May 1995

Between friends

Great Gift Ideas For Mother's Day

Each order you make from these pages will help us help homeless moms and kids through The Better Homes Fund. Created by the editors of Better Homes and Gardens magazine to help homeless families get back on their feet, the fund already has made more than 220 grants in 37 states.

Paper-lace stencils

Loved for its delicate charms, lace has graced our homes through the decades. Here are delightfully new ideas for giving your home a lace lift using readily available paper laces and paint.

Guidance for Your Gifted: The College Years

Planning for college has changed dramatically in the last 20 years, intimidating even the most resourceful parents. For parents of gifted students, the process can seem overwhelming-- gifted kids often require more assistance than average students when it's time to go to college.

The Heat Is On

SUMMERS AREN'T ALWAYS SO CAREFREE WHEN ALLNEW CHILD CARE ARRANGEMENTS ARE NEEDED.

The Buzz About Caffeine

EXPERTS AGREE THAT THE BODY EASILY BECOMES ADDICTED TO CAFFEINE.

A Warm-Welcome Entryway

What better way to greet your visitors than with an entryway that says "welcome"?

Bring the Sizzle Home

For scintillating sautés, flaming flambés, and delicate entrées, the serious cook needs equipment equal to the task. Order up restaurant-style ranges, ovens, and cooktops adapted for home cooking.

Spring Has Sprung! Building Projects

Are you looking for outstanding projects to build now that spring is here? Here are four of our readers' all-time favorite designs. They're easy to build when you use our plans, and they'll be the envy of your friends and neighbors.

Apple-a-Day Projects

Easy-to-use kits and woodworking plans show off a colorful apple motif

Traditional Flair

RADON REALITIES

KIDS WHO CARE

Some things are too important to leave solely in the hands of adults. That's why Kids For A Clean Environment (KIDS F.A.C.E.) was created.

New Books For Gardeners

TEST GARDEN TIP

Fence finesse

Buttercup bouquets

Garden design

Roses for children

One of a kind container gardens

SECONDHAND STEALS AND GARAGE SALE DEALS can turn the most humdrum container gardens into nostalgic garden gatherings with a timeless, casual style. Cathy Walker in Deming, Washington, combines her passions for antiquing and gardening in her collection of one-of-a-kind container gardens. The vintage pots grace her family's outdoor living areas with a relaxed, lived-in look and provide homes for her favorite hardy perennials and edible annuals.

Water gardens

Water makes magic. Endlessly changeable, it ripples in the wind, then reflects garden and sky when the air is calm. Cascading over rocks or jetting from a fountain, it fills your yard with music. Best of all, water gives you treasures to grow: cattails at the edge, lilies at the surface, goldfish in the depths.

Wonderful Water Gardening

If you enjoyed our feature on water gardening on pages 123 to 132 and would like to try your hand at it, use these products specially selected for the readers of Better Homes and Gardens magazine.

The new naturals

Today, there's more to decorating than meets the eye. Imagine running your hand along basketlike rush or nestling against cushions of nubby linen or soft leather, and you'll realize how furnishings crafted of natural materials and inspired by ethnic designs delight our sense of touch, too. Not only are these elements easy to live with, but they make decorating a breeze because they mix together so easily. Turn the page and see what we mean.

Rustic and refined

When it comes to decorating, Hermine Mariaux has something of a multiple personality. On one hand, she is drawn to the fine polished line of traditional furniture. On the other, rough and ruddy folk art suits her fancy. But then again, crisp contemporary styling pleases her eye. Can Hermine have it all? Sure... and so can you.

American classics

Not a single dour cousin or grumpy grandparent spoiled the harvest of smiles in Norman Rockwell's famed "Freedom from Want" illustration. At Rockwell's table, everybody was happy. By portraying the best of American home life, Rockwell became our unofficial artist of optimism through two World Wars and one Great Depression. Now, a line of namesake furniture by Stanley Furniture Company recaptures that warm, happy spirit.

Clever Cover-Up

Bring sophisticated style to dated furniture or a storage sore spot by sewing a clever cover-up. Skirt an old sofa table, a stereo stand, back-to-back file cabinets, or even a short bookcase. The design of this covering allows access to what's underneath it.

Picture This

Treasured family photos often wind up in a box on a shelf, all but forgotten. When you frame the photographs and parade them in a clever display, however, their special moments and memories are yours to enjoy every day.

Nutrition information

With each recipe, we give important nutrition information. The calorie count of each serving and the amount, in grams, of fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrate, fiber, and protein will help you keep tabs on what you eat.

A Southern Tradition

BH&G kids

When you hold a tiny seed in your hand, it doesn't look like much. But when you put that seed in the ground and give it a little care, pretty soon it's a crunchy carrot, a beautiful flower, or a plot of grass waiting for adventures. Here are a few ideas for growing some fun of your own ...

Gardening For Kids

Auto update

Whatever the muscle image of sports cars might be, women have long been major buyers of various sporty vehicles. More than half of buyers of Ford's Probe are women, for example, and lots of others have flocked to the new Mustang. Pontiac expects women to buy six out of ten of its new Sunfires.

The Shopper's Mart

Discover the ease and pleasure of shopping by mail. Order from the convenience of your own home with complete confidence.

The man next door

One of life's longest moments, says Elaine Cowan, comes when you're standing in the department store with a stack of new clothes waiting for that little machine to say your credit card has been accepted.