I love stone walls. Go to Ireland, they are EVERYWHERE, and they always look great. Regarding slope, I think you are better off with small steps, rather than trying to slope your wall. In books I've read, they suggest small steps are more stable than a downward sloping wall. Of course, it all depends on what kind of stone you are using, and the degree of slope. You should be able to use a wall as both freestanding and as a small retaining wall. Retaining walls may be somewhat easier to build, because you only need to worry about what one wall face looks like, rather than two. I would also keep the wall low, 2 feet high is big enough to look substantial, and a comfortable height for sitting on. I suggest going to the library or a bookstore and look through lots of stone books to try to find a photo of what you are trying to do, with the kind of rocks you have available. I find just having a picture that's close to what I'm trying to do helps me so much in visualizing the end result on MY property. Another thing is to print off pictures of your landscape and draw pictures of the wall you want right on the pictures. It also really helps to visualize the final result. Good luck! You are ambitious!

Thank you so much everybody! First I will change the mat color in DS's pictures. I think I have some but if not, out come the paints! Next I'm going to look for some more casual pictures of him and probably change one to someone else. I can see how the hunt scene doesn't tie in with the others so I've an idea. I have some really good photos from a civil war re-enactment on horseback that I will frame to see if it ties in more. I do want to expand it a little so the Church painting won't seem so stuck on. I have a long skinny black table that I'm thinking of putting there. It is much wider than the hutch base. Most of these are hung with the 3M strips so re-positioning them will be fairly easy. I love those things! Thanks again, I really appreciate everybody's eye and comments. :) Patty

This is an excerpt from something I received in today's mail: It's Thanksgiving afternoon. You've had turkey, stuffing potatoes, cranberries - all the fixings. You've had pie (both apple and pumpkin). And right about now you're thankful you're wearing pants with an elastic waist. It's time to watch another game or perhaps figure out which sales to hit with the start of the holiday shopping tomorrow. But isn't there something more to this holiday? Thanksgiving is the perfect opportunity to slow down and take stock of what's really important in your life. So before the meal, or right after, while everyone is still seated at the table, invite each family member to state something they're thankful for....Here are a copy of suggestions to keep the good thoughts flowing throughout all the holidays and into the upcoming year. 1. Accept, Acknowledge and Appreciate - Let these replace the Three C's - Complaining, Condemning and Criticizing. 2. Do something for someone else - those less fortunate than you. 3. Put it all in perspective - It's often easy to lose perspective on exactly how much we do have. It's easy to feel less than satisfied with your lot in life...Remember, what you have is always greater than what you need. 4. Focus on the positive - Keeping a positive outlook will change your entire perspective, as people have a tendency to remember the bad things as vividly as the good. Keep a gratitude journal containing only positive entries. Look for positive outcomes from tough events. This goes on but I think the bottom line is to keep things in perspective. I'm a perfectionist, too, and we completed our kitchen remodel about 18 months ago. I know where you are coming from, but if you focus on the fact that you have a new kitchen and it's a great improvement from what you had before, your perspective will probably change. Get that positive journal going with daily entries - you'll most likely find you ease up. As a last resort, ask yourself 2 questions that were regularly asked of me during our remodel - 1. Will this kitchen bring us world peace? and 2. Will this kitchen solve world hunger? Bottom line, it's only a kitchen. Happy Thanksgiving.

First things first...Why is the Brooklyn Bridge hung sideways??? Then...Why are there pictures at knee height? Literally. The top frame of the bottom row is no more than 20" above the stair that it's next to. Take out the bottom 7 frames and put some of them above the remaining ones. Ditch the tiny ones. I would never put frames with glass along a stair (and especially at the bottom of a landing). Stairs are the most dangerous places to walk in a house, and all it takes is one errant grab to stop a fall and you'll have a serious wound. Overall, I think it's too busy, with no theme (even a loose one). It's too random, and looks like it's space fillers from a décor store. I love cats, but that just looks like a gimmick. Get some personal stuff up there.