Hmmm. This is an old thread and I was pleased to see that VgKg was still around.....until I noticed the date. Where is VgKg? I remember that he always had good advise mixed with gentle humor. Anyway, I am of another opinion on this tool. I found it worked fine on bare soil, but I am a mulcher and as such there is just no replacing a triangular hoe to cut through the mulch and cut the weed. Kay.

Hi there you fellow winter sower! :O) I did a boo-boo with my thermometers this winter. Early on I stuck them in a bale of hay thinking I was going to return the next day and get them. I had two because I lost one in a pile and bought another, then found the first when turning. Never did return for the thermometers due to life making me turn the other way. They froze in the bale and I think someone tried to remove them when frozen, so when I took them out this past weekend they were broken. I liked them so will get another this weekend. It's interesting to see what's happening in there at what temperature!

Hi! Thank you for your replies. I will definitely stay with the diagonal now. ngng: Your kitchen looks so lovely! I want wood cabinets in the next house. Mine were an ugly, grainy, weird oak so I painted them some years ago and don't have it in me to redo them again since we plan to move in a couple of years. remodelfla: My floor plan is not an open one. The kitchen/breakfast area is separate from the family room. However, I like way the bronze Fleur de lis picks up the bronze looking flecks in the granite. I thought about smaller squares of the granite used as an accent but wanted something a little different. It's so hard to only do a bit of updating! I start to get carried away as so much needs to be done, but I really don't want to invest anything (time or money) since we aren't staying here. But it's so outdated and yucky!! We rented this house before we bought it 15 years ago and only bought because I was having a baby when the owners put it up for sale and didn't want to face a move after only just moving in a year prior! I never really liked the layout of the kitchen or the floor plan of the house! And here I am 15 years later! Time flies! Thanks for your suggestions! It has helped me!

Thanks for your kind words. victoriajane - yes, it is 5" width planks. Cost us a pretty penny, but I adore the look. I don't know of any disadvantages of tung oil beside longer drying time, but I've never had that finish before, so time will tell. My contractor raves about it and was happy to accomodate me with it. Many contractors and floor people do not have much experience with it so yours may push back if he hasn't done it much. Funny thing about choosing the stain. I had a picture of a floor with a color I loved, but no idea what color it was. Yesterday morning, the floor guys come over really early to sand, and call me upstairs from my makeshift kitchen in the basement. They had slapped on 3 different stains and asked me to choose one. Here I was getting my kids breakfast and trying to get them off to school and they want me to choose then and there. I asked them to wait until my kids were off to school and then decided I didn't like any of the colors. I chose 2 more of his minwax colors from a brochure, and held my breath. The English Chestnut was beautiful and very close to the picture that I had. So, no, for me it wasn't as bad a choosing a paint color for a wall because the options for stains seem to be much more limited that paint colors. It's a good thing for me too because I am notorious for not being able to make a decision, and then second guessing my self. Every time I look at these floors, I am happy with my decision. Buehl, the soapstone is Beleza. It is naturally dark in person and I know that many who have it do not oil it. I haven't decided what I'll do yet and will wait to see it installed. mindstorm - no tung oil on it in the picture you see. That is just sanded and stained. Tung oil goes on today and I'll take more pics and post afterwards. I hear it gives it a more rich finish.