Pasted from the HGTV site... 'Long-lived perennials "I just helped a friend move a peony that's 125 years old. Her great-grandfather had planted it," says perennial expert Stephanie Cohen, whose new book The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer is already into its second printing. Given the right place and the right care, these plants will typically live at least 15 years, and some a lot longer than that. # peony # hosta # bearded iris # Siberian iris # daylily # hellebore # euphorbia, spurge Euphorbia # red-hot poker or torch lily (Kniphofia) # monkshood (Aconitum) # bugbane (Cimicifuga) # gas plant (Dictamnus) # balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus) # false indigo (Baptisia australis) # lily-of-the-Nile # astilbe (Astilbe) # purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) # black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida) # Helianthus # butterfly weed (Asclepias) # goldenrod (Solidago) # bee balm (Monarda) # goatsbeard (Aruncus) # ironweed # Joe-pye weed (Eupatorium) # sneezeweed (Helenium) # sedum # trillium Short-lived perennials These plants typically last for three to five years before fading away, or "the plants that live for three years if you don't kill them first," says Cohen. # columbine* [but they reseed a lot] # scabiosa # wallflower (Erysimum, or Cheiranthus) # basket-of-gold (Aurinia saxatilis) # hardy mum # lupine [collecting and starting more from seed is easy] # leopard's bane (Doronicum caucasicum) # feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium)* # geum # cardoon # fire pink (Silene virginica) and many other pinks # blanket flower (Gaillardia)* # Coreopsis grandiflora, C. lanceolata* # lavender # Phlox divaricata* * reseeds freely :-) pm2

I am a LIer. I ended up going out of state to get my cabinets because I found LI so overpriced. Nonetheless, I shopped extensively on LI and found that no one will give you a price break down and it can takes weeks of communication before you can get any idea of price. Kitchendesign.com is the web site of Ken Kelly kitchens, as mentioned by hellonasty above. I believe their design fees are credited towards your cabinetry purchase and the $5000 fee only applies if you end up not using them and want a copy of the design. I did not use them due to budget, but I was impressed with the advice they gave me during my free consultation. I was impressed that they were willing to share layout ideas and essential decisions points without a retainer. I also liked that they gave me a price range for my cabinets on the spot whereas every other shop on LI took weeks to give any idea of price. KK was one of the first shops I went to and I thought their price was very high as I had initial sticker shock. Having priced cabinets at at least 10 other LI retails, I can now say they are in line with other places. LI cabinet retailers want you to come to their store and fall in love with a particular door style and they will generally talk to you about what you want, storage needs, etc. Most are willing to visit your home after you visit the showroom and you seem willing to move forward. I found that most LI shops will take several weeks to give you any idea of price and it is near impossible to comparison shop. Packard Cabinetry in Sea Cliff seemed strong on design and had some unique ideas for my space. Artistic Kitchens on 347 in Smithtown area (next to Carrabas) also had good design sense. Lakeville Industries in Lindenhurst area has a great showroom and they sit with you and do a design mock up (they seemed to work mostly with Medallion cabinets and I never got the price for the Plain and Fancy cabinets I actually was interested in). North Shore Cabinetry was also strong on design, and I know 2 people who used them and have great kitchens. Their price was highest of all I priced. If I had to do it again, I would try to find an independent designer and then shop the same design to different shops to get cabinetry prices. Good Luck, I think LI is an especially tough market.

I have pecan in my living room, which is very similar. Your sample looks light for hickory, but I'm on an uncalibrated monitor and it might be that. Do you know if it's going to darken? I have tile in the kitchen, but my cabinet fronts are blond bamboo. It doesn't go with the pecan. Not too awful to see it 6" away through the doorway, but I wouldn't do them closer together. Pecan is peachier than hickory, but I don't think the browner hickory would be an improvement. The only contrast is unfortunate. I've had walnut cabinets, medium brown floor and white counters, backsplash and walls. Even with walnut uppers it never felt dark, but had a southern exposure and good windows. I'd take the samples into the space and really consider how they're working together, but just from the info given I'd chose the walnut.

My island ended up being 118" long, so almost 10 feet. When I found my slabs, it was approx 120" long at one end and slightly less at the other end (it wasn't a perfect rectangle). The way my island is configured, one end is comprised of base cabinets while the other end has legs and space for seating. My fabricator's plan was to keep the island as long as possible during cutting... though we were both aware that depending on inherent stone qualities, the final piece may range anywhere from 117"-119" long. My contractor did not permanently install the legs of the island until day of counter installation. We got lucky and the island ended up being closer to 119" than 117"... I wanted it as long as possible. As others have mentioned, the length of your island will depend on your stone slabs. I have seen a few that were longer than mine at the yard, as well as many that were smaller. Planning ahead with your fabricator helps too. I visited twice, when they were templating and during cutting. Here's a photo of my super white quartzite: