February 1980

COLLEGE COSTS HOW MUCH HELP CAN YOU EXPECT?

If you've always thought you were too well-off to get help with your kids' college bills --and too poor to pay them-- it's time to reassess.

IDEA KITCHEN DESIGNED TO LAST

On at least one subject our readers speak with a single voice: "Kitchens should be made to last." While other rooms in the house can change often in looks and even function, a kitchen ought to perform its meal preparation role smoothly and efficiently for many years.

A surefire system for housebreaking your pup

Almost everyone who's ever owned a pup has his or her own housebreaking strategy. Some techniques are so harsh they can physically or emotionally damage a pet; others are so lackadaisical they allow a wayward pup to totally disrupt your household routine.

Turning a breezeway into a family room

Like so many 1950s ranch-style homes, this one had small boxy rooms divided by walls with arched openings. To rework the space, homeowner Leni Joyce subtracted a few walls and enclosed a breezeway that connects the garage to the main house.

Making room in the bedroom

In a small bedroom, the most practical furniture arrangement may well be the most traditional: the bed centered on an unbroken wall, flanked by nightstands and lamps. But conventional symmetry needn't be boring as these two bedrooms demonstrate.

TIPS, TOOLS & TECHNIQUES

This feature is written by you. it's a wide-ranging collection of shop hints, installation tips, and repair shortcuts that you-- along with millions like you-- have picked up from your experience as a do-it-yourselfer. We pay $25 for each problem solver we publish.

Print power

Poster potpourri

Moonlighting chair

Historic furniture pieces

A great fireplace grate

How to keep car repair bills in line

Some timely tips to help protect you against the number one consumer rip-off

A guide to basic adhesives

If you break something you value, don't panic. With these basic adhesives on hand, you'll be ready to mend just about anything from a bibelot to Grandmother's favorite rocking chair.

Long-playing recorder

Spray mist humidifier

Superior paints and coatings

Handy utensils

Convection toaster

Speedy shelf liner

Country kitchen in the suburbs

DON'T MIX MEDICATIONS AND ALCOHOL

An estimated 2,500 deaths and 47,000 emergency room admissions in the U.S. each year are a result of alcohol- drug interactions, most of them accidental, reports the Food and Drug Administration. Use of alcohol along with drugs is blamed for one in five drug-related accidental and suicidal deaths.

REYE'S SYNDROME WARNING

"RECYCLE YOURSELF--BE AN ORGAN DONOR"

NO MORE MEASLES

HOME TESTS FOR PREGNANCY

An FDA review supports manufacturers' claims that the results of do-it- yourself pregnancy test kits are 95- to 98-percent accurate-- when instructions are carefully followed. According to the FDA, such kits are "reasonably accurate for preliminary personal checkups" when used properly and when variables are taken into account.

FREE RECORDINGS FOR THE DISABLED

IS YOUR CRAFT HAZARDOUS?

SILENCING TINNITUS

Gardener's log

Look for the first signs of spring this month, as snowdrops, crocuses, and eranthis push through the snow and open their blooms. All three should be planted in the fall, but you can look now for places to put them this autumn.

Miniature roses: Better than ever

SMART WAYS TO USE STUD SPACE

When that final layer of drywall or paneling was slapped onto your wall studs, countless rows of between-stud spaces were sealed off from the rest of the house. That's an appropriate fate for some of the cavities-- the ones jammed with insulation, pipes, vents, and wiring.

TERRIFIC TOMATOES

Back when tomatoes were called wolf pears or rage apples, most gardeners wouldn't grow them because the fruits were thought to be poisonous. Only the courageous would dare bite into one.

ROOM TO GROW IN

As any parent knows, children can grow at an awesome rate. And their needs and interests can change just as quickly.

Collectors' baths

GREAT WINTER VACATIONS! TAKE YOUR PICK OF SUN OR SNOW

Are you wild about wintry forms of fun, or do you favor sunshiny climes and pastimes? Whichever, now's the time to perk up the waning days of winter with a pre-spring fling the whole family will enjoy. One of our great sun-or-snow vacations is bound to make your spirits climb.

Wood stove safety tips

It's not surprising that wood-burning stoves are rapidly growing in popularity. In addition to providing warmth, a wood-burning stove brings the pleasant sounds and smells of a crackling fire into your home. And, more important, the stove saves you money on expensive fossil fuels.

Better Homes Shopping editor's choice

Discover the ease and pleasure of shopping by mail. Order from the convenience of your own home with complete confidence. If not delighted, each company will happily refund your money.

The Man Next Door

Bill Norman, just back from a cruise, says he discovered that vacationing is a surefire way to lose weight-- about a pound of money a day.