"What do you think might be appropriate for kids under 10?" That would be at the discression of your dad since he is in the best position to decide. You also have to realize the question is similar to asking "what is an appropriate pass time for a 35 yo lady?" Alot depends on desire, ability and willingness to apply themselves to learning. To domonstarte,I have 2 grandsons several years apart in age that were quite different in the shop. #1 liked to pretend he was the narriator of a TV show on some days,others he broke up fist fights amoung audience members, he also injoyed serving refreshments and directing spectators to the snack bar and restrooms. When a proceedure caught his interest,he asked questions and relayed the answers to his tv viewing audience. That was pretty much the routine from 5 years to about 8 when his desire for hands on creation increased. From 8 brushing on stain and paint,sanding and scraping,driving 100s of nails into scrap boards to 9 or 10 sketching and suggesting ideas he cut with the scroll saw,prefecting refinishing techniques,learning to use a spoke shave and bench plane,I feel he gained much skill without so much as turning the table saw on much less cutting with it. #2 hit the ground running about 7 wanting to build things. We spent several of his vists completing a 50 calbire machine gun along with several other items of interest to him. He recently turned 11 and has only average interest in the shop sometimes choosing other activities instead. Any conversation in Tx involving boys will eventualy get around to their use of guns and hunting. I mention this because it is a nail biting subject for so many and to demonstrate how different kids are ready for any act at different ages. A third grandson shot his first deer when he was 8,#1 when he was 12 and #2 isn't even close to center fire rifle hunting. Not for lack of desire on his part but his unwillingness to crawl before running. Above it all we treasure our time spent togeather and have no problem finding things in common to plan or events to recall. What are some approprate activities for a 10 year old? I couldn't tell you but their grandfather likly can. Best wishes to your family,having parents "move back home"can be testing.

Whew! I'm glad this thread got back on track. There is a lot of helpful info here. I have acquired a couple of samples of both. I really, really, like the look of the Virginia Mist (not the one that is also called Jet Mist) honed, but the granite place is telling me it will definitely stain in its honed version and suggested leathered, which I don't love. "ngcurt" mentioned "antiqued" Virginia Mist. I have never heard of antiqued. What is that? I have played with the samples of soapstone from Alberene and went to the quarry to choose a slab, but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. I can definitely scratch it all up with my fingernail and dent the end with a pot easily. However, I have yet to permanently stain it with anything acidic while ketchup and lemon juice for 30 min barely etched the granite surfaces. I left marks all over the granite with a key and have yet to get them off, even with suggested acetone... Oil definitely sits on the soapstone, but I haven't tried Simple Green as "athome inva" mentioned. Never thought of that. It seems like an easy solution. The quarry said to use denatured alcohol. Didn't happen to have that around. I'm surprised yours darkened so quickly. I think I would like that. But Alberene had a piece in their office that was used to create a "cabinet" and its top. The unoiled cabinet was still very light while the waxed top was very dark. I wonder if they are now quarrying a different vein than what you have? It is all quite beautiful. After speaking to the granite fabricator, I am now a bit more nervous about trying the granite than the soapstone because I have no idea how I would remove stains from granite. I had thought it was pretty indestructible. "Sabrina Alfa Interiors"--Are you saying that the drawback to black honed granite is really just the fingerprints? I think I could live with fingerprints as long as the stone and the finish itself is not actually damaged. Also, there is the leathered version of AB that really doesn't show anything. It looks like cheap Formica, but it seems to be extremely durable. The black is beautiful. Any thoughts? For that matter, there is a leathered "Virginia Mist," too. Also looks like cheap Formica, but it would be durable and would probably hide a lot. Thank you guys so much for all the input. Of course, I will still accept more of it. :) It seems there are pros and cons to both, so I almost feel like flipping a coin or choosing based on price.

Aging in place" is a general catch-all phrase that is not realistic as you won't know your actual needs as you age. You think you can plan but realistic those things that you do may not be enough or overkill in the long run. I've been going through this with both my elderly parents and my partners who are in their mid 80's. Both sets still live in their homes but both have very different needs for aging in place. To have outfitted their homes for "aging in place" earlier in their lives would not have necessarily met their needs now or would have been overkill. What we've done to help them age in their home has been done as they needed it. Grab bars for my parents, not my partners. Rug removal for my mom's walker, rugs still are down in the other parents home. Hand rails added at entrance at one parents home. I don't see these as "aging in place" but to address their current actual needs. My partners parents live in a 3 level home but at 87 yrs old they can still manage the stairs. They built this house in their mid 70's and when we discussed aging in place during the build, they told us that if they got to the point of not being able to use their house, they would move. They were more concerned about building the home they wanted and not concerned of what "may" happen in the future. A few years back I was going to build a home with "aging in place" in mind. To achieve this, this included, bathrooms basically doubling in size and wider hallways to accommodate a wheelchair, if necessary, and zero steps in the garage to the house. Realistically if you want a "AIP" home, isn't this really a home that addresses the same issues as a home for a person with disabilities, especially with one to accommodate a wheelchair, so are we just trying to reinvent the wheel or just adding a fancy name to it? My take away from my experiences is that if you want a home for "aging in place" have a single story house and deal with the rest when the time comes. As you may find later on that you what you thought your needs and wants would be for when you got older are no longer the same. You may find yourself wanting a different type of life style and/ or house situation or even a different city or state. Active Senior Retirement Community or condo, anyone?

Since you’re not wanting to go too compemporary, yes absolutely you can do this warm brass fixture. Its a classic shape and to me, what will pull all the elements together with all the light colors with dark windows, is having the dark bronze or black in the fixture WITH the aged brass. So any fixture you choose I would recommend the two finishes used together. And I would also blend the hardware and lighting finishes. That is a timeless classic look of a collection developed over time. I‘ve done that on several homes including the one we’re renovating now with great results. (And we have all bronze windows too in our traditional home, and so does the entire neighborhood that was built in the early 80’s.) Maybe a brushed brass door handle would make a nice focal point for the door too. Of course I’m only seeing this one fixture to give an opinion, but my mixed finish advise would be the same. You can include additional pictures of your build with other design details or other fixtures if you’d like more input. I personally lean more towards a classic traditional or transitional styling while plenty of others prefer more modern or contemporary styling. But to me regardless of style, mixing finishes will bring separate elements together to make a more cohesive look.