ok, to clarify, I simply threw that out there,has no bearing on nationality, and their flag is flown correctly, with a light on it even, a light that is blinding to drivers coming down our street,but whatever, it still makes the home look like a more public place where one is used to seeing a "huge" Amer. flag out on the front lawn, but it could be any fraternal club, such as the eagles or the moose lodge, italian etc. which we have attended all of them at sometime...as far as trying to offend me on my beautiful home inside or out, you can not and do not, as we know our neighbors love it! this we know for a fact!!!and ppl have come to our door from surrounding area's to ask, what the color is and where they can have their driveway done...so all you green eyed ppl can carry on, your comments blow right off of me!! because I know the truth of the matter, and I have also read your positive comments on pics of some of your homes that are atrocious! what no guts to speak up then? I make no comments on yours, would not know where to begin! there is one on here looks like a gaudy mexican restaurant, but no comment from me..H--- no! been to many mexican restaurants so this is fact not fiction..now all you mexican ppl, don't get all up in my face, hey we love your food.. LOL this is my final reply on this subject,as to your rude comments, ppl like you are not worth my time.

Finally - After a long day of gathering information and looking into some options, I went by the design studio and got the pictures of ALL the granite (that was medium to neutral or above, didn't take a picture of any of the darks). From Level 1 to Level 3. First off, after talking to the lady at the design studio I was expressing that I didn't like not having the ability to not have a backsplash at all since i'd like to see how my granite turned out before pairing a backsplash with it. She actually informed me that another option may be available. She emailed me back shortly after I gathered all the pictures and left and said "Yes you can do NO SHEETROCK for $200.00 , but we will add paint and texture " .. a little confused, and never owning/building a home before, I basically responded like so: "Is there a difference between sheet rock and dry wall? I assumed they were the same but when you said no sheet rock i began imagining cabinets screwed to the studs but then realized it probably wouldn't pass final inspection like that lol... So if you could elaborate on the difference of those two or what exactly no 'sheetrock' would entail id appreciate it" Her response said: "No there is no difference, but we will paint and texture to pass code ilo (I think she meant in lieu ) of leaving just the drywall showing. Sorry for the dialogue posted it just seemed easier. So with that said I seem to understand, but why are they calling it "No sheetrock?" when in fact there still is sheetrock/drywall, and it's just painted and textured? Can someone give me some more input on this? Or stray me from this all together if it's a terrible idea? To me it sounds like the best route that I can just add whatever backsplash I want to later...I also wonder if they're going to have to put a little 2-4" lip going horizontal at a 90* of the granite against the wall...hmm I don't want that. Also andreak100 - I'm very aware of the time/cost ratio. Time is money, if I spent 5 hours researching a good granite company and contractor, and I could be making my company $50-100/hr, I've now lost $250-500, and thats just in the research. Now down to the fun part! The granite choices. Remember, my cabinets are dark (espresso), and thats our style of what we're going to go with, so the granite should go with that. I think we'd prefer maybe something that was a little more "warm" then in comparison to the "White Tiger" See the attachment, if its not clear enough I'll upload a higher resolution link somewhere.

"and don't rely on technology to always work exactly right." - precisely why it is not required to have your house numbers illuminated by electricity. Frankly, an emergency responder that does not have the proper emergency gear, such as spotlights on the vehicle, and flashlights on their belt, might as well stay home in a blizzard where the power is likely to go out. Would you trust an EMT that didn't come prepared?? If an emergency responder is not able to immediately narrow down the possible houses for a given address to no more than 3 houses on the correct side of the street in the correct block, even when there are no house numbers anywhere, then they need more training. (House numbers are not random) . "Put yourself in the shoes of a visiting friend who is coming to your house for the first time" - If they are coming over unannounced, then there is a 99% chance that they want something for nothing, and they can just keep driving. If they are invited, I will make it obvious for them to find even without numbers.

