Hi scottspond, some how didn't think she would, Florida vs Manchester, no contest really ;-) The area I live in is New Mills, in High Peak in Derbyhsire. If it doesn't ring a bell, it's just past Lyme park, Buxton is about 2 miles away, Stockport 9 miles and Manchester 20 miles (all via road) Handily the railway station is about 5 mins away from my home, so trips to Manchester are pleasent through the countyside and don't require I use the car ;-) And in summer I get to hop on the odd steam trian, every boys dream. My Mancunian mates reckon I've gone "all posh" living here, as I was born and grew up in Fallowfield and went to school in Rusholme. Regards ChrisC.

Your house is just darling, and I think you are on your way with the plantings you've done. I have to second the foxgloves. To me, nothing says "cottage" quite like those tall plants (delphinium, too, but I've not had luck with them--you might in zone 5 if you've got a corner that gets more light). I think what might be bothering you is that the vines gave softer angles to the house and now the porch posts give a strong geometric shape to the front that is not as "cottage-y." Perhaps you might find a climber that is less detrimental to your porch (I'd suggest a fast-growing annual like cup-and-saucer vine), or you could put some of those railing-hugging pots with trailing plants or vines running down to break up the lines of the posts. While the vine does trap more moisture on the wood, if the wood is properly stained and sealed it should not be a problem. The problem exists with perennial vines because they don't allow you to get to the wood to treat it. Another design element that you might want to think about is the depth of the beds. If you are planting rhodos and maybe roses, you are going to need more room, and if you deepened your beds to around 8 ft. you'd have more room for cottage-y lushness. Previously the vines were adding visual green weight to the design and if you don't have vines you might need some (eventually) tall plants, like the rhodos, with medium and smaller plants further out. Here is a link that might be useful: Deck Planter

Thank you so much nannymac! We did use a KD to design the kitchen (layout, cab/drawer locations, island/tabletop leg design), and he worked very closely with us to incorporate our "vision" for the space, which we (DH and I and our KD) tweaked along the way as needed or desired. The details were all chosen by us; e.g. the appliances, fixtures, granite, backsplash, cab hardware (even the cherry wood switchplates, which we ordered and then gave him to have the cab manuf stain to match the cabs). Those items (among others) we researched/found on our own. The bathrooms were "all us!" LOL. Of course, we were (and still are) extremely fortunate to have a great tile guy, and tile place(s), and plumber, to help and advise us when necessary, since we were our own GC's for the bathrooms (as well as the kitchen). Our bath/kitchen/hardware showroom salesperson was invaluable (literally) in helping us pick and choose fixtures, for function, price, quality, and style. He knew the look we were trying to create (and the price ranges of the different lines, and our budgetary constraints), and we bounced a lot of ideas off each other.

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