Thanks guys for the suggestions on permits and fire code. Permits are pulled and my husband is actually a Firefighter. We are covered there! We do need a conference room but I would not enclose it all the way just to the front of the office area to give a little privacy from the windows in the front of the office I really was looking to make it very modern with a cafe style atmosphere.

Thanks, but I think our problem is one of having the contractor put in level 5 smooth wall. My wife wanted it because we wanted a change from the orange peel kind of stuff. But it cost a fortune. The flat walls look great, but also too "dry" for lack of a better word. We're in our early 60's so the last thing we want to do as we get older is patch up paint also We collected lots of art over the years and I'm not sure the very flat walls are going to make paintings look good. It's odd, the flat paint seems to make the rooms look smaller. It doesn't make sense to me, but I've been warned it can. They've only put one coat of paint on so it's relatively easy to change our minds. Maybe it's the stark contrast against the granite, hardwood floors, and cabinetry - but it seems very much out of place. Very flat walls are new these days - and most people don't have them - so there's not much to compare to. It took a crew over a week to do a 3700 sq ft house from orange peel to flat wall - and the house was totally empty - no floors at the time, nothing. Thanks.

I don't have personal experience with these types of faucets, as most of my clients don't like them and I find they take up too much vertical space. But here's a link to the latest reviews for them, if that's the way you'd like to go: http://www.faucetmag.com/best-commercial-fusion-style-faucet-reviews/ Caution: many of my plumbing fixture suppliers have stopped carrying Grohe faucets because they are now being manufactured in China. They were getting too many complaints on reliability and bad parts. An alternative to the commercial style are the new articulated pull-down styles from Brizo like this: https://www.brizo.com/kitchen/product/63221LF-PC They serve a similar purpose and don't take up as much room. Plus, I think they look really cool.

A good primer makes a difference. I use Zinsser Gardz. It works as a sealer to equalize the differences between bare drywall and the joint compound. From the Gypsum Construction Handbook, Sixth Edition Level 4 This level should be used where residential grade (light duty) wall coverings, flat paints or light textures are to be applied. The pre- pared surface shall be coated with a drywall primer prior to the applica- tion of final finishes. Release agents for wall coverings are specifically formulated to minimize damage if coverings are subsequently removed. The weight, texture and sheen level of the wall covering material select- ed should be taken into consideration when specifying wall coverings over this level of drywall treatment. Joints and fasteners must be suf- ficiently concealed if the wall covering material is lightweight, contains limited pattern, has a glossy finish or has any combination of these fea- tures. In critical lighting areas, flat paints applied over light textures tend to reduce joint photographing. Gloss, semi-gloss and enamel paints are not recommended over this level of finish.