Sorry - meant to post this earlier, but pesky work calls had to take priority. . . As for choosing a color pallet for your home, again you are looking for harmony. Step 1 - Use poster boards for each room. Add samples of the colors that have to stay. (Can't afford to change or love and won't be changing). This often includes cabinets, countertops, flooring, finishes, appliances, newer furniture that you don't want to replace at this time, art that you love, an area carpet that you love. May also include a fireplace surround or stained glass window. Step 2 - Figure out the colors that make your heart sing. We all have those few colors that just make us happy or sexy or romanic or relaxed when we see them. They bring us joy. Funny how this works - I have found that most people are drawn to colors that look really good on them. These are colors you want in your home. My sisters and I are great examples. Lisa - blond with big blue eyes - decor is country and primary colors are cornflower blue, cream and peach. Susie - olive tone skin, golden brown hair color, brown eyes - looks good in fall colors and muted colors. Home is sage greens, orange reds, muted golds and browns. Betty - light brown eyes, pale skin, hazel eyes - wears a lot of navy and pastels. Bright colors and black make her wash out. Her home colors are light blues, light greens, pastels and tans. Me - I have dark hair, dark eyes and ivory skin. I look great in Red, purple, teals - clear colors. My home decor is dark purples, teals, deep burgundy and taupe. We all picked home colors that look good on us. Didn't think about it when we selected the colors, but it was a natural process. You learn to love what makes you feel good about yourself. Step 3 - adding the colors that you love to the boards. With the colors that must stay, which of the colors that you love can work in each room. This is not your final paint color - it is the basis for your color design. Now think about walking through your home - You can't change the colors that must stay, but you can move the colors that you love around, narrow your selection down to 3 colors that work with what must stay and work with each other (I love purple burgundy and teal. I also love lime green - but eliminated it from my color selections for my house because it doesn't work so well with the other 3 colors.) The three colors that you have selected will be repeated throughout your home. Sometimes using a lighter shade or a slightly more subdued shade or a brighter or darker shade - but the same hue. Step 4 - Find a neutral - This is one of the hardest parts of the process. Finding a neutral that works with everything you have selected. Again, we are looking for a general choice, not the exact color. The basic families are nicely shown by Maria Killam: (Inside colors are the undertones) Hint - red and purple undertones can be much more difficult to work with than the other undertones. Green undertones are probably the easiest to work with. Step 5 - Pulling everthing together. This is where you begin exploring how you want the colors to flow from room to room in your home. Start with your entry - what colors are going to greet you and your guests. Do you want the room to be painted with your neutral or with a color? How bold do you want this first room. What do you want it to say to those who are coming into your home. Safe - paint it neutral and use your furnishings and accessories to add color. Bold - paint the walls orange and placing your sofa and area rug in this room: Now you move from one room to the next - do you want neutral walls or colored? How does it coordinate with the previous room. Will it feel harmoneous as you move from room to room. Using your 3 colors you can use more or less of each color in every room, but always bring a bit of the main color from one room into the next room so that they relate to one another. Think about each room and how you want it to make you and your guests feel. Energized, relaxed, thoughtful, hungry. (Most restaurants use a lot of red and orange colors because they stimulate the appetite. Orange also stimulates social interaction.) Most people use neutral in the main living spaces and hallways, colors in bedrooms, bathrooms, laundry rooms. Dining rooms and kitchens are sometimes color and sometimes neutral. Don't change wall color unless there is an architectural break (The wall ends at a corner or at a post or beam). (Don't try to draw a line down a wall and change colors if two rooms share one wall). Step 6 - Begin selecting wall colors. You really can't see wall color with a tiny sample. You need enough paint to see what it will really look like. I buy samples, but have seen a ton of samples and have a pretty good feel for what I want. If you haven't done this before it can get overwhelming and expensive to buy 100 samples to get to the perfect color. Walls are huge, so a little color goes a long way. It is easy to go too rich, too bright. What looks dull and very neutral on a 2" sample may look very blue or green or pink when you paint a 10'x10'x8' wall. The undertones come to life as we paint larger spaces. As you get to this stage ask more advice on Houzz to help get you close to the perfect color. If you love a color on the 2" sample go about 2 levels more subdued (greyer, muddier) I love the color reviews done by kylie m interiors. You may want to start looking at her blog and videos. https://www.kylieminteriors.ca/  Maria Killam also has some great advice. She is great at explaining undertones. https://www.mariakillam.com/ You can paint your own samples, but this company makes life simple: https://samplize.com/ Let us know how your color scheme is coming along.