Hi Michele, self build is very exciting and we wish you luck for your upcoming project. We have various tips when it comes to our customers designing their home. As some have suggested above understanding how you and your family occupy the space is fundamental in making those early design decisions. We also tell self builders to put 'wants and needs' into 3 columns, must have, nice to have and luxury. This helps define budget and start with the fundamentals before progressing to those items such as cinema rooms or a top end kitchen worktop. There are many helpful tips on our Self Build Academy website also plenty of design and interior inspiration at Potton Self Build Galleries Before you decide that building your home is right for you, ask yourself four questions; Do you have the time and commitment to see your project through to the end. Do you have the skills and knowledge required for the task ahead Do you understand the cost involved and do you have enough money to complete the build Do you have a constitution strong enough to see you through both the highs and lows of building your own home Provided you understand your answers to these questions and can ‘fill the gaps’ when it comes to skills, knowledge, time and funding, then press ahead and enjoy what is probably going to be one of the most rewarding experiences that you will ever have in your lifetime!

My advice is to visit an independent kitchen showroom. Oftentimes they have access to more standard priced options than the big kitchen firms. Reduced height cabinets can be set at almost any height by wall hanging them, or changing the plinth height or having bespoke feet. Since standing is a challenge I presume you will also need to talk to them about pull out units (all of my crockery is in drawers which is much easier to access) you can also put fridges, ovens etc at any height making them easier to access. You might also look at different oven doors, some slide underneath or open to the side making access to the oven easier. You can get dishwashers the size of a single oven which might be easier to load and of course can be set at any height. If your overall strength is compromised you might choose bigger handles to open cabinets. If you want over counter cabinets you might choose to have reduced depth base cabinets to improve access to the cabinets above. You can get extractors that work with a remote control which helps future proof your kitchen if at a later date you find yourself sitting more or unable to stand.

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.

hi all, i'm finalising floor plans for single storey new build. We like the layout generally but there are a few niggling things that we need advice on. 1. The sliding door /patio doors are in the family room- there is no door out from kitchen. Would people recommend having this in Kitchen OR Leaving it as is in the family room. 2. The hotpress /linen store size? is it too small? and also it's position accessing through utility. would people recommend this or not? 3. The exterior look has a mono pitch roof on the kitchen diner family room- would people recommend full height in kitchen diner and then reduce for family room? or vice versa. 4. The width of the kitchen family diner is 4.8m- is this enough to allow for island or should we consider going to 5m deep? 5. In general the house is North facing, do people feel that we are maximising light through use of windows and position of living areas? ( that's v general question-but i feel more could be done) I'd appreciate all opinions advice as I really don't want to make any obvious mistakes that I'll regret. thanks very much.