Home and Garden Chat

Incorporate Feng Shui into you interior design.

Jenny Bailey — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 15:37:22 +0000

In order to incorporate Feng Shui into you interior design you need to have a clear understanding of what Feng Shui is. Feng shui is an ancient Chinese practice. It is the art of placing and arranging matter and space so that harmony with the environment is achieved. This harmony can refer to the harmony in the home, in relationships, in wealth and many other aspects in our lives. The practice has been around for several thousands of years and is still practiced in China and many parts of the world today teaching us how to create harmony and balance around us.

Feng Shui design cannot be of much help without looking inward. Doing a self-evaluation is the best place to start before trying to incorporate Feng Shui design. The self-evaluation is nothing more than taking a long, hard look at how you feel and how you live on a daily basis. Taking stock of your emotions, your relationships, your finances, and everything in your home that affects you throughout an ordinary day is crucial for trying out Feng Shui design changes.

Cleaning out the clutter and get rid of everything you do not love in your house. Clutter clearing is a time and energy consuming process that will feel like therapy, but it will help you lighten up the load metaphorically speaking.

Feng Shui is all about energy, and light is the strongest manifestation of energy. In fact, the light in your home both natural and artificial lighting greatly influences the quality of your home’s energy. Smart lighting and good quality air are the very basics of good feng shui, and should always be on top of your feng shui priorities for any space. These two elements are essential for good feng shui energy in your home, called Chi. Open the windows often, introduce feng shui air-purifying plants or use an air-purifier. Allow as much natural light as possible into your home, and consider using full-spectrum lights.

Your body reacts to everything around you, and you either get nourished or drained by the energy that surrounds you. I strongly encourage you to become aware of the quality of light in your home or office and its influence on your health and well-being.Light is our # 1 nutrient and has been called the medicine of the future. Make a habit of paying attention to how much good quality light you actually enjoy throughout the day, as well as the quality and number of the indoor light sources in your home. It is interesting to note that the use of cool white fluorescent lights has been legally banned in Germany at a Federal level. There are numerous studies on the negative effects of fluorescent lighting, as well as the benefits of full-spectrum lighting.

Knowing that color is light, how many colors are you actually enjoying in your space? Yes, you might not want to create an absolute rainbow of colors in your home, but the truth is that many homes are starving for beautiful, pure colors, starving for more light energy. Think of the happiest humans out there, the little kids; their energy is constantly nourished by an abundance of colors. Allow yourself to tap into a source of better energy, bring beauty into your home, bring more color, have good lighting. Educate yourself on how to light a home, and go for at least three sources of light in any room. Most young children are vibrant, creative, happy because they allow themselves to absorb different frequencies of light. Can you imagine a little child clinging to a beige decor scheme? It just can’t happen, as children are intuitively drawn to good energy.

Every Feng Shui design change that you make is important, even when the change is in a form of a furniture placement or positioning of other inanimate objects using Feng Shui. As has already been discussed, elements have their own yin and yang energies. Wood represents life force and spirit—the wood grain rings indicate how many years that the tree has lived. And since wood represents growth, too much wood in a home can cause the energy to become too vigorous, too aggressive. Feng Shui design uses all elements in moderation for creating the balance in a space.

Try to keep your Feng Shui design ideas focused on areas that deserve your utmost attention, and don’t spread your energy too thin. Instead of addressing five power spots or problem areas at once, for example, start by addressing one, then move on to the next.

The following Feng Shui design idea can help you to understand the concept of Feng Shui design in a clearer manner:
A long hallway, a common an architectural element in today’s home design, is a problem area that Feng Shui seeks to deal with because a long, narrow hallway carries Chi directly in a straight line. This allows Chi to gather force and become “rushing” or “raging” Chi. That’s not ideal. Aggressive energy can be harmful, leading to imbalances, and the room at the end of the hallway where the rushing Chi collects is probably suffering because of it. Having the bathroom at the end of the hall way is even worse. Since plumbing is symbolic of a house’s finances, losing Chi this way is literally “flushing money down the toilet”! This type of problem area can be fixed using Feng Shui design tips like keeping plants in the area, placing big pictures in the hall, or placement of the objects and furniture in accordance with the principles of Feng Shui Elements. Enhancing the hallway in these ways can help the Chi to stay back in space rather than just rush in straight line. A Feng Shui bathroom, on the other hand, can help you to have money flowing in.

Corners are another major problem area as they are often overlooked place in the home where Chi is incorrectly channeled or missing all together. With Feng Shui design though, you can prevent Chi from missing corners. A suitable object placed in the corner can attract beneficial energy–a plant perhaps. Lamps, either a standing tabletop, are also excellent for this purpose. Using different Feng Shui design ideas one can transform a dark, dreary corner to a well-lit corner that is full of life and vitality.

Study the elements Feng Shui theory to help you balance the feng shui five elements in your home, as well as strengthen specific elements in specific feng shui areas. For example, if you are working on attracting more prosperity, you will introduce the feng shui elements of Wood and Water in the Southeast area of your home.

Know Your Feng Shui birth element and create a home to support your personal feng shui element. For example, if your own element is Fire, you need to introduce the expressions of Fire, such as the Fire element colors(red, orange, purple, magenta, pink, yellow), and triangular shapes. You will also need a strong Wood element in your home, as Wood feeds the Fire in the relationship of five feng shui elements

Always be mindful of the state of your home and how the energy in your home influences your well-being. Make a habit of paying close attention to the so-called feng shui “triangle” that is deeply connected to your health – your bedroom, your bathroom and your kitchen. Nothing is static in the world of energy, so be wise and keep your home healthy and happy.

After you have mastered the home feng shui steps, you can explore the deeper levels of feng shui, such as, for example, the flying star school of feng shui. Be sure to start with the basic steps, though, before applying complex feng shui formulas.

According to Feng Shui, power spots are unique to each person, family and home and some of these are determined not only by the things that are going on in your life right now but also by the design and architecture of your particular living space.

If you are planning to build a new house, you are in fact in a position to draw the maximum benefit from the Feng Shui design. You can consult a Feng Shui consultantwho can offer you a number of Feng Shui design ideas that can be easily implemented in your home. The most ideal situation according to the Feng Shui design would be to define the power areas first and ask the architect to design the whole house around them. It would be in your best interests to apply Feng Shui tool ‘Bagua’ to have the best Feng Shui design in your house.

By exploring Feng Shui design ideas, you can take the most beneficial and effective actions in every part of your house or the problem areas to encourage the optimal flow of Chi. While experimenting with the Feng Shui design ideas, it is important to keep in mind that instead of using the Feng Shui design in the whole house , it is best to target particular problem areas first and then move systematically from room to room as a means of improving Chi flow in all parts of your living space.

The key to making the Feng Shui design ideas work for you in your home lies in accurately honing in on your most important problem areas and taking care of them first. This helps you to determine which parts of your living space are most in need of your attention. You can determine a problem area in your house by relating it to the problem you are facing presently in your day-to-day life. For example, if you are facing financial problems you can find out the areas that correspond to finance using the bagua and then use Feng Shui design to enhance the Chi flow in that area to bring about the desired change.

The areas where you are likely to spend most of your time are the best power areas. These areas can reside in the center and then you can have the whole house designed around it. For instance, the bedrooms can be located in the area that corresponds to a section of bagua which represents love, marriage and health. Since it is important for you to have proper sleep for 8 hours to allow the body to rejuvenate and energize itself. Feng Shui bedroom design also provides you tips for deciding the direction of your bed. The home office can be situated in a direction that supports financial and career achievements. The entrances to the house can be designed in a way that they receive the Chi, or life force energy, from the most favorable directions for the building. As there are power areas in the house there can also be problem areas, that can affect your health, relationships and finances in a negative ways. Feng Shuialso provides guidelines for knowing these problem areas and provides Feng Shui design ideas for improving these.

A power spot is an area of the home which can be as big as a room or as small as a tiny little nook, but this particular area has strong associations with your life (or parts of your life) that mean a great deal to you at a particular point in a given time frame. Feng Shui power spots are unique to each person, family and home. They are determined not only by the things that are going on in a person’s life presently but also by the design and architecture of their particular living space.

