Let me preface my feedback by saying that i'm a novice myself, and there are folks here (KarinL among them) who will likely offer really brilliant long term design solutions. Having said that, i really think your home is lovely, with nice architectural features you could easily enhance right now in a "no risk, minimal investment" kind of way. What about some potted plants on the steps beneath the pillars? Something floral and cheerful, perhaps. How about some potted evergreen shapes under the lights on both sides? Something more structured. Granted, this really doesn't address your "deeper" issues, but it would give a more "finished" look to things while you ruminate over the broader vision. You're actually in a better position than my husband and i were when we moved into our place. I guess i just assumed the builder would put some kind of similar character into the landscaping that they'd done to the home's interior. Boy, was i naive. They basically put little more than two squares of grass (not even done properly) on both sides of the drive, leaving the sides and rear of the home totally "construction raw." And as you mentioned, professional landscaping can be costly and there's often nothing left in the budget once a home is purchased. But in any case, i digress ... You have a lovely space there. I'd say start with the little, non-permanent touches just to give you that initial softening and "beauty rush." Then go over time from there ...

Hi, I just had some grading done up against the house to keep water away from the foundation. I understand it would be best to plant grass or another groundcover upon the dirt to keep that pesky rain moving along!! The dirt is nice topsoil, it's about 8 inches up on the foundation and it goes out about 4 feet till it hits well established grass. On one side of the house (the short side) I have a super nice spot to establish something that drinks up water and fills in nicely. It gets good sun. It should be drought resistant because I don't want to have to water it, since this is to keep things dry. Suggestions? I want it low growing, to keep the sun on the house. I was thinking sedums, but I am, alas, not too creative. Herbs would rock. Flowers would rock. Bit praticality is the name of the game -- keep the house dry and let the sun shine in! Thanks for any thoughts! -janice

Perhaps pots of aromatic herbs, so they can take a piece and crush it to disguise the instutitional smells those places have. I know caring for them will be extra trouble, but it might be worth it. Does the nursing home have adequate landscaping? Might your group each contribute a plant or plants, each tagged with the name of a resident, to make up flower beds? It might mean dedicating regular care. Get wall calendars, the kind where there is a single picture and you rip off the month pages. Since it's late in the year, you might try to find eighteen-month calendars. Take a photograph of one of your gardens and print it off on your computer. Trim it slightly smaller than the calendar picture and laminate it to the calendar. You could do 94 different pictures of the different gardens, so each resident would have a special calendar. Write messages on particular days. Buy flower stamps from the post office. Get boxes of inexpensive all-purpose cards and envelopes with floral designs that can be used for birthday, get well soon, etc. The cards and stamps will let them remember friends and family through the year. Ray

When I look at official "dream houses" and show houses, and even personal dream houses, I feel like I see a lot of trends, and gadgets and "high end" finishes and "upgrades" tacked on top of mediocre construction and finish quality and an elaborate and convoluted massing and weird spaces and left-over areas. And I don't generally like very much about them. My dream house would start out with a simple but elegant plan with a systematic layout and gracefully proportioned rooms with no weird "interesting" angles or left-over spaces. The floors would be site finished, the millwork would be expertly installed and finished, the walls would be level-5 finish if not plaster. The walls and ceilings would be smooth enough to take lacquer (Not that I would necessarily want lacquer, but everything would be smooth and flat enough to take it). The doors would be solid core, the hardware would be solid brass, the bathtubs would be cast iron and there would not be a brushmark or a bleb or roller mark anywhere. It might be 1/2 or less the size of what gets called a dreamhouse, but the execution and craftsmanship would be as close to perfect as possible. That's probably not most people's idea of a dream house but I would rather have a plain solid little jewel box than a big packing crate covered with stickers. Which is what I think a lot of houses are now.