I use bricks, but you have to lay them down neatly one after another, or the wind will get in. On the sides, too, I use six bricks per side, all told, some 22 bricks per bed. I have a lot of bricks. Perhaps it is colder there than here, but here it is certainly not sunny in winter. Collard and kale make it under a single layer, and collard can be picked frozen. It is not efficient, a lot of outer leaves die and become inedible, but it is much better than nothing. The best thermal ballast is moist, uncovered soil. No mulch whatsoever. I usually water (with a 5-gallons bucket) when I open a bed, and I am meticoulous when I close it. I leave the snow on, because I just overwinter whole beds, and that helps. I suggest you experiment with one bed, single layer, just red kale, and see how it goes. If red kale dies, it is proof positive that you have to go double.

I never sew clear up to the edge, but stop several stitches before the seam allowance...then, do a quilters knot and draw my thread in the batting, toward the body of the quilt, away from the edge, back up through the top in 1/2" or so, and clip it there.

Maydl, Photobucket was working on its site last night- so don't know if that had anything to do with it? Did you try again today? Can't tell where the hour is, doesn't correlate to my time zone. I'd email customer support for help, and see if they have any solutions.

Joann: Thank you for the design and all of the example pics. You and your DH are really very talented. Did either or you ever do this work professionally or is it a hobby? Thank you for highlighting all of the architectural details. That is exactly what I need to see. DH and I were debating about this glass as the side panels are quite narrow so your pics are very helpful to visualize the whole effect. I should mention here that this is not a fully custom shop. We basically get to pick different door/cabinet styles, wood species/stain/hardware, height/width, drawers and component configuration so I may not be able to order some of the lovely design details you incorporated, though I will bring in the pics and inquire about it on Sat. I did notice the bottom doors on the console are not full overly which it looks like you designed for the sides. I'm going to guess my top option will not be full overlay so we'll see. Also, my hinges are not the euro style on bottom and stick out the sides. Wouldn't they need to match? As the TV is 50" wide, I was thinking of having the center opening be 51". Then in the vertical direction with the TV height at 31" I was thinking we should add a bit of beathing room--say about 3" extra on top so the TV box would then be 51"W x 34"H. I think I'll check the TV specs to see any ventillation requirements, though I know DH wants some holes in the back for cables, etc. I notice hoosiergirl's TV is very tightly set into the built-in. I'll let you know what they come up with when we go in over the weekend.