September 2006

BETWEEN FRIENDS

QUICK & EASY DESSERTS

WHAT COLOR IS YOUR HOME?

CUSTOMER SERVICE ON BHG.COM

BIRTHDAY CAKES

CUT IT OUT

Bring snippets of style into your home with these nature-inspired cutouts.

ON THE RIGHT PATH

Two retirees realize their dream by scaling back on square footage to gain a great location.

LIFE WITH A NEW MISSION

A serene home in Seattle becomes a soothing retreat for a former New York executive who retied to a larger purpose.

PLAYING FOR KEEPS

Resisting advice to gut their kitchen and start over, a couple decides the integrity of their '50s space is worth saving.

LILACS AND PEONIES

Piece of Work

Triple-Layer Bulbs

COOL TOOLS

DYNAMIC DUO

ASK THE EXPERT

DISHING UP A FACELIFT

In a Crunch

HOT DAYS, COOL REDS

Post-It Photos

PERFECT POINT-AND-SHOOT

NO MORE SOAKING

12 WAYS TO WASTE LESS

A 1950s home in Vermont is disassembled and rebuilt using original, recycled, and energy-efficient materials.

MASTERING THE MIX

Designer Stephan Jones contrasts old and new and turns his Chicago fixer-upper into a stylish home.

PARTNERS IN BEAUTY

Late-blooming lilacs and early peonies-- compatible in color, fragrance, and form-- pair perfectly.

GROW WITH THE FLOW

Secluded areas linked by swaths of grass, hedged paths, and stairways encourage smooth transition from one garden to another.

YOUR FAMILY NEXT DOOR

Moving to be near loved ones keeps families stronger, happier and closer-- in more ways than one.

RETHINK YOUR INSURANCE

As you get older, your insurance policies need to change with the times. Here are some key coverage areas to review.

CHANGE SCHOOLS FOR THE BETTER

Despite the busiest of schedules, parents across the country still find time to help make their kids' schools better. Maybe you can too.

SCARE STAGE FRIGHT AWAY

In the spotlight and at the podium, a moment of jitters can spoil hours of hard work. Learn how to psyche yourself up-- not out.

Dressed in linens

A collector of French textiles decorates her New Hampshire farmhouse with an approach that is as fresh and crisp as linen sheets sun-dried on the clothesline.

Wild by design

Sometimes the best look for a landscape is untamed. Let wild flowers adorn with abandon. For a lovely path, simply mow through them.

The live, work, play, everything-you-need KITCHEN

Step into the show kitchen we designed for the National Kitchen and Bath Association's Design Idea Center, and find yourself right at home no matter what you want to do.

SMOOTH SAILING

Bugged by Allergies

The 45-year-old woman from West Virginia thought she was imagining things. Every time Asian lady beetles found their way into her home, she got stuffy and sneezy and wheezy. Her reactions couldn't have been caused by the friendly-looking bugs, could they? "She wasn't crazy, just very allergic to the ladybugs that invaded her home each fall by the hundreds," says Dr. Alan Goetz, a physician in Morgantown, West Virginia, who first treated the woman.

GATHERING AND RENEWING

A new season inspires a family to rediscover what's important and to make a fresh start.