my $.02 too first thing i always tell anybody who asks me about what to do in their yard (i'm not a pro ) is: 1. live with it until you decide how you are going to use it and start making a list of what you wnat to do. 2. live with it some more until you know how it works- where is the sun/shade,wet/dry etc. 3. draw a map of your yard/house, circle and itentify what you want to do where-- will it work in that area. examples. i live on a city lot 50x125. the house was built in the 20's, it's 25 feet from the street. the drive runs from the street to the rear of the back yard, but there is no garage. we had twin 2 year old when we moved in. #1 need was a fence to contain them. thats what we put up as we moved in. after living there for a year we knew we wanted an area to dry clothes on the line. an area for the kids to play in -- including a swing set/sandbox and fort. we wanted an area to grill in/eat out. an area to relax in that wasn't in the sun. all this we wanted to do in the back yard. in the front yard we wanted to use as an entry way that welcomed people. I was willing to spend 1-2 hrs per week doing yard work as well as a spring and fall clean-up. in reality i' only willing to spend about 1 hour perweek. This means i need to rely on perinneials and tough plants that don't need lots of care. our 3 major problems with the yard were too many trees, the back third of the back yard was low, slow draining, and never got sun (think mud for 6 months of the year or more) and heavy clay soil.` year one we cut down 42 trees from the lot -- most were over 8" in diameter. We kept an ancient hickory (58" diameter), a young hickory (14" diameter) a maple(12" diameter) and three pin oaks (all about 14" in diameter). we ran a clothes line along one side of the back yard. since the back third of the yard was in heavy shade and only mud. we topped it with 18 tons of pea gravel-- put in the swingset, fort in the maple tree and a large sandbox. also we made a sitting area and put the wading pool there. no sunburns while the kids played, no more mud, cool and shady. we use the drive as a patio. but all this took us three years to achieve-- time to observe etc. nowe that the kids are 18, i can replace the fort/swingset with a shed for storage. the sand box is used for forcing winter publs and as a temporary holding bed. the lay out of the clothes line is being changed so i can increase the area where i have flower bed and so that it isn't so obvious now that we can entertain. also i'm finally able to start putting in plants i truly want as the soil has been built up over the years with many applications of compost, mulch, topsoil, sand and peat. i'm losing my big hickory-- maybe 10-15 more years, but i started a replacement for it in a better spot that a future owner will appreciate. but what you need to do lis figure out what you will do in the yard, what you want to see from the house, what you whant to see from the road. where do you always go into the house from? where do you want guest to go when they arrrive? where do you needx a shovel in the winter. then you need to read read read about plants and ask questions. as some one said you can always move the plant-- i'm ready to rip out my front flower beds for the 5th time because i finally think i have a plan that will work right for me-- i have homes for all the plants in these beds in other areas of my yard. so cut rake compost plant annuals stick in bulbs find plants you like and learn for a year or so then satart putting in the 'bones' of your garden and then start filling in the gaps. diggerb

I have soapstone with light to medium grey slate/bluestone look tile. Unfortunately, I am traveling this week and cant take any pics. You might be able to see a glimpse of the floors if you search my name. I love them. Very glad I didnt go with wood. The floors lend to the earthyness of the soapstone and it goes well. The name of the tile is Edigres Tibet Grey. My soapstone is not very busy, fwiw.

This is my FAVORITE FAVORITE GW kitchen. It has soul and personality. I look at your pictures and just want to wander in there and linger, feeling the coziness and healing properties of that welcoming and nurturing space. It feels like a li'l ol' soft grandma with arms outstretched waiting to hug me. It does NOT remind me of so many cold, hard casket like fancy kitchens in the pictures. This one has a warm heartbeat throughout. Fantastic job, and I'm sure with the elbow grease/blood/sweat/tears you put into her you'll love her all the more over the years!!

I read and learn from these forums more than I post. But I had to smile when I saw the rug you chose, because I bought the White Ice color version for our living room a few months ago! It is funny, because I would have likely skimmed right over it while surfing website photos. But I found mine in a Home Goods store and the colors and pattern appeared to be perfect for our LR. My style has changed radically since we bought our house and I was not sure of the reaction of the rest of the family. But everyone loves this rug. Even the interior designer that was here for our shutters asked where I found it. While checking online to see if my purchase was at a good price, I saw your White Nickel version and loved it, too. HomeNoobie, I think you are going to love your rug even more when you see it in your LR. The design strikes a nice balance of interesting, without being too much. This post was edited by Gyr_Falcon on Thu, Feb 21, 13 at 1:39