Cheap Thrills

Forgive the fact that it's only September, but the 2008 IKEA catalog. is already out for consumption.

The 372-page issue is packed with plenty of new furniture designs, fabrics and storage solutions, yet retains many of the company's classic styles.

DIYers take note: There's a whole culture of folks who take IKEA gear bought on the cheap and repurpose it into something else. They've started a blog, IKEAhacker, where they naturally post project photos and instructions. You can search by category, my favorite being Craft, where you can learn how to paint plastic, outfit your craft room and such.