You can also make your own template. Take a square of paper and fold it in half, then fourths, then eigthths, then sixteenths creasing the folds crisply. Open it back up and each segment is your template. Cut one out and add seam allowance to it. I measure out from center point and mark a line where to cut for a certain diameter circle. Otherwise, cut at 5" plus seam allowance if you want a circle 10" across. I cut it from plastic and make lines at different sizes. Be sure to add seam allowance to top edge to turn under. For pointy, you just fold each spoke in half lengthwise with right sides together and seam across that flat top part. Turn it inside out and you have the finished point. The whole circle of pointy edges will look smaller in diameter to your eye than the flat outside edge so I make it about 1/2 inch bigger than I would if smooth. You can play around with scraps. Linda

Thanks for the compliments. Its our first renovation project we've done and we pretty much GC'd it ourselves. We're very happy with it and proud of it as well. Here's a list of the materials: Cabinets -- Ikea; Stat door. We went back and forth on these, but once we priced them out it was a no brainer. We saved thousands and we love them. The drawers fully extend and use blumotion glides that self close. They're a great bargain, and if we ever get tired of the style its a minimal investment to replace the doors and cover panels. Counters -- Kashmir White granite. This was one of the things we were able to do because of the money we saved on the cabinets. Its hard to photograph the granite, but we love it because of the "flowiness" of the bluish-grey graining and how light it is. Originally we were going to go with black or something dark but we thought it looked too heavy and institutional. Backsplash -- Susan Jablon Mosaics (www.susanjablonmosaics.com) beach subway glass. I think the color is blue grey sky or something like that. We love these and love Susan's stuff. We were going to make a blend, but we thought it may look too busy with the granite. We may use her tile again when we redo the bathrooms. Sink -- Blanco. I really wanted to use, and bought, a Ticor but it didn't fit by about 1/8". We love the big single bowl. Faucet -- Belle Forte. I know nothing about the brand but we wanted a single hole, single handle, pullout faucet and it was only about $200 online. So far so good. We also got a Waste King 3/4hp disposal, which is one of my favotite additions because it absolutely liquifies anything in 2-3 seconds. Range -- Bluestar 30" RCS model. Again, because of going with the Ikea cabinets I was able to upgrade to this range and I absolutely love it. I love to cook and this range is awesome. I'll be putting up a more in depth write up soon in the appliances forum, but if you want a cooking machine go with a Bluestar. Dishwasher -- Bosch shx46a05uc. Again, we went with Bosch after deciding on the Ikea cabinets and we love it so far. Very quiet, looks great, and cleans great. We now just scrape off the plates and put them in and they come out sparkling. It is a little smaller inside but the fold down tines really make loading it easy and flexible. The worst thing is the small silverware basket, but we were able to have 12 people here for Thanksgiving and it wasn't an issue when cleaning up. We still have some more finishing details to do, and I'll post the final pics once its done.

I would take back my foolish words, "Just spread that extra dirt over the back corral, it'll help with our drainage issues." That extra dirt was red clay, and the early spring Oregon rain made it too wet to pack down; the mud squished out from either side of the bulldozer treads and we were left with two-feet deep ruts and an unusable corral for our miniature horses. To add insult to injury, the clay turned from a boot-sucking muck to cement seemingly overnight. We had to wait months to have it repaired, and by then bringing a bulldozer back would have been ridiculously expensive. Fortunately, I found a local guy with a tractor who tilled, sloped and packed it perfectly. Our only regrets with the actual build is that I wish both kitchen and bathroom windows werelarger. Perhaps someday...

Nice work! We're in the UK and have done several (mainly) DIY renovations - or restorations as I prefer to call them with them all being at least 100 years old - and have lived on site throughout, so understand how stressful it can be. Our quickest complete restoration took three years, so good on you for making such dramatic progress so swiftly :) Spurs me on to get a wiggle on with our current house! Raphaella x