Josef Frank; The father of modern Scandinavian art

Jenny Bailey — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 14:57:24 +0000

Josef Frank was born July 15, 1885 in Baden, Austria, and he spent a good period of his life in Sweden. As an architect he was considered one of the fathers of modern Swedish design and is remembered for his prominent work in architecture and design for which he received prestigious awards during his lifetime as the State of Austria Grand Prix two years before his death. In fact, Josef Frank had left Vienna in 1934 for Sweden, since most of his work was rather misunderstood in his homeland. Frank’s work has been described as always in motion, bringing life to a room. Josef Frank was recognized internationally for his great work, which contributed to art which evolved into more modern techniques. Apart from his famous textiles, his designs range from furniture, lighting, glassware and architecture. His work plays with imagination and colour. During his lifetime Frank created a range of products, leaving over 200 patterns after his death in 1967. Some of his most famous textiles are Elephants and Manhattan.

Josef Frank was a renowned and prominent Austrian-Swedish architect and designer. Because of Swedens architecture and design, the artist stood out as the father of modern art in Scandinavia. It was in the Swedish soil where Josef was able to excel in the art world while working for Svenskt Tenn, the textile company that has created many designs that made him win the title of father of modern art.

His work is closely identified with the Swedish Modern aesthetic that emerged in 1930s and was widely admired in the decades following World War II. Before World War I, he worked on architecture and interiors including the interior of the Museum of East Asian Art in Cologne in 1910. After the war he entered academic life, becoming Professor of Building Design at the Wiener Kunstgewerbeschule in 1919, a post he held until 1925. From 1921 to 1924 he worked alongside Peter Behrens, Josef Hoffmann, Oskar Straad, and Oskar Wlach on the design of Viennese apartment buildings and, in the following year,he founded the Haus und Garten interior design firm. Most of his work in the later 1920s and early 1930s was centered on private and public housing, the most notable of these projects being the design of a two-family home for the celebrated Deutscher Werkbund housing exhibition at Stuttgart in 1927.

Architect, designer, and theorist, his work is closely identified with the Swedish Modern aesthetic that emerged in 1930s and was widely admired in the decades following the Second World War. Educated in Vienna he worked on architecture and interiors and after the war he entered academic life, becoming Professor of Building Design at the Wiener Kunstgewerbeschule in 1919, a post he held until 1925. From 1921 to 1924 he worked alongside Peter Behrens, Josef Hoffmann, Oskar Straad, and Oskar Wlach on the design of Viennese apartment buildings and, in the following year, founded the Haus und Garten interior design firm.But Frank fell from grace when he emerged as a forceful critic of the extremes of modern architecture and design during the early 1930s. Dismissing the demands for a unified modern style, Frank insisted that it was pluralism, not uniformity, that most characterized life in the new machine age. He called instead for a more humane modernism, one that responded to people’s everyday needs and left room for sentimentality and historical influences.In 1932 he made contact with Estrid Ericson, the founder of Stockholm furnishings firm Svenskt Tenn, and two years later emigrated to Sweden where he would work as a chief designer for the company until his death 33 years later. His work came to define Swedish (or Scandinavian) modern design, producing colorful, cozy, and eclectic designs that provided a refreshing alternative to the architectural mainstream of the day and presaged the coming revolt against modernism in the 1960s. A celebratory exhibition of Josef Franks work is held at Svenskt Tenn in Stockholm, Sweden, where he lived for many years. Josef Frank died in Stockholm January 8, 1967. After 125 years his designs are still desired and celebrated. Long live creativity!

Frans Hals: Portraitist of the Dutch bourgeoisie

Jenny Bailey — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 14:39:32 +0000

Frans Hals was the great 17th-century portraitist of the Dutch bourgeoisie of Haarlem, where he spent practically all his life. Hals was born either in 1580 or 1581, in AntwerpBeligum. Like many, Hals’ family fled during the Fall of Antwerp (1584-1585)to Haarlem, Netherlands, where he lived for the remainder of his life. Frans Hals left no written evidence about his life or his works, and only a brief outline of his biography is known. He was the son of a clothworker from Mechelen and of a local girl, and the family moved from Spanish-held Flanders to Haarlem in the free Netherlands by 1591 and except for a brief visit to Antwerp in 1616, Hals lived all his life in Haarlem.

What he did for the first 25 or 30 years of his life is not known. The earliest indication of his activity as an artist was that about 1610 he joined the Guild of St Luke of Haarlem, a group who’s purpose is to register artists as masters. Shortly afterward he married his first wife, Annetje Harmensdochter Abeel. She bore him two children before her death in 1615from child birth. Two years later, Hals married Lysbeth Reyniers, who was to survive her husband by some nine years. In all, Hals had 10 children, and 5 of his 8 sons became painters. None, however, rose to fame.

Hals studied under the Flemish-artist, Karel van Mander whose Mannerist influence, however, is not noticeably visible in his work. At the age of 27, he became a member of the city’s painter’s corporation, the Haarlem Guild of Saint Luke, and he started to earn money as an art restorer for the city council. The most notable of these were the works of Geertgen tot Sint Jans, Jan van Scorel and Jan Mostaert, that hung in de St. Jans kerk in Haarlem.

Hals evolved a technique that was close to impressionism in its looseness, and he painted with increasing freedom as he grew older. The jovial spirit of his early work is typified by the Shrovetide Revellers. In middle age his portraits grew increasingly sad, revealing sometimes a sense of foreboding, as depicted by Nicolaes Hasselaer, 1630-33; Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. The paintings of his old age show best his genius for portraying character as seen in the Man in a Slouch Hat,1660-66; Staatliche Museen, Kassel.

Frans Hals seems to have begun his career with sober portraits and with group portraits of members of the local guilds and military societies. The best of these early works – which already shows complete competence in portraiture – is a monumental painting entitled Banquet of Officers of the Civic Guard of St. George at Haarlem(1616; Frans Halsmuseum, Haarlem), painted with a loose brushstroke technique that is unlike anything else in Dutch art of the time. It already has a sense of life and of relationship between the figures that was then unknown in this type of subject matter. By about 1620, however, Hals had begun to introduce into his paintings the jovial spirit that characterized his early works and that portrays with accuracy and enthusiasm one important aspect traditionally ascribed to Dutch character. Many of his portraits are simply pictures of merrymakers. The portrait of Hans Wurst in The Merry Companyshows the sitter in a tall, wide-brimmed hat, wearing a necklace made of pig’s feet, herrings, and eggs. The portrait of Mr. Verdonck (c. 1627) shows the subject joyfully brandishing the jawbone of a horse. Similar in spirit are the portrait of Peeckelhaering (c. 1628-30) clenching his beer mug, The Merry Drinker, and two later portraits, a picture entitled Malle Babbe(1633-35; Staatliche Museen, Berlin), which portrays an old madwoman laughing, with an owl perched on her shoulder, and a joyful picture in the Louvre Museum of a laughing, carelessly dressed Gypsy Girl(1628-30). In Hals’s group portraits this jovial spirit is evident and it revolutionizes the hitherto austere genre. One such painting is his second Banquet of Officers of the Civic Guard of St George at Haarlem(1627; Frans Halsmuseum), in which the figures take up postures normally employed for the expression of mystical religious rapture to celebrate their well-nourished contentment. In this painting, Hals displays his unmistakable genius for mise-en-scène; the dramatic effects he achieves here set him apart from most other painters. His militiamen are linked in a harmonious composition that makes the viewer aware of the cohesion of their group as a whole. Each conducts a dialogue with his neighbour, and here and there one figure is made purposely to disrupt the scheme with a gesture or a glance in the viewer’s direction. Nothing is happening except a meal shared by typical members of the Dutch middle class and their conversations. Yet there is a majesty to this scene that is equal to any depiction of an incident from the life of a king.

By the 1620s Hals had definitively evolved a technique that was close to impressionism in its looseness. Like the contemporary Spanish painter Diego Velázquez,he used colour to structure forms; and this use of colour is what sets the two artists apart from their contemporaries. Unique to Hals, however, is his use of quick, loose strokes of bright colour that suggest rather than enclose form and are highly expressive of movement and of the subjects’ vitality. Most painters of the 17th century approached their paintings slowly, with preparatory drawings, a certain amount of underpainting, and an elaborate finish. Although there is no certain evidence of his method, Hals seems to have started directly on the canvas and painted quickly, leaving his first spontaneous expression, which is almost an oil sketch, as the finished work. Hals continued to use this technique, which gave a striking immediacy to his perceptive portrayals of character, all his life, painting with increasing freedom as he grew older. Man with Arms Crossed (1622). Others follow that contain the same theme: The Laughing Cavalier (1624; Wallace Collection, London), Portrait of Isaac Abrahamszoon Massa (1626; Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto), Pieter van den Broecke (1633).René Descartes. Still, although some continued to value his subtle perceptions, the public had generally begun to favour a more elegant style made popular by the portrait painter Anthony Van Dyck in England. What commissions he did receive were not enough to support him, and, like his two great compatriots Rembrandt and Vermeer,he saw his possessions sold at auction for debt in 1654. It was not until 1662 that his right to public assistance was recognized, and he was accorded a yearly pension by the city. In spite of this adversity the portraits of Hals’ last 16 years are his masterpieces. At this point, a view of the world is revealed in his painting in which the human comedy takes a tragic turn, and something breaks in the order that had kept the reasonable man and the madman separated. His portraits, no longer tempered by laughter, seem to express a realization that simply being is enough, after a certain age, for life to impress its tragic seal. group of old men and the other of old women, his men seem overcome with drunkenness and his women entranced by the obsession of death. Here he presents us with the most extraordinary reunion of senile decay ever assembled in the history of the pictorial arts; he shows us the quavering flame of dying life. It is not known whether these portraits were comprehensible to his models.

