Remember, junk should be useful
I love antiques and am definitely a junker.
However, books that tell you how to decorate with junk usually leave me cold. You want your house to look cool, and you'd rather folks didn't guess that you picked things up on the curb.
"Junk Beautiful," by Sue Whitney and Ki Nassauer (The Taunton Press, $21.95), has some attractive tricks.
Probably the most famous junkers in America, the two founded JUNKMARKET, a retail business, and www.junkmarketstyle.com. They are contributing editors for Country Home magazine.
Here's what caught our eye.
• A great dresser without a top can be saved by a table top with no base.
• Aluminum molds serve as trinket holders.
• Metal pipes turn an incubator into a table, and rear-view mirrors are attached for drink holders.
• Ice box hinges hold drapery on a rod.
• Dominos under glass make a cool top for a bar.
Whitney gives several tips for how to avoid bring home the whole junkyard when you are looking for junk.
You should keep a list of what you need, then only buy junk that can be adapted to the cause.
Wait for the right piece of junk; don't buy something you don't love just to fill a space.
But the one unforgettable tip on that list: Architectural remnants are like handbags. You can never have too many.
Don't throw it away, build something
Rachael Ray seems to be about more than cooking. She may not espouse junking, but items made from recycled goods star in the April issue of Every Day with Rachael Ray.
And it's just in time for Earth Day, which is April 22. Have you decided how you will get involved to help save the earth? Visit www.earthday.net.
Ray's article helps remind us to keep things out of the landfill.
Our favorite product is a magazine holder made from old periodicals. It is $35 at www.Pier1.com,
Other products seem to have interesting stories to tell.
Mioculture.com sells $20 trivets made from scraps of wine-bottle corks.
And at uncommongoods.com, you can find $48 wood frames made from salvaged Thai boats and houses.
Check out rachaelraymag.com.
Ethan Allen fits many styles today
It's a safe bet that not many Ethan Allen fans are junkers.
The furniture company offers several looks these days, including modern.
It has furniture designed for smaller spaces, new takes on a combination of Scandinavian/French decorator style and even touches of Africa.
Remember, lamps should be a work of art and sculpture, says the company. This open-weave nickel table lamp sells for $513 with this alternate shade.
Visit ethanallen.com.