Gee I don't know if I can help you more than NYWOODSMAN (joking of course) ;o) Are you planning to fill in the page with all the growing zones in it? That seems like an awful lot of work. Why not just start with your own state and get it all filled in rather than posting all the zones and leaving people scratching their heads as to why they are dead links. Most people get annoyed with links that don't work. The index page (main page) really needs a punch of colour so why not create some photo images (using your own will be easier) to make a montage of your state's native flora. Use it as a logo for each of your pages. Articles page and links looks good but again, very plain. Contact page good...easy to use Botanical Dictionary... will you be adding to it on an ongoing basis? If so, you may want to create (I think they are called...) jumplinks or hotlinks or something like that where you can jump to a spot on a page without having to scroll down looking for it. So say you want to look up "leaf roller", you will just click on "L" at the top of the page to jump down to the "L's". The Language of flowers page... I don't understand why the title "Language of flowers" is written 3x before you get to the text and then the hyperlink is located in the tiny green word "this link". I would either get rid of all the "Language of Flowers" titles leaving only one and hyperlink to the title in addition to the "this link". this page also needs something pleasing to the eye, either a logo or a few pictures of native plants, shrubs or trees. Soil/Mulch page...good but again needs some pictures. Drive around and take close up photos of your hand with each type of soil in it. Simple but effective. If your camera is fast enough to capture it, spilling a bit of each soil off the side of your hand will show the density of each soil type in addition to the general appearance. Garden Supplies page... use store logos if you can to showcase your sponsors. It's visually more pleasing and attractive to potential customers. You might also make suggestions for tools that work with various soil types. State Trees and Flowers... cool idea, possibly hyperlink each tree's name to an image of the tree species so that people can look at it as well as read about it. native plant societies page... looks good, very plain but in this case, plain is ok. The only thing that might make the page a bit more user friendly is to place the "state name" in Bold print. Public Garden of the month page could use a photo or logo from the park, otherwise it's good and complete with a map link. You 'could' provide a direct link to each featured garden but it's not necessary as you have the form there already to do the search. Book reviews... a work in progress as well. Have you considered to add comments on what you found useful and not-so-useful for each book? The reviews don't look like so much "reviews" as they are "synopsis". you could also consider letting readers submit their personal reviews using an online-form. Of course you will want to review the submissions before they are placed on the page but it will give a better rounded perspective on each book if you allow comments from other readers. Free Gardening Books page... looks good but again lacks "punch". You might consider a logo at the top of the page and then thumbprint photos of the book jackets (if that's legal to do, which I expect it must be if the books themselves are already in the public domain). Hope that's somewhat helpful. You have a big job ahead of you with some of those pages, esp. the Growing Zone pages but best of luck to you in creating them. Barb southern Ontario, CANADA

I can't stand non-stick for most stuff. It can't be used on high heat. You have to use those plastic utensils, which I can't stand. Give me a good, thin metal spatula over one of those any day. It's just too delicate, non-stick. I think I have one non-stick pan, and it serves it's purpose (mainly for my husband, when he makes an omelet), but I have other pans that get used many, many times over before that one does. I love Stainless steel, as long as it has some heat-conduting metal in the bottom (and up the sides, if you want to pay for it-ie. All Clad), which so far all I have seen of it does. I have a few sizes of stock pots, ranging from 6 quart to 32 quart. I have a set of All-Clad that came with my cook-top. I like it, and for the most part, they chose handy sizes. Most of my pans are a hodge-podge. Cast Iron, I have a wok and a skillet I use a lot. Lots of Stainless. Some of them are close in size to the All-Clad. I bought them at TJ Maxx and the like, very reasonably priced I thought, because I didn't really want my DH using the All Clad. He has a tendency to forget he is cooking (!) and once actually melted the aluminum bottom of a pan to the stove. My favorite small skillet is just a little steel one. Things don't stick to it hardly at all, and it is just the right size for a single grilled cheese, or a scrambled egg or two. It gets used almost daily. As far as cleaning...If you get stainless steel, some are "stickier" than others. For those, I just put some water in it while it is warm (or put it on low, with water in it) while I eat, and when I come back, the food is soft, and easy to clean off. You should sit and eat with your family. :) When you are done, you can get them to help you clean! I also want to add...Anyone thinking of all-clad with the long handles (frying pan) should hold a pan with some weight in it before they buy. I find the handles to be uncomfortable, as do some other people. We must hold it differently from the people who like the handles. My grandmother always cleaned while we ate, then she would sit down at the end of the meal and try to get everyone to eat more, in spite of the fact that we had been eating while she cleaned and were full! Hopefully you don't do that.

I think you are probably wise to go with your lesser choice and have the sink in the island. You loved the island plan and it had the sink there. Anyway, you are so much closer to the look you'd hoped for than when you first posted the plan with the bilevel peninsula. I tried to draw things out. I'm not sure how you want to move the fridge and how large you envision the pantry. So here's just an attempt in which I tried something a little different, because if you want a hutch looking piece I'm afraid it has to be wider than you have? I might have some of the measurements off from what you plan for that wall. Also, if you want the sink centered in the island you will have to have 2 ft on each side, which squeezes your dining area. Maybe you didn't plan it centered, though. I have it centered in this plan and you can see how it affects the length of the kitchen to see what you think.

I'll stay out of the 'sand vs replace' arguments above. On to the original question. You will want to MATCH the TREADS to the main floor. The risers can be painted (see photo above) or matched as in your photo. Either way, the TREADS need to match the main floor. What happens on the UPPER level is considered 'private'. I'm guessing those areas contain bedrooms. That means those areas are only for private members of the house hold. The main flooring/stair case are PUBLIC areas. That means guests will see those areas. You want the public areas to be harmonious. Having a different hardwood on the second story isn't a crime. It happens all the time. Totally acceptable....with the caveat that the stairs get dealt with properly. So....match the treads to the new floor (do NOT do a gel stain!!!!!). Have them capped or sanded and stained to match the new floor. If you want you are welcome to paint the risers white. It would work very well because of your white spindles. And stain the banister the same colour as the floor. And if the original hardwoods are SOLID hardwood, then think twice about ripping them up. They are worth a considerable amount of money. You would be ending their life as a "teenager" instead of an octogenarian. Solid hardwood floors have the same lifespan as humans = 80-100 years.