Thanks everyone. I'm behind schedule naturally, but having fun regardless. It's really an amazing feeling to be able to go out and just plant instead of feel guilty about needing to weed/mulch/edge. Glenda, yes those are clematis. Good eye! One is Huldine, a large white one and the others are a couple of different styles of purple ones. Christie, that's a heuchera (Cassandra) that I got at the garden center in front of Dillon's on Sunshine in Springfield. Helen, you're right! I did have fun. :D

Thank you! I like your bowl. I've never had luck having more than one type of plant in a planter so I just keep to putting individual ones in weird pots

So many options! If you do dried flowers/weeds, you just have to replace them once in a while so they don't get old and dusty looking. I would not do all the same, but things that somehow relate or complement each other. Maybe a couple the same with a mix in a couple with ingredients from the others? Also think about having only 3 baskets in the area instead of two pairs. One on one end, two on the other? Lavender:curly willow (or something curly): cattails: wheat:

It depends on your growing conditions, but I would do some sort of low planting surrounded by mulch. You don't want to plant too close to the house and risk that the plant(s) will eventually grow big enough to touch the window. You want to be able to walk between the planting and the window so you can clean the window. You need to match the plant(s) with your growing conditions. If this were my landscape I might plant some short native grasses 4-5 feet away from the window. with some native flowers added in, so that I could watch the birds, butterflies and bees from my kitchen window. Consider prairie dropseed or little bluestem. Your community might even have volunteers that will visit your house and advise you about native landscaping. I know LOTO offers such a service. Native plantings look beautiful all year, even in winter. My native grasses turn shades of red, gold and tan in the winter, depending on the species.