Take a deep breath, Christmas is nigh

Merry Christmas.

We hope you are sipping eggnog while you read this and feel you have everything under control for the holiday.

And we wish you the very best gifts of all -- companionship and love from people you treasure.

Feliz Navidad, Boze Narodzenie and E ku odun, e ku iye'dun!

It's still metal, but it's warmed up

If you didn't get around to jumping on the stainless steel bandwagon, never fear: A warmer option has arrived.

Think copper, gold and bronze.

These pendants by Tom Dixon give a copper glow, for example. They are $450 each. Visit www.tomdixon.net.

You can find warmer metal colors for every room in your house.

So if your kitchen is pretty committed to stainless steel, consider warming up your bath.

Bed Bath & Beyond sells Avanti's Sierra Copper Towels for $9 to $20. Check bedbathandbeyond.com.

If you are getting serious about this, Maya Romanoff True Metals come in speckled copper metal tiles for $28.50 per square foot tile. Check mayaromanoff.com.

And Jenn-Air presents an oiled bronze refrigerator for $3,000. Other appliances are available, too, of course. Visit www.jennair.com.

It's time to plan for your winter garden

If you look out your window and the view leaves something to be desired, we have the book for you.

"The Garden in the Winter," by Suzy Bales (Rodale, $34.95) has great ideas and color pictures.

From bark to evergreen to bulbs, containers, window boxes and candles in ice, you could learn a lot.

One thing that interested us was the small entry on boxwood.

Boxwood seems everywhere in decor and gardening these days. So what types should we plant?

Bales recommends common boxwood, but she says Latifolia Maculata will give you random splotches of gold and Elegantissima's misshapen leaves are rimmed in silver.

If you choose the historic American cranberry bush, you might want Compactum because it only grows 6 feet tall. Another berry to love is the blue of juniper.

Heavenly bamboo or nandina domestica is not really a bamboo and has great berries. Unfortunately, it is only hardy to Zone 6. While Bales recommends pushing zones with a sheltered area and protection, here in Zone 5 you'd be taking a chance.

You might want to go with holly. Remember you want female plants, but there must be a male within a quarter of a mile.

One criticism of the book is that Bales is not always clear about hardiness, so check that out if you fall in love with one of her suggestions.