Everyone remembers the flood of lead based paint recalls that shook consumer confidence last year. Many blamed a lack of federal oversight for the seemingly daily doses of parental terror caused by the series of toy callbacks.

I recently read an article on FoxNews.com titled “How Green Is Recycled Plastic Lumber?” that debated the planetary friendliness of recycled plastic chunks made to look like wood.

Earlier this week, a Russian transport ship was hit with heavy seas off the coast of Kent, U.K. and lost about 1,500 tons of sawn timber. Since the accident, huge piles of ocean-soaked lumber have been washing up on the beach, and people have been traveling in droves to haul away some wood.

Your first reaction might be “nothing,” and until a couple of days ago, I would have said the same thing.

The swirl of frozen credit and dropping orders has put the squeeze on small businesses during the economic crunch.

The “Card Check Act” is again before Congress. The “Employee Free Choice Act” (EFCA) actually is a misnomer in that this bill will take away the right of employees to determine through a secret ballot whether or not they want union representation.

Afrormosia closely resembles teak and is so often used as a teak substitute that it is sometimes referred to as African teak. But the wood is prized for for more than simply its resemblance to teak -- it is also valued for character and properties all its own.

It’s doubtful woodworkers would use a surgeon’s scalpel to cut a board, but apparently doctors might make use of something you have lying around the shop in a pinch.

Lately I’m repeatedly being accused of being too negative. (Never mind what my family says about me — brutal, to say the least.)

From hidden closet bottom drawers to insight into consumer organization trends, I learned much during the single day I attended the Closets & Home Organization Conference & Expo last week.