I love the trellis, and the stained glass is a nice touch. I don't think copper will quickly weather naturally to that verdigris finish without a little help. I've wanted to make a copper trellis for some time now and in my research you need to sand the copper pipe with steel wool or clean it to remove the factory coating and grease, then apply some sort of acid mixture to get that color. Here's one recipe referred to by GW member. Here is a link that might be useful: copper patina

Bryan, Ive bought late season rooted plumies from Hawaii, FL, Thailand, Singapore, when they came in they looked ok but soon after looked sickly, even wrinkled. A while later it bounced back and ended up being fine. I think the plant goes through shock because of the environmental and temp changes in fall. The plant was use to warmer weather and humidity, when it gets here it rebels and takes a turn. Give it a chance, I think it will rebound.

Cutter2010, Email me from my member page, and I'll be happy to share the bid with you. Maybe I'm just too embarrased to admit in the open what I'm spending! Mudn, It would seem the consensus is that Paramount's systems are the best, and perhaps if my builder were selling that model I might be more inclined. I don't know...it also seems like in floor cleaners are just 1 more system to have problems with down the line (but same can be said for anything). Jury is still out for me. -Tim

We've had Antiqued Cambrian Black for 10 years now and still very happy. We are not good about remembering to re-seal it and it really doesn't matter...maybe looks a little more dull when we go a long time without, but doesn't bother us at all. It has not stained. It has held up great. This granite is made up of little chunks and we had two little chips happen along counter's edge, pretty early on in having it (one in front of sink...maybe got dinged by a big pot?) and the other you can't see but can feel a rough spot. But no big whoop (though certainly not perfect). I think our edge was called "flat polished" and we had just a slight curve on the corners...going for a bit of a vintage look - nothing fancy. Only downsides, I would say are that it definitely sucks light out of the room to have a black top and that it is so good at hiding stuff, you might not see the tiny sugar ants that have set up a march on your counter, or the wayward crumbs. Overall, we have loved it and would pick it again. This choice was EXACTLY what we were looking for in terms of a black countertop that isn't shiny and has some vintage charm (almost like lab counters).