Would this work in your chateau?
Baker is often a style leader, probably because the company works with some of the world's best designers.
Jacques Garcia added more modern pieces to his collection for Baker, which had been generally traditional.
Thus, the company calls the new pieces contemporary with traditional references.
One item that caught our eye is the Beaujolais table, an accent piece crafted in aluminum and finished with red or black lacquer. It retails for $3,080.
Garcia has designed commercial and residential spaces around the world.
These include Hotel Costes in Paris, Hyatt's Hotel Victor in Miami's South Beach and Hotel Metropole in Monte Carlo.
He is also the owner of the Chateau de Champ de Bataille in France's Normandy.
As you might imagine, restoring a 17th century chateau has been quite a chore, but the chateau and gardens are open for tours.
Baker furniture is sold at Macy's and the company's Chicago showroom, 825 W. Chicago Ave.
Call (312) 733-0353 or visit www.Bakerfurniture.com.
Leftover cloth blooms as paper
If saving trees is on your list of ways to live green this year, Cost Plus World Market would like you to see this wrapping paper.
It was made in India from cotton fabric remnants. Other items in the silk-screened collection include gift bags, note cards and memo pads.
They are not available online, only in stores.
Each roll is about $3.
Visit www.worldmarket.com.
January garden fix arrives in your mail
Chicagoland Garden presents 17 plants for your garden this summer. (Yes, summer will come eventually.)
The Baby Duck Yellow petunia is an unusual yellow bloom on a large plant.
Coleus Electric Lime also caught our eye. It prefers full sun or afternoon shade and flowers in August or September.
Alternanthera Royal Tapestry is for that area between a south-facing brick house and a sidewalk. It tolerates heat, humidity and drought.
All these recommendations come from Jim Nau of Ball Horticultural in West Chicago.
The magazine also deals with some "green" issues such as shrubs and trees you can plant to help out wildlife.
Birds whose numbers are declining because of decreased habitat include meadowlarks, chickadees and evening grosbeaks.
Even some foundation shrubs like black chokeberry, red-osier dogwood and viburnum can help. Viburnum can grow in the shade.
A groundcover that provides fruit for birds and small mammals is Gro-Low aromatic sumac.
And here's something to get youngsters interested in gardening. Grow carnivorous plants on your windowsill.
Would they solve our summer fruit fly problem?
To subscribe to the magazine, call (866) 806-1498 or visit www.chicagolandgardening.com