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If you build it, they will grow--at least with Mother Earth News' Growlight Bookcase, a do-it-yourself carpentry project that can transition from starting seeds to displaying houseplants to storing books with the greatest of ease.
To get started, you'll need to go to an electrical supply store and buy a 4-foot, two-tube fluorescent light fixtures, as well as quality cool-white or warm-white tubes. You may also want to snag a timer, which costs roughly $10, that will turn the lights on and off at specific times.
With fixtures in hand, you can determine the length of your shelf and how wide your valances (the boards that will cover the front of the fixtures) should be. This is when you decide how high you want each shelf, and whether you're happy with just two shelves or if you'd want three or four. For complete instructions, mouse on over to the magazine's Web site. ::Mother Earth News
Difficulty level: Moderate
