House & Home: December 10, 2022

&HOUSE HOME

T H E U L T I M A T E C E N T R A L C O A S T R E A L E S T A T E S O U R C E

Cover home presented by Kristi Curtis Sotheby’s International Realty

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Hygge for the holidays

By Cathy Hobbs

While you can incorporate hygge into your home and lifestyle throughout the year, the holiday season is certainly the perfect time.

Photo courtesy Maya Kruchankova/Dreamstime/TNS

By now you have probably heard of hygge, the Danish term for coziness and contentment. While you can incorporate the concept into your home and lifestyle throughout the year, the holiday season is certainly the perfect time.

Looking for ways to welcome a sense of hygge this holiday season? Begin by evaluating your whole home, then look for ways to uplift each space using these tips.

Infuse scents

In nature, each season brings a fresh fragrance and overall scents. Fragrance can also help provide a sense of calm. Consider infusing winter scents into your home over the holiday season such as juniper, fig, pine and sage.

Create cozy areas

Make spaces in your home that can be used as places for you and your holiday guests to refresh, recharge and renew.

Find a focal point

Even if you don’t have a fireplace for everyone to gather around, you can still rearrange your space in order to create a central area that can serve as the hub of holiday activity. Go big with creating a cozy room, or simply setting an attractive communal table.

Incorporate nature

Natural elements such as wood can help warm a space.

Play music

Find calming and soothing music or sounds like water, bells or chimes.

Provide comfort

From welcoming your guests with their own cozy throw to providing individual slippers, providing comfort is the cornerstone of hygge.

Use greenery

Evergreens and winter-hardy plants and trees not only help add freshness to a space, but will also help improve overall indoor air quality.

Change your color scheme

Adding earth tones goes a long way to adding warmth and hygge to a space. Consider warm shades of brown, green, yellow and red.

Open the windows

Natural light not only impacts moods and helps enhance lives but improves a sense of hygge. With the sun setting earlier during winter months, you can also achieve holiday hygge by adding festive elements like string lights and candles.

The Danish are considered to be among the happiest people in the world. Why not use some of these tips to create a sense of well-being and calm into your home this holiday season?

©2022 Tribune

Cathy Hobbs, based in New York City, is an Emmy Award-winning television host and a nationally known interior design home staging expert and short-term rental/vacation home designer with offices in New York City and The Hudson Valley.Visit her website at cathyhobbs.com.

Content Agency, LLC.

Many elements and textures come together to make this tabletop stand out.

(middle)

A place setting features a golden ornament, bringing the glamour to the cheery Christmas dishes.

(bottom)

Cheery red and white Christmas decorations adorn the tabletop, mantel and tree.

(far right)

Garland is chock-full of berries and branches, ribbon and ornaments for a full design with lots of dimension.

Style at Home: Holiday style 2022: Nostalgic Noel

By Katie Laughridge

Certain elements of a holiday look give us that Christmas feeling. Images of holly and mistletoe, twinkling trees and vintage Santas are what I conjure in my mind when thinking of holidays past, and Nostalgic Noel is a look that delivers in spades for me. Classic but fun, this Christmas decor delivers whimsical vibes at every glance. Because the space features a very traditional home color, and this is an exceptionally fun traditional Christmas look, we knew it was a match made in heaven. Don’t fret, this is a look that will blend with the colors you already have in your home as well.

Nostalgic Noel Christmas tree design

Showstopping colors are featured throughout this color palette. First to greet your eye are the punchy reds, followed by the tinsel-inspired silvers and a mix of bright whites. The red-and-gold ribbon elevates the tree from kitsch to elegant and could create a totally different feeling if used somewhere else. This tree makes great use of picks, and the holly and berries used here give it a real Christmas feel.

One of my favorite details that sets this vignette apart for me are the use of the classic bubble lights. They instantly remind me of my grandfather and a sweet story from his childhood that included them. He and Grandma still feature bubble lights on a small tree every year, though they no longer use the original set.

