Bonnie,

This seems to behave the way I want it to both in designtime and run time. The only thing I am wondering a little about is the refresh call in the set. Is that the standard way to do this?

		#region LiquidColor
		private Color liquidColor = Color.Red;
		[Category("Appearance")]
		[Description("The color of the liquid that is inside the thermometer.")]
		[DefaultValue(typeof(Color),"Red")]
		[RefreshProperties(RefreshProperties.Repaint)]
		public Color LiqidColor
		{
			get
			{
				return this.liquidColor;
			}
			set
			{
				this.liquidColor = value;
				this.Refresh();
			}
		}
		#endregion LiquidColor