Hello from a fellow Puget Sounder! Hubby and I are currently researching the building of our dream home up on Whidbey Island (our property looks out over Saratoga Passage) and we have visions of a shingle sided cottage. Like you, we're hoping for low maintenance, and our research so far seems to indicate that if you pick the right shingles and if they are applied properly, they should easily last 30 to 50 years with little or no maintenance required. (We built a very nice arbor and fence 20 years ago with Alaskan yellow cedar; the wood has held up very well, despite lots of shade and rain, with no rot and without the need for stain or paint - we just allowed it to age to a nice silvery gray.) Check out this link for an interesting article discussing the benefits of wood shingles, as well as the alternatives, such as Hardie plank. http://mainehomedesign.com/rotating-features/404-cant-decide-on-siding.html Best of luck on your new home!

If you are buying a lot of furniture, you really should go to North Carolina (Hickory and High Point especially). The furniture stores are vast, and the prices much better than most places you will see in the US. If you time a trip for after market, many of the stores will be having sales. If there are particular lines you like, you should get on the mailing list--they'll let you know when they are having specials. I lived in NC for several years and I ended up furnishing about 8 homes (mine, family members, and friends) exclusively from deals picked up in the clearance centers. And of course, don't forget your local 'Craig's List' for used furniture--that can be the best deal of all. It helps if you've looked at tons of furniture, because then you can spot quality, you know makers you like, and you know not to believe everything the previous owner tells you. Virtually everything advertised on Craig's List is called 'solid wood' and about 10% of it is. I love a beautiful veneer, but that's more rare than the solid wood. I have some wonderful second-hand furniture, and you might want to consider going that route too. Good luck, and happy shopping. And when you do, make sure you check out your shipper--movingscam.com is a good forum to find out companies to use and avoid. (Yes, I have been through the nightmare international move--it turned a $15,000 move into a $50,000, be sure to start researching that NOW. But double verify everything, before they start loading, licenses, permits, etc.) What was a good company, can turn into something awful very quickly.

Hello and welcome. May I recommend the book "Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease: The Revolutionary, Scientifically Proven, Nutrition-Based Cure" by Caldwell B. Esseltyne, Jr., MD. This is a book that not only advocates a diet change for heart disease patients but for anyone who wants to make permanent changes in their diet and lose weight.

Hello All, Thank you so much for your tips and advice. Its lovely to be welcomed back after such a long, long break. David, you jogged my memory. I met Laurie and Jean once more than ten years ago and I trucked out to Reliable Roses and we (and the rest of the Vic crew) spent the day there then had this amazing Indian supper at a restaurant near their place. I wonder if they will remember me, they both used to be forum users way back in the day before Houzz took over gardenweb. I think they will be my first port of call, I remember Laurie being particularly surprised that such a young person had an interest in roses and Jean was just so inspiring and helpful. Its good to know they are still around. I will call them and have a chat about what they're likely to have in stock for the bare root season. I hit the Misty Down's website and saw that it was under construction, really quite sad that they're not doing roses. But thank you for clarifying that David. Thank you for your advice Countess, I was leaning to Lamarque, and I did remember it had the hint of lemon, but I think it would be nice, I'll look at your links to see if there is anything else. Carol, hello, the entire front is going to be white and green plants only and I've been debating which rose since the fence is a gable style with a low wall in the centre, for a total of 8 metres. Originally I had a William Lobb moss on that front fence and it was freakin' spectacular. Until my "very kind" neighbour trimmed back "my messy rose" chopping 8ft flowering canes (which were tied to the fence) down to the ground one year and it never grew right after that. Very unfortunately it could not be saved at all. PortlandMystery: Victoria has Mediterranean style temperatures cold winters, damp but warm spring, hot summers, and warm autumns. Roses have always done well in my garden, owing to the microclimate of the immediate neighbourhood. Lots of people here have big shade trees, loads of roses and underplanting. I never had to use pesticides either. This means that roses usually get far bigger than they're meant to. Every single David Austin rose I had grew four times the size that was recommended and I grew a Westerland on the advice that it would never get bigger than a 6 foot fence and that bloody rose could have taken over my house. Ingrid, Snowbird! That's a good idea as well. It might end up on a different wall in the front garden. I quite like Noisettes but I worry that they are so vigorous that they might be too much for the low fence at the front. Probably a good idea to think about them for pillaring out the back. Curdle, thank you! I definitely want a Docteur Jamian rose for a pillar feature I have. My Docteur Jamain had these beautiful long canes after it got established that I can imagine would work well for a pillar. I wanted to position it between a Zephyrine Drouin if I can find it. Thank you all, you've given me some great starting points and triggered my terrible memory.