Nostalgic Noel holiday decor

Walking into this room feels like immersing myself into a vintage postcard. The decor is full of fun retro shapes amid classic elements, like the bottlebrush trees and wreaths that are always a customer favorite. A spindly tree with cheery white berries is the perfect addition to a tabletop or buffet. This decor would be a fun theme in which to incorporate nontraditional Christmas colors, like a showstopping teal alongside the standard greens and reds of the season.

This holiday look acts as a cherry on top in an already delectable room. Trees, jovial Santas and frosted snowmen are tucked among the existing chinoiserie and refinery for a full look, creating Christmas vignettes wherever you turn. Paring down this design a little to fit your space does nothing to dull its shine. Thoughtfully placed elements like the two retro gold trees atop the buffet are enough to carry the continuity of the nostalgic Christmas feeling from the tree to the dining room.

Nostalgic Noel tabletop design

This place setting is full of new traditional elements, down to the cheery Christmas color palette. Standard white dishes are the base of the design, and red and green accents in the dinner and salad plates are easily added for some seasonal fun. There are many textures at play in this tablescape that make it feel cozy and warm, like the block print on the napkins to the bold pink hand-painted cane designs on the drinking glasses.

Items are placed at varying heights for the tabletop centerpiece. An airy white tree is the backdrop for Santa’s sleigh about to take flight in the midline focal point. Bottlebrush Christmas trees stand at attention, sprinkled throughout the tabletop. This centerpiece feels full without overcrowding the table and could be effortlessly re-created at home with even fewer elements for an easier sight line from seat to seat.

This room is a joy to be in during the holidays, and I hope it inspired you to bring out a few of those well-worn and well-loved pieces for a little piece of Nostalgic Noel in your own home.

Adapted from nellhills.com. Katie Laughridge is the owner of Kansas City interior design destination Nell Hill’s. For more information, contact Katie at info@nellhills.com.

©2022 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Question:

Plumber: Reader needs help with kitchen faucet confusion

By Ed Del Grande

Question:

Ed: We need a new kitchen faucet but I’m confused with my pullout or pull-down choices. I never had either type before and I want to make the right move. To help me decide, what are some advantages with each pull-style kitchen faucet?

– Liz

the top of the faucet body with the spout going out horizontally. Pull-down valves, on the other hand, are mostly located on the side of the faucet body with the spout continuing up vertically.

As far as spray heads go, pullout heads can feature large handles that work great for filling vessels on the counter. Pull-down heads can be smaller and sleek, and they work great for washing down the sink.

Answer:

You’re not alone with this question and I have addressed this topic before, but this time I’ll focus on just a few advantages of each type.

First, each style can be very attractive design wise. A pullout kitchen faucet usually looks a little more traditional with a straight, slightly angled spout. A pull-down faucet with a high arching spout can look a little more contemporary.

Next, for mixing valves, the pullouts in most cases use a one-handle valve located at

Bottom line: Choose the kitchen faucet that fits you best, and I’m happy to help you understand some of the ins and outs, ups and downs of choosing a pull-style kitchen faucet.

Master Contractor/Plumber Ed Del Grande is known internationally as the author of the book “Ed Del Grande’s House Call,” the host of TV and Internet shows, and a LEED green associate. Visit eddelgrande. com or write eadelg@cs.com. Always consult local contractors and codes.

©2022 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Real Estate Q&A:

Why are my neighbors’ trees my problem?

By Gary M. Singer

I read your answer about damage by a neighbor’s tree falling on your house being your responsibility and not the neighbor’s. I have heard this before, and it is hard to wrap my head around. I have neighbors on both sides that planted royal palms, which are now 50 feet high and would cut a house in half. Neither neighbor asked my permission to plant them. How is this right?

Answer:

– Bruce

The law does not always make sense at first glance. While the application of the law may seem arbitrary, there is usually sound reasoning to be found if you look. There is often a compromise or trade-off necessary to ensure a functioning legal system and, through it, society.

