Give the gift of knowledge

Books make perfect gifts. They're easy to wrap, transport and mail, and most importantly they fit almost everyone on your list.

Homeownersactually anyone who wants to make their space more attractiveget double duty from gift books they receive because the volumes add to the decor whether gracing a coffee table or a bookcase.

Here are some choices for decorating and gardening to consider for the favorite homeowners on your list.

Decorating

Here's the book I want for Christmas, “Perfect Palettes,” by Stephanie Hoppen (Potter, $35). I want to be bold and surprising in using colors in my home, but I don't want to mess it up. Hoeppen puts a lot of information in each color chapter (“Novices in yellow should stick to the softer ends of the sunshine spectrum for the best results.”) The gorgeous room photos can help us decide which look we are going for. And yes, she lists name, company and serial number for each color.

“The Home Lighting Effects Bible” by Lucy Martin(Firefly, $29.95) deals with all aspects of this important topic. It's critical, of course, for someone who is remodeling or building a new house. But there are tips that can be achieved even in an existing home. Dos and don'ts highlight each chapter: “Don't Choose fixed downlights ot light wall-hung artwork. Use directional downlights instead. (They provide reflected light in a room). And there are even ideas for changing something as simple as lamp shades, not to mention choosing lamps and pendants.

“The Vintage Table” by Jacqueline de Montravel and the editors of Romantic Homes Magazine is fun in a nostalgic sort of way. The pictures are much more glamourous, put together and well, romantic than most “feal market” style books. You can find so many vintage design items today, of course, so you might not have to iron the old-fashioned looking tablecloth or wash the china with the sweet design by hand because your dishwasher will take the gold off antique china.

Okay, we'll admit it. If you know what you're doing you can create charming, even elegant spaces with flea market and thrift shop finds. Take Heather Chadduck of cottage living, who is featured in “The Find,” (Potter, $27.50). One of her prized possessions is toile drapery she found in the garbage bin at a San Francisco hotel!

And there's a small picture with a truly great treasure. Pie-shaped terrazzo molds are u frames on the wall for collections of tools, pieces of wood and an old clock. Very cool.

For the crafty do-it-yourselfer “DIY Art at Home by Lola GAvarry (Watson-Guptill, $21,99) comes complete with templates, materials lists and ste-by-step instructtions for 28 projects. The authors promise a clean, modern aesthetic.

Gardening

Serious gardeners have whole libraries from the American Horticultural Society. A new title is “Homegrown Harvest,” edited by Rita Pelczar (Mitchell Beazley, $32.50). Nothing says spring will come like a gardening book. While this book is full of information, it does try to be all things to all regions, so readers might have to wade through advice for areas with mild winters to get to usable facts. For example, even in oura rea you can sow broccoli, brussel sprouts and eggplant in early spring. Yum, yum.

But what if your friend or relative only talks about want to garden and hasn't actually put spade in ground yet? “Starter Vegetable Gardens: 24 No-Fail Plans for Small Organic Gardens,” by Barbara Pleasant (Storey, $19.95 or $29.95) offers a good beginning. She handles yards from very small to very large or even decorative enough to be in the front. And each garden is designed to double in size over a three-year period. And yes, there are basic lessons such as planting seeds and dealing with disease and infrtile soil.

Gardens these days need “Tall Perennials,” as pictured and described by Roger Turner (Timber Press, $34.95). Gardners want to make a statement or screen the electric box, but too tall can be too much. Believe it or not, he does include plants that grow in our chilly zone and even in the shade, such as Osmunda regalis, the royal fern, which can reach 4 feet tall if kept wet.

“Growing Tasty Tropical Plants” by Laurelynn G. Martin and Byron E. Martin (Storey, $18.95) is for the adventurous gardner who wants to have fun. It wouldn't hurt if he or she has a sunroom or sunny southern window on the house or has retired to warmer climes. Flipping through the book, it looks like only figs can grow outside here in Zone 5 (There's even one named Chicago Hardy). But some like naranjilla grow so fast they can be annuals, and of course with enough effort many can flourish inside. Beginners can also grow coffee, Meyer lemons, naranjilla (acidic fruit that can be juiced), tree tomatoes and Yerba mate (drunk like coffee in South America) , say the authors, who sell plants and products through Logee's Greenhouse (logees.com).

“Grow your own Vegetables” by Carol Klein, (Mitchell Beazley, $19.99) fits the gardening efforts of many people these days. It tells how to grow varieties you would never fiind in the grocery store. And there are ways to extend the season so those precious tomatoes and carrots can have produce longer.

And for gardeners who want to make their own equipment, “The Begetable Gardener's Book of Building Projects” by the editors of Storey Publishing ($18.95), offers many ideas for weekend projects. From cold frames and compsot beds to potting benches and hanging plantersa, here's how to build what a garden needs. Each project is labeled as half-day full day or weekend projects, and there are step-by-step instructions, detailed drawings and materials and cutting lists.