The bed and dresser are just beautiful! Before you decide about the bedskirt (and I think that this is a matter of personal taste - with no right or wrong), why not try out the looks to see how you respond to each. Set it up, using whatever fabric you have available to use for a mock up, without a bedskirt; with a bedskirt over the rails; with a bedskirt inside the rails; and without. Take some time to evaluate each and then go with the look that ultimately "clicks." This works well for me over a time period when I look, ignore, and go back to look until I feel sure. If you decide to add a bedskirt and prefer to show the bed rail, I have a suggestion that has worked well for me. We have a high (step up) Pineapple Poster in our MBR that has a 26-inch drop to the floor from the top of the box spring, which sits a good 6 inches above the top of the bed rail. A "double deck" approach allows the box spring to be covered and the rails to show. A shorter skirt attached to decking falls over the exposed box spring and tucks behind the rail. A longer skirt (in three sections - for each side and the base) is attached with velcro to the underside of the box spring and falls from under the bed rail to the floor. The fabrics can be the same or complementary and the style can be tailored or gathered. I have had several changes of bedding and I prefer that both skirts be gathered and I like to use two fabrics - the main bed skirt trimmed with the complementary fabric used on the upper skirt. When I redid my bedding the last time, I decided to use a long skirt over the rail. It looks nice, but I like it better the other way...and DH would not step on the fabric when using the rail to get in and out of bed, or put on socks!

We have KM sunset cabinets in our LL walkout. They're back where the natural light doesn't reach them. I kept going back and forth between wanting a light color, and wanting a rich darker color. We chose the light counter, and it really makes a difference. Since we had already chosen the cork floor (same floor as the upstairs kitchen, so that determined the color), we matched the countertop to that. In our upstairs kitchen, we have KM cabs that are a tad darker than the sunset. This kitchen receives natural light from a triple window that has a 10' porch roof cutting off light from the SE, a triple dining room window facing NW 15' away from where I stand at the sink at the peninsula, and two 10" SunTunnels. We put a medium light green granite, Costa Smeralda which we love, here. The granite was a last minute choice because we got a VERY good price on it since the slabs were cracked and we could work around the cracks. We love it, but I think there are better color choices for the medium cherry cabinets. The over all room still seems sort of dark to me at times. We put a creamy tan marble on the 4'x4' center island (which is cream). It would have looked much better to have reversed the countertops (cream on cherry, green on cream) but it was a major cost issue. So I'd go with the cream for the situation you've described. Anne

Lindsay, the design challenge of garages--snout garages in particular--are well known, and have been discussed endlessly in threads on this forum. Your photos are one good alternative to snout and other front facing garages since all that is visible is the garage shell, which is admirably reduced in bulk and scale by the creative use of two smaller single door garage openings, with doors which are further detailed to reduce bulk and mass. The windows and that detail in the gable above the doors also helps refine the façade. Not every house design and site, however, lends itself to this design technique. The design guidelines cited by David Carey are another good way to have "front facers"--both garage and house which are visible from the street--in better harmony with one another. There are many, many other good design strategies, ranging from detached garages (connected with a breeze way, or similar device), garages in back accessed by an alley (or corner lot with two street faces), "L", "C", "U", "T" and angular shapes houses. These houses reflect their site specifics and incorporate innovative site planning as well as architectural design. Design by Olsen Associates.

Egg discussions in some form hit the title thread once or twice a year. Cracking methods are often mentioned. Jacque Pepin is such a good teacher, easily talking throughout his prep while chopping/saute etc. He often will explain why. A flat tap will rarely break the shell membrane that holds the shell bits together. A bowl edge will more often break that and more likely to get a shell bit. Yes, the empty shell will retrieve the shell bit like a magnet. When I had 3 dozen mid 2020 I almost started an 'all about the egg' thread. I can do one handed but no need to. I have two hands so I use them. One handed skills are nice to know in case of injury. A kitchen tool designer, professor, reviewer and consultant, teaches to use your non dominant hand, and rub your hands with veg oil when testing before going to the expensive production line. Oil covers the lack of grip. Common in arthritis. Using the opposite hand is for testing the less skilled like children....and arthritis. I've cracked 95% of the time on a flat surface, and into a small bowl, since junior high HomeEc. Only once in all these years did I crack an egg that had a funny yolk. Memorable since we had house guests and DH was prepping to make omelets. Adding to a bowl one at a time, one in the small bowl had a cloudy white and a discolored yolk that had split runny. I slid it to middle of the island and we unanimously determined it unfit. May have funked up the 6 or so eggs already in the big bowl for beating. May have been that one in 22,000.