The well-settled reason is that it is better to allow people to protect themselves from unintentional harm caused by their neighbors’ reasonable use of their property than to subject those neighbors to being told how to maintain their property and the numerous and often frivolous lawsuits that your flow from doing things that way.

If we let each neighbor decide how their neighbors keep their property and vice versa, chaos would surely ensue. Instead, the law requires that each property owner maintain their property to be healthy and safe while requiring them to bear the brunt of unintentional damage caused by their neighbor’s vegetation.

Your neighbors must keep their palm trees healthy, or they will be liable for damage that could have been avoided.

When a hurricane or tornado passes through a neighborhood, homes are damaged in many ways besides just trees being knocked down.

Fortunately, property owners have an excellent tool for protecting themselves financially when the unexpected occurs —- homeowners insurance. A healthy tree damaging your home in a storm would be covered by proper insurance, like if your home suffered a different casualty, like a fire or flood.

Gary M. Singer is a Florida attorney and board-certified as an expert in real estate law by the Florida Bar. He practices real estate, business litigation and contract law from his office in Sunrise, Fla. He frequently consults on general real estate matters and trends in Florida with various companies across the nation. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

A pull-down kitchen faucet with a high arching spout can look a little more contemporary than a pullout faucet.

Photo courtesy Kohler/TNS

Photo courtesy Dreamstime

HOA Homefront Readers Questions

They Aren’t Paying!!!

By Kelly G. Richardson, Esq. CCAL

Kelly:

A neighbor bought a condo and rents it out, but has not paid ANY HOA fees for over two years! When she is contacted about the past due fees, she says she will pay them when she wants. The management company says there is nothing that can be done except to lien her property. My guess is she is upside down on the property and just bleeding it as long as she can for the rent money. This means the rest of us owners are having to pay for her portion of fees. Is there really nothing else that can be done?

– P.L.

Dear R.Y.:

The obligation to pay assessments comes from the CC&Rs. Has someone checked to see if the CC&Rs were recorded on the properties on that street? Sometimes a particular group of homes are deliberately or accidentally excluded by the developer because the CC&Rs were not recorded on that group of homes. CC&Rs only bind the properties upon which they were recorded. A real estate or HOA attorney should be able to help you conclusively answer the question.

– Best regards, Kelly

Ask Angi: What home services can I buy as gifts?

Dear P.L.:

Although one of the board’s basic obligations is to make sure everyone pays their share of the HOA’s expenses, sometimes a homeowner will strategically refuse to pay. When there is little equity, a homeowner will stop paying mortgage and assessments, figuring there is no consequence to using the property until the bank finally forecloses and wipes out the HOA’s lien. It can be a very frustrating and unfair situation. In those cases, judicial foreclosure — filing a lawsuit to foreclose AND collect on the past due assessments — may shake them out of their stall game. Yes, it involves attorney fees, but a court judgment will follow that owner even after they lose the property to the bank, and the fees normally would also be added to the debt. Talk to your HOA attorney about the options and costs.

– Thanks, Kelly

Hello Kelly:

Is it possible to create and enforce a reimbursement contract for a homeowner who owes a large assessment on his/her account? This homeowner caused damage to their home, the HOA incurred costs and is seeking reimbursement. The HOA proposed a payment plan; however, we would like to make sure that this payment plan isn’t rescinded or voided with a future board (this will take years to pay off). Is this an acceptable practice?

– A.O.

Giving housecleaning as a holiday gift means less hassle after holiday parties.

Photo courtesy Dreamstime/TNS

By Brigitta Shannon Rose

Dear A.O.:

Dear Mr. Richardson:

Our tract has a street which is within the geographic boundary of our HOA but these homeowners have never had to pay dues and nobody seems to know why. We asked our manager and even they don’t know why. So, our question is this: Why aren’t those homeowners required to pay HOA dues?

