I agree re Skimmia, also look at Daphne odora and Sarcococca (both have fantastic scent), Viburnum davidii, Hellebores for early flowers and Astrantia and Geraniums for summer colour. Improve the soil before planting by adding loads of rich compost or rotted horse manure.

Hi ! I think this house will benefit from from plenty of toy storage in the main family living space ( assuming this will be in the extension at rear ) as while little ones are so small they need to be in view - so perhaps you could design with this in mind and add a dedicated laundry room near the WC perhaps ? The current play room could maybe be used as a different function ? Do you need a guest room /study perhaps ? For when family members come to stay ? If so maybe the wc could be upgraded to a shower room ? There's lots of things you can do to make this work for you - just write a list of what could make your life easier now and for the next 5-10 years or so ... Some things will evolve or be ready to change by then - so being clever with your designing and planning now should put you in a good place further down the line too !! If this is something you need help with - hiring in a pro might be a good way of dealing with it - or alternatively put your wish list on here and see if you can get some fab ideas from the helpful Houzzers !!!

Hello Houzz Ireland, We are currently renovating a 1960's build - so as you know, there is a lot of decisions to be made!! So it would be nice to get some gems of advice from the experts to help us through this daunting task. Areas where we would really like some inspiration for - small bathroom downstairs. I would really like to do something fun with this room and although small, I think it could work really well with some funky wallpaper or possibly tiles?! I'm just not sure what to do with it. Also - pulling a whole house together?! Where do we start? We have the bigger pieces of furniture but how do I know what nest of tables goes best with a suite? Or what accessories will bring a room together? I'm due a second baby in 2 weeks time so any help at this stage would be so amazing - to guide me on the right interior design path for our new house. Thanks, Laurie

A15) @Dara Cooke: If you can't afford a quartz or granite worktop from day one then I would recommend using a laminate worktop as a temporary solution. If you don't put tiles up as a backsplash then replacing the worktops can be relatively easy in a couple of years.