I can't tell long that walkway to the house is, but since you already have some nice things growing there, I'd leave the phlox and catmint and stick in maybe 2 or 3 smaller roses spaced far enough apart that the phlox and catmint have room to grow in between. Two possibilities occur to me for the periodically spaced roses: a three-ft rose (contrast in size with the other plants there, plus would provide an rounder, more "solid" shape periodically)-- lets say Our Lady of Guadalupe or the floribunda Easter Basket. They are both good bloomers/rebloomers and both are quite good on disease-resistance. Pretty Jessica would be about the right size and has a lovely bloom--but mine doesn't bloom as continuously as Our Lady or Easter Basket does. I would not use Queen of Sweden for this purpose--mine grows 4-5 ft tall--too tall for the front walk, in my opinion. Since the two I recommend are lighter colored, the blue catmint and maybe something darker like you have along the front of the house would form a nice contrast. The other choice I'd consider would be several mini roses along the walkway. My yellow Sweet Diana is a heavy bloomer and frequent rebloomer (and disease resistant)--about 1.5 to 2 ft tall, good full bushy look for a little fellar. It would fit in nicely and the cheerful yellow would look very welcoming. Or a different style mini would be Green Ice--a very full but more sprawling mini that blooms white (with slight coral hue when it first opens and a slight greenish hue in cooler weather). It grows about 1.5 ft high and wide--maybe even a bit more on the width. With the white Green Ice, you would have to make sure that some of the perennials in between the roses formed some contrasting colors (and shapes). Or maybe a combination of Sweet Diana and Green Ice and another mini in bright pink or red--someone else would have to recommend one of those, especially if you want good bloom/rebloom and disease-resistance. Have fun plannning--lots of roses to dream over! Kate

Another slant on the open containers, but I can't say that it would work in your temperatures and really am not suggesting you try it unless you had a few seeds to experiment with - this really may be climate specific. When I started winters sowing those things that require cold treatment - many perennials, trees, shrubs - many, many years ago and before I even had a computer, I got the suggestion from an English gardening magazine article. My climate is just about a mirror image of England, winter temps will almost average (day/night) that of my refrigerator that I'd been using, and I started out sowing as done by English gardeners, pots topped with grit or even fine aquarium gravel, no covers. I still do it that way (but don't WS annuals or vegetables). There is no possibility my pots will dry out over winter, I've never watered one yet....coastal Washington. The grit keeps gully washer rains from dislodging seed. Potting soil with adequate drainage prevents water logged pots...and I do sow in nursery pots. The only issue I've had are with sparrows sometimes disturbing the pots, and one year a chipmunk surprised me by planting sunflower seeds for me - a length of chicken wire across the top of groups of pots discourages both. If you lived someplace along the I5 corridor between Seattle and Portland or west of there to the ocean, I might suggest you try the method for hardy plants - but clearly you do not :)

I don't go about decor with warm or cool in mind, more with the space in mind and the related spaces. I lean towards warm, with a deep love of gold, burgundy, copper, etc, but will also toss in a cool colored room if it flows. I am currently thinking about how to do this victorian...and I'll probably do the majority of it in pretty warm colors taking a clue from the original draperies that exist (gold, green and copper) and to compliment the wood (i don't love wood with cool colors). But I think up in the servents quarters I'm going to go ahead and embrace my cool side. The rooms are darker than the rest of the house, and being former attic overlooking gardens and the bay, I think they call for softer cool tones in silvery gray and soft yellows maybe even a lovely soft blue or silvery green (no hospital green or peach LOL YUCK...this is because we were patients verses staff Vamp...I betcha no patient loves hospital green LOL) I just have to make this flow from the gold walls of the hall...it will be a fun challenge, and I'm bringing in a pro so I don't screw it up LOL

greenhaven, your blue former kitchen is really lovely! It's funny how warm it feels even though it's a cool colour. I would love to try induction at some point. It almost seems like magic. Just an FYI: I ended up buying a gas range on sale at Costco. I just think it's better for resale and it'll certainly be more functional. I'm now also leaning towards a more modern kitchen (with a few retro touches, maybe), as I think it will fit the house better. So a gas range works better looks-wise too. Later on, I'll post some more ideas about finishes and cabinet styles and all that. I think I'll need some help narrowing down the look. I find I like a lot of different things!