– Thank-you, RY

If you are referencing a reimbursement assessment because a homeowner damaged the common area, hopefully, your HOA followed the process of Civil Code Section 5855 regarding that reimbursement claim. Check with your HOA attorney, but the HOA can most likely enter into a written agreement as to how and when the homeowner will repay the assessment. That agreement might be prepared so it can be recorded against the homeowner’s property, in case they sell the home.

– Best, Kelly

Holidays mean family, friends, food and gift-giving. If you’re looking to give unique presents this year, consider buying your loved ones things they can use in their homes. Here are some great gift suggestions for homeowners this year. Contact your pro for the best way to give a service as a gift. In some cases, you can buy the service directly; other pros offer gift certificates.

Indoor and outdoor lighting

Changing the lighting scheme in a home can give it a fresh, new look. Whether installing inset or track lighting in your kitchen or bathrooms or adding lights to your deck, a professional can help you safely and efficiently brighten your surroundings. Check with electrical pros to see what services they offer as gifts for others.

Heating and cooling service

Pros recommend having your HVAC system serviced at least twice a year. Making sure the filters are new and ensuring the AC and furnace are in tip-top shape are essential to keeping a climatecontrolled environment in your home. Many HVAC pros offer yearly service contracts, which themselves can make an excellent gift.

Gutter cleaning

Clogged gutters can lead to bigger problems with leaks and water damage, so cleaning them out is a necessary task for any homeowner. Purchasing this service for your loved one keeps them off their roof while saving them time and energy, so they can enjoy their autumn and spring fun.

Landscaping and lawn care service

We don’t always think of our spring green lawns. But the seasons change, and soon the grass will need tending to. Setting up a company to take care of your loved one’s lawn now will save them time and money once the seasons change. Also, if someone plans some landscaping changes once warmer weather arrives, you can give them a head start with a gift card from a local landscaping company.

Cleaning service

Kelly G. Richardson, Esq. is a Fellow of the College of Community Association Lawyers andPartnerof Richardson Ober DeNichilo LLP, a law firm known for community association advice. Submit questions to Kelly@rodllp.com.

Past columns at www.HOAHomefront.com. All rights reserved®.

Another way to help maintain a steady temperature is through a programmable thermostat. While you can do this yourself, hiring a professional ensures the system works properly with minimal complications.

A clean house brings tranquility and order to one’s mind. And the gift of a clean home can mean a lot to people who are on the go or suffer from mobility or health issues. Cleaners provide a variety of options for helping keep a tidy home. Maid services can range from wiping down surfaces to deep cleaning, while window washing professionals can keep your windows bright and shiny. Carpet cleaners help remove the deepdown dirt in your carpets and rugs, giving your feet a healthy place to tread in the home.

©2022 Ask Angi. Visit at angi.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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Style at Home: Holiday style 2022: Simply Scandi

By Katie Laughridge

Few places in the world encapsulate the spirit of the holiday season quite like Scandinavia. It brings the scenery you’ll find on your favorite Christmas cards to life: ice and snow, roaring fires and beautiful homey spaces that encompass the spirit of hygge.

A finalist for the Oxford English Dictionary’s 2016 word of the year, hygge is a Danish term defined as a quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being, and in recent years it has taken the interior design world by storm. Pronounced “hyoo-guh,” the word is said to have no direct translation in English, though “cozy” comes close. And this Christmas look follows suit.

Simply Scandi is a Christmas design that pays homage to the Scandinavian roots on my dad’s side of the family, while still maintaining that new traditional style we are known for (more is more, after all!).

Trimming the Simply Scandi tree

In most Nordic countries, people put up their Christmas trees a couple of days before the big event and decorate them with flowers like a poinsettia. White amaryllis and red tulips are also popular, and they are the color inspiration for the Simply Scandi color palette.

The first thing that strikes me when looking at the Simply Scandi tree is the various textures at play that make the design feel so inviting and warm. I love the addition of handmadelooking elements to a design, and this style has many to choose from. Felt, wood, woven, hand-painted, this tree is a symphony of artisan craftsmanship. Bright red, creams and neutrals are the shining stars in this minimalist albeit striking look.

