I had NVP Delaware Bay Driftwood 10mm installed in two bedrooms in my condo in Toronto. Bought from LL. Had seen it in a friend's place and thought it looked wonderful. Great customer service. I had them install. Looks fabulous until I got a call from a friend about the 60 Minutes segment on the unacceptable amount of a formaldehyde gassing off the boards. I remember finding it curious that the boxes that the planks came in were marked as "Made in Austria?" Wow, and yet so cheap... Tomorrow I will be setting out a testing kit to determine the amount of formaldehyde in the air (it will take three days of testing but can I even trust the results?). Who to trust now? People tell me not to take chances with health and to simply pull up the boards, dump them in the landfill and start over. What an expense. What are other people doing? I should have bit the bullet and put in hardwood.

Oh, I looked and looked and looked and sat and sat and sat ... eventually ended up with these from Ballard Designs: Context: wanted some warmth (the rush seats) to bring in some of the pine we have in the room (breakfast table, and a couple of armoires and a hutch), the gold in the marble, and the brass hardware. Also, the spindles on the legs added a bit of curve to a room with lots of straight lines. I have another French country-ish armchair, with rush seat and spindle legs, elsewhere in the room. The black finish echoes the soapstone counters. The stools have been great. Kids are older, so the rush hasn't gotten dirty. It does leave marks on the back of your legs when you wear shorts, so I bought some cheap cushions at World Market for summer use. The black finish is starting to get a little worn, where we put our feet, but I figure black is easy enough to paint over.

I agree with several posters that introducing some natural elements would be welcome...wood or rattan maybe. The room is great but a little cold...always a danger with the modern look (which I love.) FWIW, we have those CB2 chairs and they are fabulously comfortable, look kind of velvety and clean up like a dream (we have them in a chocolate color that they don't carry anymore.) We bought 6 as "placeholder" chairs and I think they're more likely to be "stay forever" chairs! Eventually we'll add some armchairs that coordinate, once we ditch the ikea kid-chairs. Good luck! Deb

So part of the appeal of RH style for me is they incorporate rustic, organic, industrial, or antique elements into a space that is mostly monochromatic but full of textures. Some characteristics of their style are oversized pieces, as large as the space allows. Large artwork over the sofa, often in black or white or an abstract. The largest rug the living room can hold. Statement light fixtures in every room. Natural fibers and neutral tones. Decorative elements that are large but fewer of them on display, often incorporating wood or metal. What about something like this for a coffee table?