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B e t t e r H o m e s a n d B a r g a i n sBY JEANNETTE WALLSAND LINUS GELBERA home is a clear reflection of the owner%u2019s tastes and personality, and when the decorator doesn%u2019t go further than a local %u201cbargain basement warehouse%u2019%u2019 for furnishings, a lot of ticky tack might be all that%u2019s reflected.Home repair and improvement isn%u2019t easy, but it can be exciting and challenging, and when efforts are channeled right, the home can look like it was tailor-made for the owner. Right now, the best bets for achieving that result seem to be in Brooklyn's %u201c you name it, we%u2019ll make it\stores.Start with the basics: furniture, often the house%u2019s most permanent and most flavorful investment.MORNING DEWIf quality craftsmanship appeals to you, and you think the only place to find it is in the 200-year-old furniture, thank again. Plenty of places do custom furniture work and a good choice among these might be a store that has been open on Atlantic Avenue for only two months now. Don%u2019t expect to see a showcase of ornate furniture when you walk into Morning Dew. Only a few pieces are on display. One, a small cutting board, is made of 35 pieces of wood. It%u2019s the thick layer of sawdust, the many carpentry and drafting tools, and the blueprints scattered around the workshop that do most of the talking about quality.%u201c If you can sketch a picture of it, we can make it,\outdoors-type who goes by %u201c Sandy,%u201d adding that a few minor adjustments might have to be made so the piece will be structurally sound. Quality is emphasized in the shop and the carpenters at Morning Dew will calmly tell you that his furniture is the best quality you can find around.Once based in the Bronx, Morning Dew is doing well in its new location, 368 Atlantic Avenue. The hours are still irregular, but you can leave a message at 596-0786. The staff is very friendly and a pleasure to work with.THE WORKBENCHOf course, not everyone has plenty of plenty of room to deal with, so if you%u2019re one of those apartment or brownstone dwellers who has resorted to stacking shoeboxes, you'll be happy to know that there%u2019s a very pleasant alternative. It%u2019s called The Workbench.%u201c We are geared toward a younger taste%u2014utilitarian furniture that is both functional and attractive,%u201d explained Bob Kaplan, manager of the store. Much of the furniture leans towards an office style and lends itself to almost any interior.- The style looks very much in place without a lot of hassle, and rather than subtract, the style adds to the other surroundings. One%u201cperfect%u201d that does the hide-away bed a few steps better is something called a sit bed. It is a couch that folds out for sleeping, without the unattractive awkwardness that are part of most fold-aways.Atop a spiral staircase is a small floor on which there is one of the most efficient children%u2019s room arrangements one could hope to find. Plenty of furniture for two and a baby are neatly stashed into an area of about 15 x 15 feet.The Workbench carries a long line of stackables and foldables and furniture comes in dozens of materials including glass, metal, plastic, wood, and of course, cloth%u2014most of which are tasteful neutrals and sensible patterns.Situated in a lovely redbrick building at 60 Clinton Street, just off Montague, The Workbench has a comfortable and very attractive interior, which takes some of the pressure off shopping. Another pressureeaser you can pick up at the counter at The Workbench is an eight-page, tabloid size newsletter that gives some practical, helpful suggestions on home decorating. The store hours are 10 a.m. till 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday, or you can call them at 625-1616.BUSCARELLO & SONSFor added atmosphere there%u2019s nothing like a warm fire on winter evenings. And, if you%u2019re willing to give him four or five days, an unused wall and about $1500, Jack Buscarello can give you just that. If you like you can help design your own. %u201c Fireplace work is almost like sculpture,%u201d Buscarello of Buscarello & Sons says. %u201c It%u2019s all done by hand, mostly free hand. There are formulas and rules of thumb to follow, but it's a craft.%u201dBuscarello, who%u2019s been at masonry for 30 years now (five of the most recent in Park Slope) is well known and trusted in the area. %u201cAlways make sure you%u2019re dealing with someone reputable,%u201d he advises. A contractor is only as good as his men.%u201dBuscarello and his crew of 15 also do brick and cement work, patios, porches, paintings and pointings. They also take on jobs in steam cleaning and wikndows and a slew of other renovating tasks, including brownstone renovation.But brownstoning is a tricky business, he warns; unlike other construction arts, there is no brownstoner%u2019s union. %u201c If you want an electrician, you can call an electrician%u2019s union; you want a carpenter, call a carpenter%u2019s union. You can%u2019t do that with brownstoning.\is the Landmark Preservation Headquarters (566-7577) and ask for referrals, he advises. When you pick someone out, look at previous work and reference and make sure the property is okay. But don%u2019t look to Buscarello. As far as brownstoning goes, %u201c I%u2019ve got more than I can look at for the next several years,%u201d he explains. JackFOLD AND SPINDLE: The Workbench, just off Clinton Street, has a sensiblecollection of compact and utilitarian furniture. (M ichael Cuiccio Photo)Buscarello & Sons, 396 Seventh Avenue, is open Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. till 4 p.m. And you can call them at 499-1906.Like Buscarello, most brownstone workers are up to their ears in work, so if you were planning on some renovation, don%u2019t count on it for a couple of years unless you%u2019re lucky or have contacts. Local iron workers have been complaining that they have more work than they can handle. 