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More and more homebuyers and homebuilders are focusing on "right-sizing" their dream home instead of mortgaging their dreams away. Building Today's Dream Home gives you instruction and advice on best practices for building a smaller, more cost-effective house without compromising comfort or quality. Building a right-sized, energy-efficient home can free up your investment capital for the retirement years, and this book gives you the information you need to build the right home for your needs.

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Fences, Gates, and Bridges, Second Edition, is your practical instruction guide to the best methods of building an incredible variety of fences, gates, and bridges for all regions and weather conditions.

Originally published in 1900, Fences, Gates, and Bridges, Second Edition features a section on fences that boasts an impressive medley of materials and designs, including the zigzag fence, the cheap and portable barbed-wire fence, and a sampling of sod and stone fences.

And what is a fence without a gate? The second segment of this fully illustrated book guides you through the making and setting of posts, as well as the construction and installation of swinging gates, sliding gates, pulley gates, and more.

The final section consists of information on a number of bridges, depicting a wide selection, designed for crossing gullies and culverts, as well as ornamental bridges for gardens and walkways.

Fences, Gates, and Bridges, Second Edition is a functional pocket manual and a testament to American ingenuity for all of your fencing, gating and bridging needs.

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Shelters, Shacks and Shanties, Second Edition presents lively, step-by-step tutelage on building all types of temporary and long-term accommodations from both natural and man-made materials. Originally published in 1914, this practical classic is as essential a guide for today's modern homesteader as it was at the turn of the 20th century.

Included are instructions for dozens of worry-free shelters for you to choose from, including a sod house for the lawn, a treetop house, over-water camps, a bog ken and much more. Satisfying the builder's need for the creature comforts of home, it also provides tips on how to build hearths and chimneys, notched log ladders, and even how to rig a front door with a secret look. Illustrated throughout with a bounty of helpful line drawings, Shelters, Shacks and Shanties, Second Edition harkens back to the can-do spirit of the American frontier that still thrives today.

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Handy Farm Devices, Second Edition, is as useful and pertinent for homesteaders and small-scale farmers today as it was when it was first published nearly 100 years ago. A wealth of labor- and money-saving projects fills this century-old guide to low-tech property maintenance along with easy-to-follow instructions and practical illustrations. Within the pages of this book you will learn to make:

• Spill-proof chicken wateres
• Portable chicken coops
• A lightweight orchard ladder
• A small truss bridge
• An easy fence-post and stump-puller
• Gates that don't sag
• Gates that lift over snowdrifts
• A handy wood splitter
• A bicycle-powered washing machine
• And much more

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CLEARANCE ITEM. PREVIOUS RETAIL PRICE WAS $12.95 AVAILABLE ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!

Who needs a chainsaw? Anyone who cuts or uses wood! Learn simple saw maintenance, sharpening secrets and the best ways to use this handy homesteading tool. Regular Price $12.95.

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With so many attractive stock cabinetry designs available, creating the kitchen of your dreams no longer involves the budget-busting price tag of custom-made cabinets. In fact, you'll be amazed as cabinetmaker Jonathan Benson shows you how to beautifully — and affordably — transform your kitchen by using money-saving stock cabinetry and a well-thought-out plan.

From having a solid design that meets the needs of everyone using the space, to advice and lessons on what to know before going cabinet shopping, or how to live in a construction zone, Benson and his wife, Sherry, a former chef and restaurant owner, show you how a little teamwork can make a kitchen remodel go more smoothly.

Transforming Your Kitchen with Stock Cabinetry will put you right in the heart of a remodeling project, which happens to be the Bensons' own kitchen, and guide you through the complete process. The inspirational gallery at the end of the book is filled with beautiful photos and gives true meaning to the term "dream kitchen."

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CLEARANCE ITEM. PREVIOUS RETAIL PRICE WAS $19.95 AVAILABLE ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!

Whether you want a storage structure, children's playhouse, art studio or workshop, you can learn how to design and build the ideal shed for any yard with this Popular Mechanics guide. You'll learn how to site, plan and choose durable and attractive materials. There's easy-to-understand information on carpentry and structural anatomy, from installing a foundation to nailing roof shingles to framing a window. This book also includes a final chapter with shed designs that will help you get started building your own structure. Become a citizen of Shed Nation and enjoy your property to its fullest.

There are innovative plans for building several sheds, each with a different practical use, as well as contributions from Popular Mechanics readers who share their own designs.

The sheds include:

• Small Is Beautiful: A 6’ x 8’ shed with solid framing, plywood sheathing and cedar siding. It’s big enough to hold a variety of tools, but won’t dominate the backyard.
• The Groundskeeper: This 9’ x 13’ shed with a spacious layout and a crisp, no-frills design is ideal for the beginning DIYer.
• The Big Red Shed: This handsome shed is a multipurposer’s dream; a 10’ x 12’ tool shed combined with an 8’ x 10’ open bay that’s great for firewood or tractors.
• Classic Colonial: A stylish, multipurpose garden shed with decorative trim and architectural accents. Includes a 12’ x 12’ general storage space, 4’ x 12’ potting area, and a small loft for seasonal storage.
• The Greenhouse: Complete instructions on purchasing a kit greenhouse in a variety of sizes (7’ x 9’, 8’ x 16’, or larger) allows for a big-league growing season.

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Here's a mammoth resource that belongs in the library of everyone who owns a garden. It's a colorful treasure trove of the best backyard projects ever, from decorative to functional, from walls to walkways. Providing solutions to every possible garden problem, this book furnishes comprehensive coverage of all planning stages: design, technical considerations, tools and materials.

Transform your yard into a beautiful oasis by making attractive and practical garden features using a wide range of materials. Whether you need more rustic seating or want to accent your perennial beds with a flagstone walkway, there's a perfect design here to fulfill your needs.

Need to enliven an ordinary setting? A garden floor can do the trick. Follow the instructions for making one of brick, ornamental gravel, stone or concrete. Want to define a space? Add a beautiful pathway. Find out how to put up a fence for extra flair, or choose one of 30 garden seating ideas, including a trestle swing. How-tos, photos, drawings, and patterns make construction easy.

Complete with hundreds of stunning color photographs, The Big Book of Backyard Projects will enable you to add function and style to your outdoor areas.

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These amazing techniques and projects offer a modern twist on a traditional art — and they’ll transform your image of the blacksmith forever. Blacksmithing provides an accessible introduction to forging, the process of hammering or pressing steel to a finished shape (most often by applying high heat to the metal). More and more people are discovering the creative pleasure of going into an iron studio, applying high heat to steel, and hammering or pressing interesting shapes.

There's an overview of materials (such as various forms of steel) as well as essential tools (including hammers, torches and anvils). Master such techniques as creating a right-angle bend, forming a point, and making spirals and curls. You'll also learn how to craft your own nails, fasteners and brackets. Then choose from 10 beginner-friendly projects, from a simple trivet to a handsome weathervane.