October 1997

Between friends

If asked whether my cup is half full or half empty, my natural inclination is always to say half full. That is until the situation involves the transition from summer to fall.

Words to Live By

Sure, a picture is worth a thousand words. But we've found a way to make just a few words establish character in a room. For these projects, word-inscribed fabrics and wall coverings, old letters, even chalkboard scribblings speak volumes about style.

No-Count Sampler

Everlasting indoor gardens

When summer's rainbow starts to fade, don't resign yourself to the monotone of winter. Preserve the beauty and fragrance of the garden year-round with arrangements made of dried flowers and greenery. Crafts shops and floral supply stores stock an array of materials from which to choose. To keep arrangements looking their best, display them away from direct heat and sunlight, and seal with a spray designed to keep out dust.

Legs

Homespun Sentiment

Plate racks mudrooms they're back

Yesteryear's builders knew best-- or so we're finding out. Memories of houses long gone are prompting today's homeowners to add parts of the past to the homes they live in now. To help you recapture this homeyness, borrow some favorite features of old, such as a cozy window seat (above). Linger in the sunlight, read a favorite book, and make memories all over again.

Cabinetry Options

There are as many shapes and sizes of kitchen cabinets as there are colors to paint or stain them, but all cabinetry is made at one of three basic price levels: stock, semicustom, or custom. All three levels offer good-quality products for different kitchens and different budgets.

Kitchen planner

Coming up with a workable scheme for your kitchen remodeling project involves more than booting up the latest design software on your home computer or making sketches on graph paper. Today's kitchens are the hubs of family life, and they deserve special care in planning. Before you start, let our handy guide help you lay the groundwork for a kitchen plan that fits the way your family lives, and that gives you the most for your remodeling dollar.

Anniversary Sampler

Three's Company

Triad colors are three hues equidistant from each other on the color wheel. Because the triple-color scheme easily slips into eye-jarring clashes, it's the most difficult to pull off.

This one is too small this one is too big this one is just right

WHEN IT CAME TO SIZING UP HOME FURNISHINGS, GOLDILOCKS EVENTUALLY GOT IT RIGHT-- BUT ONLY AFTER BREAKING A LOT OF CHAIRS. THERE'S AN EASIER WAY. WHETHER YOU'RE PICKING OUT A LAMP, CHAIR, OR RUG, THE SUGGESTIONS ON THE FOLLOWING PAGES WILL HELP YOU MATCH THE RIGHT PIECE TO YOUR SETTING.

Magic to Go

Abracadabra! Presto! Ta-dah! Perform the magic tricks in our BH&G Kids feature (see pages 283 to 288) and hundreds more with these items. Amaze your family, friends, and even your rabbit.

Decorating Gets a High-Five

A slap-happy border gives this child's room its playful spirit. Rather than making a beeline through the middle of the wall, this border takes a detour. It wraps around the room's central element-- a bulletin board that doubles as a headboard-- giving it instant focal-point status. Washable paints, rubber stamps, and an easy painted-on blackboard make this decorating project easy enough for Mom or Dad to complete in a weekend, perhaps with a little help from the younger set. And at a total cost of about $150, it's a winner-- hands down.

Handy Stamps

Going Places

The Internet is a lot like the real world-- vast and sometimes intimidating. There's a mind-boggling amount of information on the World Wide Web alone, some of it valuable, much of it trivial. Separating the grain from the chaff can be a major challenge when it comes to surfing the Net.

What You Need to Connect

Stuck in the Middle

The years between childhood and adulthood can be turbulent. But they don't have to be. The two articles on these pages tell how parents and schools can make the best of the tween times.

Saving Your Neck

To protect against whiplash, head restraints should rise at least as high as the top of your head and be less than 4 inches from the back of your head, as in this Volvo S70.

Big and Bad

Gold Stars for Ford

Cruising the I-Way

Learn by Osmosis

Household Hazardous Waste

Recycled Car Parts

EDITOR'S CHOICE

SMART GARDENING

Early Riser Bulbs

PAWPAW CENTRAL

LOOKING GOOD

PERFECT PAIRS

TEST GARDEN TIP

UPDATE

Early to Rise

Sometimes winter lasts too long. OK, maybe more than sometimes. Maybe every time. One way to cut into the inevitable monochrome is to plant as many of the small (and, unfortunately, lesser-known) bulbs as you can. They bloom quite early, sometimes foisting bursts of color up through the snow.

The Sunday garden

To hear them tell it, Charles Goldstein and Candice Devey don't have time to garden. They work six days a week in the family hardware store. And their house... It's been a 10-year project-- so far. But when they decided to renovate, they tackled both inside and out. In no time, they taught themselves how a sledgehammer can come into play in the garden. And they learned how to play with plants.

A house reborn

Anyone who has loved a home and left it, even for a short trip, probably has experienced that moment of panic upon returning: What if something has happened to my house while I was away? What if everything I owned was suddenly gone?

Small-Space Additions

Bump it. Nudge it. Stretch it. When rearranging the furniture just won't do and relocating is not an option, it's time to add on-- or up. Additions are usually big projects, but they don't have to involve big spaces. Here's how three families added only the space they needed while remaining true to the character of the homes they love.

Come-On-In Kitchens

Warm bands of sunshine angling across the room, the soft sheen of natural-finish wood and polished stone, a big table to gather round-- these are the marks of a sociable kitchen. The kind that says, "C'mon in, the coffee's on." Here are two warmhearted, people-pleasing kitchens that would make even your starchy Aunt Agatha loosen up.

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, carbohydrates, fiber, and protein will help you keep tabs on what you eat.

Abracadabra!

It's magic. You've seen it done. Your uncle has a favorite card trick, or your friend can make a coin disappear. They make it look so easy. But did you know that it takes lots of practice to make a trick look that simple? The tricks on the following pages are Mom-approved, using stuff you can find around the house. For your first trick, turn the page...

Holiday Yard Ornaments

Fun, fast, easy! Readers count these designs for yard ornament among their all-time favorites. Make some this fall and extend holiday greetings to your entire neighborhood at holiday time.

The Shopper Mart

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

The man next door