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Whether through a guide on how to shop for a home, tips on saving for and purchasing your dream house, or advice on whether buying a home is right for our readers, BHG has always supported homeownership. (We’ve even been part of the home buying experience through the Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate division since 1978.) Homeownership rates have increased in the United States over the last 100 years, rising from a national rate of nearly 46% in 1920 to more than 65% in 2022, with some dips and peaks in the intervening years....

1. Start with the right tools. 2. Provide shade. For a bigger break from the sun: Use a freestanding patio umbrella, fit a retractable awning onto the pergola, or install a sail canopy in the pergola’s corners and a pole connected to the handrail. 3. Refresh outdoor furniture. 4. Add character to a pergola. Cut decorative rafters and rafter tails using a pattern and jigsaw. For more-substantial tails, sandwich three boards together using wood glue and screws....

Organizing your cosmetics not only shaves time off of your morning routine, but it can also save money. Seeing everything you own encourages you to use what you have and prevents you from buying unnecessary duplicates. Efficiently storing things also avoids leaks and cracks, helping your cosmetics last longer. Check out the following ideas for makeup organization and find inspiration for your space. Related Video

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Buy It: Ball Quart Mason Jar Pack ($14, Target) Test Kitchen Tip: Make your cookies-in-a-jar recipes for gifts up to a month in advance to help ease some of the holiday stress. Related Video

Important safety tip: This treatment is not appropriate for kids’ beds or other rooms where children sleep. Important safety tip: Use a low-wattage bulb in your finished creation for safety. Related Video

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1. Shop around when hiring a lawn care company. If you’re not into yard work or you’re short on time, keeping your lawn mowed, trimmed, and edged can be challenging, but it’s one of the most noticeable things about your property. A lawn mowing service can be a worthwhile investment to take the hassle off your hands while keeping your yard looking crisp and clean. Instead of going with the first service you come across, you’ll get the best deal possible by shopping around a little....

1. Personalized Mudroom Storage Mudrooms will continue to be in high demand in the coming year, according to Lee Crowder, national director of design & model experience at Taylor Morrison. More than just a drop zone, mudrooms are evolving to include dedicated storage for each member of the household. “Rather than having everyone’s shoes end up in a giant basket where you can’t find anything, give every family member their own hook and basket to store their items,” says Crowder....

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To save you time from pouring through pages and pages of products, we rounded up some of our favorites that will elevate the overall style of your home, as well as be useful for your everyday life. Picks include these clever bath towels that have different textures on each side for different drying needs, and this super affordable indoor/outdoor rug that emerged as one of the best out of the 31 rugs from various brands that we tested in our Lab....

1. Northern Sea Oats Prized for its shimmery oat-like seed heads, northern sea oats (Chasmanthium latifolium) are at their prime in fall. The wide, slightly weeping leaf blades turn bronze with the first frost and the seed heads take on a copper-tinged maroon hue. The dry seed heads add music to the garden when the wind moves through them. After it’s established, northern sea oats tolerates both drought and wet conditions....

Use the Color Wheel If you’re stuck trying to decide which colors go together, look to the color wheel for inspiration. The concepts of color theory can help direct you toward hues that complement one another. Purple and yellow go together, for example, because they’re across from each other on the color wheel, making them complementary. Green and blue blend well, because they’re next to each other, making them analogous. When in doubt, turn to the wheel for quick and easy solutions to your questions....

Plants for Creating the Bold Shade Garden Plan 1 Heritage river birch (Bitula nigra ‘Cully’): Zones 4-9 5 Azalea (Rhododendron ‘Mandarin Lights’): Zones 4-8 4 Sensitive fern (Onoclea sensibilis): Zones 4-9 20 Japanese painted fern (Athyrium niponicum ’ Pictum’): Zones 5-8 36 Woodland phlox (Phlox divaricata): Zones 4-8 70 Siberian squill (Scilla siberica): Zones 3-8 If you aren’t able to find the exact cultivars listed above, substitute with others that have similar colors, shapes, and sizes....

When to Use Baking Pans (Metal) Aluminum (nonstick or not) is a great choice for baking pans. They are lightweight and conduct heat well for even baking. Pale or shiny metal pans, such as heavy-gauge aluminum, deliver a tender delicate crust for breads and cookies. They’re also handy for easy sheet pan dinners. Dark metal pans, which conduct, retain, and distribute heat well, are for items that require more crispness or browning....

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Home and design editor for Sunset magazineMore than 20 years of experience in magazine publishingWork appears in Town & Country, The Wall Street Journal, Marie Claire, and more Her novel “THE DRIFTER” was published in 2017, and in 2020, she contributed an essay to a collection in the LA Times about Joan Didion’s impact on California culture and her life as a writer. Currently based in Los Angeles, Christine now works as the home and design editor for Sunset magazine....

Strawberry-Banana Stuffed French Toast In a medium bowl beat 6 ounces softened cream cheese with ¼ cup strawberry jam with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Fold in ⅔ cup chopped strawberries. Prepare sugar mixture as directed in step 1 and pour half of the mixture in the prepared dish. Arrange 6 bread slices in dish and top with remaining sugar mixture and the strawberry filling. Slice 3 bananas and arrange slices over the strawberry filling....