Handcrafted Bridal Jewellery: Made for That Special Day December 1, 2008
Posted by Pat in : my thoughts on stuff , comments closedEven as a little girl, you have probably dreamt of your fairytale wedding. Now that you’re a woman and you finally found your Prince Charming, it’s time to turn that dream fairytale wedding into reality. Aside from the dress, the cake and the venue, there’s probably one more aspect that you are excited about - your bridal jewellery! After all, when you dreamt of that fairytale wedding, you must have pictured an exquisite tiara on your head, a delicate bracelet on your wrist and elegant earrings.
However, before you go rushing to a store, why don’t you consider buying unique, handmade bridal jewellery? It is your big day. You deserve to have a one-of-a-kind piece that no other bride will ever have.
With all the jewellery out there, why should you go for handcrafted pieces?
First of all, it will make you look and feel like a million dollars. These pieces have unique and intricate designs that will definitely make you sparkle. In fact, handcrafted pieces of jewellery are so chic, even Hollywood stars like Angelina Jolie and Demi Moore prefer them. When you walk down the aisle, expect people to gasp. They may be elaborate or they may be simple but one thing is fro certain. They will keep everyone’s eyes on you.
Secondly, you should consider handmade jewellery because these pieces are meticulously done. You can find pieces that date back to centuries ago. Forged by artisans and jewelers of the past, these gorgeous pieces have the level of artistry and workmanship that can no longer be found in the mass-produced pieces of jewellery today. On the best and happiest day of your life - your wedding - you want your body to be adorned by only the best jewellery. Handcrafted bridal jewellery will give you that extra touch of sophistication. It will add extra flair to an already momentous event in your life.
Thirdly and perhaps, most importantly, handmade wedding jewellery will reflect your tastes and personality. You will be able to select unique designs that will truly mirror your personality. Your bridal jewellery will match the decor of your dress, your cake and even your reception. If you’re an adventurous type, you can select pieces that use colored stones and various metals. This way, your dress still appears classic but your accessories give you a modern and playful look. However, if you’re a traditional bride, your jewellery can focus on pristine materials like pearls that are intricately laced together.
At the end of the day, handcrafted bridal jewellery is meant to give you that feeling of being special: your jewellery matches your personality perfectly. Skilled hands devoted hours and hours into making that piece especially for you. More importantly, it’s about knowing that no other bride will have that jewellery. It’s only yours, just for your own fairytale wedding!
Waterproofing techniques for basement floors. December 1, 2008
Posted by Pat in : my thoughts on stuff , comments closedIf basement floor waterproofing wasn’t overlooked on such a regular basis, then there wouldn’t be as many problems with seepage and flooding when it was finished. Many people think basements are just concrete storage spaces for things you don’t use very often. Now, people realize the potential of this space for something much more such as extra living space, family rooms and bedrooms.
After many years drains can become plugged with mud and causes water problems to occur.
If water from the roof is not directed far enough away from the foundation, then the soil becomes too saturated. In the process of the house settling, the walls will often crack, protective coatings which are on the outside biodegrades and drainage systems will be filled in with silt. Leakage in the basement can be caused by all of these problems. Natural pressure from the soil against the foundation will cause flowing ground water to enter through any cracks or crevices in your foundation. The level of pressure is positively correlated with the height of the water level. As water pressure increases, water begins to seep into cracks in the concrete walls and floors. The end results are a water filled crawlspace or basement.
If you want to keep hydrostatic water from getting into your home, pressure relief systems will do the job for you. Primary pumps cannot work if the electricity goes out during a rainstorm. Over time this pressure increases until the moisture is literally pushed through the floor or wall (sometimes termed bleeding). Seepage is often found where the wall meets the floor around the corners and joints.
If you think that water is comming out of an isolated area, you can lower the water table and the underground hydrostatic pressure by using an easy-to-install sump pump below your floor table. Water vapor passes through porous concrete. A wet or damp basement due to excessive moisture will cause carpeting to rot, allows mold to grow and makes the basement smell musty.
One fix for this problem is to use some of the quality sealants now available to the average home owner. It is often possible to paint them with either the roller or spray method.
A typical basement floor waterproofing project might involve:
- getting the floor ready by taking up any materials that are broken up or loose.
- making sure the basement floor is as dry as possible, hiring large fans or heaters if necessary.
- You must seal all joints between the walls and floor.
- Any cracks or joints noticed will need to be filled.
- priming the floor if the product requires use of a primer.
- Use 2 to 3 coats as needed to top coat the floor with the final product.
If you waterproof your basement floor with a good product the results should last for a number of years. Permaflex is one type of sealant that will give a complete and permanent waterproofing for a basement floor. This is arguably the only waterproofing system that is suitable for indoor use that will result in the complete sealing of a basement floor, no matter what sort of state it might be in. And it is considerably cheaper than other type of work as it does not involve pipes or pumps!
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Discover The Domesday Book December 1, 2008
Posted by Pat in : my thoughts on stuff , comments closedThe Domesday book gives every person with a keen interest in history and society to get a chance to see and feel what life in the medieval times was like. Compiled somewhere between 1085 and 1086 AD on the command of King William I of England, the domesday book is the result of a painstaking economic and social survey that was undertaken at that time. Historians differ in opinion on what the primary objectives of the economic and social survey which brought about the Domesday Book was.
As it were, England in those days was organized into fiefdoms, most of which were quite automously run by the local landowners and barons. There are those who then feel that the main objective of the economic survey that brought about domesday book was political, namely that the king wanted to find out how many tenants each landlord had. It is these tenants who could be conscripted into the military, as wars arose. And in order to protect their economic interests, many barons and landlords (who were both the political and economical leaders of their fiefdoms) would be tempted to under-declare the number of their tenants, to reduce their contribution to the military as overly generousl military contributions would translate into working manpower shortages, and consequently lower economic productivity in their fiefdoms. Through the survey that produced the domesday book then, and which was directly carried out by the king’s officers, the king would stamp out such under-declarations.
Another group of historians feels that the primary objective of the survey that brought about domesday book was economic, namely, to rein in tax evassion (by shedding light on what each taxapayers exact holdings were) and also to ascertain the exact extend of state property, or the crown property as it was known. Now kings were very powerful in those times, and such state or crown property was regarded as the personal property of the king. And England was not a very politically stable place then, and in fact just before the survey which brought about the domesday book, there had been some political upheavals with the landlords trying to conquer one another and overrun one another’s economic interests. It was therefore in order for the king to commision the survey that brought about domesday book, at least to ensure that his very own property which was spread out all through England had not been affected by those conquests.
Whatever the primary objectives of the survey that brought about domesday book, it is a book which gives one the opportunity to feel what day to day life was like in the medieval times. Through the domesday book, for example, you get to see what the values and economic aspirations of the people living then were. Going through the domesday book will tend to leave you feeling grateful for having been born today rather than then. For example, one fact that comes out clearly is that unlike today, when common people are accorded some recognition and respect, the common people in the medieval times were not really counted as people who mattered at all. Notice that the undertenants are listed only by christian names (like pets one would say), and are being counted as if they are in essence the personal property of their respective landlords. Through the domesday book, you also get a chance to see just how modest the fortunes of our forefathers were, and generally how tough medieval life was.
And thanks to the Domesday Book online version, you can get the opportunity to experience medieval life from the comfort of your desk. This domesday book online version was made available in 2006, and has made the domesday book accessible by many more people than was previously ever possible when the book was only available in the natioanl archives.