Glaze is currently not in fashion. But our motto on GW is always to get "what you love". That said, sometimes people are disappointed in how the glaze turns out. So be careful if you go this route to choose a company with a high success rate. Also, you need to see how the white plays off in your own kitchen. I have BM White Dove, some here have said it is creamy. In my kitchen it reads bright white. What color white you get depends on what direction you want to go with your kitchen. For example, with bright white, you would not want to go with a brown counter. There is a current thread where people are posting their kitchens. You can also go to the Finished Kitchen blog here although some there are not curent. Take the Sweeby test. This can help you decide if you like cool or warm. My own advise to to try to have a basic vision of your three elements:the color of the cabinets, the color and type of counter and the backsplash. This is not cut in stone, but you can avoid the mistake that many of us have made. When it comes to the backsplash, many of us become a "deer in headlights!" Some have taken months and years to do the backsplash.

Thank you everyone for all your inputs. I will look into the other trees that you guys have suggested. I guess I'm reaching for the stars having that combination of contradicting parameters--> strong structure that will grow fast and stay small. I suppose if I took out the tree swing requirement, that would open up a whole lot more choices as there are many rapid growing small trees available (will just have to make that swing some other way). One of the reasons I like the October Glory (my apologies for calling it Red October - I must have been thinking of the movie..) is it's beautiful autumn color. But I can't have a 50 foot tree on that spot. Among other things, I don't want to take out a big part of my next door neighbors view of the lake as well. Our houses are on top of a slope, so a 50-foot crown will be at about eye level and will directly block the view. So the search continues, but this time with a more doable set of parameters. I just want a rapid growing tree, under 30 ft. tall that will grace us with a beautiful color during the autumn months. And of course, disease resistant would help too. By the way, I am in western CT, region (6a).

Good day, we are getting a late start planting on the coast. I have four soil types (Ground, Organic Seed Starter, Cactus Soil, and Perlite) Seeds that we have are various flowers, Magnolia Delavayi, Aloe Species Mix, Kiwi (vine), Herbs (Thyme, Basil, Cilantro, Oregano, Parsley, Sage), Tiger Lily, and Goji Berry. Was wondering what type of soil to use for each seeds and idea with Kiwi and Goji would be to get them started for next season. Is it possible for Kiwi and Goji to survive a couple cold snaps in the winter? It does not drop below 0 very often here. Or, is it possible to keep them inside a couple months in the winter with sun exposure? Thank you for your time :)

Beverly, I like the look you created. However, I just got the wall painted. It is a high ceiling so I cannot repaint myself. It is sand color (Wise Owl by Kelly Moore). I am hoping for the grey sofa, sand walls and brown floors to be the neutral colors that will not stand out. Only the blush/pink accents to pop. I did the opposite in the other room with brown floor, grey walls and brown sofa. and teal color for pop. Will light grey sofa achieve this goal better than dark grey?