I spread GE Exterior Silicone II on the bike bars and wrapped them with the wicker. I used large clamps to hold the wicker in place until the silicone dried (This was not an easy or fast process). I used a whole can of Minwax Polyurethan on the wicker, straw, wood, willow, bamboo, handle bars and seats. The wicker soaks up the Poly and it acts as an extra glue and hardener. I plan to do extra coats periodically. I even coated the burlap fabric with the Poly. I am not a confident gardener about what to plant in the baskets. Temperatures are already gettin' up to 100. It will probably need to be potted plants. This Fall, I plan to fill the back basket with coconut liner then those miniature pumpkin gourds that I am growing in the back yard. Last year people were using my bike as a photo op on Halloween night. I had painted it with spray primer to look like rust and It had yellow pansies in it.

dee - is that your sunroom wicker? Real stuff? It looks real. I think a lot of the resin stuff does too, from far away, I just don't like the plasticky look and feel up close. Very nice pieces - I think I like open work better than closed though with kids the closer-woven stuff is probably better. Since the pieces I bought yesterday really don't need a full paint job, I'm going to leave them white until they do. The chairs are glossy white, the settee looks more creamy but I'm not going to paint it just now - too many other projects around this house this year! I may paint the larger settee gloss white, or then again may just sell it if it doesn't all fit on the porch. Would you use the print on all the cushions? I thought that might be a little too much, but when the weather gets warm I'll pull the furniture out, clean it up, and take some more pics with the fabric. I'll just keep the twill and the floral, for $18 for (at least) 11 yds it's worth it, someone in my family will use it for something.

Thanks, Loribee. I'm glad I'm not the only one. Hubby says we can head over to Macy's tomorrow to look at the Chloe and a few other chairs. Maybe look at ottomans too because Cassie has decided she loves the loveseat with the ottoman from my office for her head. :) springmeadow - I was hoping that too. But the backs of them, where you place your head, were almost brown with dirt and wear. Ditto the arms. Threadbare in those places. Then we checked them over to see if they would be worth recovering, even though it would be expensive, but hubby said there was evidence of breakage at the bottom of one and on the leg of the other. Still looking. I would really like to keep it at around $500/$600 a chair, if possible. The Chloe is on sale right now for $449.

Thanks Gcubed and Jan! I always appreciate input and ideas!! The problem with adding two more chairs and putting it all in the center of the room is that a) my kids like to spread out and lay on the floor and b) it tends to block the walkway to the dining room. I've tried moving everything more toward the middle and putting the existing chairs in the space you describe and it just doesn't seem to flow well. But perhaps I'll give it one more try to just know absolutely. Art is definitely planned! I'm just waiting to finalize all the furniture stuff first. And, I promise I'm not trying to fill corners for the sake of filling corners ;) It's just an oddly laid out room because of the pathway from front door to dining room, so it makes it challenging to put anything in the middle of the room. Ironically the little table you see in the dining room WAS originally where the black bookcase is. Both of these items are only temporary and will likely go on craigslist. The little table, although actually a cute piece, is just the wrong style altogether. As for the barn doors, it's not a definite thing, just something we're considering. And, we've already considered the light switch issue, which is why we'd do 2 doors instead of one big one. Two would clear the switches. As for the schooling at home part, I've been homeschooling off and on for over 12 years, so I can say with confidence that it doesn't need to look like an elementary classroom to work :) I actually think those lower grade classrooms are often overstimulating and overwhelming. My kids (and I) definitely do better in a calmer and more relaxed environment. The dining room light already has its "walking papers" ;) The replacement is sitting in a box in the corner of the dining room. Another idea we're thinking about is something that Beth H suggested, which is to build a little reading nook into the corner where the black bookcase is. One issue with that is my rug, which would be too big even if pushed all the way back toward the window wall. And I'm debating on whether it would make the room too cramped. But I sure do love the idea.