Accessories for MuslimsThe Qur’an is basically the Muslims’ guide on how to live their lives. Tasbihi is an Islamic devotional act that is aimed at glorifying Allah through repetitive utterances. Prayer mats in rectangular shape, the prayer mats that are usually designed with pictures of holy places in Islam signify that one recognises that there is a creator. Therefore, as Muslims bow and prostate in prayer, need to feel that they are in that clean atmosphere. What to avoidHajji Muguluma says that photos should be avoided because they are a form of destruction in Islam. You should avoid melancholic colours like red, gray and black because they psychologically create stress, especially for people who are nervous. You may use colours like white, cream and light yellow. These light colours brighten up the room and create a calm atmosphere for prayer.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Preserv flowers at home -Now
Maintenance guideShe adds that different flower qualities go for different prices and are cleaned in a different way. For gold, one has to use a dust-blower to take off the dust. “Most of the gold-like flowers are of broom and palm sticks that are designed and painted to suit the beauty of the home,” she says. Ms Upendo explains that for other artificial flowers, they can be dipped in soapy-like water and later put in plain water. Thereafter, they can be hanged upside down so that the water dries up. One can also clean them using a cleaning or air spray to get rid of dust. They have to be cleaned properly while in use in order to preserve their life span. Artificial flowers last longer more than fresh flowers if preserved well. “One has to preserve them well and while not in use, he or she must avoid folding and molding them in order to avoid fading and breakages,” she advises. If the flowers are not in use, one should place a layer of tissue paper in a plastic box and lay them separately, then lay another tissue paper, put other flowers on top and continue until the process is complete. However, one shouldn’t crowd them in one box.Clik Here Now
Back on real estate trade
The common mistake from property owners is that of assuming that they are managing a building forgetting that the building can’t generate monthly returns unless the tenant in it is paying promptly. * Money wasters This mistake costs many property owners millions of revenue over time. If you don’t have a plan to manage your tenants, you lose money to common acts of. * Failure to follow up on tenants. You might just not have the time to always follow up on your tenants. Depending on how many tenants you have, it is not an easy task to follow up on them. * Failure to meet payment obligation. Some tenants will want to use your properties without making payments. Loosing track on payment patterns. * Continuous excuses requesting for more time to make payments. * Lack of proper records on payment * Creation of false receipts or payments. Some tenants create false deposit slips or receipts claiming to have paid in your bank accounts. * Payments management Payments management is a concept applied in different businesses. It is a cost effective approach to managing your revenue collections without having to incur a lot of costs or losing money through fraud and non-payment.
Checklist II Revise for your home
The neighbourhoodYour neighbours can keep an eye on your home when you are away, so introduce yourself to establish a good rapport. One of the best ways to meet new people is by walking around. It is always the best way to introduce yourself to your new surroundings, feel a sense of community, and at the same time, get in shape is to visit your local recreation centre. Ms Namakula advices one to find local information on schools, libraries, community activities and local businesses through one’s local chamber of commerce website. Also, one should try to register and be part of that community.Waste managementHow does the other neighbour handle waste management? Know how your neighbor deposes their trash, what are the rules and learn about the pickup schedule for these services to avoid fines.
Checklist Revise for your home
Keep your documents safeAccording to Mr Stephen Siminyu, a home owner in Ntinda and Busia, one should endeavour to safely keep all the papers associated with their new home. This includes all contracts, cancelled checks, sales receipts, owner’s manuals, and home warranty documents. Make sure that you read your entire product and home warranty documents to ensure that you know what to do in case something goes wrong. “Today, there is a high tendency of deception where some people sell houses that belong to another party. Therefore, ensuring that you have the right documentation proving that you are the legal owner of that house or apartment is one of the most important details to observe before settling into your new home,” Mr Siminyu explains. Change the addressMs Grace Namakula, a home owner in Nateete, a Kampala suburb, says that moving into your new home doesn’t mean that you cut off yourself from the rest of the world that you have been interacting with. It is advisable to endeavor changing the house address to make it easy for friends and family to easily find you and reconnect. Consider securityToday, most people are opting to buy already constructed houses rather than building. So how is your new neighbourhood? How safe and accessible is? Will it be a safe environment for your family? Probably, you have bought a house where another family used to live and this makes the issue of home security a prime factor to consider. The previous homeowner’s friends and family could have copies of your home’s keys, so call a locksmith and have all the exterior door locks and codes changed. Check the security feature and make sure everything is right. Does the fire extinguisher in your new house function well? Find the home’s main circuit breaker and make sure it’s clearly labeled so you know which breaker turns off which area.
