1. Grow your own vegetables and makes packed lunches cheaper

HEALTHY salad lunches make a great way to get into shape for summer but if you want to save pounds in cash while losing pounds in weight the answer is to grow your own.

2. Interiors: Down and out glamour

THE party is over – it seems this autumn/winter our inspiration is coming from the Wall Street Crash rather than the Jazz Age.

3. Sleek Scandinavian style at Hindhead store

A SCANDINAVIAN style shop in Hindhead has been receiving a positive response, much to the delight of its owner whose online success needed a new space to grow.

4. Drawing on inspiration for interior design workshops

AS a young girl Karen Mackenzie would carefully cut out fabric offcuts to style a wooden dolls house her father had given her.

5. Chickens provide a slice of the good life

BELIEVE it or not, chickens are the sixth most popular domestic pet, after fish, cats, dogs, rabbits and indoor birds. In fact the domestic keeping of chickens is now at levels not seen since the 1950s.

6. Declutter your home this spring

FIFTY or so years ago, the annual spring clean involved housewives spending days decluttering and cleaning their homes.

7. Up on the roof

BALCONIES, terraces, boxes and rooftops are the new buzzwords for helping garden wildlife, says the RSPB.

8. Fabulous lights are much more than an afterthought

With many beautiful and varied designs available, a well-designed light can be as much a work of art as a painting or sculpture.

9. Garden a constant delight

New growth is sprouting up everywhere and colour is at last returning to our gardens as spring really takes hold.

To celebrate the arrival of the season, Sarah and Michael Heber-Percy have started opening their beautiful garden to the public under the charitable National Garden Scheme (NGS),

10. Investing in a little bit of history

If you are disillusioned with banks or stocks and shares as safe places to put your hard-earned savings, investing in antiques could provide the answer. According to former art teacher Hilary Burroughs, now the owner of the Antique Warehouse at Runfold, it’s something that an increasing number of people are turning to.