Whatever you do, do not put the sink up against a wall or a fridge. People do that in tiny NYC apts but that's not your situation. I think you'd regret not giving yourself elbow room and counter on each side of the sink. What if you were to turn the U plan on its side like this? I recall that you said you'd have to check with your contractor about venting the range on the side wall but if that's doable, this plan has potential. You aren't looking at a wall when at the sink but into the DR and towards the front of the house. The dish hutch to the counter would hold dishes, glasses and silverware. Easy access to unloading DW and setting table. Here are some inspiration pics [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/shannon-cabinetry-traditional-kitchen-toronto-phvw-vp~71925) [Traditional Kitchen[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Youngstown General Contractors Shannon Cabinetry [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/family-of-4-transitional-kitchen-san-francisco-phvw-vp~171477) [Transitional Kitchen[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/transitional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2112) by San Francisco Interior Designers & Decorators Artistic Designs for Living, Tineke Triggs [[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/shannon-cabinetry-traditional-kitchen-toronto-phvw-vp~74326) [Traditional Kitchen[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by Youngstown General Contractors Shannon Cabinetry Even with the cab sitting on the counter, you'd have at least 15" of elbow room between sink edge and hutch cab. This post was edited by lisa_a on Wed, Aug 6, 14 at 14:50

I almost never post anything negative about a company unless it’s something egregious. Well, I had an absolutely awful experience with Semihandmade and strongly encourage anyone to stay away from them. We had ordered cabinet doors in a specific color. After delivery, we scheduled kitchen installers to come and install our kitchen. When they arrived, they noticed that one of the main pieces was sent in the wrong color. I contacted Semihandmade and they stated they would not start the process to manufacture the piece in the correct color until they received pictures verifying they sent us the wrong color. I explained, that due to an extenuating circumstance (even told the person what that circumstance was) I wouldn’t be able to go to the house for a number of days but to please start the process. Despite knowing this, they refused to even start the process of making the piece in the correct color. That one single piece took something close to 5 weeks +/- to make and ship out to us. My husband and I incurred a pretty significant loss due to our renovation coming to a halt, expenses, etc. The main thing that disappointed us is their unwillingness to budge with their policy despite being informed of the life-changing extenuating circumstance. I wish I never knew about Semihandmade. It’s an awful company

I doubt you are going to find any conclusive list of plants used during that period - the 20's are considered the "golden age" of California gardening and the plant palette was huge, depending on where exactly the garden was located. Pretty much any plant that is not a recently developed cultivar or hybrid could be appropriate. You are going to need to do some research. And rather than focusing on specific plants, you should be looking more at overall garden style. Check out the works of CA landscape architects Thomas Church and Garrett Eckbo, who were very active and influential during that period. Also take some time to visit some of the public gardens available - estates such as the Huntington Botanical Gardens in San Marino, Filoli in Woodside, Lotusland in Santa Barbara and Luther Burbank's home and garden in Santa Rosa are all characteristic of this era. Monterey also has a remarkable collection of historic, 20's era private gardens although most are now under the auspices of the CA Department of Parks and Recreation and are open to the public. Sunset magazine has been publishing since the turn of the last century and has been documenting CA gardening (both styles and plants) over these many years perhaps better and in more detail than any other publication. Any good library in CA should have archival copies available for you to peruse. Also, The California Landscape Garden: Ecology, Culture, and Design, by Mark Francis and Andreas Reimann would be a good text to consult. It provides essential information on native plants and wildlife, ecology and bioregionalism, landscape history and design concepts that are appropriate to the time period. It is currently out of print but can be found on Amazon and in libraries.

The house actually looks fine. It is the inside that is a hot mess. People buy without realizing the issues then sell in about 3 years when it won't seem like they are dumping it.... At least that is my take. We built 7 years ago and have our 4th neighbors. The first ones were from CA and could never close their custom build - they rented for a few months from the builder before leaving in the middle of the night. See my bias from CA .... Mind you I was born there, lived some there, and have family at both ends. CA housing obviously extremely diverse. Cookie cutter tract and then hodge podge. At least that is my take. Just like with other things, diversity is a bit more celebrated. My sister has and still does live in extremely flawed and expensive housing in the LA basin. But back to your situation. RE in CA - people tolerate and pay high $$ for less than ideal housing. When land is less scarce, people tolerate much less. Unusual may not sell (or appraise well) outside of Dallas for example. Carolyn's case is unusual for the amount of cash she has. Back in 2007, this forum was ripe with stories about people who couldn't close their build. Like my neighbor - that was 2009 - we were a little late in NC. I believe we live in uncertain times. The interest rate market is becoming volatile. I put caution into building because I remember 2007. My house is just over 2x my income and am considering building at 3x my income. Going to wait a bit to see how things shake out. Affording it is not an issue but I'd be pretty upset if I had to close at more than 5% APR