Hey dchall- I don't think you will want to make a container meant to hold water out of hypertufa. The organic aggregate will eventually rot leaving you with a container that leaks slowly or very fast, depending on your mix. Are you building this water pot in place or transporting it? If you're building in place, then it might not matter how heavy it is and you can use regular old concrete mixes which will not leak once cured. If you plan to build in one place and move the finished object into place, then I will defer to others as to their opinions, but I know that both perlite and vermiculite are susceptible to moisture to some degree. Whether they would give you a water-tight end product, I just don't know. This link is to a type of water tank that you might want to emulate. Keep in mind that they had to use a crane-like technique to get the parts into place, but it's pretty elegant looking, IMHO. www.rdic.org/balltankinfo.htm This link is to a woman who built a concrete water tank on her property. www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/ainsworth101.html I hope this helps! Jo

I remember your previous posts regarding the concern about your tile. I think there is quite a contrast between the dark cabinets and the countertops with the tile providing a balance between the tow. Each time I see the fire and ice tile up, it is in a much different setting than the last and I really enjoy each persons vision on how to use such a beautiful material. Now.... with regards to your use of it, I love it. It may not have turned out exactly how you pictured it as I know you had to make a few changes from the original layout. I think you did a wonderful job though. The completion of the paining with the wonder materials you have used make your kitchen one of the standouts on the board right now. I doubt if you are going to change anything about it at this point, and I would really enjoy seeing the whole kitchen posted on completion in the FKB with al of the required details. You have a fabulous space and I for one have appreciated your allowing us to view it and share in your struggles for acheiving the "perfect" kitchen. G

I'm not a pro, so take my comments with the respect they deserve, ha! But I've always been a fan of the white on white house. In fact, I love it. So, I would either lose the shutters, OR invest in actually operable shutters. (Maybe yours are, but I can't tell in the photos). What you are really missing is all the landscaping. So, if it were me, I'd be thinking about all the layers of landscaping you are going to need to make the house more attractive. It needs to be layered: tall items (properly placed), shrubs, some color in a palette that you choose. Landscape needs to highlight things you want emphasized, and/or distract from the things you don't. I'm not sure how to make the house appear "taller", but I think the house just looks so stark without landscaping. Look at the photos I attached. I don't think the height of the house is what you notice. You notice walkways, thoughtful shrubs, large trees which don't block the view to the front door. One last thing, is that with a simpler color palette (such as black/white, or white/white), what really stands out are the sconces. Make sure they're "beefy" enough, and of course, provide light where you need it.

Paint the trim a dark color SW iron ore