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SECTION 2.PAGE 12. PLAINDEALER HERALD. WEDNESDAY. NOVEMBER 7,19«4 Turn of the century songs to be sung at Opera House MOLLY MILLIGAN Your Home Decorator * • 1994 Pally Milhtan Syndicair FROM BABY TEARS TO WEEPING FIG Dear Molly MHttgan: I love fresh green plants, but my home has poor lighting nd absolutely nothing will grow. I refuse to use artificial plants because they always look so fake. Is there a plant that will grow In the dark? Paula, St. Louis Dear Paula: Mushrooms grow in the dark but they're a fungi and don't provide much interest or color. A better solution would be to use preserved plants. These are plants which were once alive but have been chemically treated to preserve them. They don't need light or water and are'so authentic lookii.g they could fool a mockingbird. These embalmed beauties come in many sizes--from baby Boston ferns to graceful palms seven feet high. ••• x V \ Dear Molly Milllgan: I love piaats, but I have a difficult time arranging them. Is there a technique for arranging plants to give them the important look they deserve? Judith, McHenry, IL - Dear Judith: It's the rare room that doesn't benefit from the beauty of a live plant. Choose plants that suit the light and available space in your room. A large plant in a small corner can dwarf an area, just as a smaller plant can get lost in a big room. Could this be your problem, Judith? Try arranging your small and medium-size plants in a group on windowsili, mantelpiece or bookshelf. A variety of leaf shapes and contrasting greens will create interest. Taller plants and indoor trees are perfect for balancing areas like the fireplace or a door. Larger plants make great room dividers or use them in front of the window in place of draperies for that "jungle look". To make a dramatic statement, take a whispery palm and light it from below with a small spotlight or uplight. The light will Alter through the leaves creating a captivating pattern on the ceiling and walls. Dear Molly Milligan: My heart and soul is in sunny Florida but my bread and butter is in the windy midwest. I'd like to decorate my living room so it has a tropical feeling. Any pointers? Anthony, Chicago Dear Anthony: There are several tricks you can pull to bring that "tropical feeling" up north. You can begin by treating your living room as if it were a patio. Use outdoor furniture like wicker, rattan or bamboo. Have glass table tops, terra cotta pots, Mexican baskets and seashells for accents. Cover one wall--or all four--with white lattice--or lattice-type wallpaper--to create a gazebo effect.- Use sunshine colors to emphasize your little tropic zone and fill with lush green plants. Finish with Casablanca ceiling fans and, colorful, smooth, ceramic floor tiles. If you have a question for Your Home Decorator, send it along with a self-addressed, stamped envelope to Molly Milligan, P.O. Box 14, Dundee, IL 60118. Allow four weeks for a reply. A Great Start on a Great Kitchen... FREE! I f y o u ' v e e v e r considered remodeling your old kitchen or installing a new one, "the time has never been so right before" to copy a popular tune! Do-it-yourselfers are finding that installing a new kitchen can be easy with the help of The Floor to Ceiling Store where all the necessary components can be purchased. And now, during the Great Start Giveaway, FCS will be giving a free Tappan microwave oven or dishwasher to customers who purchase 12 or more S c h r o c k k i t c h e n cabinets. Step-by-step booklets -- like the one available from Schrock, a Tappan division -- guide the do- % i t - y o u r s e l f e r f r o m * proper measurement of the kitchen area to the final installation steps. A list of tools and mate­ rials necessary and each progressive step .is cov­ ered in detail. The Floor to Ceiling Store will supply a layout grid sheet that enables ho­ meowners to accurately measure and plan an en­ tire new kitchen. When measurements are com­ plete, Schrock cabinet experts will help design a kitchen with the right mixture of cabinets to fit personal tastes and re­ quirements. After all of the choices have been made, the next step is dismantling the old kitchen. Removal of old cabinets is easier than most people realize since the majority are installed with screws. In fact, remodeling an old kitchen is simplified because anchoring studs a r e p r e - l o c a t e d . (However, old screw holes should never be used to install new cabinets.) Where walls or floors are uneven, there are directions for the use of shims or a little plaster in the right spots to solve the problems. From that point en, it's a matter of putting new cabinets