welcome to the forums jan ... with 18 year old plants.. not much in the way of weather is going to kill them ... especially the huge old root mass ... so though they might have taken some above ground damage.. and need some pruning after they bud out ... i suspect they will be back ... even if they die to the ground.. with no insult to the root mass.. you might be surprised how fast they can regrow ... but.. you might lose this years bloom.. give them a month or 2 longer.. to see how and where they bud out.. and then we can go from there ... [you dont mention where you are???] i suggest you take some pix then.. and start your own post.. with the pix.. and we can opine from there ... ken

"----CSIRO here has done studies which indicate wood is self-sanitising---" I am familiar with that report, but I am still keeping an open mind. We all know wood goes rotten if not protected soon. That's why wood is used to grow mushrooms. There is very limited ability for wood to sanitize, it seems to me. And the report says, "---Some wooden boards have been reported to exhibit antibacterial properties. After a short period of time, fewer bacteria have been recovered from these boards than from identically treated plastic ones.--" "Some" means not all. "Short period of time"? what does that mean in a kitchen environment? There is also, "Experts disagree on whether wood or plastic cutting boards are the most sanitary. Most governmental agencies in the United States recommend plastic, while other experts say scarred, rutted plastic cutting boards can harbor just as much bacteria as wood." Try this: use a woodworker's scraper and scrape your wood cutting board after you clean it and you will see a lot of stuff that have not been cleaned away. A plastic cutting board in a dish washer is a very clean cutting board. Don't ever wash your wood cutting board in a dishwasher. dcarch This post was edited by dcarch on Thu, Sep 12, 13 at 17:40

OH! THANK YOU! I am so loving ALL your ideas and suggestions, and believe me, I am seriously considering each and every one of them! OK... so I cut out some sheets of paper the sizes of the pictures we have been considering. The 4 pieces of paper on the long wall represent the four 13.5" Sturbridge ("4 Seasons") prints. I think they fill the wall nicely! The 2 pieces of paper above the toilet represent the two 8" x 10" Warren Kible prints (the cat and the pig). (Boo seems to approve!!!) THEN, I'll change out the toilet seat (probably a plain white one... or maybe black???), and maybe replace the magazine holder with something like this... ... and call it *DONE*!!! So, what do you guys think?! And remember, you can be BRUTALLY honest!!! Really! ;o)

Ha ha! I was really just thinking about pouring a glass of wine while I chill out here. jamaraz, you know that you MUST continue to post pics along the way. (And identify with your screen name in the post) Nothing I hate more than going through the prelim step and then don't get to see the outcome! Thanks funcolors...more good info, and i'm def taking the plunge on the faux wood garage now, as well as finding a way hurry along the blue-green patina over the front door. And while structured topiaries aren't my fav either, I can see that having something taller than the typical potted flowers draws the eye to front entry. Curious, what did you put for the front walk/steps? The slate/flagstone needs a lot of repair and might need to be replaced anyway. CHEERS!