Okay, since I have the Lantana, I will plant it - I needed the pink and yellow to balance the purple pincushion and salvia up front. But, boy, shebear, do you know the magic words - :) I have Sundown, and Tiki Torch, and Double Delight in that bed, and just found Coconut Lime at Lowes - it was too lime to put behind the golden mound spirea in front of the tree, so I squirreled it in elsewhere until I can rearrange in fall...And am moving some things so I can add Twilight to the Double Delight next year, and got my eyes on Green Eyes for accent plants in front - coneflower? Hmm, yes, I could do that....:) Thanks for the reassurance ya'll. terry

Sorry for the absence, I was so busy yesterday. Okay, lots to digest here. I have to admit that I love how the chest looks in the foyer. I feel like it gives the foyer presence. I will try to move it into the living room to see how it looks there though. The bench with the mirror hanging above would look nice. I have the mirror on the floor in the dining room because I thought I would hang it above a buffet (once I can afford one). As far as the big painting in the corner of the LR, I can't figure out where to put that. In the old house it hung above my couch. I'm thinking of maybe hanging it above my bed now. It seemed too large for the corner space in the LR. I do have a lot of other paintings (mostly smaller ones) that I have to figure out where to hang. I'm so scared of making holes in my newly painted walls that I am having huge commitment issues!! It is so hard to decide what to put where and I tend to change my mind a lot ;) As far as the plant, I agree it is looking pretty sparse. It went into shock when we moved, I am trying to coax it back, it may take awhile though. Another question, do you think the painting is too small for over the fireplace? I also have these ceramic candleholders, would they look good on either side of the painting? Also, do you envision curtains or roman shades for this room? If we were in there at night, I would close whatever was there for privacy from the street. Thanks!

OP: good suggestions to google/houzz/pinterest your cab color and see what others have done to start to narrow down your likes. Truly, the only was you will find what you love is: take a door off and go to the stone yard and hold it up and see what you think. we can suggest all we want, but when you go to the stone yard and look at Taj, as an example, t might not work since the color variations are all not exactly the same. you have a 'warm' kitchen, you need a 'warm' counter. anything that reads mostly gray, more than likely, will be cool and will not work. as others have suggested: pick your counter first, then B/S. and only one should be the star. also, are you keeping the 4" b/s? if so, normally, you do not need a tile b/s. i do agree with you, i would not love that granite. you can re-use in a powder room, make table/end tables/ outdoor side table etc to reuse it.

I think lighting should be purposeful and I don't see a reason to illuminate those areas. A light at the bottom of the staircase would illuminate a few steps and the surrounding floor. Why? For the staircase, I'd consider putting a ceiling light above the staircase or a wall-mounted, downward-focused light on the wall above the staircase that faces the staircase door. -- amateur