Of course after spending quite some time writing my reply and uploading and posting more pics, we have a power outage and I lose everything that I typed.... so here we try again... I photoshopped the tables next to the fabrics... #1 Marrakesh (note once again that the light blue flower is actually pearly off white) #2 Morocco (light blue flower=pearly off white) #3 Honey Ivy #4 Brown Cypress #5 Mykonos Leaf Now onto the questions and comments... equest- there is no rusty red on #1- the points are brown squirrel- thanks for the links, the tables are very pretty. We had originally picked something like those last year, but i fell in love with the mosaic tables when i saw them. I really like the dark brown tile table as well-my favorite of all your links. We are looking for a large oval or rectangular table though... Keep in mind that the medallion pillows will be in the 'chat group' so they won't be directly next to the mosaic table. the only thing near the dining table is the dark orange fabric. sujafr- thanks for the advice.The table we will be getting will be a 72' x 42' oval. They only have pictures of the round ones in the catalog. I believe the table legs are not at the edges. I spoke with the company and the only maintenance needed is to seal it yearly with a marble/granite sealer and to make sure it's covered in the winter to prevent cracking from moisture. Threedgrad- I actually posted a thread asking about the tables about 2 weeks ago. The company is KNF designs and they sell a few of their designs through frontgate(that's how i found them). I'll post the link- you need to download their pdf catalog. They have many beautiful tables in many colors(the colors are more vivid than the pics IRL). The catalog reminds me of an inn we stayed at for our anniversary last year in Santa Fe- called the Inn of the Five Graces. It's courtyard and room decor is what inspired our patio. funkyart- the pillows are from restoration hardware. they come in several colors. I really like the red and orange ones as well. Here is a link that might be useful: KNF designs

As a pure layout I like the peninsula plan best, but I don't like the way it is configured in your space (and that may be what people who don't like it are objecting to). If I understand correctly, the DR is to the right in these pictures? So in the peninsula plan, the people sitting at the peninsula are facing the dining room? Having them walk all the way across the kitchen to reach that peninsula seating is a big part of the reason it doesn't work for me. The awkward dumbwaiter location is another reason. But it's hard to know whether it works or what would work because I don't know what rooms are around the kitchen. In fact, the pictures are so small that I can't even read them properly and figure out which openings are doors and which are windows. If you could sketch out even a rudimentary plan of the entire floor, that would be helpful. Or if you could at least say "the door on the right goes to the dining room, the openings on the left wall are windows, the openings on the bottom wall are doors to X room," etc., that would be helpful. Also, please explain how groceries come in. What door do you bring them through? The reason I in theory would like the peninsula plan best IF it were configured differently is simple: if you can possibly avoid having the sink and range be across an open floor from each other, you should avoid it. Especially in a house with small children or pets. It is just an accident waiting to happen. It can work in a narrow galley kitchen, since children usually don't run around or play in narrow galley kitchens because the cook blocks the aisle. It can also work in a narrow U-shaped layout if the range and sink are closer to the closed end of the U than to the open one, since traffic (including children) tends to stay closer to the open end of kitchens shaped like that. But in a wider or more square-shaped kitchen with counter runs that are open on both ends--that is, a kitchen like yours--it simply isn't safe. You don't want to be dodging children as you carry boiling pasta water from the range to the sink to drain it. In a kitchen like yours it makes the most sense to either put them around a corner from each other, as they are in your peninsula layout, or put them on the same counter run (if you have a long enough stretch of counter to permit sufficient prep-zone space betweent them). Anyway, if you could clarify the overall floorplan, that would be helpful--we could give you much more specific advice.

I'd vote for ceramics in a soft neutral color. The combo of bs and counter you show do not work together tone wise. I really like something like your original ceramic pic with a nice liner tile in it to add a little jazz. We got Daltile from HD for our field tile and the price and selection were good. We were looking for 2 specific colors we could not get just right anywhere else, so went with a neutral color instead, which meant no need to spend for pricier tile. I think if you take your laminate sample and put it next to their display boards, you will find something nice. A herringbone pattern would also be lovely. You want to do something that makes it special or there is no push to the buyer to make them want yours over someone else's. Give them something to be excited about.

UPDATE for 2024: High Country Roses add lots of Autin own-roots to their inventory (sold out to those who ordered early): Jude the Obscure, The Prince, Ambridge Rose, Abraham Darby, W.S. 2000, Othello, Carding Mill, Sophy's Rose, Evelyn, The Dark Lady, Wise Portia, Charles Darwin, Emanuel, Sharifa Asma, Charles Austin, Eglantyne, Lucettta, Molineux, Graham Thomas, Tamora, Noble Antony, Benjamin Britten, Gertrude Jekyll, Mary Rose, Heritage, Tess of d'Urberville and many others. I got my W.S. 2000 from High Country Roses back in 2011. I should had ordered from High Country Roses back in Nov. 2023, it's only $23.95 per own-root Austin. High Country Roses in CO now ships roses to Canada.