While so many furniture manufacturers are struggling, uncertain economic times have not affected IKEA adversely. Recently IKEA posted a 10.3% jump in its net profit for the year ending Aug. 31.

So what is IKEA doing right? Several things. It has improved how the furniture is manufactured and then flat packed, saving money on production and transport costs. Then, the savings have been passed on to consumers, as during this period IKEA also brought its prices down.

While lower prices are certainly bringing people in, the company has also focused on building customer loyalty by rewarding them. There was a party at IKEA stores for BYOF Day earlier this month. Lisa Finnin-Ciccioli, the Local Media Specialist at IKEA told me that traffic was good at my local IKEA store. Customers got free food, a free Life Improvement seminar with national TV host and designer Lisa Quinn, and drawings for shopping sprees.

Then there is the  IKEA Family program which offers news of new products,  discounts and deals, and the lure of free coffee. Who can resist free coffee?

Photo (c) Spencer Platt/Getty Images

At a loss about how to make your child's room special?

Give your child some stickers. Lots of them. Then sit back and watch the magic unfold.

These images are from "The obliteration room" an installation, which is a part of the "Yayoi Kusama: Look Now, See Forever" exhibition at the Queensland Gallery of Modern Art.

The room, which started off as an average Australian interior, was painted white and furnished with white furniture. It provided a "canvas" for the dots.

Over a period of two weeks, visiting children were given colored dot stickers to obliterate the pristine whiteness of the room. Look what happened! Seurat would have been proud.

These images are courtesy of Stuart Addelsee.

What do you do when your town's landmark tree dies?

Wilmette's Bicentennial Ash came down in a windstorm last year. The ash tree which was 265 years-old at the time of its demise, and one of the oldest in Illinois, measured 74 inches in diameter. It was mourned by residents who came to pay their last respects.

But the tree is getting a second life as furniture for the Village Hall. It is being turned into "a coffee table, three benches and two chairs for the second floor lobby at Wilmette Village Hall." There will still be plenty of wood left over for local schools, a museum and others after the furniture is made.

American Restoration returns tonight with Rick Dale to the History Channel. It is scheduled for 10 p.m. with back-to-back episodes.

A brand new batch of artifacts in need of restoration includes an antique mechanical bull and a mammoth meat slicer from 1913 among other things. These beat up objects that have seen better days will be restored to their former glory. If you've tried your hand on some such project yourself, you will understand that none of it is easy.

"Not easy" does not mean not doable, as Rick demonstrates on the show. However the restoration process does require enthusiasm, endless research and creativity. To find out more, read my Q&A with Rick Dale, as he talks about bringing history back to life, and why this is so important.