Although there are many differences between a commercial tree and a tree you might trim yourself, this look might be the closest to a traditional tree you might find in someone’s home. And it can be scaled back without losing its impact. When building at home, start by layering in lots of picks throughout the tree. Red berries bring cheer to this design. Group collections of ornaments in twos and threes nestled in and among the branches — not just the tips — to highlight different textures in your groupings. We use zip ties to secure these to the tree. We feel it gives us better control over the presentation of the ornament on the branch instead of simply hanging them. Cascades of red ribbon are snuggled up among the details, their white snowflakes adding to the thematic design.

By Bob Walsmith, Jr. President of the Santa Barbara Association of REALTORS®

If you are like me, you have your Holiday decorations, lights, etc. in various places in your house and garage. You sometimes have trouble finding them all when you first need them and then struggle with where exactly to put them when they are out and when you put them away.

Decking the halls is good fun and all, but shuffling through piles of wreaths, lights, ornaments, dreidels, wrapping paper, and stockings is nothing to fa la la about.

Well here are seven storage tips that will make packing up jollier.

Make a Holiday Closet

Instead of doing a holiday-themed scavenger hunt each November, put all your holiday gear in a single closet. You’ll keep it dust-free, together, and at your fingertips. Since this closet will be all holidays, all the time, leave some of your decorations out and use them to adorn the space. Easy to find and festive; it’s a twofer.

If your closet is unfinished, use the space between the wall studs to store hanging items. They work like little cubby holes to maximize storage space.

Use Clear Bins

Everything’s packed in tidy boxes. Good. But how will you find the stockings if you use a bunch of identical, opaque tubs? Even if you label each bin (which takes more energy than most of us have post-holiday), you can’t possibly list everything inside. A better idea: clear bins. Hey look, the stockings.

Square bins make better use of the space than tall or odd-shaped ones. Measure your storage area so you buy exactly the right size and number of bins to maximize the space.

Organize with a Storage App

If clear bins aren’t your thing and you are more of a techie, pick whatever container suits your fancy and keep track of your stuff with an inventory app like Sortly or Home Inventory.

Just photograph and tag your things as you put them in a bin. The app will assign a QR code that you print and attach to the bin. When you go looking for your vintage 1940s ornaments, scan the label, and the app will show you a list of every item in the box.

Just be sure to back up your data on another device so you don’t lose the menorah if you lose your phone.

Hang Your Wreaths

Nothing takes the holly jolly out of the holiday like crushed wreaths. If you put them in a bin or on lay them on a shelf, they may not survive till next season. Instead, hang them from a clothing rod in a closet. You can use pot hanger hooks to suspend them or make your own.

You don’t need to dedicate an entire closet to wreaths. Just add a second bar to a coat closet.

Use a Dedicated Baking Cart

Holidays mean baking, and baking means lugging the stand mixer, the cookie cutters, and the jars of glittery sprinkles out of the cabinets for every sweet batch.

Instead, put your supplies in one place, on a rolling baking cart. Store it in your pantry or in a corner, and roll it out when you’re ready to bake. Best of all, you can use it year round, not just at the holidays.

And if you have a significant other that likes to bake, helping them with this might just mean more cookies for you this Holiday season.

Wrap It Up With a Wrapping Station

Rolls of wrapping paper are awkward to store and constantly in the way. And if the rolls get dinged, the darn paper tears. You can store your paper and use up dead space, too, with a wall-mount storage system. Hang it in a closet on a blank wall, put your paper in it, and you have a wrapper’s delight.

This one is definitely a biggie in my house.

Corral the Coats

When winter hits, your house turns into a debris field of coats, boots, and gloves. Keep that blizzard of outerwear from ruining your festive and organized house with an entryway cabinet. It’s a clutter catcher that will make your holidays (and the rest of the year) a little easier.

