I find all clematis easy to grow if planted deeply in the spring or fall and given occasional fertilizer (I use alfalfa cubes) and pruned back late fall or early spring. Keep in mind they are slow growers and may take three years to have lots of blooms. Young clematis occasionally have clematis wilt. Cut back the wilted stems and they will regrow. This has only happened to a few of the over 90 clematis that are growing in my gardens. Any pruning type 3 is easy to care for, just cut it back close to the ground each spring or late fall after there is no chance of regrowth. They are also usually long blooming. My oldest, Mm Julia Correvon blooms from June until frost. Most viticellas are type 3 and long blooming though they are smaller flowers. Betty Corning is a type 2 that is long blooming and some say it is fragrant though it must be too subtle for my nose. Type 2s are pruned to new growth in the spring though many people cut them back hard like type 3s. Fireworks is a type 2 that has a huge bloom in June and then lesser bloom throughout the summer and fall for me. Mildew seems to be a problem in parts of the country that are warmer and more humid than my area. None of my clems have ever had mildew. I think a light colored clematis would brighten up that area in the afternoon shade.

Despite crashboombang's interesting idea (and fabulous name!), I think you will never get anything to work with your lovely old brick, and it sounds like a huge messy task. The baseboard, in my view, would make the space more residential in feeling than leaving it out, but I think it's a fine idea to wait until you've done everything else, and see how you feel then. As to the wall, I'd think about painting it the color of the ceiling, and then I'd hang a whacking big mirror in a dull gold frame on it for sparkle, drama, and relief from the darkness. Assuming you can find one without having to sell one of your children....

No question is a dumb question in remodeling. I usually lightly hammer the corner from the top down. This will generally knock some of the mud off and expose the edge. Then carefully do as you said w/ a razor knife and score along the edge making repeated passes and getting all the way through the wall board. Take your time with this and be careful, wear gloves and safety glasse. Then take a flat bar and placing the flat bar on the metal edging, pull the nails from the metal. A nail puller works best to get the nails started, but the flat bar will do less damage. If it's stubborn, you can cut the metal in sections and get your flat bar behind at the cut and pry out that way. Once you get a section out, the rest is easier. Your going to be retaping that joint where the old meets new, but with a little patience, you can save a little time by doing as little damage as possible getting the corner metal off. If some damage does occur, remember that wall board is an easy fix which makes it nice to work with. Concerning the width variances in the framing, the existing is dried and has shrunk over the years, the new will be "wetter" even if it's kiln dried lumber and could be slightly wider than the old. It might not be enough to worry about, but if around a 1/4" or so wider you might consider planing it down to size of the old.

On the ceiling, what kind of plywood did you use? usually luan is cheapest good looking plywood in HD, so that's what I have used mostly. Did you paint the designs with a brush or stencil them? stained designs are painted with a very small brush. How did you keep the stain from bleeding out to surrounding areas? Fist I make a stencil and trace the design with pencil and then fill in with stain, making sure that I have very little stain on the brush. What brand of stain did you use? I have always used Minwax --------------------------------------- wondering what to do with them. I would love to do this! Have you written up any instructions for how you did it? Or could you tell us please? What product(s) did you use? Decosup How did you transfer your design to the concrete? I drew the design on the floor with pencil based on smaller scale design on the paper Did you mask off areas? it was not necessary, as My husband cut the lines around the design before I stained and that prevented most of the bleeding issues. How did you apply the product? with the cheap foam brushes from HD What do's and don't's did you learn along the way? Don't too it on a hot day, the stain dries too quickly and you will not get as deep color. Thanks very much for any help you can give me! Where did you learn to do all this? Trial and error ;) Do you do this type of work for your job? Not yet at least, I have thought about doing it professionally but I am really lousy sales person, so this might for ever be just my obsession and hobby :) PS. I have a long e-mail I send to people that ask about my concrete work, so if you want to receive it, drop me an e-mail.