The joviality began to disappear from the paintings of Hals’s middle age. In the portraits painted after he reached the age of 40, the subjects seem to eye the world knowingly, with a shade of sadness in their faces. The period from 1630 to 1650 was Hals’s most productive. He was very popular among the staid citizens of Haarlem’s middle class, and during this time he painted more than 100 single portraits and 6 group and family portraits.

Frans Hals lived to be very old, and it is in the paintings of his old age that his genius for portraying human character is fully revealed. The last years of his life were difficult materially, and he was harassed by discouraging family problems. Although he continued to work steadily, he received markedly fewer commissions after 1650. He had, during his long career, achieved an impressive reputation; he had been honoured by many important commissions, had become in 1644 an officer of the Guild of St Luke, and in 1649 had painted the philosopher

Henceforth, Hals drew gradually closer to traditional subjects and stored away his drinking glasses and his tableware. At the same time he diminished the intensity, the vividness of his themes, a greater simplicity appeared in his compositions, and he took more and more liberty with his painting. His palette lost a good deal of its lustre. But through decades of work he had evolved a remarkably broad range of blacks and whites to choose from, and these colours were sufficient for what he wanted to show.

Old age fostered self-denial and a strict discipline in Hals, along with a new freedom in his painting. It most certainly was a painful time for the great painter. But the years had also sharpened his vision. There is no sign of religion in the evolution of his art; and it may be assumed that to Frans Hals, painting was a secular concern. Nevertheless, the loving compassion that permeated his art becomes, in his last years, something spiritual.

Like many artists whose style is unique in their own time, he left few direct followers. Hals was for a long time regarded as a competent but limited painter whose consistent neglect of any subjects other than portraits gave him no place in the history of significant art. It was not until the 19th century that interest in his work was revived. He influenced Édouard Manet with his free style and Vincent van Gogh with his subtle range of colours. In modern times he has been appreciated for the serious and excellent realist painter that he was.

Keep cool, stay cool, be cool!

Jenny Bailey — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 15:52:42 +0000

Well summer is finally here and now we have to think about how to stay cool. This can be fun if you set your mind to it. Running outside in the sprinkler like you were a kid has to be fun. As in all adversity we can either choose to see it as a challenge to turn something bad into something good or we can just complain. Here are some ideas to help keep your home cooler and lower your electric bill as well.

If you set your air conditioner to a slightly higher setting you will save electricity. If you set your thermostat at a lower setting that will force your system to work harder. Worse yet, it’s easy to forget to turn it back up. Stick with the warmest setting you can tolerate, and try other stay cool ideas.
Wear cool, loose clothing even indoors. It’s your space, dress for comfort. The cooler your clothing, the less you’ll need air conditioning.
Take cold showers. If you live in an area experiencing water shortages, skip this one. Otherwise, a quick three-minute cold shower is a fantastic way to cool down. Going longer than three minutes won’t make you feel much cooler, so skip the soap and just enjoy the relief. For regular showers, avoid using hot water during the summer. In most temperate locations, tap water is plenty warm for bathing by July. The cooler you run your shower, the less heat and steam you’ll need to remove from your living space. Use the exhaust fan if it’s vented outdoors.
Draw drapes and blinds on windows exposed to direct sunlight. Window coverings are one of the few home additions tolerated by most landlords. Curtains, blinds and window shades can all go with you at the end of your lease. In warm weather, you’ll want to be sure the space at the top of curtain between the rod and the wall is covered, or hot air will rise through the gap. It’s possible to buy curtains and shades with thermal ratings, so shop around or make your own. Window coverings have the added benefit of keeping heat from radiating outward during the winter. Shutters are a wonderful option as in indoor window treatment.
Use box fans to improve air circulation and set existing ceiling fans properly. This goes hand in hand with not being afraid of a little sweat. Fans use a fraction of the energy required by air conditioning. Just as in the case of wind chill outdoors, moving air will substantially lower the perceived temperature. During the summer, a ceiling fan should (in most cases) be running counterclockwise when viewed from below. You want the setting with maximum downdraft. Flip it next winter to bring warm air down from the ceiling. Just keep in mind that fans are for people, not rooms. There’s no point running them when nobody is around.

Drink plenty of water. You can’t sweat if you’re dehydrated. While some traditions, discourage consumption of cold liquids, they’ll temporarily cool your body core. Alcohol and caffeinated drinks tend to dehydrate, so choose wisely.
Indulge your taste for spicy food. There’s a reason Indian and Latin food is hot: it makes you sweat! If you have proper air circulation, sweating is an effective way to cool down. That sheen on your arms, face and legs is pretty much odorless, by the way. Crank up the heat in your food, and you’ll feel cooler. It may also provide other health benefits, such as improved circulation.
Cook outdoors. Grilling is a classic summer pastime. Best of all, it keeps heat outside. Of course, you want to minimize the environmental impact of outdoor cooking so don’t use chemical fire starters.
Use the microwave. The lowly microwave is your kitchen’s most efficient plug-in appliance. In addition to saving money year-round, microwave ovens are a good bet for summer cooking. Here’s why: microwaves direct most of their energy into the food, rather than the kitchen. That means you’ll stay more comfortable and burn less energy removing cooking heat from your home.
Eat more smaller meals through the summer months. The bigger the meal, the harder your body must work to digest it. Try splitting mealtimes across the day, opting for more and smaller meals when it’s warmest. This will keep your body from having to stoke its metabolic afterburners. It’s also a great time to experiment with cold foods — perhaps even raw cuisine. Less heat in the kitchen; less heat in your tummy.
Spend more time outdoors or away from home. A trip to the woods will be cooler and a walk is great exercise. Visit a friend and enjoy their air conditioning too? A little window shopping never hurt anyone, and it’s likely there are several ice cold destinations within walking distance or a short bicycle ride from your home. While eating out is a luxury for a lot of people these days, blowing a couple hours with a frosty drink and a book someplace cool isn’t a bad way to spend a sweltering summer afternoon.
Try a cool pillow. It’s tough to sleep when you feel like you’re in a sauna, and the alternative is running a fan or air conditioner all night. In addition to dressing out your bed with seasonally appropriate sheets and bed covers, consider a “cool pillow.” They’re marketed under names such as Chillow. Cool pillows are designed to draw heat away from your head, where about 30 percent of body warmth is dispersed. They require no power or special preparation. Here’s a low-tech idea for beneath the sheets: fill a hot water bottle or two with icy water. It’s like a refrigerator for your bed.
Shut down unnecessary electronic devices. Here’s another year-round energy saver. During the summer, however, it’s even more important to pull the plug on home electronics. Anything with a transformer creates heat. Shut down unused desktop computers (they have cooling fans for a reason); televisions; entertainment systems — pretty much everything with a plug.
Wash your clothes at night and line dry them in the morning. Some power companies offer off-peak rates to their customers. Take advantage of these. In any event, even a properly vented clothes dryer radiates heat. Restrict its use to the coolest part of the day. Wherever possible, line dry clothes. It worked for our parents’ generation, and it will work for ours. A simple line between two sturdy supports will do, and umbrella-style clothes lines are an affordable investment. Line drying is more of a challenge for apartment dwellers. You may be able to get away with a small line on a porch — check your lease terms. It’s also possible to dry indoors, and there are many retractable lines and racks made just for that purpose. Indoor drying may be the best choice if your area is dusty, or if you happen to be particularly susceptible to outdoor allergens.
Shut down your furnace pilot light. It’s small thing, but there’s no point running a gas furnace pilot light through the summer months. Locate the gas shutoff valve. There are safety issues here, so if you have any question about how to properly extinguish a pilot light, consult your building supervisor, utility company or heating and cooling professional.
Close doors to unused rooms and closets. Your winter clothes do not require air conditioning, so get into the habit of keeping closets and cabinets closed. Shut unoccupied rooms and their cooling vents. If you’re using window units, close the door in the air conditioned room whenever practical.
Replace or clean your air conditioning filter. Dirty filters dramatically reduce air conditioner efficiency. Check your filter once a week, and replace as often as necessary. Filters are generally throwaway items, but some may be reusable if thoroughly vacuumed. Clean window unit filters once a week. Some window air conditioners have a warning light to indicate when air flow is restricted.

