Test Garden Tip: Build your raised beds so they’re at least 12 inches tall. If the walls are slightly below waist level, you can sit on the edges to work the soil and harvest your bounty without having to bend over. Test Garden Tip: Choose cold-tolerant vegetables in early spring or late fall for successful garden beds. To extend the gardening season, fashion hoops like the ones pictured, then drape plastic over them....

The type of lawn mower you’ll need is highly dependent on the size of your garden. We researched and found the best lawn mower models on the market for all different types of gardens based on their power, durability, and cutting deck width and height options. Overall, we think most people will find the Ego-LM2102SP Cordless Self-Propelled Lawn Mower to be the best lawn mower. It’s an electric mower with plenty of power and many of the modern features that make mowing your lawn less of a hassle....

Start by determining if floors, countertops, tiles, and other permanent finishes are warm (cream, yellow, red undertones) or cool (gray, blue, green undertones). It’s natural to let that color temperature drive your overall scheme. If your personal preference contradicts that direction, though, never fear! Go ahead and listen to your heart. You can also carefully blend color temperatures to keep a space from feeling too warm or cold. And if you’re looking for the perfect balance between gray and beige, greige hues are game-changing tones that play well with any palette....

Luckily some of that stress can be alleviated if you focus on choosing your personal favorites, rather than trying to please a crowd. Even if you’re scaling down your Thanksgiving menu for the members of your household, you can still choose wines that pair well with the classics. If you won’t be providing wine for a crowd, consider purchasing half bottles so you’re not left with too many leftover bottles when dinner is over....

According to data from expert services site Taskrabbit, people are increasingly requesting expert help for creating rooms oriented around wellness (physical and mental) in their homes, even specifically searching for help establishing music rooms, meditation spaces, libraries, and home gyms, to name a few specific spaces, and Taskrabbit bookings that mention wellness have increased by nearly 200%, the site reported in its 2022 Trend Report. Wellness covers an extensive range of both physical and mental activities, from those more traditionally associated with health, like working out, to more lowkey stress relievers, like crafting, and the variety of uses for wellness rooms reflects that....

Botanical Name: Acer palmatum Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade Zones: 5–8 Buy It: Botanical Name: Acer palmatum ‘Sangokaku’ Growing Conditions: Full sun to part shade Size: 15–20 feet tall, 12 feet wide Zones: 5–8 Buy It: Botanical Name: Acer griseum Growing Conditions: Full sun Size: 20–30 feet tall, 12 feet wide Zones: 5–7 Buy It: Botanical Name: Acer saccharum Growing Conditions: Full sun Size: 50–75 feet tall, 30–45 feet wide Zones: 4–8 Buy It: Botanical Name: Acer saccharinum Growing Conditions: Full sun Size: 60–80 feet tall, 40–60 feet wide Zones: 3–9 Buy It:...

1. Updated Sinks and Touchless Faucets According to the Houzz 2021 bath trends report, faucets are the most popular bath upgrade, and their counterpart, sinks, are seeing more switch-outs since the year before. “There has been an increased focus on the importance of washing hands over the past 20 months. As we put more thought into hand-washing, naturally we put more consideration into our hand-washing and hygiene spaces,” says Caroline Danielson, director of showrooms for Ferguson Bath, Kitchen & Lighting Gallery....

Light renovation and decorating room by room created comfortable, personal spaces that reflect her family and their creative backgrounds. (She isn’t the only artist in the family; her husband, Leon, is an art director at ESPN.) The result is a home that champions Angela’s mission to elevate others. “Black people make up less than 5% of the interior designer demographic,” she says. “In my work and home I want to make sure those people are seen....

So Susan and Michael, who owns custom building firm Verdant Properties, decided to make history by constructing a home with classic 19th-century Greek Revival looks and 21st-century amenities. “The greatest compliment is when people ask when we renovated our historic home,” Susan says. “That’s how much we cared about weaving in the tiniest details to re-create our piece of history, and then we tell them it was built from scratch....

The fire pit has a 250 square foot radius, and it’s designed to be used with clean fuels, such as bioethanol or isopropanol. Not only do these fuels burn without producing any smoke or odor, but they’re also better for the environment than burning wood. It’s basically a win-win—you and your guests won’t leave your house covered in soot, and you’re being good to the environment at the same time....

Napa Valley, California, Thanksgiving Dinner Recipes Treat your taste buds to a trip on the Napa Valley wine train with these Thanksgiving recipes: Side Dish: Wine-Infused Stuffing Side Dish: Wine-Poached Beets Vegetarian Main Dish: Roasted Butternut Squash Filled with Port-Soaked Fruit Main Dish: Roast Turkey with Onion Jam Dessert: Pumpkin Pie with Pomegranate Poached Pears Drink: Mulled Riesling Punch See photos and learn more about each of these Californian Thanksgiving recipes, below....

Lilacs, hydrangeas, spirea, and azaleas – each in its season – light up Midwestern gardens in established neighborhoods to the delight and relief of many a young family that moves into a gracious old home. When adventurous new gardeners break ground on landscaping projects, fresh ideas and traditions come with them. New hybrids, a new commitment to native flowering shrubs, and interesting ways of using old-time favorites are gradually altering the Midwestern landscape....

Sidney Poitier admittedly is more of a household name than his wife, Joanna. An Oscar, a knighthood, and a hot-selling book make sure of that. But in their Beverly Hills home, the roles reverse. Joanna, an interior designer, is the unequivocal star; the entire house is her stage. Built in 1925 in the Mediterranean architectural style that ruled the state during that era, the house bespeaks Joanna’s “Old World meets comfortable California eclectic” approach to design....

Christine also worked with builder John S. Baldwin during the construction to achieve a home where every detail contributes to a consistent whole. Inside, a lively mix of new and old furnishings is united by clean lines and relies on slightly weathered surfaces, including worn paint, floors finished to look like aged driftwood, and antiqued leather on the sofas. The exterior cladding on this modern farmhouse shifts from board-and-batten siding to lap siding to cedar shakes, plus two roof materials—shingles and metal— which gives the house the appearance of age and history....

Since Victoria ceased publication, she has continued writing for publications in the US and abroad, including Gardens Illustrated in Britain and Korean Airlines’ inflight publication, Morning Calm. For two years, she chronicled the planting and progression of Piet Oudolf’s perennial and bulb combination borders for the New York Botanical Gardens. In her articles, she also shares knowledge gained through fanatical and obsessed gardening endeavors at Furthermore, her 7-acre property in CT....

**Tip: Because chile peppers contain volatile oils that can burn your skin and eyes, avoid direct contact with them as much as possible. When working with chile peppers, wear plastic or rubber gloves. If your bare hands do touch the peppers, wash your hands and nails well with soap and warm water.