I hope this isn't heresy. To me, it's the three photos that throw everything off - in each of the shown arrangements. I'm a little torn on using two rounds, although staggered at different heights offset by the taller candles seems to mitigate that somewhat. I'd keep the clock in the middle and find something with bulk - a piece of crockery or a preserving jar or pottery piece to companion with the metal can. To my eye, you don't need much else. I think I'm looking for something bright too - like branches with orange or red berries (bittersweet or pyracantha or...) rather than the grass plumes.

Did I mention we got an energy report? We saw that our bills were comparable to the past tennants 12 month history. Our utility bill states we are using about the average amount of energy compared to other homes this size in our zip code. and the energy report came from utility company? of course your bills will be comperable. consider the source of info. utility info is biased to favor utility co. same with the audits they provide...10-15% savings max as compared to 30%+ with independent evaluation. my clients save 50% on average once my recommendations are completed and work is verified & tested. without blower door & duct testing...it is just a guess as to where the house/ducts/returns leak. air sealing is the best savings. cheap to do, immediate results..long term benefit depending upon the life of the sealant (use caulk..expands contracts unlike foams) duct sealing next best savings. average homes have 30% duct loss. a bucket of mastic & a morning spent sealing ducts also has long term benefit with immeidate results. beating the heat before it enters the house trumps changing windows & doors. awnings, plantings, and solar screens. once the heat is inside..then you pay to cool it. the down side to 'average billing' is that at the end of the averaged cycle, you pay the amount you went over the average. for some people this can be a real problem. never insulate before air sealing. insulation filters air it doesn't stop it. only foam insulation stops air leakage and insulates. not great stuff... best of luck.

Natal - Cheaply made that they didn't work properly or also that they looked bad? The ones I bought like yours for my patio doors were inexpensive and they work good. Although I've only used them for about a year. I'm ok with the idea of them there just for looks and closing the curtains. Louisianalover - That's what I want to do. Thanks for linking to that blog. It really helped to see the picture. Val - That is what I wanted to do. I kept getting interrupted last night when I was trying to post. Add tired on top of that. I want to hang them up with the rod at the ceiling. It looks better. I've been hooked ever since I raised the rod in my LR. Romans would probably look nice in there too. I agree it would look best to have the cords on the outsides edges but if I buy something not custom don't they only hang to the one side? I need to go home and look at my shades. I didn't hang those. Val & Kmcg - Thinking again, I did actually hang blinds over the summer in the one bedroom and you'd think I'd remember they were mounted to the top of the sill. Feeling silly again. I think I'm putting way too much thought into this. I'm off to find two, preferably inexpensive romans, medium color with darker color variations, in approx. the correct width for the window. You guys are right that it will look fine once I get the panels in place. What do you guys think of the color of the blind in the link? I'd prefer to buy romans so I'm just talking color. Here's the photos so you don't have to go back up.

I'm having fun in PS with all your samples/pictures but what a conundrum :o Do you like blue? On my screen I see blue in that beautiful leopard rug and of course the dusty French blue goes great with the wood you chose. Do you have blue elsewhere in the house? Looking at the sample laying on the rug, it's the bottom row, third from the left. Personally, I stay away from colors that tend to look dingy or dull so I would want to go bright or darker...darker stair cases are usually more dramatic (around here). I see a lot of these stair runners or carpeted stairs. My husband cuts (has them bound) and installs countless stair runners. Yesterday's job was supposed to a runner but the customer changed her mind and did a full coverage of her staircase. This is what he installed 130 yds of so it wasn't just the stairs (not the actual house). Good luck. Can't wait to see which color you choose.