in place starting with wall cabinets (the upper tier). Countertops can be ordered pre-cut to fit and installed in a few easy steps. Once your new kitchen is in place, it's time to install appli­ ances and take pride in your accomplishment. The money you save in labor costs -- and per­ haps a free Tappan ap­ pliance if you buy during the Great Start Givea­ way Sale -- will double your pride. (Pd. Advertisement) The second program in the Creative Living Series at the Woodstock Opera House will be held on Thursday, Nov. 15. The "Spirit of Song" ensemble will appear in costume of the late Victorian era, and present song favorites of the "turn of the century" period during which the Woodstock Op£ra House was built and established as a per­ formance hall for succh popular, musical en­ tertainments. Musical favorites included songs that everyone sang as they gathered in those days around family spinet or organ in the parlor, or socialized informally in homes or town halls. "Songs such as 'Love's Old Sweet Song' or 'Father, Dear Father' or the Stephen Foster standards were unsophisticated but very direct and sometimes irtaudlin-expressions of the Victorian middle class musical taste," says John Monkman, founder-director of "Spirit of Song", who has thoroughly researched the music of the 19th and early 20th centuries. The "Spirit of Song" un­ dertakes the musical challenges of the era. John Monkman, artistic director, is an ac­ claimed tenor soloist and keyboardist as well as a teacher of voice and keyboards. He and his wife, Mary, soprano soloist for "Spirit of Song," have lived in upper New York state since 1972, but they previously lived in Woodstock where he directed the Methodist church chior and founded and directed the Fine Arts Chorale from 1965 until his move. - In seven years the 24-voice Chorale presented "Requiems" by Mozart and Faure, as well as concerts of shorter works by such disparate composers as Stravinsky, Vaughan Williams and Bach. "The Messiah" is often done these days in the authentically brisk and unabridged Handeliam version, but the Fine Arts Chorale was one of the first groups to break away from the sonorous, massive*nd abbreviated style that tradition had demanded. Some of the McHenry county singers who were members of the Fine Arts Chorale are Dr. George Porter of McHenry, Diane and Arnold Woodruff of Crystal Lake, and Ann Tirk of Marengo. Five members of the "Spirit of Song" ensemble will be ap­ pearing at the Opera House on Nov. 15. In addition to John and Mary Monkman, Barry Torres has appeared there before. He sang the counter-tenor solos in the 1978 "Messiah". He has a bachelor of arts degree in music composition from Syracuse University and has studied voice, piano and composition privately and participated in several workshops on medieval performance and early music. Willow Hirschy, contralto, has a bachelor of arts degree in music history, and also par­ ticipated in the 1978 "Messiah" directed by John Monkman at the Woodstock Opera House. Douglas Pyke, baritone, is a graduate of Oberlin Con­ servatory with a major in organ performance. He studies vocal performance with Monkman. The "Spirit of Song" program will begin at 10 a.m. A coffee hour will precede the per­ formance. Tickets at $4, and $3 for senior citizens will be available at the door of the Opera House on the morning of the performance. WINTER BOAT STORAGE >12°° PER FOOT (INSIDE ONLY) • EXAMPLE-16 DOAT'21600 OCT. 15th TO MAY 15th SIX MONTH PAYMENT PLAN HUSTLER STORAGE & RENTAL CORP. (815)385-4848 (815)385-4056 OFFICC FURNITURE SALS Desk * Files * Chairs • Bookcases * Conference Tables 25% I» 50% OFF on All Floor Samples -- Large Selection to Choose from M BUSINESS INTERIORS WAREHOUSE 220 N. River St., East Dundee 426*3605 OWEN MON.-KI. *00 'til StOO SAT. 9a00 ftM 12tOO .W I* TO Clill.ING STCM CASH DISCOUNT KITCHEN CABINET A \v.;.y.v.v.\v.v.v.v.v.v.\v.v U I division Dozens of styles and finishes in a tremendous variety of space-sav­ ing cabinet siz&l Turntables, glass front cupboards, deep draw­ ers and built-in convenience. MFG. LIST Order your kitchen cabinets and countertops from us and receive a CASH DISCOUNT in addition to our already LOW PRICES! Cash CASH DISCOUNT! Pay for your order in advance and we will give you an additional Pay V2 of your order in advance and we will give you an additional Discount Cash Discount Before you bUy...check our veluee on: •PANELING •CARPETING •VANTITIES •KITCHEN CABINETS •APPLIANCES . • WALLPAPER •FLOORING 1230 DAVIS ROAD (BYPASS RT. 14 ft 47) WOODSTOCK • 815-338-1440 Hours: Monday A Friday 9-8:30 Tuesday-Thursday 9-6; Saturday P-5 W« will professionally design your kltchon fREE! T. CM|