Great Stuff From The International Builders' Show.

The National Association of Home Builders show held recently in Atlanta was one part Southern hospitality, one part high-pressure sales pitch and one part Hollywood glamour machine. And, by the way, the best new products to build and equip a home were also exhibited. Some of the things we saw included a 20-ft.-tall demonstration refrigerator, spas that cost what a house used to, and lumber that comes from a plastics factory, not a forest. We were stopped as we entered one power tool manufacturer’s booth and asked to a sign a nondisclosure form. Earlier in the day, a competitor was cornered as he made his way up the stairs to the booth’s off-limits area—an inner sanctum where hot new tools were unveiled, but not for the public. See what we mean? That’s the Builders’ Show, and here is some of its best stuff.