Doing some or all of these helpful tips might just allow you to spend more time with your family, enjoy more Holiday songs and “adult libations” and truly celebrate the season as you should!

Bob Walsmith, Jr. can be reached at 805-720-5362 or emailed at Bob@BobWalsmithJr.com

SIMPLY SCANDI

continued from page 10

Decking the halls, Simply Scandi style

Scandinavian homes are often well-decorated for Christmas, with shiny baubles, candles and various other shimmering objects to enjoy. Although this design doesn’t include any straw, a common Scandinavian ornament material, we did take a nod from the Nordic and left no space untouched as we piled on the holiday decor. Featured in this design are a cacophony of bells suspended from birch logs fashioned to the ceiling, the decor spilling into your line of sight.

Decorating a Simply Scandi tabletop

Many Nordic countries celebrate with an elaborate Christmas Eve dinner, which usually includes dry-cured lamb ribs, ham, goose or cod fish cured in lye (lutefisk, anyone?). Boards full of these foods are passed around the table. Glogg, a mulled wine into which you can dip cookies, is a popular drink of choice across Scandinavia at Christmastime.

Scandinavian style is really known for its simplicity, and we played that up in this tablescape. An ornament plays double duty and acts as a napkin ring, holding a candy cane-striped napkin atop stacks of cheery red and white dishes. The dishes themselves are simple in design, but the alternating colors give each place setting some additional dimension. A wintry green is a welcome addition to the centerpiece, making the dishes at each place pop even more.

Adapted from nellhills.com. Katie Laughridge is the owner of Kansas City interior design destination Nell Hill’s. For more information, contact Katie at info@nellhills.com.

©2022 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

The Simply Scandi Christmas design features bright red and creams. A collection of hand-painted bells are suspended from birch logs in front of the Simply Scandi tree. Red and white Scandi decor and ornaments spill from the tree to the coffee table. A close-up is shown of ornaments of differing textures: woven, yarn, wooden, felt, painted, glass. The splendor of red and white are alive and well in a table setting.

Photos courtesy Provided photo/TNS

Garden with ginkgo forests and rare plants offers ‘series of puzzles’

By Nancy Ngo

As a child growing up in Minnesota’s North Woods, Chuck Levine spent his free time studying plant life.

He foraged for and pressed plant leaves. Neighbors gave him flora to bring home and grow. His family nurtured his budding green thumb, too.

“My mom would buy the plants, seed packets, and I started growing things like orange trees in the windowsill,” he said. “I had a whole indoor fruit orchard — pineapple, pomegranates, papayas. You can grow all kinds of fruit indoors.”

His fondness for studying fruits, vegetables, ornamental plants and more turned into a full-time career for Levine, who recently retired as a horticultural educator.

His affection for plant life didn’t end with his day job. The 1-acre garden at his Roseville home is a testament to his life’s dedication to plants. His plant catalog is sizable, estimated to be in the thousands, with hundreds of varieties, including rare finds from around the world.

The garden in the backyard of his house, was named a winner in the Star Tribune Beautiful Gardens contest. It is a horticultural museum of sorts, with Levine the tour

guide and walking encyclopedia of cultivator knowledge.

‘An environmental science’

“When you study horticulture, it’s really an environmental science,” said Levine, who taught horticulture at Hennepin Technical College in Brooklyn Park for three decades and is a former consultant for the Chicago Botanic Garden. “I really like the way of conserving through cultivation.”

One of his main goals is to create an ecosystem.

During the growing season, a redbud tree is an abundant source of nectar and pollen. A weeping mulberry tree “invites birds and other creatures to the yard” because they come to nosh on the berries from it, Levine said. The flowers and berries of a pagoda dogwood and an Amur chokecherry tree also do their part to attract pollinators and other wildlife, the latter serving as a nesting site for birds.

A low-growing arctic raspberry plant is another source for berries, as well as provides ground cover. Varieties such as Scarlet runner beans, nasturtiums and salvia attract butterflies and bees, not to mention hummingbirds.

