Thanks Orangecamera. It's still a work in progress and mud everywhere Sorry we did look at having the steps' off set' but it didn't seem to go with only three steps and a small area. And about the zen well the cats are doing that for us much to our disappointment (it's still like a litter box to them). We went to the garden supply place still not knowing what kind of stones we were getting. We stood in front of all the bins (there where many). We even looked at mixing some. The grey stones had a bin more the size we wanted but we ended up getting the golden fleck. It was a little smaller, which was a shame, the bigger ones were so mixed in their grading it looked too messy. So this is what we finished up with. It was seagardens that got me thinking away from grey and nwduck mentioning the drainage. So this has really helped. Also everyone seem to think the wooden steps needed to go a lot lower. Next it's figuring out where the large river stones should go

Oh I have not even touched the surface of fabrics that are available and beautiful. But, best to qualify further if you are recovering or buying new chairs before we get too excited or caught up in the beauty of the products. I love fabrics and the chemistry and technology that goes into modern day fabrics would astound most people. I'm not even talking about the residential fabrics like the Robert Allen collection I showed you. I'm talking about the fabrics for the hospitality and medical care industry. Now if you are interested in MODERN look fabrics I would send you to Maharam to look at their 20th Century Modern collection. Some of those are the real deal by Eames and Girard. Anyway, when you get further along in your plans then I can give better input.

Sorry I am so late coming to your site - you are an inspiration to all, homeowners and advisers alike. For your planting advice, I suggest you call Merrifield Garden Center to see if they will come out your way. They currently have wonderful garden centers in Merrifield and Fairfax (both in Fairfax County) and a new one in Gainesville, but they may come further south to wherever you reside. (www.MerrifieldGardenCenter.com) Even if they don't send designers to your area, they are worth a trip to see their huge selection for a day of pleasure and inspiration, or to pick up some plants. Most of my clients are in the Fairfax and greater Washington area, but I am currently living out west below Front Royal, VA on the Shenandoah mountainside - wonderful views. cascio.offsite@gmail.com

Hi Wafster, We sell Glowstone (Australian trade mark) in Australia and also do some export. Check out details in our website www.nite-glo.com . In the right application, glow in the dark (photoluminescent, charged by sunlight or lights with reasonable uv content) can look and work fantastically. In other situations, a customer may have unreasonable expectations of the performance of the product and can be disappointed. Looking at the photos displayed recently on Houzz, they will definitely have been taken immediately after the glow products have been charged, and look their brightest. Also modern digital cameras enable low levels of light to be picked up, and corresponding photos may look quite a bit brighter than actual observation by eye. In the photos, one has to say WOW, but taken into a home, perhaps not fully charged, with some delay before viewing, maybe with the eyes not adjusted for night time vision, the result may not be as spectacular. Quite a few of our customers are concreters around Australia who use Glowstone for embedding into driveways, paths, around pools etc. If you would like more information or wish place an order, get in touch with me at info@nite-glo.com Charles Hrubos