Boring lampshades – not any more with The lampshade lady’s guide to lighting up your life: 50 custom lampshades & lamps by Judy Lake. Using inexpensive basic frames, a range of fabrics, photos, postcards or anything that inspires, a tired lampshade will be resurrected or a personalised new one produced.

It can be difficult to be enthusiastic about creating that personal touch for a short term home but Decorating to go by Robin Bernard and Adrienne Nappi gives suggestion on how to do just that. Advice, design ideas and how to achieve a lot with little money will create a feeling of home as well as an ability to transfer the result to another home.

How do you hang a big screen television? Why can’t you ever find your tools?  What should you do with that old sun-lounger? Solutions to these questions and others will be given in Weekend projects: a step-by-step guide to more than 50 DIY projects by Reader’s Digest.

Learn new skills from these books or others including self-sufficient living, upholstery and cooking home-grown produce in this month’s Home and Garden Recent Picks.

It is little things that impact on the look of a room but getting it right can be easier said than done. Accessorize your home: over 400 perfect finishing touches for your living space by Caroline Clifton-Mogg will help to add decorative details and imaginative displays to individualise your home. And what is most important is these ideas will not break the bank.

Chris Gleason, a professional cabinet-maker has no time for fussy, period furniture and his book Building real furniture for everyday life focuses on practical, sturdy and modern items. No time, little money and minimal tools – not a problem he says. Sensible furniture on a budget will be the result.

Organic gardening is becoming more popular as people increasingly want to know what they are eating. Growing organic: green tips for New Zealand gardeners by Nick Hamilton and Philippa Jamieson is a handy guide with information on preparing the soil through to harvesting the crop. Enjoy the fruits of your labour.

Read more about these subjects and other books on topics including herb gardening, vintage sewing projects and making blinds on this month’s DIY Recent Picks.

Whether to save money or to get a sense of achievement through producing your own vegetables DIY gardening is becoming more popular. In The healthy soil handbook , organic gardeners give advice on making the soil nutrient rich with minimal effort while reducing water usage. A healthy soil will produce healthy results.

Many people would like to try growing vegetables but feel they may not have the time, the space, the environment or the know-how. Dennis Greville’s book Easy on the pocket vegetable gardening : growing your own groceries guides the novice through all aspects and confidently states that year-round vegetables will be the result.

The residents of eight houses in America have allowed architectural photographer Bilyana Dimitrova into their homes. Chosen for their distinctive interiors that blend in with the personalities and lifestyles none of the homes in To each his home : inspiring interiors as unique as their owners have been designed by professionals.

Learn more about DIY reading these books and others on kitchens, bathrooms, woodshopping and more on the DIY Recent Picks page.

This month, Wellington City Libraries provide you with the ideal selection to make the most of your home and garden. Small spaces and Small and chic are two books that will help you stretch the boundaries of your living space and make your tiny home a smart one too! You can embellish your home with upholstery projects, tips and tricks and follow the advice of interior designers to make your house beautiful. If you are more of an outside person, you can learn how to grow vegetables efficiently and cheaply and if you are into native plants, we have a book just for you! Finally if you want to make your house a green home, check out this month’s Gardening and DIY Recent Picks.

DIY and gardening recent picks include lasagna gardening (layering), creating a cosy winter house, tailoring, curtain-making and one-minute organising.

New design books – folk art, hip-hop art, business cards, New Orleans zines, storyboards and more. ‘Andy Howell : art, skateboarding & life’ traces Howell’s journey through pro-skateboarding, the action sports industry and DIY movements within art, music and design.

You, too, can have a gorgeous window. Plus nurturing children’s rooms, a budget home make-over and an outstanding poolscape. Our Home & Garden recent picks for June include ‘Merry Christmas quilts’ – start quilting now and give them as presents in December! ‘How to decorate’ gives you the basics on wallpapering, tiling, painting and more.

Our Home & garden new book picks for May include ‘P. Allen Smith’s colors for the garden’, ‘Designing and creating a Mediterranean garden’, ‘Blinds, curtains & cushions’ and ‘Cut the clutter’.