I didn't see all these posts last year. I'm starting to check ebay this year but it's too early so far. Anyway our weather ( NC foothills) is likely to be too cold for awhile yet. We have had some temps in the low 70's in January this year. Last year I bought one plant from plantmaniac on ebay and three from the Violet Barn. All bloomed almost nonstop all summer and fall. I'm overwintering them without lights indoors. I take them outside whenever I can . I was surprised how big the blooms were last year. They were very showy. I registered with Etsy and bought about 10 clematis plants, so will be checking there for plants this spring. I don't need a whole lot of them but maybe a few more colors. I have some gloxinia seed from Geo seed . What I planted a couple of years ago didn't germinate. Will try again , in case the seed is still good.

In October 2022, I bought a couple of saucepans for my portable induction burner, which I was using during my kitchen renovation at the Salem address. One is Delarlo and the other is Michelangelo, and I like the Michelangelo better because of the knob handle on the lid, which I find easier to store. I already had some T-Fal frying pans, and they were not induction compatible, but they came with the house, and I do not know how old they were, but I did like using them with gas. I bought an All-Clad frying pan (very large) at Sur La Table, and I think their prices are competitive. I have an old set of Fagor pressure cookers that I love, but I believe that is no longer available. I bought a Zavor pressure cooker for my reno, and I do not like it as much, as it seems to have hot spots when used with my induction burner, but I blame the burner. I would hope that the stovetop induction burners heat more evenly than the portable version. I have a very old Circulon frying pan that I love, and it is the only very old frying pan that I have that is induction compatible, besides my cast iron pans, which I also enjoy using.

That's why I said depending on where you live. Nieman Marcus and Bloomingdale's are still here, with a number of stores in the area (around here, half an hour driving barely gets you anywhere, so by ’area’ I mean within 90 minutes normal traffic), and last I checked both had nice linens departments. Those would be good to check online as well. For both blankets and pots. There might even be a sale, Maybe do some pre-shopping online for the pots at W-S, Sur La Table and Zwilling, too, to get .an idea of what looks like contenders, and what the prices are. The first two have stores, though maybe not near you. Schweitzer Linen has very high end things like Italian linens and cashmere blankets, as well as more moderate ones. Their stores are only in Manhattan, but they've been doing catalog for a long time, and have a website. You can also call. I think they have more than what's shown, A couple of years ago, my favorite comforter was ruined. I looked all over, but it was an old fashioned dacron comforter. I can't have any kind of down or feather, and hate ”down alternative” with a passion. What I finally found was a moderate quality (and price) silk lined cotton at Vermont Country Store catalog. They do not have generous return policies (i.e., you pay the shipping) but I spoke to a very helpful customer service agent and thought it sounded worth the hassel. I really like it. Which is why I say, if you want something specific that they might just not have in the local stores, shopping online can really be worthwhile, even if it's not the way you want to do it,

When I remodeled my previous house I had custom wood doors made by Ranch House doors. That was in Los Angeles, so solid wood garage doors do well in that climate with some maintenance of the top finish every 3-5 years, depending on sun exposure. https://ranchhousedoors.com/ RHD shows a similar garage door on this page, scroll down a bit to the slide show. https://ranchhousedoors.com/contemporary/ Just a warning. Garage doors have gotten ridiculously expensive, specially custom ones.