real estate business-for
Though the middle class is not fully established, it is also growing at a fast rate that demands development of the real estate. This could be a good start for one to want to invest in the real estate. However, investing in real estate can be an expensive venture, but a joint venture can make it so much easier. With the joint venture in real estate, you do not have to be a professional or understand how real estate works to venture in it. You can also sign a joint venture agreement before investing to help you run the business smoothly. A joint venture agreement is a contractual agreement between two or more business partners to assume a common business strategy on a project. All partners generally agree to share the profits and losses through their common shareholdings. Mr Jaffar Tonda, the managing director of Synergy Capital, a real estate investment firm, says he has been successful in the joint venture real estate business ever since he started it with his mother as his partner and he has never looked back. “I put $50,000 in the business and within six months, I had got a profit of $50,000. From then on I knew it worked. I have invested in so many of them,” he says. Mr Tonda has not only stopped at partnering with his mother, but he has also partnered with close family and friends to widen the network. The process Before you venture into the joint venture real estate business, there are steps that you should take such as: Identify individuals that you will partner with. Mr Tonda says that the number of the people is entirely dependent on the individuals who will be in the group. The minimum number is two. However, most importantly, before you jump into the business and making groups, you need to have an understanding of what you are going for.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
How do we raise good children
What do you do when your child does something that not only shocks the life out of you but turns out to be something totally unexpected like the Reverend’s child who turns out to be the village drunk? I read the story of the minister’s son who committed suicide with the pain and shock that comes with such tragedy. I was even more alarmed when the minister came forth and blamed his son’s death on himself. As a parent no one can claim to be totally immune to such an incidence and although we all mean well for our children, I was thumbs up for the minister albeit too late. So you wonder when the slip began and whether it could have been avoided. You think of your children that you love so much and subconsciously wrap your arms around them wanting to protect them from any such tragedy. I listened to a veteran parent sharing recently and her talk revolved about the dilemma of expecting children to behave right without having a total change of heart. This shocked me because it has always appeared like her children had all that it took to be the best groomed children around. She pointed out that although we all set out to raise responsible, all rounded and academically sound children, many times we find they couldn’t be further from our expectations. So what is a mother like me supposed to do, I asked myself. She further challenged us to reflect on the children we are raising without any semblance of endurance or resilience as we constantly solve all our children’s problems. Many don’t know how to serve but believe that they can only wash dishes at home if they are going to be paid an allowance for it. Can you imagine that? If the TV were switched off for two days, would the children fall apart as that is a constant addiction? It became clear that in a bid to get the children off our tired backs, many of us had created pas times for our children which can well be the cause of their downfall.
that comes with casement windows
Steel casement windows These are the most popular casement windows and they still give that aesthetic look. They have been people’s preference on houses and buildings for some time. Almost every village, now days has people making these steel casement windows. Advantages Aluminum is resistant to bad weather conditions. Mr Mbaaga says that aluminum can still give the beauty that one needs without painting it. However, that doesn’t mean that one cannot paint it any colour of their choice. If one is planning on putting up a storied building, Mr Mbaaga advises that one opts for aluminum because of its light nature. PVC casement windows Depending on where they are manufactured, this material can be called different names. In Europe it’s called by its original name PVC (Poly Vinyl Chloride) In Asia, it is called hihsh. It is also referred to as fibre.
Demolished house
The land originally belonged to my grandfather who had all the documents of this land. After 18 years of occupancy, other people started claiming that I was illegally there till the day they sent me away. It was a Friday morning at around 6:30am. I was in my living room having breakfast when I heard a grader driving into my compound and within a minute, I had people banging the house. When I asked why they were going on with the demolition, they told me that they were going on with what the court had told them to do. The fact is that I did not have a chance to rescue all my property because I was afraid that they would kill me while trying to save my belongings from damage. I had nowhere to go that very day apart from shifting the little things I had saved to my parents’ home that was not far away from where I used to stay. My uncle and I took the case to court but unfortunately, he passed away in 2009 and the person we reported for having taken the land also passed away last year. The lawyer I was using also travelled to America, I do not know when he will come back because he doesn’t communicate anymore. The person I asked recently told me that even if the accuser and the person accused passed away, I can still pursue the case so that I get compensated. I have no lawyer to trust because even the one I had trusted at first disappeared without helping me. I have been going through the hassle of taking care of my children and paying rent of Shs250,000 per month. Sometimes I ask myself, if I died, what would happen to my children especially the boys? At least the girls can get married, but still they also need a family home.
