Apologies for the long absence. *sigh* Our desktop crashed, and I may have a bit as well. :) We're still waffling. I'm glad I didn't order anything months ago. The space is mysteriously getting more and more contemporary. Two weeks ago, DH and I wanted Option #2. This week, it's #3. The cabinets turned out so sleek! Definitely, though, I'm thinking pewter or brushed nickel or chrome to go with the appliances and faucet. I think those of you who said it'd be too much going on are right. That poor chandelier is just going to have to stand alone. I bet I'll get used to it with time. Mysterymachine, your post makes me laugh every time I read it! I should give your vote extra influence, with that amazing kitchen you turned out. (Okay, now I feel I need a disclaimer; bc everyone's kitchen is amazing!) Laurie, thanks for the vote! Flowerchild, thanks for the link. Those pulls would be great with the chandelier but a bit heavy with the other kitchen elements. Ok, a couple of OT thoughts. First, now that I'm fully recognizing my split-personality decorating style, I really get how some of you have done this several times. Second.... rats, I need more coffee. Completely forgot. Maybe something about how organic this process has been even though I thought I had a set plan long ago. Amy, np with your question. Thanks for bumping this back up, though I missed it Sunday. (I wanted to respond to the last three posters but hesitate about dragging my issues back up after so long!) We are still getting the Basalt Slate, sometime in the next couple of weeks. Templating is this Friday. Hopefully the counters won't take too long. I know most laminates are in stock, and we got really lucky with the engineered quartz. Our installer happened to have our choice in stock, available, and in the right size! Woo hoo!

Thanks for the votes for the ORB. I do like the finish after seeing it in person. However, I recently visited a newly built house with the same windows that we are considering. The windows looked great, but some of the ORB door handles had visible chips in the finish. For some reason, I think that there would be less risk of this happening with either a pewter or satin nickel finish? I want my hardware to last and retain it's finish despite frequent use. I guess I'm leaning towards pewter. Would a pewter finish be more hardy?

For a clean, modern look I would suggest looking into solar shades. They come in different weave thicknesses - from the very transparent to tighter weaves offering more privacy. They come in a variety of neutral colors (lots of whites) and textures. Typically, when I style a room, I do not begin with the window treatments. I design the window coverings around the room's style and floor plan. The window next to your fireplace has very little space on the left, so be careful when you do an outside mount. Also, I would mount the solar shades, or fabric roman shades (another good option) right up to the ceiling. For the sliders, do draperies - make sure to mount the drapery hardware at the same height as the top of the shades to balance everything out. Without the window treatments, my eye goes straight to the differences in height between the doors and side windows. Beautifully designed window treatments will correct that flaw and make the room look taller. Best of luck!

Thanks for the pictures of solar shades from budget blinds, @HALLET & Co. Which mechanism did you select that uses a wand? The pics look very nice, but I went to the website and didn't see any info on their brands or pricing.