Some further background: we had hired an architect right after we moved in, and had planned to fully gut the kitchen and move the powder room out to the attached garage, creating a mudroom at the same time, but we had to abandon those plans due to costs associated with fixing other major issues in the house. I've taken a snapshot of what was supposed to the demo plan for the kitchen which gives you an overhead idea of the current layout and you can see the ridiculous placement of the bathroom. Door in the lower left of the photo is an exterior door to the driveway. Fridge is right next to it. Window and sink are at the bottom, oven on the right hand wall. Before we had put the kitchen plans on ice, we had found granite slabs we love and we have a deposit on them. I have to decide whether to pay the other 50% or eat the 50% I have already spent. They are holding the granite for me until next summer so I can decide what to do. I am leaning towards paying the balance and using the granite on my existing cabinets if I can't afford to replace them by them, at which point it probably makes sense to stain the cabinets dark unless I change out the floor tile too. If we do new countertops we will replace at least the fridge and the dishwasher at the same time with stainless and do something with the backsplash. (My current countertops are ivory Corian so I would not want to replace them with laminate. We live in a fairly upscale town on Long Island where I haven't seen anyone put in new laminate recently -- everyone does granite, quartz or marble). Your suggestions so far are dovetailing with what I was thinking -- remove the upper cabinet over the peninsula, swap out the other piece of stained glass with clear glass, take down the wallpaper and paint the room some color, and replace the light fixture. I can't remove the whole peninsula without changing the tile floor because there is a vent cut for the heat/AC right in front of the peninsula. I am also inclined to remove the faux fireplace as the radiator is no longer needed since we replaced the heating system. Can anyone tell me the pros and cons of gel staining vs. having the cabinets professionally sanded and stained? I've gotten an estimate for regular staining and could afford to do it if we were for sure keeping the cabinets but gel staining sounds like something we could do ourselves, which would be easier to justify if I might replace the cabinets down the line.

I unfortunately do want them alot. My DH doesn't really like them much, but for me they'll be the focal point of the kitchen. And even more unfortunately I want to put antiqued mirror behind the mullions which is wicked expensive. I'm waiting for a quote from Quick Drawers and I have a call into my local Showplace Dealer. Thanks for your help. These are some of my inspiration photos, which I found after I thought I wanted this look. I was so happy to see that it had been done. [Traditional Spaces design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-home-design-ideas-phbr1-bp~s_2107) by Atlanta Kitchen And Bath Lisa Grider Designs LLC [Traditional Spaces design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-home-design-ideas-phbr1-bp~s_2107) by Atlanta Kitchen And Bath Lisa Grider Designs LLC

This is in one of those small gated parks around Union City, i pass through to get to Jersey city or NYC. The park is called Ellsworth Park. I did try to talk to the person cleaning the area, but this is Hispanic country so no can do. If i have to dig deeper I may have to go to the city hall or maybe library, but thats a lot of effort. Its really interesting to know how this was done considering the size of the trunk. I am guessing a strong rope & a big stake on the ground. if i have a big lawn Ill probably try to copy or a medium size bonsai. What i have right now at home are arborvitaes tied to arched structures, still very small though. Thanks for all the response.

I don't think there is enough room in an 8' wide dining area to put a double arch (center post). I'd go single large arch if you have to do it at all. Derek Hurd Gravitas, Inc. 112 E 33rd St. Garden City, ID 83714 208.367.1184 www.gravitaslc.com