Thank you everyone. Wish I could remember the other GWer who did something similar in a closet. That was where I got the idea from. The whole thing cost $35. The hooks were $5 each, and we already had the baskets and the paint. DH did the whole thing in one weekend. I am NOT handy like that. I just have the ideas, and he carries them out for me. In our last house we had plaster walls, and every time I hung a picture we ended up with a huge hole in the wall. He has banned me from all power tools- LOL Can't wait to show you all before and after pics of my whole first floor!

Thank you all for your kind words. It's always fun to show our Before & After project pics here. You get inspired and work so hard creating something new. It's nice to be able to share it . . . even if the end results don't end up in your home (LOL)! Oakley: Haha!! I don't think DD is going to want to give up all of her new (old) furniture and decs to move back into a shared, already-furnished bedroom at her sorority house next year when it's finally redone. She'll be a senior then and is already loving her home only a couple of blocks from campus. Although she definitely IS missing having someone else plan, shop for and cook all the meals (LOL)! The wall's of DD's room were already painted that color by the previous tenant and I don't have a clue what the brand name or color of it is. Sorry. Is your son going to OU? I agree, decorating a son's place is (usually) a lot less fun than decorating a daughter's. My own son's place made me cringe during his six years at OU! Arcy: I LOVE your DD's headboard. How beautiful!!! The fabric is wonderful and looks beautiful with that dark wood. This is a fun age for our daughters, isn't it? Jake: that sounds a lot like my son's rooms when he was in college. Yaya: yes, it drove me to distraction not to be able to do much of anything while my hands were healing. Although I've developed significant arthritis in both hands as a result of the surgery, the fracture and the subsequent long immobilization periods, I love being able to work with them again! Patty: DD was seven? My goodness, it HAS been a long time, hasn't it? Her desk color? Yes, It wouldn't have been my choice, but she does love it and, yes, she can paint it again someday if the mood strikes her. (Shudder) That desk (and all of it's drawers and cubbies) was very tedious and hard to paint. I wouldn't want to do that one again ever! What fun to be able to do your GD's bedroom! You'll have to share that with us when you finish it. Well, thank you all again for allowing me to share my Summer's decorating projects. DH & I have just started redoing his study yesterday. More grunt work and a lot less fun than DD's but the results will be good . . . once we ever finish! Lynn This post was edited by lynninnewmexico on Mon, Aug 4, 14 at 23:27

I like the heftier post idea, but 10 inch diameter might be out of scale with your porch size. Kicking the porch out a foot or so, to equal the depth of that gable adjacent to the front steps, would mean the roof gets a little "bill" on it, sort of like a Louisiana style Creole cottage. (Only a Creole cottage would not have the gables necessarily.) Out just that little bit more, you could beef up the posts, and also flare the brick steps and hand rails in a welcoming spread-arm embrace. With the beefy posts, you would need to space them differently too.. There would be a corner post on the left, and then a second post on the far side of the window next to the door. The post to the right of the steps, if 10 inch diameter, would almost wipe out any space between it and the wall, but they have a way to deal with that. With just these three posts, I'd recommend a wider set of steps with the flare as it goes toward the ground. Really deep treads, and shallow risers to make it easy to walk up for old folks. If you have Windows, even the Paint program will let you draw ideas on a copy of your house photos. If you do something that is with 6 inch posts, that might give a heftier look without disturbing the present balance of your house front.

What a transformation!! This is now a very inviting and practical defined outdoor living space! Accented by the logical means of wayfinding and a complimentary finish palette, this space will be great for entertaining as well as offering privacy for a relaxing afternoon outdoors. Excellent work!