Close your fireplace damper. If you’re fortunate enough to have a fireplace, close the flue during warm weather months. Chimneys are another void you don’t need to cool, so keep fireplace doors shut or construct an airtight screen to close the hearth when not in use.
Replace standard bulbs with low-energy equivalents wherever practical. The heating effects of incandescent bulbs are generally overstated, since most lights are mounted close to the ceiling. But every degree matters when you’re trying to keep power bills under control, and the money saving benefits of year-round CFL or LED light use are obvious. So do your homework and see what might make sense in terms of energy saving improvements. There may be local, state or federal incentives for things such as improving insulation values or weatherization. In the evening, once the sun’s rays become less direct you can quickly bring the temperature of you house down several degrees by spraying your roof down with a garden hose. some people even mount sprinklers on their roofs for instant swamp cooler effect.

Be sure to visit our Summer Shop for all of your summer decor needs!

Be COOL!

How to plan the best & easiest picnic ever!

Jenny Bailey — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:52:04 +0000

Picnics are among the most fun outdoor activities and they can be very inexpensive. But there are plenty of people who do not know how to plan a picnic. If you are looking to create a memorable day, plan a picnic and cherish the quality time together. Picnics are a relaxing way to spend a weekend afternoon and is a perfect way to enjoy your friends and family. I enjoy packing simple and delicious picnics full of flavor. Where you decide to have your picnic will depend on who you decide to invite. Be sure to pick an area that is large enough to comfortable accommodate all whom you invite. Another thing to consider, is the place safe for small children or the handicapped. Keep an eye on the weather forecast and try to plan your picnic on a day that is supposed to be sunny and warm. However, in case of rain, try to hold your picnic in an outdoor area that has some coverage or nearby shelter
You can ask as many or as few people as you would like to your picnic. Keep in mind, though, that as the host, you are implying that you will be bringing all the food and supplies for everyone you ask to join you. A good way to arrange a picnic for a large group of people is to have a pot-luck picnic, where everyone is responsible to bring a certain food item.
Making the food yourself is not hard when you come up with a workable plan. It takes just a little bit of thought and research. You don’t have to cook food for the picnic, you can plan cold food items like fruits, olives, sandwiches, cheese, crackers and sliced deli meat, and several different vegetable dips served with cut up vegetables such as carrots, celery, green, red and yellow peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, radishes, cherry tomatoes, cucumber and mushrooms. Or your can precook items, like hard boiled eggs, fried Chicken, potatoe salad, or anything else that you come up with.
Bring wine to drink if you enjoy that. There are even very nice plastic glasses that can be used as wine glasses if you are looking for a formal affect. Sparkling water is good as well. For other choices, bring iced herbal teas, juice or homemade lemonade.
Pack something sweet to eat for dessert. If you are carrying a cooler, pack in some cheesecake or fruit and chocolate to dip it in. Chocolate covered strawberries are wonderfully delicious as well as homemade cookies or bars.
Depending on your destination, you may hike to the picnic site or go hiking afterwards. You might take along the dogs and play some Frisbee with them or with each other. You might take along cards and play a few rounds of gin rummy or maybe you just curl up on the blanket and enjoy a wonderful conversation.
Here are a few ideas on where to go. You don’t need to go very far when packing a picnic, a shady area of your back yard can be just as fun. If not your back yard, maybe a friend or neighbor has a beautiful yard, field or forest to explore, but ask first. How about a stroll down to your local neighborhood park and find a secluded, quiet corner to spread a blanket. It may be a little busier and noisier but is still enjoyable. It may require a short drive to a state or national park, but you’ll find larger parks and beautiful sights. Some parks may charge an entrance fee and have rules on food and beverages so make sure to check before driving there. A beach is one of the most loved places for a picnic. Find the nearest beach, enjoy sun bathing, playing and walking in the sand, and swimming in the cool waters
Hiking in the woods, forests or mountains is my idea of the best place for a picnic lunch. It is adventurous as well as peaceful. Or you can relax the whole day in the beautiful greenery of a University Campuses or Municipal Buildings which make wonderful landscaped places for a picnic and often have free access. Local wildlife reserves make a lovely choice for a picnic. You can throw the wildlife your breadcrumbs. Ski Lodges in summer have no long lift lines which make ski hills a wonderful summer option. Many ski hills are open for hiking and biking, providing many ideal picnic opportunities and scenic views. Whether you need to rent a small boat or pay a ferry fare, getting out on the open water is a great way to spend an afternoon with a packed lunch and well worth the expense.
Don’t forget to wear bug spray and sunscreen wherever your destination is and bring along a camera so you can capture the memories for the future. Don’t forget the picnic basket, cooler, tablecloth, folding chairs, and an old blanket or two. Napkins, paper plates, cups, and utensils are a must and make sure to bring the appropriate accessories and condiments for the food you’ll be serving. Zip lock bags are helpful for cleanup and food storage. Wet wipes are helpful for hand washing and cleanup. Music is always important as well as candles, they go everywhere. Have a wonderful summer outdoors! Cheers.

Franciscan pottery rose into the limelight of fame!

Jenny Bailey — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 16:35:57 +0000

Franciscan Pottery started as an American firm, and in 1875 exceptional clay deposits were found in Lincoln, California. Three businessmen staked a claim, bought the land and began plans to use the clay for a new business venture. They promptly established the Gladding McBean Company and began making money by the production of sewer pipes. This part of their history is amazingly similar to the English firm, Royal Doulton, with whom they were to become linked to in history 125 years later as both firms were bought out by Wedgewood.

In 1928 an innovative ceramic material was patented as “Malinite” and was to be use in the ceramic body of tile. By 1932, experimental work had started at the Lincoln plant aimed at producing a pottery line using the “Malinite” body. The dinnerware and art ware were to be made in solid colored glazes. Originally, the dinnerware line was sold as Franciscan Pottery and included solidly colored, bright earthenware in the casual style of Mexican folk pottery. The name was altered to Franciscan Ware in the late 1930’s to allow for a more upscale and broader image. Shortly thereafter, the company introduced raised relief, hand painted patterns that proved hugely successful. Two of these, Franciscan Apple and Franciscan Desert Rose are the only continuously produced Franciscan patterns, and remain in production today. Franciscan Desert Rose has become the most sold American dinnerware of all time. Other hand painted patterns such as Ivy, October and Fresh Fruit became quite popular during this time. One of the most desirable and difficult to find Franciscan patterns for collectors is Wildflower, a hand painted and many colored tribute to the flora of the American west. It was produced for no more than three years.The entry of Gladding, McBean & Co into the dinnerware market was made possible in part by the arrival of Frederic and Mary Grant. Frederic was a ceramics engineer and previously had been president of the Weller pottery in Ohio. Mary was a successful stylist whose designs drove the first two decades of production at Franciscan. A number of other artists created designs and modeled shapes but the Grants worked together in their successful control of Franciscan products.In 1954 designer George James created an art ware line for Franciscan called Contours. It used fine china forms, two tone colors and fluid, graceful shapes to create bowls, covered dishes, trays, candlesticks and more. The contours line was very “new” for Franciscan in the 1950’s quest for modernism.

Franciscan introduced their Fine China line in 1942. This was marketed as Franciscan Masterpiece China after 1958 and production continued in the United States until 1978. The Franciscan name appeared on fine china from around the world after that time, but will bear a back stamp indicating the country in which it was produced.

The 1950s marked the departure of the Grants and the arrival of other design influences for Franciscan. The Eclipse “American Modern” shaped patterns of 1954 included Starburst. Starburst would prove a radical departure from prior tradition and used an irregular shape and abstract radiant stars resulting in a very modern earthenware pattern. Today it is collected as some of the best design work from the Modern 1950’s.

