Books: Hampstead House Books in Thornhill, Ontario, Canada has 2 wonderful books right now. They can be ordered on-line at www.hhbooks.com or by phone 905.881.0607. If you are ordering by phone, these two books are from the catalogue FE2, which just came out.

The two books are:
- - High Fashion Knitting For Dolls - Item # 120423 Price is $9.99CDN. Patterns are for dresses, blouses, pleated skirts along with lace edgings, collars, and table cloths.
- - Dressing Dolls with Susan York - Item # 120365 Price is $5.99CDN. Patterns are for 10 complete outfits.

And if you're into web design and you like to hoard floral backgrounds, they have a great cd rom + Book (windows and mac format) of copyright free floral designs. "Floral Patterns" is the title of the book and cd rom. Item # is 118661 and the price is $12.99CDN.

Joy in Pointe Claire

Easy Flow: For all of you looking for a way to keep your caulk or glue flowing. I use scrap polymer clay and press around the hole or top of tube or bottle that I don't want to dry up. Then all you do is pull the clay off and your ready to use the flowing easily medium of choice!

Jennifer Spray

Cleaning plastic windows: I think rubbing alcohol works to clean off plastic, I use it all the time.

Kaye in L.A.

Storing Wood: The grocery stores will give boxes. I saw a Wesson Oil box which has 24 slots, and the back slots can be folded to accommodate larger wood pieces. I made a printed chart (in duplicate) of each size and wood type available so I also have a copy on my desk.

Marian in New Bern, NC

Kitchen in a kettle: Helen from San Diego asked how to close the kettle she is going to make a kitchen in . . .

Well, I've never done something like that before, but I would make a door and add a kind of trellis to the outside. You can have a plant climbing in this trellis and even make some landscape around the kettle. But then you have the trouble of dusting your landscape :o)

Marjon de Haas (The Netherlands)

Kitchen in a kettle: Two ideas come to mind to close the kettle spout:

1)You could get the clear heat shrink wrap from Michaels, cut a piece moderately larger than the opening, glue generously to the inside of the kettle (so the edges don't show) and then use a hair dryer to lightly shrink the wrap so it is taut. It is nice and clear when shrunk, just make sure not to overshrink.

2)Get a very, very thin piece of acrylic and blast it with a heat gun so it is a little pliable. Work it inside your opening and then glue.

I missed your original post on how you plan to open up your tea kettle, so these ideas may not work...but it's a guess..

WhuiChang

Vegetable Room: Why not use a dried gourd as a room for your fruits and veggies? Or a paper mache pumpkin or tea pot? Or you could make a watermelon shaped room out of paper mache over a balloon to get the shape. Or just go with a plain old foam core room box covered with fabric in a fruit or veggie print.

I have 3 gourds I'm going to use my 'virgin' Dremel on! I received lots of encouragement from everyone. So Thank You Very Much! I figure if I mess up too bad I can always make birdhouses out of them!

Pam in St. Louis

Pirate's Bar: A plank across wooden crates or barrels is perfectly fine for this period and milieu! Bars didn't become really fancy until the Victorian era (you should see some of the ones here in Prescott--woo-wee!).

Molly/StormBorn (Prescott)

Gashlycrum Tinies: This is why I suggested a series of vignettes--Desmond,thrown out of a sleigh? Maud, swept out to sea? Victor, squashed under a train.

Molly/StormBorn

Detective's Apartment: I love the idea of a detective's apartment! Tell us more please! Is it going to be a modern type setting or more of the 'Sam Spade' era? I can just visualize that bottle of booze in the partially open bottom drawer. An ashtray overflowing with cigarette butts. A shoulder holster with gun hanging over the chair back. A fedora and trench coat on the halltree and, of course, a beautiful blond sitting in the client chair with tissue in hand and a big picture hat! :-) What fun!!!!

Reva Losiewicz