Hi Luvs So far so good with the little one - I did find something out that changed from the first time I posted....she is a he! His name is Panda. It was rough in the begining w/Miss Kitty, she's was acting bratty, but now they're best buds. Poor Selena the dog gets to be used as their mattress. LOL I didn't glue in the clove stems, I had a nice compression fit because the drill bit was a bit smaller than the stem I inserted. I don't know if it's because my cloves are old, but I would occasionally lose the clove out of the stem - no biggie to replace because they're not glued in. Jim Here's the other side where I tried a pattern: Here's Panda and Miss Kitty and with Selena aka "the mattress"

Hi everyone! Sorry for the delayed response--been very busy with work. I do agree with needing to raise the tree up. I have a large box that should work and will see if I can procure some faux snow. I think I also have some old bricks lying around. HMMMMMM. I actually like red and white lights, as well as blue and white--but my neighbor has blue and white, so I think I'll stick with red and white for a candy cane look. I agree that the lights on the japanese maples aren't my favorite, and that they detract from my christmas tree indoors. I guess I could put them on the bushes to the left of the porch? (There are some large overgrown evergreen bushes to the left, though I'm not sure they show up well in the pictures...) I AM having fun--love decorating my new home for the holidays! Such a fun time! I still have work to do indoors--we're having a party in a week and I have a lot to do before then.

This photo is a bit washed out due to the sun streaming in the window. Curtains were a rummage sale find and the dresser scarf used as a valance I purchased on eBay and hung with curtain clips. The little white shelf was a $1.00 deal that just needed a few coats of paint, the little cups came from yard sales too. The headboard I bought at a garage sale about 25 years ago. It has been pink and several shades of white at various times. The matching footboard was made into a bench which is on my front porch. Image link:

I do this on a small scale. I love working on all sorts of projects, from furniture to funky clothing/purses, etc. But my apartment is too stuffed as it is. Every year there is a neighborhood wide yard sale on a Saturday in May, and I haul a ton of stuff out to get rid of it. My prices are stupid low -- because I really want to get rid of stuff. I get the fun of finding things, doing something with them -- then I don't have to live with them! I just wish, wish, wish I had some storage/work space. It keeps me from working on larger pieces of furniture. And this neighborhood is sooooo obliging about throwing out near perfect pieces.... One question I have, for those who've done this often; how do you handle taxes? An attorney friend told me that you don't have to declare income from yard/garage sales because the assumption is that you are selling at a fairly significant loss, but when you pay little or nothing for the raw elements, and sell at a reasonable profit -- do you declare the income? Best of luck with your sale, Margo -- and I hope you have many more in the future!