Some of the best of the Grants influences can be seen in their Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York’s Thirteenth Exhibition of Contemporary American Industrial Art in 1934. Two objects designed by the Grants appeared in this exhibition as Gladding, McBean products: a large satin gray bowl and a lemon yellow vase. In the same exhibition of 1940 “a bowl and platter designed by Mary K. Grant: made by Gladding, McBean & Co.” was again honored. This acclaim for Mary’s work continued in 1951 when an exhibition called Good Design by the Museum of Modern Art, New York selected the Encanto shape for exhibition. Encanto shapes went into production as fine china and sold with great success throughout the 1950’s. Extensive advertising and numerous new patterns on the shape kept the classic shapes alive and vital in the market place.

Franciscan pottery rose into the limelight of fame when in 1961 order by Jacqueline Kennedy for Masterpieces China to be used on Air Force One and the 1969 selection by the Richard Nixons of Franciscan Masterpieces China for service aboard the Presidential yacht. Other orders for special services for royalty from around the world were also filled.

By the 1960’s and 1970’s “casual dinnerware” made of earthenware was very popular and surpassed the sales of fine china of all types. Franciscan followed this trend, successfully marketing various patterns on their Hacienda shape in ’60’s colors of harvest gold and avocado green. In the ’70’s informal earthenware lines such as Franciscan Madeira and Picnic rose to popularity.

Franciscan survived the competitive ceramics market and the entry of plastic onto Americans dinner tables by having production of china made in Japan beginning in 1960. The Japanese Cosmopolitan fine china and earthenware Whitestone lines were marked changes for this historically California based producer.

In April, of 1935, the first catalog containing photographs of Franciscan Pottery was published. By the end of the year, the Glendale plant pottery department had 283 different shapes in regular production. By 1939, the prolific Glendale plant had produced at least fifteen patterns of dinnerware and nine lines of art ware. Marketing indications suggested a new dimension in dinnerware. The company moved quickly to design, produce and market a totally new line of embossed, hand painted, dinnerware. This concept was a complete departure from anything previously produced by GMcB Co. pottery department at the Glendale Plant. Complete lines of art pottery, colored tableware and kitchenware were to be produced. The trade name of Franciscan Pottery was chosen for the line in order to honor the padres who helped to settle California.

In 1976, Interpace sold the former Gladding, McBean & Company’s Lincoln plant to Pacific Coast Building Products and in 1979 sold the Franciscan Ceramics division in Los Angeles to Josiah Wedgwood & Sons, Ltd. In 1984, the Franciscan Ceramics division in Los Angeles was closed down and production moved to England. In the Johnson Brothers division of Wedgwood. Josiah Wedgwood & Sons, Ltd. would merge with Waterford becoming Waterford Wedgwood. Today, the Franciscan trademark is still in use, however collectors prefer to collect the “Made in USA” Franciscan Ware. Gladding, McBean is still in business in Lincoln, California producing sewer tile, terra cotta for architectural projects, and terra cotta garden ware.

Be sure to visit our Franciscan Pottery Shop where you will find a large selection of Desert Rose and Apple pottery.

Spode: A Great Legacy of British Pottery

Jenny Bailey — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 01:16:18 +0000

The Spode company was founded by Josiah Spode, who earned renown in the ceramic business for perfecting the blue underglaze printing process in 1784 and for co-developing the formula for fine bone china. He opened a factory in Stoke-on-Trent in 1767 and in 1776 developed the current Spode factory. His business in creamwear (a fine cream-coloured earthenware) and in pearlware (a fine white-glazed earthenware) was very successful. He began a career in the pottery industry at the age of 16, and later married a haberdasher, Ellen Findley, in 1754 and had eight children, Josiah II, Samuel, Mary, Ellen, Sarah, William, Anne and Elizabeth. His inherent skills and sheer dedication to his business lead to two major achievements that would redefine the pottery industry. The first was the development of a winning formula for fine bone china, and the second was the perfection of blue under-glaze printing. After successfully working for many of the best potters in the Stoke-on-Trent area, including Thomas Whieldon, which is still working today, Josiah I set up his own small pottery factory in 1760 and in 1770 established the Spode pottery company. He bought up land that adjoined the factory enabling him to make use of the intricate canal system that served the potteries in Stoke-on-Trent, allowing raw materials to be brought in and finished ware shipped out.

Spode was able to out-compete his rivals due to his two key innovations: the technique of blue underglaze printing and the perfected formula for bone china. During the 18th century many English potters were striving and competing to discover the industrial secret of the production of fine translucent porcelain. The Plymouth and Bristol factories, and (from 1782-1810) the New Hall (Staffordshire) factory under Champion’s patent, were producing hard paste or true porcelain similar to Oriental china. In the artificial or soft paste porcelain, imitating French production like Sevres, silica or ground up flint was used in the clay to give it strength and translucency. The technique was developed by adding calcined bone to this glassy frit, as examplifed in the production of Bone China.

The bone porcelains, especially those of Spode, Minton, Davenport and Coalport, eventually established the standards for soft-paste porcelain which were maintained widely after 1800. Although many of the factories had, before Spode, established a proportion of about 40-45 per cent calcined bone in the formula as standard, it was Spode who first abandoned the practice of calcining or fritting the bone-ash with some of the other ingredients, and used the simple mixture of bone-ash, petuntse (china stone) and china clay, which since this time has formed the technical makeup of English porcelain. A standard English paste may be taken as 6 parts bone-ash, 4 parts petuntse and 3.5 parts kaolin, all finely ground together. This is essentially the same as true porcelain but with the addition of a larger proportion of bone-ash.

Josiah Spode I, as mentioned above, is credited with the introduction of underglaze blue transfer printing into Staffordshire, in 1781-84. Spode introduced the blue underglaze transfer to Staffordshire ‘in a bid for supremacy in utilitarian ware. Worcester and Bow had commenced transfer printing in 1756, and Wedgwood introduced a similar process to Staffordshire in blacks and reds using

This method involved the engraving of a design on a copper plate, which was then printed onto gummed tissue. The colour paste was worked into the cut areas of the copper plate and wiped from the uncut surfaces, and then printed by passing through rollers. These designs, including edge-patterns which had to be manipulated in sections,were then cut out using scissors and applied to the biscuit-fired ware using a white fabric, itself prepared with a gum solution. The tissue was then floated off in water, leaving the glaze pattern adhering to the plate. This was then dipped in the overglaze and returned to the kiln for the last firing. Blue underglaze transfer became a standard feature of Staffordshire pottery. Spode also used on-glaze transfers for other wares. The well-known Spode blue-and-white dinner services with engraved sporting scenes and Italian views were developed under Josiah Spode II, but continued to be reproduced.

After some early trials Spode perfected a stoneware that came closer to porcelain than any previously, and introduced his “Stone-China” in 1813. It was light in body, grayish-white and gritty where it was not glazed and approached translucence in the early wares; later Stone-Ware became opaque. Spode pattern books, it is recorded that about 75000 Spode still survive from around 1800’s.

In Spode’s similar “Felspar porcelain”, introduced on the market in 1821, feldspar was an ingredient, substituted for the Cornish stone in his standard bone china body, giving rise to what is in fact an extremely refined stoneware comparable to the rival “Mason’s ironstone”, produced by Josiah II’s nephew, Charles James Mason, and patented in 1813 as Spode’s “Felspar porcelain” and was continued into the Copeland & Garrett phase of the company (1833-1847). Some of the ware employed underglaze blue and iron red with touches of gilding in imitation of “Imari porcelain” that had been introduced on Spode’s bone china in the first decade of the century: the most familiar “Tobacco-leaf pattern” continued to be made by Spode’s successors, William Taylor Copeland, and then “W.T. Copeland & Sons, late Spode”.

In 1778 Josiah I sent his son, Josiah II, to London to open a showroom and shop. This shrewd decision meant that Spode had direct information from their valued and wealthy customer base in London. Spode was able to design and manufacture ware that customers actually wanted leading the company to great success.

