Ah, Helen --- you've caught the 'Orchid Bug' and have started with a beauty. You might want to also post on the Orchid Forum where you'll get great help, as well as from the contacts you made in the Mass. Orchid Society. I'll happily pass along what we've done with our orchids. The first advice I'd give about raising orchids is to find a spot in your home that they will like. If you can replicate the conditions your plant enjoyed "in nature", it should do well. In the wild, orchids grow without soil and often high up on trees or rocks. In fact, on one summer garden tour we saw that a homeowner had placed all of his orchids in "baskets" of moss and then hung these from his high blueberry bushes. I thought that was pretty clever. You probably know from the workshops you attended that you can't treat orchids like you would your other houseplants. We've been growing orchids for about 10 years and have 17, including some Odon. Intergenerics, and have found them to be tough, easy-to-care-for plants. From early spring to mid-fall, we keep all our orchids outside on a shaded, covered deck. Because we live along a small river, our orchids really benefit from the early morning moisture. In the colder months, our plants go on top of our kitchen cabinets. We put the pots on trays or dishes that have small rocks in the bottom. This is done so that they don't get too dry --- heat rises and we have a gas fireplace nearby. The trays will catch any water that drips out from the plants, which helps to keep the plants moist. Orchids don't like wet feet. They like light, but not direct --- warmth, but not dry heat --- they'll tolerate lower temps, but be careful. Also, be patient when they're not blooming or when they start to look ragged. Some of ours that appeared to be close to death really perked up over the warmer months outside! We spritz our orchids every other day or so and water them at the sink, letting most of the water drain out before putting them back on the cabinets. When a particular orchid is blooming very strongly, we might bring it down to a table or desk for a closer view, but mostly they all stay up high in the colder months. One thing that we hardly ever do is to fertilize. Crazy, I know, but it works. As the plants mature, their roots move out and up in waves and it's these roots that capture moisture and nutrients. We find that our plants bloom very well when we put them outside and then to a lesser degree in the winter months. Oh, I forgot to mention that one reason why we placed our orchids up high is that we have skylights on the roof and a clearstory window; the light is indirect but bright on the cabinets. So I guess an important factor would be for you to look around your home for an ideal spot. Molie

Just to give an idea of the finish levels - raised panel wainscoting in foyer and up the foyer stairs, paneled study with built in bookshelves, coffered ceiling with built in bookshelves in den, three piece dentil moulding in study and dining room, three piece crown in upper and lower foyers and throughout the downstairs except back hall (where just a standard one piece crown will be used), etc. Hope this gives you an idea . . . A Marvin window quote was over 100k for the house so we are looking into other options!

I have been an avid reader, and sometimes contributor to this and the appliance forums. My kitchen renovation is planned for April 16th. I have picked out all my appliances, my layout is 99.9% finalized (just fine tuning some cabinet/drawer placement), and now I must pick choice of cabinet style and color in the next 7 to 10 days so the cabinet maker can get the cabinets done on time. I am contemporary in taste and am down to 3 doors and between a few colors for the cabinets. Debating putting some glass doors in for design appeal and between two types of molding for the top of the cabinets. I have picked out the color of my granite, and have a back up color but have not found the specific lot I like, yet. I do have a fabricator looking for me, though. Some details such as the placement of fake panels on the end of a cabinet run and island need to be made as well as any finer details of any corner decor on the island. I would love to pay a good kitchen designer for a few hours of his or her time to comment on my choices, help me to finalize some color selections, and suggest anything I may have not considered to achieve the results I am looking for. Does anyone know of a reputable person I could call? It's easy to google and find names, but I hate to waste time and money on someone who is just going to give the me "vanilla" answers and thoughts. Like many of you, I have spent days pouring over comments on these forums, learned A LOT, and just need a little fine tuning and hand holding before I pull the trigger on all this. Thanks.

Hello, I have used a small company in Roslindale Ma (Boston suburb) called Contractors Cabinet and Design, they sell a couple brands and also have a small shop in their building that makes their own "brand"....cool to see the shop and your cabinets being made in-house. I worked with their senior designer Melinda Guglietta, her number is 617.290.3719, she was great to work with. For the record I am a specialty contractor in the Boston area, and have no affiliation with the cabinet company but I have used them on several projects and was pleased with the work and service Best, Tony