Even apartment dwellers can benefit from owning at least one power tool, such as a cordless screwdriver to facilitate small repairs, join ready-to-assemble furniture or to hang wire shelving.

If you own a home and you're reasonably handy, you'll want to add a good circular saw, finish sander and jig saw at the least. If you're truly dedicated and facing a number of fairly large projects in the years ahead, you'll probably want to stock your workshop with a reciprocating saw and belt sander, as well as higher-power (and higher-cost) versions of the basics.

And if you're a die-hard do-it-yourselfer or hobbyist, the sky can well be the limit as to how many handheld and bench-top tools you'll own and how much you'll be willing to pay for top-quality products.

No Cracked Pots
Provided by Southern Living

Terra-cotta pots are formed for their function and made stable by the potter's fire. And yet it is a freeze that can bring their demise. Moisture from daily waterings soaks into the pores of the clay. When the weather gets cold enough, the clay freezes, expands and cracks. Typically the edge crumbles.

So what's a gardener to do? If you have plants that you want to keep outdoors and you don't mind the weathering of the clay pots, don't worry. Most pots can be replaced, and unless you get a serious crack up the side, it takes several years for the pot to become unusable.

However, any pots that aren't being used in the winter should be stored in a basement where they won't freeze, or be turned upside down where they can drain, dry and resist the effects of the cold.

Finally, you can buy more expensive terra-cotta pots that have been fired to resist breakage.

© 2001 Southern Living, Inc. Reprinted with permission.

If You're Thinking About Contracting Your Own Home...
Advice from Hometime's Dean Johnson and Robin Hartl

Educate yourself. Read as much as you can. Talk to builders, architects, inspectors, and people who have successfully contracted their own homes.

Quit your day job. At the very least, arrange a leave of absence or some flex time. Contracting a house is a full-time job; you really should be on site and available to the subcontractors at least four hours a day.

Get organized. You will be managing the construction schedule, arranging financing, purchasing insurance, bidding subcontractors, ordering materials and collecting more paperwork than you ever thought possible.

Polish your communication skills. You have to keep all the subs informed of schedule changes, schedule and confirm delivery of materials, keep the bank apprised of progress, schedule inspections, put out a few fires, and then do it all over again, day after day.

Be honest with yourself. If you don't understand the construction process thoroughly, if you have a short supply of time or money, if you lack organization, troubleshooting, or communication skills, then think twice about contracting your own home.

Be realistic in your expectations. Understand that self-contracting is not likely to save you a whole lot of money.

Expect headaches. You will have a hard time hiring subs and then getting them to show up on schedule. There's no malice here on the part of the subs, it's just that the builder who called them two weeks before your job was scheduled to start can offer them repeat work - you can't.

Why bother? Because you like a challenge. Because you are fascinated by the construction process. Because you want to be intimately involved in the creation of your home.

Reprinted with permission of Hometime®, a do-it-yourself, home-improvement TV series. For further information about home maintenance and common home repairs, tune in to Hometime on public television or The Learning Channel or visit www.hometime.com. ©Hometime, all rights reserved.