In 1779, Josiah William Copeland became his partner and the combination was a good one. Spode was the potter and Copeland the salesman. After much experimentation, Josiah I and his son Josiah II also perfected the recipe for fine bone china – an invention that redefined the pottery industry. This fine bone china was brilliant white and translucent. It inspired new designs and finishes and required new skills. It was of superior quality and strong while also having the look of being delicate. It was this formula that made the Spode name famous across the globe. When Spode died, his son, Josiah Spode II, took over the business with Copeland, and began to make porcelain also. In the late 1700s, Chinese porcelain decorated in blue and white was increasingly difficult to obtain as the imports slowed due to an auction ring that was lowering the profits of the Chinese exporters. People began looking increasingly to domestic producers, creating a wonderful opportunity for Spode and his competitors. In response to this, The older Josiah used a transfer printing technique on copper plates to reproduce the Chinese blue and white pottery which contribued enormously to the success of the factory. In this period, Chinese porcelain, particularly blue and white willow pattern, had become popular and fashionable. However, by 1784 imports from China were reduced and it became harder for people to buy. Alongside the “Willow Pattern” perhaps the most famous design today is Spode’s “Blue Italian,” which was introduced in 1816. This represented the peak of the technology of engraving and underglaze printing, with a range of subtle tones which were previously impossible to achieve. The pattern seems to have been based on a 17th Century watercolour painting of an Italian landscape. It presents a laid-back, yet mysterious scene, enticing the user to ponder the purpose of the buildings and preoccupations of the people represented. At first they produced just the original Chinese designs but later added to these , their own patterns like Blue Italian, Tower Blue and Willow, still produced by Spode today.

At his death in 1797, The Times obituary for Josiah Spode I said, “He possessed many amiable and endearing virtues, which rendered him an ornament to society and a service to mankind; in domestic attachments he was tender, generous and affectionate; in friendship faithful and sincere; nor was he less distinguished for charity and liberality to the poor. In short he lived universally respected and died not less generally lamented”.

After his father’s death, Josiah II (1757-1827) returned from London to run the Spode business in Stoke-on-Trent. Dedicated to the local community, Josiah II built cottage homes for his factory workers in Penkhull, a village next to Stoke where he also built his home which he named The Mount. He also donated money towards the rebuilding of a church in Stoke where he was senior churchwarden. During this time, ceramic slabs were laid at the cornerstones of the church which were inscribed “transmit to generations far remote invaluable memorials of the perfection to which the Potter’s Art in the neighbourhood had arrived in the early 19th century”.

Josiah II died in 1827 and was buried with his father at St Peter’s Church in Stoke.
The second son of Josiah II, Josiah III (1777-1829), had been initiated into the pottery business by his grandfather and founder of Spode, Josiah I. When Josiah III married Mary Williamson at the age of 38, he retired from the business but returned 12 years later to run the business after his father’s death in 1827. The business was carried on through his sons at Stoke until April 1833. In 1833, the company was sold to W. T. Copeland and Garrett. William Taylor Copeland, Lord Mayor of London 1835-1836, who was the son of William Copeland who had worked with Josiah II in London in the late 1700s. It remained in the Copeland family until 1966.

Today, The Portmeirion Group, who owns the Spode company, is committed to the development of the Spode brand producing the highest quality that is expected from Spode’s ware. The manufacture has been brought back many items to our factory in Stoke-on-Trent which has been producing high quality ware for the Portmeirion brand for 50 years. With Spode’s Blue Italian, Woodland, Christmas Tree and Baking Days collections as well as Portmeirion, Royal Worcester and Pimpernel, The Portmeirion Group is extremely happy to be associated with and producing ware for this great British brand.

Be sure to check out our Spode Pottery Store at terrific prices and no sales tax.

Decorate with antiques: connect with history!

Jenny Bailey — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 18:34:55 +0000

Decorating with antiques will give your home a sophisticated touch. Whether you add antiques to every room, or to just a small area such as a your living room or kitchen, the vintage items will enhance the space. If you have an assortment of potentially functional antiques, be open and creative about possible new uses for them. If they are beautiful items, and objects d’art, consider new and unusual places to display them. Mix antiques with modern items to create a fresh look. If you can’t find the original items, buy replicas of antique items, such as furniture and kitchen items. Antiques and collectibles will add beauty and individuality to any one’s interiors.

It’s no secret that old furniture appreciates in value, while contemporary pieces tend to decline. But most importantly, buy quality pieces. When you buy pieces to decorate your home, make sure they are made of good quality. Pieces that are not of will show, they will look cheap and lack detail. Quality pieces, however, will stand out as show pieces. They can be true works of art. Even though they may be more expensive, these quality pieces will appreciate more in time. The most important aspect of having antiques for me is their connection with history. It is fascinating to think about others who used it and what their lives were like.

So how does one decorate with antiques and collectibles? Here are some things that I have learned from looking inside my mother’s home, as well as other homes that use antiques in decorating. My mother’s house looked like an antique store. It was so over crowded with her antiques and collectibles that you were so overwhelmed you couldn’t really see anything. My mother had a lot of very unique pieces too.

If you are decorating with collectibles, make sure that they will work with the overall theme of the room you are designing. If you are designing with period pieces from the Victorian era, make sure that everything else in the room speaks Victorian. I am not saying avoid mixing and matching, for you can do so beautifully. Just make sure that majority of the pieces will speak of your overall design theme

What you collect most, is very likely what you’d like to see in your home. If you collect antique blue and white China and other oriental or Asian pieces, make sure that they fit the theme of your room. Mixing Asian collectibles in a French country style room could be tricky, so be careful. A contemporary home with minimalist style is a great backdrop for an Asian inspired design. Valuable items that have been handed down through the family for generations are often the first things that spark collections. These furnishings can be given the place of pride in your home, or seamlessly integrated into more contemporary design schemes.

Make sure to group like items together. Grouping the items in threes or odd numbers creates interest without the cluttered look. Grouping like objects together make your collections stand out more too. Also don’t overcrowd one area with collectibles and avoid scattering each kind all over the room. When you group them they will have more impact. To give your room a more balanced look, make sure to scatter your groups evenly.

Using a display cabinet such as curio or china cabinet is a safe and space saving way to enjoy your collectibles, be they antiques or treasures. You can also place the smaller items in shadow boxes or display cases which can be hung on the wall. One solution is to rotate collections so that some pieces are in storage while others are enjoyed. This is more relevant if the art and colors of the collection match seasonal themes.

Display architectural salvage or wall-mount an old textile for it’s beautiful texture. I hung some very old Persian rugs on a large wall. Display an oil lamp collection on a side-board or light tapers in antique silver or brass candlesticks. Consider converting a treasured object into a table or floor lamp and using it as part of your decor. Place sculptures and vases on a stand, making sure that they are sturdy and placed away from the flow of traffic flow. Use gallery putty or sticky clay to hold the pieces in place. For those rare pieces you can place Lucite glass dome over it, like those used in art museums.

A crystal chandelier can add drama to your collections. Highlight your antiques and collectible with proper lighting. If your collectible is a painting, put a picture light on top to highlight the work of art. Use a spotlight at the bottom of the display stand to highlight your sculpture. Use track lighting to highlight a row of shadow boxes on the wall. Turn on the China cabinet and curio lights to show your antique china and figurines.

A painted accent wall is a very dramatic backdrop for a plate collection.

Add paint to accent and highlight your collectible. If you have a collection of antique wall art or iron grills, you can paint an accent wall with a dark color such as burgundy or midnight blue, which will make your collections look even more impressive, especially if it is spotlighted. Or you can use a light bright color on the walls and that will make your dark art pieces pop.

Small scale pieces are best displayed in multiples. For example, a collection of vintage kitchen utensils hung from a peg board or a set of blue and yellow china propped in a row on open shelving. Another option is to arrange them in a vignette with objects that share something in common with them. The common element could be colour, texture or even theme. The connection can be as loose as a painting in burnt umber tones pared with antique books whose weathered covers show the same soft colors.

Vintage textiles such as scarves, tiles and door handles can add a quaint touch to your home. Use antique crochet doilies as place mats for candles and plant pots, or hang old lace curtains in your bedroom. Retro scarves featuring sweet embroidery details such as hearts and flowers add a romantic flair to the tops of dressers and night stands. Throw a warm vintage quilt on your bed, and replace modern doorknobs with opulent crystal antique versions. Replace boring vinyl bathroom flooring with old-fashioned porcelain tiles. Antique replicas of bathroom fixtures and hardware can be found on line at the Victorian Shoppe, where you will find a large selection a vintage items for your home at terrific prices and no sales tax. Many companies ship free. Don’t forget about using pressed tin ceilings and Franklin stoves to complete your authentic vintage look.

Furniture and art are larger items and directly contribute to the decor and functionality of a room. These bigger pieces often work best as focal points or key accents in a room. Think, for example, of how lovely and unexpected a large scale print framed in antique gold and hung in an otherwise minimalist bathroom could be! A small living room done in neutral colours with slip-covered sofa and chairs could benefit from the warmth of an antique chest of drawers. Using antique pieces can provide ingenious storage options as well. An architectural piece of salvage, or a framed antique map could make a unique work of art in the hallway.

