Have you tried Oxy Clean? Sandy

Thanks for the compliments everyone. I can't take the credit for the design though. I had admired the glass mosaic work of a local artist at a fundraising Showhouse at the Shore. It turns out she had trained in Italy and also did marble mosaics. I told her that I wanted an all over floral mosaic in neutral colors. She did a spectacular job. Her website is www.custommosaicdesign.com Although she has been doing mosaics for many years, she is now just making it her profession instead of a hobby. Thanks for the ideas. It looks kind of bare to my eyes so I am glad to hear that it looks okay as is. I love the idea of a reverse color border-I hadn't thought of that. I also like the idea of leaving as is. Someone walked off with my tile saw and I don't feel like buying a new one. I kind of assumed that backsplashes always had tile. If you guys think it doesn't look unfinished-I may leave it. I have enough 4x4 to do 2 or 3 rows across the bottom but I can always use them in another place. I do have issues with splatters on the wall since that seems to be where I do all my prep work (not on the butcher block like I planned). And although this house is not a flip-I am always looking for a fixer upper with great bones AND basement so I always do things as if I may sell at any time. I think I'll tape the 4x4s to cardboard tomorrow so I can your opinion. They are really pretty; I just don't know if they will add anything. Someone asked about paint. It is Benjamine Moore Aura line in the color Tumeric. The Aura paints are fabulous-they are so worth the extra money. Low VOC, self-priming, scrubbable and have a recoat time of 1 hour. I know I sound like a paint ad but this line is unbelievable. I am in the process of painting my whole house (1 more room to go) and I LOVE this paint. Here is a link that might be useful: Mosaic Artist

Kind of. I have a photo of where it is (not of the actual space - that I will get when I get home). And a poorly drawn kitchen floorplan. The pantry is gone, there will be either shelves or something put in there, or a spot for hanging broom/mop etc. Also, the lovely wooden shelf we built will be removed as well. I'm just not sure if it would be better as the kitchen colour or something else. It is the main entry to the house. Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen/foyer

Keep the shutters to one color. Black with a hint of brown might be nice. Then paint the downspouts and gutter that same color. Ben Moore shades of black: Link The shutters on the upper windows are too large. If you imagine the purpose of shutters, which is to close over the windows, you can see that they need to be a couple inches shorter. Can you find some way to clean the white streaking on the brick? I would not paint the front door black. The front door should stand out and be welcoming. It looks like you have a beautiful solid wood door. Would it be possible to sand and stain it? If you feel you must paint it, I would lean towards a color that goes with the orange-y brick. Green? Maybe a red that leans towards orange (rather than a blue-ish red)? You could improve the curb appeal by removing those large bushes and replacing with some nice foundation plantings. With curb appeal, it is all about the details, such as a nice light fixture next to the door, pretty chair on the porch, removing the Christmas lights . . . For more ideas, try posting this on the Home Decorating forum.