The most likely cause of them growing tall and lanky is that they are not getting enough direct sunlight due to the trees. Around here you will see people planting roses up against the house on the north side and they just do not grow well there. In Tacoma it seems that everyone that fancies their self a gardener is growing roses along the foundation on the north side of their house. One good thing is that your roses do not have any of the common diseases of roses that cannot live well without chemical dependence of sprays to prevent black spot or powdery mildew. For the number of aphids living on a few of your roses I would just squish them. The ones that you do not get will get eaten up by beneficial insects soon enough. For fertilizer I use Lilly Miller Rose Fertilizer. It is organic rather than a chemical based plant and rose food.

Your travertine tile really has a red background color that would look good with a darker vanity with that reddish color in it, IMO. In that last image your other elements don't blend well with the large tile. There is too much yellow in the mosaic and the wall paint. Since your shower walls are up, I would look at switching palates. I have seen some lovely darker stained vanities that have a wine undertone that might be perfect. Good luck. Your shower tile is very pretty.

When it comes to your plantings, I'd tour some local gardens. If you are near a major city, a botanical garden, or if nothing else available that fits within your time constraints, you'll often find better nurseries have display gardens. If there is a landscape architect in your area, you might even find paying for an hour or two of his/her time for a few suggestions if not an actual plan is worth your investment. You can do the work yourself after getting sound, studied ideas. A tree, especially something as potentially large and long lived as an oak in the front is a lifetime commitment, your life and likely a few of the next generations. You want to be sure you will appreciate its shade, leaf litter, roots in the lawn. I'm not wild about the idea of much besides simple evergreens close to the house, at some point that house will need maintenance and you don't want plantings in the way and to stress over. The biggest mistake I made with the gardens in my first home was perennial beds bordering the house - there is no way a contractor doing assigned work can adequately protect them. As for hydrangeas, I love them but not immediately at the front door for their bare deciduous stems to be front and center all winter, only full and lush in Spring and Summer. Homework, research for your specific climate, it will pay off in the long term...

Posted at the same time. You’ll need a good finish on the table top. Sand to 400 grit at least and use a good quality sandpaper that doesn’t leave grit behind embedded in the grain. Then be fastidious about dust. Use a tack cloth and remove all the dust you can. You’ll want to try and get it out of the air so that doesn’t settle on the wet poly. Follow the directions on the can of poly for application. If you use a paintbrush, don’t skimp with a cheap one. Make sure each layer is suitably dry before sanding between coats and remove the dust again.