Place a hook or two in a minimal decor scheme. Choose a stunning antique dress or kimono and hang it as a work of art. Create simple curtains or cushions from vintage floral fabric for a romantic, shabby chic feel. Fasten antique jewelry to a lampshade, affix to a fabric covered board or frame in a shadow box. Install shelving over door frames, around the perimeter of a room at ceiling height or under stairs. Create an artistic stack and use as a side table. Consider arranging shelves according to the size or colour of books.

A second consideration when displaying antiques and collectibles is the style of your space. A formal interior in a more traditional style can benefit from symmetrical arrangements. In this case, for example, a mantel-scape with two candelabras on either side of a turn-of-the-century clock could work comfortably. A pairing of more then one piece from the same time period works best in a formal environment. For example, a hall table, chair & mirror from the art deco period.

In a casual environment, single, unusual pieces used in unexpected ways can be lovely. For example, an old mill wheel used as a coffee table. Consider re-finishing or re-furbishing old pieces and putting them to new uses. An old washstand could house a new sink and make a character-filled addition to a bathroom.

At the other extreme, a maximality casual environment chock-full and overflowing with collections can be striking. For example, a license plate collection covering an accent wall or a floor strewn with colourful rag rugs. The key here is that the objects must relate to each other in some major way.

The shapes could be similar, the colours could repeat, textures and materials could be similar (smooth or rough) or a clear theme, such as hand-made or pop-art could unite them. Even in a stripped-down condo environment, a collection displayed in mass, for example, a colourful assortment of road-signs, could be just the ticket to a unique and beautiful space.

In the kitchen use a mix of open and closed shelving. Art in the kitchen, especially images depicting domestic chores, people enjoying food or the outdoors, can make this room fun. Install an old shelf or place a chimney cupboard in the corner to add interest to a standard kitchen.

Smaller collectibles can be displayed in vignettes or groupings on bedside, vanity or dresser. Perfumes bottles look great on a mirrored tray. Painted furniture in wood, wicker or metal can add charm and work especially well with a country style. In the bedroom, a large piece, such as a wardrobe or four-poster bed, can make a grand impression.

As you can see there is no limit to decorating with antiques. We are only limited by our imaginations. Have fun, happy collecting and decorating.

The bachelor pad ; A modern approach

Jenny Bailey — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 16:50:21 +0000

The freedom that you get from designing, decorating and living in your own space is terrific. I went to a married friend’s house and found him living in a house full of potpourri and flower-printed doilies. Every room except for the basement and garage was decorated by the wife who freely expressed her likes and personality. I saw his old college beer signs, sports team memorabilia and bikini posters rolled up and thrown in the corner of the garage. Another friend’s wife had given their master bathroom a duck theme with duck bathroom mats, toothbrush holders, soap dispensers and shower curtains. It’s your choice, you can have that or you can have a bathroom with “dogs drinking beer, smoking cigars and playing poker” theme.

Unlike married friends, you have the ability to decorate your apartment the way you want. But be careful, don’t make the same mistakes that others have. In a bachelor friend’s apartment, I found it full of tacky stuff. He wanted so bad to make his apartment look presentable to women that he bought boring art prints that meant nothing to him and plastered them all over his walls. He spent hundreds of dollars on vases and generic nick knacks to put on the bookshelves and coffee table that had no story or history to them other than being shipped from China to his local home decor store in a large shipping crate. There is nothing wrong with buying something new, just make sure that you really like it and that it makes sense with it’s surroundings.

Look for meaningful things at your parents’ house and ask for items that mean something to you. Get out your old favorite movie posters and framed them to use in your casual living space. Dig out personalized autographed picture or put that Dr. Seuss book collection that you loved so much as a kid in your bookcase. Framed pictures of you and your friends make it your space. When each item means something to you, this will invoke an interesting conversation. Don’t spend hundreds of dollars on worthless over priced items just to impress women who come to your apartment. Instead take items that you already own and care about and decorated your apartment with them. Add in new items to make your space feel updated and new, yet still personal. Women will be quite receptive to you when you reveal the real you.

The bachelor pad that features a clean modern design makes use of space in a unique way with space saving and multitasking design ideas. This space shows how modern design can be both high in style and big in personality. Although the bachelor pad space is undeniably masculine, elements of warmth and comfort can be consciously integrated by reflecting the owner’s personality and interests onto the design. A dramatic palette of chocolate brown and warm grays renders the space and the complementing textures of wood and leather contrasted with stainless steel and other metallic accents, creating a cozy environment for relaxing while, at the same time, being a chic space for entertaining friends.
If you have a lot of books, instead of storing the them inside closed cabinets, showcase them as an integral part of the interior design. Different types of built-in open shelves can be added throughout the unit to keep the books organized while making them a part of the interesting composition of the interiors.

The most important element of design is to make the space your own. Think about what you like as far as color, texture, and shape goes. Once you have honed in on these details, then think about function. Make sure that your space works for your needs and comforts. Buy furniture carefully so as not to overcrowd but to keep a cohesive look.
There can be shelves fitted above the windows, with a customized step ladder, to maximize the space. Drawers built under the ledges further improve the functionality of the space. A dramatic palette renders the space warm and cosy, yet exciting. Add complementing textures of wood and leather contrasted with stainless steel and other metallic accents to create a cozy environment for relaxing while, at the same time, being a chic space for entertaining friends. Make use of the space in a unique way with space saving and multitasking design ideas. The use of ottomans and coffee tables with storage is a good example. consider built in book shelves.This space shows how modern design can be both high in style, big in personality and extremely functional.
A bachelor pad is not what it used to be. The ‘ultimate bachelor’s pad’ is the idealized living space for the ultra-modern, trendy man. It is the supreme fantasy home; a fortress of comfortable solitude stylized by the latest in luxury living and top-of-the-line gadgets. Of course every man’s pad will be different to illustrate his unique tastes and character but there are some essentials that are universal in defining the ‘ultimate bachelor pad.’

A view is pivotal in defining the ultimate pad. An awe-inspiring view can leave visitors breathless and instill a sense of power or control over destiny. The view could be scenic nature with roaming hills and grand-esque mountains or perhaps it may be of an urban skyline, over looking the city. The point is that the view should be both powerful and inspiring, this often means that the view is more important in terms of luxury, than the actual location of the home.

A clean place is a must. It is hard to respect any place, no matter how well designed it may be, if it is dirty. Hiring help to clean is often a good idea. When hiring a maid you need to make the choice on whether you will hire an individual or a service? There are advantages and disadvantages to each approach. With an individual, you can get referrals and can ensure that only one person will be in your home. However, hiring an individual means there is no replacement when your maid gets sick.

Some fancy gadgets will help give your space a customize feel. A wine cooler is a good example of this. Custom made is always the way to go, but if you are looking for something pre-built then a refrigerated wine cabinet from Marvel Industries may just be the way to go. A Proper wink rack should balance bottles of bubbly at just the right angle to keep corks moist and should have a slide-out wine rack which can hold at least five bottles in the compartment. Any decent refrigerated model should have room for around 60 12-ounce cans.

The furnishings give the space it’s ultimate personality. A luxury no guy should be without is a shag rug. A Contemporary Shag rug is more than just an style icon of the seventies but when properly picked it can add a luxurious and organic quality to the flooring. We recommend you shop in our Rug Store for some beautiful unique rugs, some with the 3 inch-high pile option. These are some of the most comfortable and stylish shag rugs we have come across. Make sure that you place the rug where it will give you the most impact, like the living room or master bedroom.

Rising property prices are not deterring a whole new breed of design-conscious single men from getting a place of their own. When it comes to living, these men expect only the best. A nice car is no longer enough and a designer apartment equivalent of a Ferrari. Owning a bachelor pad offers a higher social status to the owner. It is no wonder why the thought appeals even more to the highly social conscious male today.

Sophisticated apartments are springing up to meet the demands of these males who want their pad in the shortest time possible. These men are affluent and independent, individual, self assertive and fashionable and they look for the best in life that is available.

Gone were the days of old food and dirty dishes sitting in the sink and clothing strewn about the furniture and floors. Goodbye to the dirty and beaten down couch picked up on the road side, the television set that works some of the time, the refrigerator that doubles as a beer keg, down to the bikini posters on the walls. You can put those in the walk in closet. The 21st century Man has evolved into sophistication and it shows in his living space. It is unique. It is different. It is you.

It is unique. It is different. It is you.

Fourth of July: Party recipes with a blast!

