Thank you all for your feedback & good ideas...I appreciate....what fun! purplemoon...the hammered alum. server was a buy on a day trip many yrs ago with good women friends...got it at an antique store...but it's been stored in kitchen cupboards most of the time! Cleaning over these winter days...and thought I don't have to put "food" in it...I can decorate! Ummm...must be some influence flowing thru the air towards Iowa! sorie & DiningD...I love that winter farm print also...and those sheep called to me at a specialty store shopping day...thank U...sorie, your dog must be beautiful! And all of you, who suggested some "red" by coffee set...thank U, too...I am working on that...tried some picks I had here at home, but they looked quite Christmas-y...so I am on the look out for smaller faux berries or rose petals. luckygal & homergal...happy to hear about your buttons! they are such a pleasure to have just sitting around! I buy them at GS's & estate sales ...the jar I bought empty at a GS. I have a winter project to do yet with buttons...a cream colored pitcher & 300-400 white buttons, diff sizes..you Silconed II glue them to it...and at the neck of the pitcher, add white floral or acquarium pebbles..I saw this in a book from lib...looks ery pretty! Took me all summer & fall until I found a "pitcher" I could use for the right price! LOL! LOL! Yup, Luvs & LuckyG...I've had to :re-fill" that goblet with Kisses already! And, Jane, no food for baby doll...cause then she'd look at me like I'd HAVE to FEED her! But one of Luv's fax cookies would look cute on her tray! froufrou...I will try the baby's breath...& silk petals..thank U. I do love this buffet! It makes my dining area so much smaller & a bit tighter for the person seated on that side...but it is worth it...a lovely treasure! :-) OA...and I love using birds, thanks OA! jaybird...Thank U...tried a faux snowy pine branch on centerpc...but the needles very long & looked too big...I'll experiment some more. I did add a 4th red votive last night...found one after Christmas clearance at PierI. Last note...it is "sunny" here again...very cold...but I will be happy to send this snowy weather to anyone who wants some! Jeanne S.

Too late to help now but maybe someone else will benefit. I gel stained my Pella fiberglass entry door 6.5 years ago and it looked great! Used Minwax gel stain and their spar varnish, as directed by Pella. However, it did not stand up to weather at all. It chipped and had to be varnished again every 6 months. This Spring it chipped all the way through to the fiberglass and pulled stain with it! Believe me, I did everything properly. My door faces south east and has no roof. But a neighbor whose fiberglass door faces north had the same trouble - he used the same products as I. My neighbor got disgusted and stripped his down to fiberglass and restained it with Sikkens products 3 years ago. No trouble since. Sikkens makes a Door and Window stain that does not require varnish over top. Fortunately for me, just before I started stripping about 36 layers of varnish off my door, it delaminated! Pella brought me a new unfinished slab (under warranty) and I'm using Sikkens to stain it. I've been told the varnish is the trouble. It's like putting a sheet of glass against the door, trapping the heat. Plus it isn't flexible enough to expand and contract. If I put up a storm door to protect it, the problem would've been worse due to trapped heat. Sikkens is specifically made for fiberglass doors. I don't have any vested interests in the company but thought I'd try to help the next guy... Here is a link that might be useful: Sikkens Door and Window stain

Thank you sena01, Jillius and mama goose. My computer is down as we had to pack up the desk or the family room flooring so I had to take a photo on my phone of the plans I have with more dimensions. Since we are moving our kitchen to a new location, window sizes can be changed. I think a 48x36 would work above my sink window. Sadly, the window will now face the side of our house which isn't super attractive.. Just a fence and some vines. I have plans for a Prep sink on the island but I'm not sure what size I should get. I originally thought a 66" island might give me more breathing room as opposed to 72" but will that make for a functional island? A peninsula could be a possibility, but I worry that I will always be walking around it when setting the table or clearing as the new dining table/area will go to the right if the beverage bar. The family room/dining room is 28 ft long. The family room is long and narrow (11 ft wide where the fireplace is and 15 ft where the fireplace ends...where my family room will be. Where the plans show where the steam combi oven will go, I can chance the cabinet to a 24" as opposed to the 30" shown. Thank you so much for all of your suggestions! If you can see the attached photo, I would love more suggestions. -Susanne

I'm sorry Patricia, you're right, I was unclear about that part of my post. I went to a store, they ordered the tub, it was shipped by the factory to me through an independent shipping company. It arrived damaged - twice. Neither the store nor the factory will take responsibility for damage caused by the shipper, other than refunding our money. I am wondering if there are any retailers (other than Home Depot or Lowes) who will take responsibility for getting an undamaged tub delivered to us.