another living area in this house that you chill out in or is the seating in this room going to be the makn ha g out space in your home? Who will sit here and when, what time of day, to read, be with guests, hang out? I’d love to see the table turned 90 degrees so it is parallel to the window and living in that area next to and along side the window. It just makes sense to me for the layout and lines of this room. It may or may not make sense though for who uses this space and when. Main question, do you want the daylight and view from the window to be enjoyed as a table space or sofa space? The buffet /cabinet is a great piece but looks super bad next to the wood where it is currently located. I’d put it on the long white wall near where your desk is currently located and use it as a visual bridge between you window/dining area and a sitting area where your sofa is currently located. Light fixture is fine where it is do not use it to determine furniture zones. Stone area is a lot of look. Don’t put furniture or other things over there. Just give it space to be what it is. Nice that you dont need desk, piano, or TV in here.