The open floor plan
Over the last two decades, homes have become increasingly open. Whether is due to the fact that families have become smaller hence less privacy or improved building products that now allow designers to eliminate walls previously needed to bear loads, is another issue of discussion. The resulting floor plans feel considerably more spacious, cosy and warmer than older homes divided by conventional walls yet we are talking about the same floor area. Adjoining kitchens, dining areas, living rooms, lounge and entertainment rooms are ideal for today’s casual entertaining, encouraging everyone to mingle freely. While many new home owners are demanding open floor plans, or finding ways to demolish existing walls in renovations, the emerging trend is to create homey atmospheres. It seems home owners want the best of both worlds: The feeling of open space along with a sense of intimacy.
pillars of house design
Designing high-end custom homes has become my specialty with each home being treated differently getting the big picture right and making sure small details come together. If a client wants a covered area outside and you do not provide it, the big picture is incorrect.
My work is to make sure that whatever the client desires, I find a way to get it to them. Looking at our recent designs, they seem to be unique among other contemporary projects in their ability to incorporate process and culture into master planning from the start. There is also the attempt to find that unique combination of control over the environment and harmony within it.
The intention is to create an aesthetically pleasing result showcasing a respect and harmony with the outdoor environment. I have a few guidelines and not intended to limit or restrict creativity in design or construction, but rather to assure quality throughout any project we undertake. We like to call these the five pillars of design. These are presented in an order that represents the natural design process. Once these are understood, they can be applied to projects of any size, scale or budget.
Design language
The design language of every great space is documented in a common set of rules that have shaped the designs of generations of projects. These rules are tools to guide the conceptual layout of the outdoor living space, govern the way details go together and determine the appropriate materials to use.
The design language of every great space is documented in a common set of rules that have shaped the designs of generations of projects. These rules are tools to guide the conceptual layout of the outdoor living space, govern the way details go together and determine the appropriate materials to use.
While studying the historic shapes and decorative details of existing spaces can reveal what makes them work, designing a new space is not simply the act of copying the past. Ideas for new designs spring from the rules of traditionalism, does the space demonstrate style, proportion and consistency? When viewed from any angle, is it a unified solution? Does it give evidence of its quality and care over detail? Is it inviting? Inventing within the rules is one natural way of working with spaces.
Sector Property build
More than two years after the global financial crisis first hit property prices, developers in the Emirates are still facing steep challenges. Only Emaar Properties, the country's first master developer and the builder of the tallest tower in the world, the 828-metre Burj Khalifa, has remained consistently profitable during the past two years. This is largely a result of its growing portfolio of hotels, shopping centres and retail outlets, which boost income every quarter. Gross profits for the last fiscal year may have declined by as much as 35 per cent for property developers in the UAE, according to the latest research from Nomura Securities. In the next couple of weeks, only Emaar is expected to post a net profit for the fourth quarter of last year. "These [other] companies are still clearing up their balance sheets and looking for a new model," says Chet Riley, an analyst at Nomura. "The numbers are going to reflect a challenging fourth quarter." Emaar, he says, will stand out with a year-end profit of about Dh2.8bn on revenue of Dh11.3bn. But that could be tempered in the first quarter of this year when Emaar is expected to write down its investment in Amlak and, possibly, its Indian joint venture Emaar MGF. Despite the sell-off of Aldar stock in the past few days on the back of its announcement about government support comprising a Dh10.9 sale of assets on Yas Island, Dh5.5bn of residential units and land and a Dh2.8bn convertible bond, analysts feel the company is now leaner and healthier.
