It’s time to come clean First Confession: I’m a lifestyle/Home & Garden nut. Even though I nearly flunked Home Ec (twice!) growing up, I really love a pretty house. Ditto, lawn, and garden. Set me inside a home-improvement store and I will happily spend us into the poorhouse. Second Confession: We’re already too close to the poorhouse for me to do much home-improvement. Hey, that’s how it goes. When my husband and I both worked, we had the cash for decorating but no time. Now I have the time and energy needed but insufficient valuta for the home-improvement store. What’s an H&G addict to do? Answer: Find a cheaper choice. For example, I’ve always loved the look of potted ferns. They say “summer” when I see them on a front porch. But have you priced those suckers lately? Anywhere between $10-$50 bucks each. And I wanted at least four ferns, two to hang and two to stand. Given that price tag, I figured my house would stay fernless this summer. What’s a porch without hanging ferns? A sad thing indded Then, Sunday before last, I noticed my local hardware store was having a garden sale. Big racks of season ending plants were displayed in…