novaplantguy, over the years I have gone the gammit from your situation, to an acre and back again. Some ways that I have kept my fingers dirty are Hydroponics units and artificial light gardens. My hydroponic units (with artificial lighting) work great for fresh herbs and salad plants, while my light gardens grow anything from begonias to ferns to orchids. I have found or made light gardens to fit into any decore and every conceivable nook. Ever filled your house with the wonderful perfume of Hyacinths and Daffodils? It's easy to do and doesn't require any garden at all. Feel free to contact me for more ideas and information.

Thanks again I found them (low stock) by searching for the item number off the old order form. JCP's "window Designer" is saying for window over 100" need two 216" long scarves, shows them overlapping over center window so tails hang down in between? Think I should order the same striped fabric and do scarves (I need to find/make medallions!) over all three "windows" in the room (bay, double window and slider), with the slider one hung at the same height as the others? Since this is FR (casual) should I look for old doorknobs (love that look), so should I just try to find plain medallions in satin nickel to match light fixture and my "cheap cleats" (drawer knob on a hanger bolt)? See the pic of the slider for finish on the knob. I also have 6 birdcage holdbacks that are kind of "U" shaped that I don't think I'll use in LR - so I can do the bay and the window with those, and slider with a matching (extra) rod if you think that will work. It would mean 1 big swag over the double window though - these have been discontinued too (at least I couldn't find them in the store again, and I never saw them online). Does anybody kno how you hang a swag from a "U" shaped holdback without the screws showing? Here is a link that might be useful: U shaped holdback

Are you or anyone you know handy with a box cutter or craft knife? I think I would try this - it's 1/42" pliable, paper-backed pine veneer, in sheets. You could make a template and cut these out and glue them over the damaged areas. I don't know if it would work; you may have to "fill" and sand smooth any huge gouges so it would lay smooth, or maybe not. Maybe look on youtube for videos on how to veneer things. I'm thinking it could be stained to match your woodwork if it's too different in tone. You could experiment with the scraps. Since you said the damage was by PO dogs, I'm assuming you aren't worried about more damage, right? from the webpage: "These real wood veneer sheets are composed of premium sliced hardwoods that are spliced along the edges to make the full width; splicing is also done in a book matched pattern that's attractive and helps hide the splicing seam. The sheets use full-length slices so there are no splices to make the length. The 10 mil (10 thousandths) thickness paper backing allows the sheet to bend, flex, and work with curves and shapes without splitting. Apply paper back veneers with contact adhesive to make panels of large projects: conference tables, desks, doors, cabinet doors, coffee tables, etc." Here is a link that might be useful: Pine veneer

It can be done. We reused our Corian from our prior kitchen in our remodel. The contractor's brother did counters and he repaired an edge that got damaged during removal from the old layout and made a window sill with the pieces that had been the "backsplash".