casting the hobbit now
While casting good-looking chaps and chapesses might be fine for slushy teenage vampire flicks, it seems the world of dwarfs and dragons is a very different kettle of fish. The line-up for Peter Jackson's forthcoming version of The Hobbit is slowly taking shape, with the welcome news last week that Sir Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis will reprise their roles as Gandalf and Gollum respectively. The roles of each of the 13 dwarfs accompanying Bilbo on his merry little quest have finally been filled. But the news that Thorin Oakenshield, the leader of this vertically challenged company, was to be played by an actor with a not-that-appalling appearance, sparked minor fury in the fan ranks. "So far, the biggest controversy among fans with the casting of The Hobbit has to be the casting of Richard Armitage as Thorin," says Pat Dawson, a senior staff member of the Tolkien fansite TheOneRing.net. Armitage, best known for a major role in the BBC spy drama Spooks, is considered by many to be a somewhat handsome gentleman, and certainly not "grim-faced" as Tolkien described his dwarfs. And it's this that is causing the upset. "It would, quite frankly, ruin the movie if the dwarfs are portrayed as anything more or less than what they are: short, strong, muscular, slightly over-weight, bearded and 'grim-faced'," one commenter on the site exclaimed. "Authenticity is very important." There were similar murmurings of disapproval when The Lord of the Rings was in pre-production, when Elijah Wood was cast as Frodo Baggins, but then it was regarding the actor's age rather than his attractiveness. "Many fans thought from the beginning that he was too young to play Frodo," says Dawson, pointing to the fact that in the books he celebrated his 50th birthday shortly before setting out from Hobbiton with his all-powerful piece of jewellery. "While 50 is relatively young for a hobbit, Frodo being played by a 20-something was too much of a stretch."
then walked away
It sounds like the kind of escape only screwball cartoon characters enjoy, but a climber who plummeted more than 1,000 feet down a mountain yesterday was found standing up, reading a map and with only a couple of bruises as souvenirs for his near-death adventure. Friends feared the worst when they saw the 35-year-old lose his footing and fall at the summit of Sgurr Choinnich Mor, a peak forming part of the Grey Corries range five miles east of Ben Nevis in Scotland. And his rescuers admitted later that they flew to the scene expecting, in that emergency services euphemism, a "worst case scenario". Yet when the Royal Navy helicopter team scanned the craggy slopes at around 2.30pm, they found the man shaking in fear but with physical wounds described only as "superficial". He was reportedly trying to work out his location on a map as they picked him out from the sky. The rescue on the eastern slope of the mountain came almost moments after a group of 24 climbers had celebrated reaching the 3,589ft summit.
Read more
The faller was said to have experienced a sensation "like flying" before landing on a nook in the cliff almost a third of the way down. Lieutenant Tim Barker, part of the rescue crew, said: "We began to hover-taxi down the slope and spotted a man at the bottom, standing up. We honestly thought it couldn't be him, as he was on his feet, reading a map. Above him was a series of three high craggy outcrops. It seemed impossible." He added: "So we retraced our path back up the mountain and, sure enough, there were bits of his kit in a vertical line all the way up where he had obviously lost them during the fall. It was quite incredible. He must have literally glanced off the outcrops as he fell, almost flying." By chance, the Sea King rescue helicopter from HMS Gannet in Prestwick was already in the sky on a training exercise when the alarm was raised. As the climber was winched to safety and flown to the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow, he was conscious and recounting the details of his fall. A paramedic at the scene said he was "shaking from extreme emotional shock and the sheer relief at still being alive". He was treated overnight for a chest injury and cuts.
Read more
The faller was said to have experienced a sensation "like flying" before landing on a nook in the cliff almost a third of the way down. Lieutenant Tim Barker, part of the rescue crew, said: "We began to hover-taxi down the slope and spotted a man at the bottom, standing up. We honestly thought it couldn't be him, as he was on his feet, reading a map. Above him was a series of three high craggy outcrops. It seemed impossible." He added: "So we retraced our path back up the mountain and, sure enough, there were bits of his kit in a vertical line all the way up where he had obviously lost them during the fall. It was quite incredible. He must have literally glanced off the outcrops as he fell, almost flying." By chance, the Sea King rescue helicopter from HMS Gannet in Prestwick was already in the sky on a training exercise when the alarm was raised. As the climber was winched to safety and flown to the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow, he was conscious and recounting the details of his fall. A paramedic at the scene said he was "shaking from extreme emotional shock and the sheer relief at still being alive". He was treated overnight for a chest injury and cuts.