1 Renovation is a big thing these days.ERNEST PORTICELLIA great way to capture the rustic elegance of old is in your windows. %u2018 %u2018 From walking around Park Slope and looking at the wikndows in Brooklyn,%u201d says Ernest Porticelli. %u201cI would say that Brooklyn has got some of the nicest stained glass anywhere.%u201d And he should know; he%u2019s been working with stained glass for six years in Park Slope.Porticelli runs a %u201cfull service studio%u2014we do everything.%u201d He and his staff of five restore old panes, create gifts, lampshades and windows, fit together their own designs, and do large scale jobs, and all work is custom done.Stained glass is a luxury item and the prices prove it, running from $15 to $95 per square foot, plus a design fee, unless you come in with a design or a restoration. Ernest Porticelli Studio is located at 123 Seventh Avenue. Store hours are 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. till 4 p.m. Saturdays. Telephone is 857-6888.BAUBER%u2019S GLASSAnother stained glass place to look into is a store at 107 Atlantic Avenue. Bauber%u2019s Stained Glass will do just about any job you can dream up, but it specializes in home decor: windows, mirrors, lamp shades, hangings, boxes, and the like.%u201c You get what you pay for,%u201d explained Joel Kobern as he wound copper foil around the edges of opaque lavender glass and fit it into a puzzle-like design. %u201c You get what you pay for.%u201d At Bauber%u2019s, that%u2019s quality%u2014which means custom designs, a choice of colors and styles from a wide selection of imported glass, and the difference between %u201c dead%u201d and %u201c alive%u201d glass (the latter being glass that distinctly changes when light shines through it).Business is seasonal, says Koburn, and since this is an %u201c off season%u201d it%u2019s a great time to get additional time and attention. If you%u2019re more than slightly interested in world of stained glass, you might want register for stained glass classes at Bauber%u2019s this winter. Registration begins in December for classes that start in January. The store is open 10 a.m. till 5 p.m.Walls are the canvases of your home, and bare ones can make a room stark and unpleasant. If your walls need a specialSimple designs or words are easy to do and can be very dynamic. But take a tip: read up a little on them first.SUSAN CHAPMANDexterity isn%u2019t one of your stronger points? Avoid a mess and wasted time by hiring a pro. One artist you might want to try is Susan Chapman An expert scenic artist who does backdrops for Broadway and television sets, Chapman paints people%u2019s walls in her spare time.Super graphics, designs involving bold patterns or letters, rank among the customer favorites, Chapman says, but she also specializes in cloud scenes and children%u2019s rooms, with characters from Winnie the Pooh and Sesame Street lining the walls.%u201c What I really like to do is get together with the customer and discuss their ideas. We can usually work out something that pleases both of us,%u201d says Chapman, pointing out that so far she%u2019s had nothing but very pleasant reactions to her work. Chapman will do just about any job you can give her, and if she can%u2019t handle it, she can give you the name of someone who can. %u201c But I hate ceilings,%u201d she says.Depending on the complexity and size of the job, Chapman says she can do most jobs within a week and the average wall runs about $300. For an estimate or more details, call her at 852-7090.If you%u2019re not ready for that permanent of a change, how about a vibrant wall hanging? Or maybe somber blue and gray flower pillows to add sparkle to the old place?FABRIC ALTERNATIVEIt%u2019s hard to match the variety and home-design possibilities stacked in Park Slope's or Cobble Hill%u2019s Fabric Alternative.%u201c Almost any home decorating work you could need, we can make, and we do,%u2019%u2019says owner Jessica Lipsky. There are pillows from $2.25 to $14, pillow stuffing kits for $2, extra-wide fabrics, and Haitian cottons.The thrust of the Fabric Alternative is original design: almost anything you can buy complete at the store can be altered to personal tastes at home.The store, three years old on November 1, was started when Lipsky%u2019s friend told her that the area needed a fabric store. The rest is history.If the body of your brownstone work is completed, Lipsky will have lots of suggestions about the finishing touches. Multiple sets of matching tablecloths and lampshades do wonders for a home and do does reupholstered furniture with matching pillows. And it%u2019s these kinds of personalized additions, Lipsky will tell you, that make a house more than just yours%u2014they make it you.A PANE IN THE GLASS: Bauber%u2019s Glass on Atlantic Avenue for luxurydecorating: %u201c You get what you pay for.%u201d (Michael Cuiccio Photo)zmg mat a iresn coat oi paint can t nanaie, try putting the paint on creatively. Wall murals can create just about any atmosphere desirable and they give a room a real personality of its own.If you%u2019re handy with a brush, you might want to try one of these in your own home.me raoric Alternative is located at /8 Seventh Avenue and at 88 Atlantic Avenue. The store is open Monday through Saturday, 10:30 till 6 p.m., Thursdays, 10:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. and on Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Call the store at 857-5482.ShTWjlPage 20, THE PHOENIX, November 9.1978