Tucson Project: A Dream Comes True

Team Tucson

A short spring TV schedule leaves no time for contractors who aren't willing to work on top of each other or homeowners who aren't willing to make decisions quickly. Thanks to extraordinary teamwork, This Old House polishes off an eight-month renovation in three.By Jack McClintock

Mesquite

The soul of the Sonoran Desert is hidden beneath the bark of its most prevalent tree. Crafted by cabinetmaker James Vosnos, this precious but stubborn wood becomes the centerpiece of the Tucson project kitchen.By Jack McClintock

Poured Floors

When is a concrete floor not fine Italian marble? Your friends will never know.By Brad Lemley

An American Craftsman

Cloaked in smoke and swathed in distorted metallic reflections, coppersmith Larry Stearns devotes his days to shimmering adornments that will endure much longer than he will.By Walt Harrington

Why Is My Paint Peeling?

Bad paint jobs can happen to good people with old houses? even when they listen faithfully to everything the paint salesman tells them. The reason is a surprising revelation about the compatibility of oil and latex paints.By Jeanne Huber

Zeus on the Loose

Exploding pipes, airborne fireplaces and vaporized wiring is child's play for 150,000-amp lightning bolts. Without lightning rods, every cupola, dormer and satellite dish on your house wears an electrostatic "Kick Me" sign.By Claudia Glenn Dowling

Nature Wins

The American obsession with clipped grass is usually a quixotic effort involving massive irrigation and expensive chemicals. For all the heroics, the result is often boring. A Phoenix landscaper gives in to nature, encouraging indigenous plants in a self-sustaining ecosystem teeming with cutters.By Sara Stein

The Poster: First Aid

When you're fishing through sawdust to find your finger, this is the chart to have at eye level.By Larry Katzenstein

In the Garden

It may seem crazy, but we're in love with a push mower?an old-fashioned reel mower that doesn't require old-fashioned effort. Also. razzle-dazzle raspberries.

Off The Wall

Blinded by Brackets

Shy glances over the counter, a solemn exchange of wing nuts: Could this be hardware-store love?By Jeanne Marie Laskas

Power Tool

Slice and Dice

Smooth edges! Dead-on angles! And it cuts trim in seconds! The sliding compound miter saw is a finish carpenter's favorite tool.By Mark Feirer

Hand Tool

Reverse Hammering

It can't extract the shame, but a good cat's paw will keep an errant nail your little secret.By Jeff Taylor

Electrics

Aiming for Space

NASA funding pays off: A well-installed satellite dish serves up "Comedy Central," via the stratosphere.By William G. Scheller

Equipment

Pure and Not So Simple

If you can't trust the water, at least you can trust the modern technology of home water filters.By Brooke Deterline

Technique

Easy Breeze

Installing a ceiling fan can be only slightly more complicated than changing a light bulb.By John Kelsey

Architecture

This Room Looks Funny

Learn the classic principles of proportion and visitors won't be able to tell where you added that new family room.By Steve Thomas

Finances

What's Your House Worth?

Don't let your neighborhood banker and his appraiser decide without your help.By Patricia E. Berry