I figured out many things in k2 myself but don't get one thing.
I have a category of home furnishings called lamps

How do i display that category's items in a grid instead of just articles piled one on top another?

You can turn enough things off in the category list view to create a sorta list but not a grid. To do a grid you will need to use overrides and change the category or category-item.php file to do what you want.

thanks was thinking that but wasn't sure...do you know of developers who do k2 template work?