“We mainly get the ruby-throated hummingbird. I see them daily,” he said.

Some parts of the garden have a tropical feel, with plant life that includes lush ferns, giant elephant ears and rare pineapple lilies, while variegated Japanese hops climb up trellises.

An awe-inspiring 100 varieties of ginkgo trees can be found dotted throughout in what Levine calls the Enchanted Ginkgo Forest. There he studies one of the world’s oldest living tree species, as well as the environmental role they play.

“I like the look of the ginkgo tree, and it’s very tolerant of toxins. It absorbs the toxins from the highway,” he said. And “I like a lot of Asian plants. The climate here is similar to climates in Korea, Japan.”

The lay of the land

As far as landscaping, brick- and rocklined garden beds hold prairie plants, succulents and more. Shingle-lined walking paths lead the way to several themed areas.

“The garden is really a series of puzzles,” he said. “I search the ads and make the garden with what I can get for free.”

Items in the garden also carry personal history, ranging from tiger lilies that an elementary teacher gave to Levine as a child to Golden Glow coneflowers from his landlady (from the farm where she grew up) when

he studied horticulture at the University of Minnesota Crookston. Peonies are from his mother’s garden.

Other items in the yard are there to appease the next generations.

“I have currants and gooseberries because my children wanted them. They thought we have to grow something edible for ourselves that we liked,” Levine said.

Toys and dinosaur figurines also can be found. “The grandkids like to do scavenger hunts in the yard,” he said. “They’re always finding new and interesting things to put out here.”

The bounty from his garden is shared with the community, too. Each year, Levine holds a large plant sale. And his show-stopping double-petaled tiger lilies from France have made their way down the aisle more than once. “I’ve used these flowers to make wedding bouquets,” Levine said.

While he already has quite a vast catalog, Levine shows no signs of slowing down. His continued interest in planting items that benefit the ecosystem and collecting rare species won’t let him.

“For plant people, there’s always a joy in the search and the hunt,” Levine said.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Beautiful Garden contest winner Chuck Levine, a retired horticulture educator, maintains a 1-acre garden that is a sanctuary in the city. This garden contains his life collection of plants.

Photos courtesy Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Tribune/TNS

Pineapple tiger lily Elephant ears Elephant ears Amur cherry tree

Chuck Levine shows how this ginkgo tree grows downward “tumors”

Oxalis lucky clover

Cactus Double Tiger Lily

ARE YOU A LANDSCAPER?

Place your ad in the Service Directory in the News-Press Classified Section and let us help you build your business. CALL 805-963-4391 or email: classad@newspress.com

Yard Sale Tips

Before Your Sale

• Prepare to start early. Collectors and antique dealers like to show up early in the morning.

• obtain a permit if required

• Clean up your space. People like clean and neat places.

• Gather lots of shopping bags. Gathering Items

• Test any electrical items to make sure they work.

• Collect your items and sort it by type. (clothing, toys, tools, etc.)

• Take time to clean or repair your items.

• Wash all the clothes so they smell fresh.

WhaT SellS BeST?

• Tools: Guys love it all, any kind.

• Baby items of all kinds, especially clothing.

• Kitchen appliances.

• Clothing: Kids and adult.

What Should You Not Sell?

• Items missing safety parts.

• unused prescription drugs or medications.

• Personal hygiene items.

• halogen floor lamps.

• old baby cribs or playpens, incomplete child safety seats.

adverTISING

• Tell your friends, family or coworkers about your sale. Word travels.

• Place a classified ad in the Santa Barbara NeWS-PreSS!! remember to check the publication’s deadline.

• In your ad, give lots of details. Include the address, day(s), time of your sale. list major items such as “lots of kids clothes.”

SIGNS

• Check your local ordinances.

• list your address and sale date on all signs.

• Post your signs at main intersections, street corners and at the end of your driveway.

• use same colors and writing on your signs as people recognize them at a glance.

• Keep a list of where you posted your signs. It will be helpful when it’s time to take them

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