Kudzukween made photo plates by gluing her picture onto a plate & pouring acrylic over the picture. When it set up, she sealed with a spray varnish. At least, I think this is how she did it. I'm wondering if this process would withstand the outdoor elements? I was at a TS this week & saw the perfect plates to use for house numbers, but since I was unsure of myself about doing this, I didn't buy them. Now I'm inspired & have to go back & hopefully they'll still be there! I have a weakness for dishes, but you can only have so many in your house, right? So, the next best thing would be to have them outside too! At the TS I found a shallow, aluminum pot that will make a good hat for my fish bowl snowman. Just in time to pack him away, boo hoo! Oh well, he'll be used next year. The pan might be a little too shallow but the effect will be there. I'll spray paint the pan black and glue it onto a small plate used for the brim of the top hat. Sorry, SusieRose, I think I took your post into a different direction. Got carried away! Vickie

Thanks for the clarifications! Those were both kind of my guess but I couldn't be sure. I just checked my design and the cabinets don't line up, so "phew!" :D At this point I have no clowns. We're looking at fairly neutral wood floors, white cabs, white appliances, and soapstone counters. I'm thinking the backsplash will be the place to bring in the clown but I can't even begin to think about it yet. I absolutely do not have an eye for this stuff, all I can think about is the fantastic storage space and wide expanses of counters! It's unfortunate this thread has gotten so heated, it's been a wonderful source of information. I have hollow core doors. So what? It's an 80s split foyer, it's never going to be the pinnacle of class. That's part of the challenge of doing the kitchen, not "over designing" it for the house. I want a kitchen that I love and works the way I want and need it to without it looking completely out of place in both the house and the neighborhood. If I'm doing something stupid I want you to tell me! Yes, it stung to have my design torn apart and be told I "couldn't" have the one thing I'd always dreamed of: a cooktop in the island. But instead of storming off I took a long hard look at my design, thought through the REASONS why it was a bad idea, and eventually agreed. Now I have a design I'm even happier about and utmost confidence in it.

That’s a good idea, Vap! I’d have to be quick to come back in and edit the text in with my phone after posting the pictures with the tablet, though. I know you only have an hour to edit anything in your original post, and after that what’s done is done. You’re “locked out” from editing your opening post after an hour. I’m a real slow poke and I’m easily distracted, so I’ll have to make sure I get it done in an hour. I just now saw that my title has a typo, and I can’t go back and fix it. It is an option though, and a good one. I’m far faster at “texting” my words in, than typing on the screen of that Fire tablet. My laptop’s keyboard doesn’t work anymore, so that’s just as awkward. I can only use the touchscreen to type on it. I DO have to Houzz app installed on my iPhone, but I no longer use it at all. I can’t do anything through the app. I stay signed in and my phone shows a “frequently used” list as soon as I open my browser. I just hit “Antique Rose Forum”, and I’m in. It’s unfortunate that I need a “work around “ at all, but it’s better than nothing. I had forgotten about that Fire tablet, and began to wonder how it would work here, just yesterday. I really was shocked when I could post photos with my original post from it. It’s a cheap $30 tablet compared to my rather expensive phone. I’ll have to try a post doing it the way you suggested, Vap. There’s just not a whole lot worth taking pictures of, atm. Lisa

Hey, look at that, Jack, the pictures are there! I use the ground pork to make my own sausage. Most of the sausage I get is too spicy, or has too much sage, or is heavy with black pepper. I use Alton Brown's recipe for seasoning and just make my own sausage mix, I like it so much better. We also make Italian sausage and Elery likes the pork to mix with venison for sausage too. Plllog, I only know what the cookbook told me, and I'm sure I'll never call it anything except "that pork chili stuff" anyway. It's in the 2009 Cook's Country, titled "New Mexico Pork Chili" with a subtitle of "Carne Adovada", and goes on to explain in the forward that carne adovada means marinated meat. It's doesn't matter, I guess, I'm sure I won't call it "adovada" or adobada" because I won't remember which one is which. I keep trying to type "avodaba" and think of avocados, which has nothing to do with anything in this dish. Whatever it is, it was good, although a little spicy for me, and I had heartburn for two days! sleevendog, since it said "New Mexico Pork Chili", I thought I'd use some dehydrated Hatch Chili I'd purchased at Trader Joe's on a recent trip. I think I got a little heavy handed, because the recipe called for chipotle but no other chilies. Nothing really recreates that smoky flavor of chipotle, so I used some of both, plus the 1/2 cup of chili powder the recipe asked for. It was a little....um.....much. Elery loved it, but I'd have liked it better with just the chipotle that the recipe asked for, I think. I'm such a wuss.... I could definitely see this with beef and probably even chicken. Just gotta get a little lighter on the chilies! Annie