We just painted a color called "Latte" over the dark red walls in our place and we keep thinking that someone left the light on! It adds that much light to the place as the red was just sucking out any light in the place. Find a color you like more for that wall and repaint...and/or maybe add a ceramic tile backsplash? It will make it feel brighter in there immediately as you will get a lot of light reflection. I love the idea of sage green with your cabinets.

Hi Antoinette I too live in Ireland in a Semi Detached. My husband who's the one with green fingers has transformed our garden into an oasis you wouldn't think we lived in a housing estate. You might start with cleaning the slabs. You could change the edging tile with a contrasting one to set it off. Use different sizes and colours of pots. A seating area in one section. Use lots of different colours and plants which are ok to grow in pots. Just seeing all the colours come to life in Spring and Summer will cheer you up. Here are some photos that were taken at the end of summer last year the leaves have started falling from the trees. Oh yeah still have the clothes line up too.

Flowers in those flower boxes would be a good start, and then I'd tear out the conctrete or whatever the surface is next to the house and extend the driveway further out, closer to the camera, to make up for lost driveway space. The down spout must be removed from he driveway. The steps up to the house seem to be a confused assembly of different materials and should be reformed into a cohesive entry stairway, with plantings flanking it, or pots of greenery/flowers on it. The garage seems to be a different color from the house and if that is the came, I would change it echo the colors of the house. In the foreground of the photo is an opportunity for some beautiful landscaping. You have your work cut out for you, but nothing that you couldn't do over the next 3 months!

As you've got the Abbey Road sign, why not make it a music corner? Perhaps a Beatles inspired / Sixties monochrome scheme. You could get a musical notes design printed on an outdoor canvas for the wall, or a sail & hang over to create shade. Perhaps some instrument outlines on the wall. Planting could be black & white with pops of colour. A decorative white chair & outdoor rug would look inviting. Or you could even paint boards b&w stripes like the zebra crossing!