Sorry Parma--I guess I had Ingrid in my brain from looking at other posts. I am buying this sofa in a leather that is very close to the color in the picture--the color I am getting is 9474-85.I flipped between this brown & the darker browns. I need chairs, pillows, tables & new paint. My plan is to wait on paint until I get the sofa & chairs. I have been choosing the sofa for about 3 months now--I am very indecisive perrson by nature. I am having fun with it but ready to nail the sofa decision down & move on.

Ok , so I was told by my guy to go to a local stone placenta. They told me sierra isn't available around here in that particular brick shape (important because it's a well-priced option and we are already spending a ton of money between the porch steps, front walkway and huge back patio area). so I got some other options, shown here against our charcoal painted porch and BM revere pewter painted brick: The top two are by another manufacturer. And I was told by the salesperson that the second one is the most popular of that brand but I'm not sure how I feel about it with my paint colors. Thoughts? As always, you guys have been so helpful.

?? I see no pavers....just some pieces of lumber. Do you have something for us to choose from? A paver style as well? Personally, I would find the switch from concrete walkway to pavers to whatever is surfacing the landing visually distracting for such a small area. Too many materials in too small an area. And your walkway is seriously undersized as well. Either pick concrete to extend from wherever (driveway?) to the landing but at the full width of the step or remove and replace with a complimentary colored paver walkway for the full length and again at the full width of the step. Anything else will just look cobbled together and niggardly. You want to enhance your entry....not have it detract from what appears to be an attractive home.

In the Boston area all gypsum board is normally finished with "veneer plaster", commonly called "blueboard" since the gypsum board is a blue-grey color. In its simplest form, its an 8th of an inch thick skim coat of real plaster (not joint compound) troweled on by hand. The finishers use special hinged stilts and make sweeping motion with the trowel and move unbelievably fast. Its usually cheaper then taped drywall because it requires less time and there is no sanding. It does require more skill but its easy to find in this area probably because of the plaster tradition brought over from the old country (primarily Ireland) that shifted from horsehair plaster to veneer plaster in the 50's and 60's. At any rate, no one wants taped drywall after seeing veneer plaster. It can have any texture you want but I've never seen it other than smooth. Its so beautiful I've see it left unpainted. Its more difficult to damage the surface, easy to rear and paint lasts much longer. If you drive west of Boston it doesn't take long for it to no longer to be available. Someone could make a fortune spreading this skill across the country. Here's a link to a video from Ths Old House. Ads from Home Depot: