So This Is Christmas

Merry Christmas is such an infectious feeling I like to feel that way all year around.

So if you are visiting just before Christmas, just after Christmas or even here on Christmas day I am sure you will find something of interest for you and in the spirit of Christmas.

It may be said that Christmas is no longer a celebration but this must be spoken by people that have never had trouble closing their eyes on Christmas Eve in an expectation of what maybe left for them on the carpet under the tree.

I continue to look forward to the surprise on my Grandchild's faces to this day at Christmas events.

Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Basic Principles of Basement Design 101Basement Design 101

By Casey Torren

Any basement remodeling and renovating require some knowledge of basic basement design principles. After all, no one wants to invest in a project that could end up looking bad in terms of design. Not only that. Designs and architectural plans will also affect the technical aspects of your basement such as the electrical wiring, to waterproofing. Any design will also have to take into account the type of basement you want for your house.

The design of your basement can vary from the simple to elaborate or complicated ones. When planning on your designs, there are a number of things for you to think about. Do you require a full basement? If you do not prefer a full basement, is a smaller space enough for your specific needs? These are just some of the important questions to ask before drawing out your basement plan.

A fully finished basement can be an additional room for just about any purpose such as laundry facility, storage, and even a home entertainment center or game room. Your fully finished basement will call for several factors that an unfinished or partly finished basement would not.

Like the other areas of your home, your basement should be welcoming and livable. Thus, you will have to incorporate finished walls installed with drywall, floors that cater to the purpose of the room, electrical systems and appropriate wiring for lighting, good plumbing systems and HV AC systems to help maintain the comfort levels of the room.

Waterproofing your basement should come first before planning on any design. You have to ascertain your basement is dry. A continually wet or moist basement will result in a basement design disaster since it will damage the materials you incorporate to accomplish your project. If you have a wet basement problem, do not worry. Ascertain your rain gutters are free of obstruction and the downspout configuration is not making water to puddle by the foundation of your house. The immediate terrain surrounding your house should be slanted downwards to direct water away from the foundation. If you must, speak with a building expert on alternative methods that can be applied to solve ground water issues that may not be as evident.

The next thing to consider once you have addressed the moisture issue is the heat source. You could employ a fireplace or stove. Choose the type of heating system according to your basement design.

At this point, you will like notice that your basement has pipes and wires that are exposed and not to mention very unsightly. In this case you could easily finish your basements surfaces. There are wall and ceiling systems that can be applied to successfully hide those you do not want to have to look at in your basement. There are panels you can obtain that act like drywall"search for wall alternatives that are insulated, resistant to mold and mildew, seamless and acoustical. To hide wires and pipes along the ceiling overhead, incorporate a suspended ceiling.

Lighting is another aspect of basement design and decor which you can be creative about. For the best results for your basement design, attempt to incorporate three types of interior lighting. For instance, you could place some practical lighting so you could perform tasks such as reading and doing some office work, and then you could employ sconces or series lights to add a dramatic effect.

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Choosing A Carpet Cleaning Machine

By Paul Stenson

Rug cleaning and carpet cleaning are two different things. This means that the best carpet-cleaning machine may not be the best machine for cleaning rugs. If you have a lot of rugs in your house and are looking to buy a good machine to clean them, you should do research first to make sure you get a good machine that is meant for rug cleaning.

There are a lot of different machines on the market and it can be confusing trying to figure out the differences between them. Going to Consumer Reports or some other place where they might have reviews of the machines you are looking at is a great idea because you dont want to end up with a machine that is not right for your carpet or rug.

The Von Schrader lines of carpet cleaning machines are a trusted brand and an industry leader. These machines have good reviews and customers have been satisfied with their performance for many years. As they are a top brand, the machines are a bit on the expensive side and so you want to make sure you buy the one that will work best for your type of carpets or rugs.

The Rug Doctor brand of carpet cleaning machines is also a top of the line name you can buy. The name Rug Doctor is very recognizable and has been around for years. Make sure you decide whether you want a machine that is primarily made for rugs or for carpet. Different Rug Doctor machines have different specifications and some are made for shaggy carpet and others do better on carpet that is cut close.

Do your research to find out what type of carpet you have and what the reviews say would be the best machine for that kind of carpet before you buy anything. You might even try having a professional company come out the first time so they can do the job right and then explain to you what type of machine you should buy. As every rug and carpet is a bit different, a professional will be able to steer you in the right direction toward making the correct carpet cleaning machine purchase.

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Is the 6 Week Body Makeover a Scam?

By Rico Kidd

The 6 Week Body Makeover is not a diet, it's a program that re-teaches you how to eat so that you lose weight and stay thin for the rest of your life. Many people are too quick when judging a program and will shout out "scam!" if they do not lose weight (or lose weight at slower rate than what the plan states).

Just one un-happy consumer that cries "scam!" can deter thousands from buying a product. Negative reviews of a product are very powerful and can cause people to not buy the product, even if the product does in fact work. Most people are triggered to look for all the bad reviews and complaints about a product and ignore all the positive aspects. If you dig deep enough within any program, you will always have someone that finds something wrong.

This article will give a fair review of the product. I consider myself an un-biased third party as I am not advertising anything, nor want to sell you any weight loss products. The only thing I want from you is an open-mind and a willingness to learn that not everything that people complain about is true.

When one un-happy person writes that this product is a scam, it turns-off thousand customers from trying this product and potentially losing a lot of weight. Negative reviews are powerful ways to dissuade people from buying or trying any products or services. I've realized that in our society people are always going to find something to complain about, no matter how perfect or good a product or service is.

I, like many, have lost weight on this program and have gained lean muscle. Anyone can lose weight through eating less (and healthy) and performing a little aerobic activity once in a while. However, not everyone knows how to eat healthy and this is where the body makeover program comes into play. Before doing this program, I ate anything and everything that was convenient and available. I was eating fast-food and pre-packaged/processed approximately 5 days a week. Once I discovered this program, I learned what types of foods my body needs in order to become a lean, mean, fat burning machine.

The 6 Week Body Makeover focuses on eating foods that help you metabolize calories at a faster rate. In order to do this you have to eat more food throughout the day. However, the portions that you consume tend to be smaller than what you're currently used to. Also, the food is rather bland as you are not allowed to add salt or oil to any of the food you consume. The Infinite Meal Planner and recipes cards help you create meals that taste decent while restricting sodium intake. Another complaint is that the meal planning process and preparation is tedious. This is true in the fact that it will require you to plan and prepare your meals ahead of time. I tend to think of things positively as I realized that I ended up saving a lot of money eating meals at home (lots of leftovers). Also, when you think of what you're going to eat ahead of time, it actually causes you to eat healthier. When you are eating whenever you feel hungry or on a sporadic time schedule, you tend to grab food that is convenient. Convenient food tends to be pre-packaged, processed, high-fat, high-sodium and generally un-healthy food.

The most important question is: how bad do you want to lose weight? Losing weight is not fun and you will feel un-happy when you see your friends eating hamburgers and you are eating chicken. The great part is, they are getting fat and you are losing weight. You will feel amazing when you drop your first 10 pounds. After your first 10 pounds your metabolism has already been trained to burn fat at a rapid rate. Think of the long-term benefit of eating healthy and the day when you can put on that bikini or take off your shirt without feeling embarrassed. Remember, the 6 Week Body Makeover is not about fast results (although people have reported rapid weight loss), it's about learning how to eat healthy so that you can stay thin for the rest of your life.

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Quality Power Juicer Trumps Cheap Juicers

By Mike Suno

There is a reason why juicers range so widely in price. When looking to buy a new juicer, many people make the mistake of distinguishing solely based on price. The problem is that there is a difference in quality that warrants the higher prices for better juicers. You want a juicer that is of quality and produces high quality results for the ingredients you put in.

Not only that, you may never know without experience but the resulting juice you drink could very well be of inferior quality because of your inferior juicer. It is important that your juicer operates at a low speed, not at a high speed like blenders might. Some juicers and blenders run anywhere from 1,000 to 24,000 RPM and at such high speeds a lot of heat is generated.

We want our juices to be a raw as possible and the heat is like cooking the ingredients which breaks down or alters the structures of enzymes and nutrients. This defeats the purpose of juicing in the first place, which is to feed your body high concentrations of nutrients in its most natural form. A good blender will operate at about 80 RPM's to minimize the effect of heating the elements in your juice.

High speed chopping blades in blenders can also cause impact shock which also damages nutrients. There is also oxidation when you juice, but slower blades will significantly reduce the degree of oxidation. You want your nutrients in its most natural state which is best for your body. Lower speeds also reduce the amount of foaming in your juice.

Another consideration is the noise generated by some juicers. Higher end models will create significantly less noise when in use than cheaper blenders. It really is the difference between being unable to hear yourself think and being able to talk on the phone while juicing.

Well designed juicers take the cleaning process into consideration and might have a pulp catching compartment that is easy to remove and clean while others don't remove pulp from juice at all. You get more juice from the latter but clean up might get a little tricky. A good juicer can be rinsed clean in about five minutes. This makes juicing a less dreadful experience.

Then comes the ingredients that the juicers are built for. Harder ingredients like leafy greens and wheat grass is tougher and cannot be handled by softer juicers such as a centrifugal juicer, which is designed to only handle citrus fruit and other soft ingredients. It is important for anyone to incorporate vegetable juicing just as equally as fruit so unless there is already a strong enough juicer sitting around, there is no reason to buy a juicer that can't juice hard ingredients. Get a multiple function juicer and live life juiced.

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Belly Dancing Jewelry Today

By Veena Kimshire

The thought of a belly dancer for most people conjures up the image of a beautiful woman adorned with expensive looking jewelry and hardly any clothing. This is an appealing image for most people and describes many belly dancers out there. Interestingly, the jewelry commonly pictures is a recent addition to the tradition belly dancing outfit.

Although many people associate belly dancing with the rich and famous because of the glamorous jewels and quantity of belly dancing jewelry, this is a very western view of the activity. In fact, before westerners influenced belly dancing, the use of belly dancing jewelry was quite rare. However, it much more common due to the influence of western cultures.

The popular belly dancing jewelry we are familiar with- the jewel in the belly button- was in fact a creation of Hollywood. It was merely a way to get around touchy censorship laws that required the navel to be covered. The use of jewelry provided an attractive way around this and still allowed hollywood to reveal much of the midriff.

However, on the other side of the world this sort of belly dancing jewelry is quite rare. Most traditional belly dancers would seem very modest in comparison to the modern western depiction of dancers. Some dancers in the west hold to more traditional attire and forego much of the flashy jewelry now used, while other dancers prefer the modern image of the belly dancer over the traditional.

The Belly Dancing Outfit

For those interested in more traditional belly dancing jewelry and clothing, the use of swirling fabric is closer to reality. Bright fabric was often used along with the undulating body movements of belly dancing to create an aesthetically appealing dance.

The clothing for belly dancing should not be restrictive at all. It should allow the body to move throughout its motions unhindered. This is why a full length gown was often used. Many places do utilize a shorter skirt and some places do expose the midsection but it depends where you are in the world.

If you decide to where belly dancing jewelry then there are many types to choose from. However, it is good for any belly dancer to understand the history and significance of the jewelry they are wearing. Just because it isn't traditional doesn't mean you shouldn't wear it. Many people believe the addition of jewelry and flashy clothing makes the dance all that more attractive.

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Bedroom Decorating Ideas - The Ignored

By Kelly Kim

If you've always sought after to give your bedroom a makeover but couldn't quite get started, go ahead and just get started. No need to stall. You won't believe how getting a new look in your bedroom can change a lot of things.

As this will be the first thing about the world you'll be waking up to each morning, getting a new welcome should matter a lot to last you a whole day of feeling invigorated and transformed. Coming home to it from the day's work should also be more worth the looking forward to.

In other words, your bedroom can have such control over you, whether you've got hardwoods such as oak bedroom furniture or mahogany bedroom furniture in it or the softwoods like pine and cedar, so you should continue to find ways to reinvent it if you want to keep it an optimistic force.

There are a lot of things to think when redoing your bedroom and while you may not need to be reminded about working on your bed, walls and floor, there are those that you just may forget. The doorway into your room, for instance, is something you'd like to save attention for since it's what you see first before anything else behind it. So don't think it's not something important.

You'll find great preferences of internal doorways these days with lead lights and sliding doors to complement modern bedroom furniture and grand, traditional and heavy doors for those who have a classic interior. Your doorway is definitely more than there for a function so start incorporating it into the design you're planning out.

Yet another neglected part of the room is the ceiling. You can actually explore your imagination as you try to spruce it up. Say, have some decorative plasters up there if you're into the Greek mystique or maybe create a virtual skyline with hanging pinpoint-sized lights that would serve to look like stars as you turn the lights off. Maybe a chandelier would be nice. There's no limit to getting a good design for your bedroom as long as you'll find time to put it in action.

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Threading alternatives For Beadwork and Jewelry

By Ethan O. Tanner

There are several subjects concerning the alternatives of threading material for beading. Here is an fascinating report regarding the several threading materials and their use. One very substantial lesson I gained is that there is no single, universal (all-around) stringing material. Here are the greatest threading materials along with how and when to apply each of them.

Silk bears a fantastic "hand" (a fragile, flexible feel). This string comes in numerous sizes and colours. It comes prepacked on reels, and "carded" with a needle. This is a normal stringing material and forms beautiful knots between ivories and beads. Alone, silk tends to be relatively frail. It may stretch out, be cut by unsmooth beads, disintegrate when damp, and ivories threaded on silk should to be re strung up every few yrs. It is better to utilize silk when threading ivories and lighter, smooth-holed pearls. A needle is a requirement.

Nylon thread also comes in many sizes and colors. It comes packaged on spools, on bobbins, and "carded" with a needle attached. Nylon can be used where-ever silk can and is not as fragile. This material knots beautifully and can be used for pearl stringing, in some strung jewelry, seed beadwork, loom weaving, for Peyote and other specialty stitches, and heishi.

Nylon stretches out a great deal less than silk, and it will not decompose once wet. Like silk, you should not employ beads with sharp edged holes or that are heavy. When you use nylon string, I would urge you coat your string with bee's wax or "Thread Heaven TM "prior to using to keep it from fraying. A needle is essential.

Bonded nylon is a good deal stronger form of nylon strand. The strands are physically bound together for improved strength and abrasion protection. While it knots well, it doesn't have the "feel" of silk.

Attached nylon comes in an variety of colors and smaller size reels. Attributable to its abrasion opposition, you can utilise it with "demanding", harsher stone beads; this comes close to being an "comprehensive Thread". Brand names** include: "Stringth" or "Silkon". A needle is necessary, tho' you can put "Super Glue" on the end to arrive at a "Self-needle". This is a preferable beading material of mine.

Fishing Line is a hard, semi-rigid, single strand of plastic. It doesn't knot well, and in time sunlight or ultraviolet light can cause it to weaken and fall apart. Fishing line is purchased on small spools and is sold in sporting goods stores.

Personally, I employ fishing line for two reasons. I employ it to do my preliminary threading while I'm designing a necklace (I change the beads to a better textile for the final product), and to string together "raw" strings of beads. There's no needle requirement. I would never employ this textile for a final beaded piece.

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Best Tips for Cellulite Therapy

By Mandy Adamsen

Now more than ever, people don't have to live with cellulite anymore. Modern science has provided us with cellulite therapy options. Here are some great tips you should keep in mind while on therapy treatment for cellulite.

Look for an Expert

If you have the time and money, you can opt for cellulite procedures. Some procedures used as solutions to cellulite include liposuction, massage and mesotherapy. It is important to look for a certified expert should you choose any of these procedures.

Getting an ineffective therapy, however, is a given in any procedure. In severe cases though you could suffer from a life-threatening injury in the hands of inexperienced practitioners. Ask credentials from cellulite therapists. You should also ask what you should specifically expect during and after the therapy session.

Natural is an Option

One of the best cellulite therapies is to go for an all-natural treatment. Natural treatments include a healthy diet, regular exercise and homemade anti cellulite remedies. Other than these, it would also help if you took some nutritional supplement and topical cream solutions. Choosing natural over synthetic products is a better option because you also limit your risks of suffering from ingredient induced side effects. Natural ingredients are highly safe and rarely cause unfavorable reactions in the body.

Give it Time to Work

It doesn't happen overnight. Give your cellulite solution time to work. This holds true whether you are using an anti cellulite product or a homemade cellulite therapy solution. Some consumers probably expect to see immediate miracles. When they don't see instant results, they may switch right away to another product. Even with the best product, it will take time for cellulite to go away. Switching will probably just ensure that you won't find a solution to your condition. Be patient.

Be on the Look Out

Although natural solutions have minimal side effects, it is still advisable to look out for abnormal changes in your body. No matter how seemingly effective your chosen cellulite therapy is, you should abandon it immediately if you notice any unexpected reactions. Even with the most natural and safest product, some people with sensitive systems and skins may still get rashes or some other allergic reaction.

This advise holds true to therapies conducted in clinics and spas as well. If you feel that a certain cellulite therapy technique isn't doing any good or is causing you injury, you should immediately cancel succeeding sessions and consult a doctor. In badly done liposuction work, you may have to live with a major side effect for a long time even if you discontinue future sessions.

Be Ready to Invest

There are some procedures and cellulite therapies that are obviously costly. Even cheaper alternatives however may come at a price because you have to maintain them for a period of time. You should therefore clearly understand and accept that you would have to spend some amount to effectively get rid of cellulite. Aside from monetary considerations, cellulite treatment will also take time and effort.

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