OTTAWA, TORONTO, CALGARY: New homes, and new or renewed forms of homes, are a year-round attachment of Canadian home-and-garden journalism. Generating newspaper attention recently was the growing appreciation for the townhouse in Ottawa, top; the showhome of a highrise-development in the Toronto suburb of Brampton, above left; and a showhome for a tract-housing development in north Calgary. You can learn a lot about your town when you read the out-of-town newspapers. Consider this, from the Ottawa Citizen townhouse story: "To a large extent, their proliferation comes from the maturing of Ottawa as an urban centre and the municipality's professed commitment to housing intensification to combat urban sprawl." Every life-long Ottawa resident who thinks a townhouse an exemplar of intense residency owes himself or herself a trip to Vancouver or, perhaps, a moment's reflection on those television skyshots broadcast between Winter Games coverage.

'Upcycling' is one of those reminders of the elasticity of the English language. The word 'upcycle' has only appeared in this newspaper twice in the last 10 years. It means, according to one of the 342,000 Internet sites in which the word appears, the "repurposing of a material into a product of higher quality. An example would be a purse made out of woven candy wrappers." It must have considerable currency in Calgary, if this introduction to a Herald story on used-items stores is a guide: 'Don't have just the right upcycle elements hanging around your baserment.? Check out local flea markets, second-hand shops . . . ."

CASCADE -- Project location: Westwood Plateau, Coquitlam

GINGER -- Project location: Strathcona, Vancouver

PETER SIMPSON -- peter

InterUrban will have big views of historic city -- PAGES D2-3

Durability and sustainability are two of the reasons why wood has replaced carpeting in popularity in the main living areas of a house. Traditional hardwoods like oak and maple have been joined by bamboo, cork and reclaimed wood. Bamboo reaches maturity in six years and can be continually harvested. With cork, the bark of a tree is harvested every few years without killing the tree. Shown here, a dining room with cork flooring, left, a kitchen with bamboo flooring, above, and a sitting area with reclaimed wood, right.

Dear Condo Smarts: Our strata council is confused on how to apply our bylaws.

A subtle pride permeates the Inter-Urban new-home project in New Westminster -- pride in the 18-storey building, but also in the neighbourhood in which it is located.

Q: Is it possible to grow basil indoors? I know it cannot be seeded or transplanted outdoors until late spring. I am craving some fresh, homegrown basil. I am fond also of cilantro.

Kinichi Shigeno is an award-winning veteran artisan whose ceramic works have been showcased both locally and overseas. Hamza Vora and Raneen Nosh are novice artisans whose tile creations have just recently made their public introduction.