Okay, so you might be iced in at the moment. But it won’t be long before spring rains hit and the earth begins to warm. Here’s a way for avid and casual gardeners alike to collect that free water from the sky. Yes, it’s time you get a rain barrel. Don’t wait. It helps conserve water — no longer an elective action — and makes sense for anyone with flower beds or vegetable gardens. We like this particular 65-gallon rain barrel because even though it costs a little more than some others, it looks so good. Your neighbors won’t have anything to complain about. In sandstone or greenstone from Yardiac.

Hasbro Inc. announced that it has signed a licensing agreement that will launch an extensive apparel collection in Steve & Barry’s stores nationwide in spring and fall 2007. The deal includes 12 well-known Hasbro properties, the largest line-up that HPG has granted to any single licensee in the apparel category to date. The deal includes a wide variety of iconic brands such as Mr. Potato Head, Tonka, My Little Pony, G.I. Joe, Ttansformers, Candyland, Scrabble, Monopoly and Dungeons & Dragons. The agreement will result in a range of Hasbro-inspired apparel being featured at Steve & Barry’s, including T-shirts, hoodies, casual bottoms, sports hats and outerwear.

Full release: Business Wire

It’s not too late to order either candy or flowers for your honey, whom you forgot about until you looked at the calendar and saw it was Feb. 9! Here are a couple of our picks: A chocolate strawberry dipping kit from Gotfruit.com, a wonderful way to give a juicy chocolate treat. A Valentine Snack Tower from Hickory Farms that includes pink and white yogurt covered pretzels, apples and pears (No, there’s no sausage in that one, but you can order the Hickory Farms signature sausage packaged with Valentine pretzel sticks. If you’re so inclined.) Hickory Farms advises that you have until Sunday to order for VD delivery.
Aside from chocolates, how about a cake? Bake Me A Wish has a red chocolate cake that’s delectably encased fluffy white cream cheese icing. Very Valentines Day. Cakes are delivered the next day for $14.95 shipping, not bad, considering the freshness imperative.

January, as we all know, is the “white sale” month. But that outdated term barely covers it anymore. We’re not just talking about bland everyday sheets and towels, but all sorts of textiles and decor items on discount. Pillows, most notably, seem to be propping up sale signs everywhere. Bombay Company has pillows and silk window panels on clearance, and to our surprise some of the panels at 108″ long would actually fit today’s windows. How convenient is that?

Or wait until next season. Yes, you’re out of cash from holidays. Still, January is the best time to buy a coat. You can wear it for the rest of the winter; the selections have not been totally plundered by the masses and the prices are about as good as they get. Here’s a tip — you might even find a trench or car coat to extend beyond the snowy season, thereby better justifying the expense. We like the belted styles on winter jackets and trench coats at Tommy Hilfiger, though we’re still waiting for some prices to drop. Exhibit A above.

If, like us, you find yourself in a high def mood after receiving games and DVDs for Christmas, don’t despair. The electronics sales continue. The Samsung HD LCD TV (can you string more acronyms?) above is just one of many choices lingering as retailers push promotions into the New Year. At 32 inches, this TV is no one’s idea of a big-screen (at least not in this century) but it is suitable for bedrooms, sitting areas, smaller game areas etc. It’s got the wide-screen ratio, a slim body and it’s priced at the moment at Circuit City for under $1,300. Want to eek out another 5 inches? Check out the 37 inch HD, LCD at Philips Direct, priced at under $1500.