Jenny Bailey — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 15:36:44 +0000

The Fourth of July is a holiday that makes me feel proud that I am an American. We have such a great country with a history that is so rich and a legacy that is unsurpassed for generosity. This is a time to get together with friends and family to celebrate our heritage and to rejoice over it. We have been given so much and we need to remember how we got where we are today and where we are going tomorrow. Remember; be safe and keep America clean and beautiful!

Happy Fourth of July!

4th Of July Cocktail

1 1/2 ounce vodka
1/2 ounce triple sec
1/2 ounce sweet & sour
1/2 ounce blue curacao
1 dash grenadine

Mix all ingredients, except grenadine, in a shaker and chill. Serve in a martini glass. Add grenadine.

Red, White and Blue Bomb

1 ounce rum
2 ounces pina colada mix
1 cup crushed ice
2 ounces red grenadine
1/2 ounce blue curacao
Maraschino cherry for garnish
Orange slice for garnish

Pour rum, pina colada mix and ice into blender, then blend. Pour grenadine into a 16-ounce hurricane glass. Add the blended pina coladamix on top. Then pour the curacao over top. Garnish with cherry and orange slice.

Cherry Bombs

12 fresh habenero peppers
4 ounces softened cream cheese
2 tablespoons sour cream
1/2 package dry onion soup mix
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dried red bell pepper flakes
1 large egg, beaten
10 Ritz crackers, pulverized to very fine consistency

Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, soup mix, Worcestershire sauce, and pepper flakes thoroughly. Allow to sit at room temp until you are ready to use.

Wearing rubber gloves, slice almost through the top of each pepper, leaving the top as a flap. With a small melon scoop, remove the seeds and white pulp from each pepper. Place cream cheese mixture in a small decorating bag and with a medium ‘o’ tip pipe mixture into each pepper, mounding slightly at the top. Brush pepper flap with some of the egg and close flap to seal.

Refrigerate peppers for 30 minutes. Dip chilled peppers in egg wash and roll in cracker crumbs. Next step is to place peppers in the freezer until hard frozen, about 3 hours.

Just before serving, remove peppers from freezer and drop into hot 375 degree oil and fry until golden. Pipe three dollops of cream cheese mixture decoratively on each plate and place one fried pepper in the center of each dollop. Decorate with sliced pickled cherry peppers, and leaf lettuce. Serve hot with a warning and fire extinguisher handy

Firecracker Burgers

1 pound ground beef
1 can (4 ounce size) diced green chilies, drained
1 teaspoon beef bouillon granules
4 slices Monterey Jack cheese
4 hamburger buns

Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil grate.
In a medium bowl, mix the beef, diced green chilies, and bouillon. Shape into patties.
Grill patties 3 to 8 minutes per side, or to desired doneness. Top each patty with cheese about 2 minutes prior to removing from grill.

Grilled Pepper Jack Chicken Sandwiches

4 4 oz. boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
4 center-cut bacon strips, cooked and halved
4 slices pepper Jack cheese
4 hamburger buns, split
8 Romain lettuce leaves
2 slice onion, separated into rings
4 slices tomato
1/2 cup Spicy Mayonnaise (see recipe below)
Dill pickle slices, optional

Sprinkle chicken with poultry seasoning. Using long-handled tongs, dip a paper towel in cooking oil and lightly coat the grill rack. Grill chicken, covered, over medium heat or broil 4 in. from the heat for 4-7 minutes on each side or until done. Top with bacon and cheese; cover and grill 1-2 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Serve on grilled buns with Spicy Mayonnaise, lettuce, onion, tomato and pickles if desired. Servings 4

Spicy Mayonnaise

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp. Mrs. Dash original seasoning
1 clove garlic, minced
pinch ground red pepper

Combine all ingredients in small bowl; mix until well blended.

Grilled Summer Sausage Casseroles

1 pound summer sausage, cut into 1-inch pieces
4 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 cups shredded cabbage
1 large sweet onion, halved and sliced 1 medium green pepper, cut into strips
1 medium sweet red pepper, cut into strips
1 small zucchini, sliced
1 small yellow summer squash, sliced
1 pound chicken tenderloins, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges 1/2 cup butter, cut into eight cubes
1/4 cup Italian salad dressing

In a large bowl, combine the first eight ingredients. Gently stir in the chicken and tomatoes. Divide mixture among eight double thicknesses of heavy-duty foil (about 12 in. square). Top each with a butter cube. Fold foil around mixture and seal tightly. Grill, covered, over medium heat for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and vegetables are tender. Carefully open foil to allow steam to escape; drizzle with dressing. Servings 8 .

Fiesta Salad

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon Chile powder
salt & pepper to taste
cayenne to taste
1 small clove garlic, mashed
2 cans whole kernel corn, drained
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 red bell pepper, diced medium
2 Roma tomatoes, diced
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
4 green onions, chopped
3 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped

Combine first seven ingredients to make the dressing, add remaining ingredients and toss gently. Let sit for at least four hours before serving.

Short Cut: You can omit the tomatoes, green onions and cilantro and add about three or four tablespoons prepared salsa to the salad. It tastes almost the same, but it looks much prettier with the fresh vegetables. Garnish with fresh dill. Serves 4.

Patriotic Gelatin Salad

2 packages Berry blue-flavored gelatin
2 packages Strawberry-flavored gelatin
4 cups Boiling water — divided
2 1/2 cups Cold water — divided
2 Unflavored gelatin
2 cups Milk
1 cup Sugar
2 cups Sour cream
2 teaspoons Vanilla extract

In four separate bowls, dissolve each package of gelatin in 1 cup boiling water. Add 1/2 cup cold water to each and stir. Pour one bowl of blue gelatin into an oiled 10 inch fluted tube pan; chill until almost set, about 30 minutes. Set other 3 bowls of gelatin aside at room temperature.

Soften unflavored gelatin in remaining cold water; let stand 5 minutes. Heat milk in a saucepan over medium heat just below boiling. Stir in softened gelatin and sugar until sguaris dissolved. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream and vanilla until smooth.

When blue gelatin in pan is almost set, carefully spoon 1 1/2 cups sour cream mixture over it. Chill until almost set, about 30 minutes.

Carefully spoon one bowl of strawberry gelatin over cream layer. Chill until almost set. Repeat, adding layers of blue gelatin, cream mixture and strawberry gelatin, chilling in between each. Chill several hours of overnight.

Note: This salad takes time of prepare since each layer must be almost set before the next layer is added.

Pesto-Corn Grilled Peppers

1/2 cup plus 2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups tightly packed fresh basil
2 tablespoons sunflower kernels or walnuts
4 garlic cloves
1/2 cup finely chopped sweet red pepper
4 cups whole kernel corn
4 medium sweet red, yellow or green peppers
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, optional

For pesto, combine 1/2 cup of oil, grated Parmesan cheese, basil, sunflower kernels and garlic in a blender or food processor; cover and process until blended. In a skillet, saute red pepper in remaining oil until tender. Add corn and pesto; heat through.

Halve peppers lengthwise; remove seeds. Place, cut side down, on grill over medium heat; cover and cook for 8 minutes. Turn; fill with corn mixture. Grill 4-6 minutes longer or until tender. Sprinkle with shredded Parmesan cheese if desired. Servings 8.

Red White And Blueberry Shortcake

10 oz   Pound Cake, cut into 3 layers
2 cup blueberries
2 cup strawberries or raspberries
12 ounces Cool Whip thawed

I use fresh berries which I wash and drain. Set bottom layer of cake onto serving bowl. Spread whip topping and add berries. Add second layer of cake. Spread whip topping and add berries. Top with third layer of cake. Top with more whip topping and fresh fruit. Chill until ready to serve.

Blueberry Sorbet

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water, preferably spring water
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 pints (about 2 pounds or 6 cups) fresh-picked blueberries, preferably organic, rinsed and patted dry
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar, water, and salt. Cook, stirring, until the sugar and salt have dissolved, about 3 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes.

In a blender, puree the blueberries with the syrup and lemon juice until very smooth (you may need to divide this into several batches if your blender is not extra-large). If desired, strain through a fine-mesh sieve for a smoother texture. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours or overnight.

Churn in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s directions.

Lemon Sorbet

2 cups water
1 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup white granulated sugar
1 lemon, zest
1 cup sparkling water
1/8 t. xanthan gum
pinch of salt

In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the water, lemon juice, sugar and lemon zest, stirring well to dissolve the sugar. Bring the liquid to a boil, turn down the heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes. Allow the mixture to cool for about 10 minutes.

Combine the lemon-mixture with the sparkling water in a blender. Add the xanthan gum and salt and process until well combined. Pour into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions.