NEXT WEEK

The fifth installment of our series on occasional-sale stores sends savvy shoppers north to Osseo and Anoka for French flea market finds, vintage and repurposed furnishings and accessories.

DO IT NOW

If your lawn is looking thin, you can plant grass seed from now through the middle of September -- as long as the weather stays relatively cool. Apply a starter fertilizer after you seed and water frequently, but don't use any weedkillers this fall.

HOT TICKET

Come for the corn dogs, stay for the garden gab. Home + Garden Editor Connie Nelson and Taste Editor Lee Dean will be at the Minnesota State Fair at 2 p.m. Thursday and 2 p.m. next Wednesday. We'll talk about growing vegetables in any sized space and using what you've grown in fresh new recipes. Join us at the Star Tribune booth at the base of the ramp to the grandstand, on Carnes Avenue, across from the DNR building. The Greengirls, the Star Tribune's garden bloggers, will also make an appearance. Look for them from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sept. 4.

STARTRIBUNE.COM

Take a virtual tour of the "net zero" Eco House at the State Fair. The demonstration dwelling in the Progress Building is designed to produce as much electricity as it uses. The 2,200-square-foot house will feature solar panels, a geothermal heat pump, superinsulated walls, eco-friendly finishing materials, a green roof and a rain garden. Check it out at www. startribune.com/homegarden.

WEB WATCH

kon-tent.blogspot.com

Afton blogger Ross Sveback muses on subjects from rosemaling, to balsamic truffles, to the virtues of Dacor's new 30-inch dishwasher. Sveback, who teaches cooking and entertaining classes, had a primo post earlier this summer with a recipe that substituted julienned zucchini for spaghetti in a veg-friendly main dish.

WINNERS CIRCLE

If you've glammed up your space, Urban Outfitters wants your video. The retailer of home decor and apparel is offering a $1,000 gift card to the winner of its "Small Space, Big Style" contest, which ends Monday. Entrants should narrate and upload a video of one minute or less showing how they made the most of their decor. The public will vote on five finalists; all entries will be judged on innovative use of space, creativity and overall style. See details and enter at http://contests .urbanoutfitters.com/smalltime.

ON TV

Need inspiration for that kitchen re-do you've been putting off? Check out tonight's installment of "Sweat Equity" on the DIY Network at 9 p.m.; Minnesota host Amy Matthews weighs in with a budget kitchen renovation that includes making a granite countertop from a kit.

KIM YEAGER, CONNIE NELSON