Thank you all for your very kind words. I really appreciate it because it's scary venturing out of the box in decor. There's sometimes a fine line between "wow" and "yuck." It's very comforting to think maybe I'm staying on the right side of that line. Hi Debbimc and welcome! Yes the entryway light fixture is too modern. I will haunt CL for a deal. It took me over a week of work to hand paint that border, but I probably should paint it out. Or, I could continue it through the DR but it was so much work. The legal bookcase can go downstairs when I can get some help in carrying it. Thanks about my furniture. Moonkat, I'm eagerly awaiting threads where you reveal pics of the inside of your house (did I miss some and if so can you give the urls, please?). I think we all should decorate with whatever turns us on. If you start with antiques, you don't have to worry about fads. You're *always* out of style. hehe. Yeah, doesn't Les have a wonderful eye for things? I love the more gentle, rounded look of the chairs she suggested, plus they sure look comfy. Cooperbailey, yes the big window is Gallery Glass. You all can do it! I think I will spray the rocker black and trim it with a wee bit of gold. If it's still not good there I can always move it downstairs or sell it. It's just my favorite seat when company comes. Thanks for the tips about restore a finish -- very good for us all to know. Looks like you had great results with it. Walkin ~~ I stopped at the hardware store today for spray black paint and a drop cloth. I'm going to hit all the chairs with it and reupholster the seats, which is easy. Then live with it while I look for something better. When/if I sell them on CL I should get more for them as I've fixed them up. Painting is a ton easier than stripping. So I just parked my car outside for the night and I'll see if I revive enough energy to do a little sanding/painting tin the garage. Jerseygirl ~~ Thanks so much for looking for a chandy for me. I'm thinking masses of crystal, but I'll haunt CL with your idea in mind too, and see what I can find. Pictures would be most welcome. Another possibility is an art deco fixture. Dilly ~~ Wow, you supplied a ton of really creative, fun ideas. Much for me to think about. I never would have thought about sticking crystals into the existing light fixture. You are so clever! YUM on that chandy you pictured. Parma ~~ Thanks for your thoughts on the lawyer's cabinet. I can't move it immediately. It really is a versatile piece, isn't it? You can display anything in there, I think. I love it. Slateberry ~~ What an interesting idea! I love to mess around with paint. Patser ~~ Yes the DR table is oak and I love the grain of it. Right... I think the chairs might be fruitwood, as I recall, but no visible grain. Wow, those chairs are gorgeous! WAY too much money, but gorgeous. I'm going to continue to haunt CL I think. Meanwhile, I'll see what I can do with these chairs to improve their looks. I'm thinking about the set of chairs I have that are not comfy and they're probably perfect for that table. I can't remember, but I think they are oak but need to be stripped. I just wish they were comfy.

Thanks. The 2 windows are the same style except that the one in the DR is only 43 inches high and the LR/FR is floor to ceiling. The DR faces west so I need some way to block out the sun so that it is not shining directly in our faces when we use the DR. Most nights it's just my husband and I and we eat at the breakfast bar/island in the kitchen. Any suggestion for a style for the DR? Mai lynn

I think a green would be very complementary to your lovely dining room furniture. It will enhance the wood tones and fabric. It appears that the fabric on the chairs has multiple colors starting with a terracotta, then gold tone, then green, then gold and back to terra cotta. Am I seeing that correctly? If so I might consider matching the green in the fabric, or maybe a shade darker for impact.

Red: Initially, I was thinking of doing it in time for Thanksgiving, but couldn't get everything together in time, then since Johna so kindly offered me her fabric, I had to make use of it--so we can all blame Johna I'm in the midst of this project two weeks before Christmas. JK!! :) I glad you are enjoying the detailed photos. I wanted to document it all as sometimes people just see the before and after, but the during photos I find the most educational for people considering a similar project--plus let's me know if I'm on the right track. I think this is the most challenging application I've done so far with RAF. I did my drum tables first and they turned out beautiful, but these are much more distressed. It's a tough call what to do as I'm worried if I scrub too much I'll rub the existing finish off--which I think I may have done a bit in the photos I posted above as I don't remember it looking quite that worn before I started. But, the shield area are all quite dark--patina or dirt?? Who knows? I'm finding there I can scrub harder, but that area is still darker than the rest. Perhaps that is all the patina? I'm wondering if the wood/finish is sensitive to sun as my tables leaves are also quite a bit darker--can't even think about doing the table right now--summer project for sure since I'm freezing my b*tt off in the garage. For all this work, I'd say $50 per chair is pretty good. I'm finding it takes me one hour per chair to do RAF, and another hour per seat to remove and I've not started the reupholstery yet. One good thing is that the original upholsterer marked a center line on the seat bottoms where I noticed he then used to line up the stripes so they went even from top to bottom plus he used the same stripe for the centers of all the chairs. I'm going to do mine the same. For me (personally), I find a kinship with the original craftsman when I work on this furniture and can more fully appreciate all of the nuances that went into the construction--which I think is probably getting to be a lost art.