royal wedding street parties on house
Legislation introduced by Labour seven years ago prevents locals from blocking through roads using home-made signs and says party organisers must use professionals, say local authority officials. Some councils are waiving road closure charges for street parties on Friday April 29 but say they have no power to by-pass Government legislation about traffic management on through roads. Cambridgeshire County Council is one local authority which says it will not charge to close roads for royal wedding street parties. But a nine-page online council form organisers are asked to fill in says that if parties are being held on through roads, "unqualified members of the public will not be allowed to carry out road closures on the highway (or) put out signs". Organisers are asked: "Which traffic management company are you using to provide traffic management?" One village party organiser said she had been given quotes "upwards of £500" to hire traffic management firms. Cambridgeshire's Information Strategy Manager, Debbie Maith, said the council's hands were tied by the provisions of the 2004 Traffic Management Act and added: "We have done as much as we can. We have to abide by the legislation." The council said if parties were staged in cul-de-sacs or on unadopted roads traffic management firms would not be required. Shortly after the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition came to power in 2010, Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said he had "succeeded in his quest to ban the reams of forms, high costs and red tape getting in the way of communities organising street parties". "Fetes, street parties and fairs should be fun, and everyone's energy needs to go into the fun part - not trawling through endless reams of guidance and dusty rules," he said in August. "I want to banish the myths around laws preventing people from putting on events." Local Government Minister Bob Neill said today: "We have worked across government and with Streets Alive, the Big Lunch and local government partners to agree a consistent approach for councils to follow, and produce a good practice guidance for councils setting out more up front transparency on what organisers need. "Whitehall rules aren't holding councils back. Councils now need to do their bit to cut unnecessary red tape and help foster a sense of community spirit on this national day of celebration." Jennifer Ravenhill, who is organising a street party in Shepreth, Cambridgeshire, said villagers traditionally held street parties in the High Street but had decided to switch to an unadopted lane to avoid the cost of hiring traffic managers. "They say organisers have to hire a traffic management company to provide the correct signs and staff the closure. Upwards of £500 for one event is the estimate I've received, making it too expensive to do in the High Street," she said.
could reduce 'greenhouse gas
According to the Livewell report released by wildlife charity WWF and the Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health, red and white meat are "hotspots" for environmental impact. Latest figures showed the UK diet currently includes around 16% meat. The Livewell 2020 regime would also involve eating more fruit, vegetables and cereal, and less processed products to reduce the environmental impact of the food industry. Authors of the report said the low-carbon diet, which still allows for chocolate, crisps and chips, would cost £28.40 per person per week compared with an average spend of £32.12 per person in 2009. It said: "With increasing recognition of the environmental impact of food and drink, future food policy and dietary advice need to go beyond the traditional focus on nutrient recommendations for health to include wider issues of sustainability." As well as a small percentage of meat, the Livewell 2020 diet also includes 35% fruit and vegetables, 29% bread, pasta, rice and potatoes and 15% dairy products. A seven-day sample menu included a breakfast of high-fibre cereal with semi-skimmed milk, wholemeal sandwiches for lunch and dishes such as chicken curry and rice, macaroni cheese and chilli beef tortillas for dinner. The report also said it was possible to reach the 2050 target of 70% less greenhouse emissions through a more limited diet. Colin Butfield, WWF's head of campaigns, said: "If we want to protect the species and forests that are at the heart of WWF's work, then we have to fundamentally change our food system. "Today's report gives a picture of a way of eating that is good for the planet and good for your health too. For some, it might even be cheaper.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
High-Impact Design for now
Kitchen Refined on room
Zoning requirements were the least of the dilemmas since the owners wanted their new home sited essentially in the same spot as the original so as to preserve the landscaping, trees and pool, as well as retaining walls and an existing guest cottage. Unlike many homeowners embarking on new construction, these clients wanted “to build only what they needed,” reports Sullenberger. “They didn’t want a lot of extra square footage.” The requisite two-story foyer and formal living room were not on the wish list and the couple with two sons asked for only four bedrooms. The result is a custom home with 5,500 square feet on the first and second floors, plus a three-car garage on the basement level. The clients were attracted to images of homes in Brittany, so references to French Country-style emerged on the exterior: stone and stucco with wood trim, wrought iron details and random-width shingles to counter the formality. The pool in the front yard fostered an innovative floor plan. A hallway extends across the front of the house, joined to a mud room/changing room that combines sophistication with utility to accommodate storage needs and guests coming in, dripping from a swim. An office is located to the left of the front door with a hallway and powder room separating it from the formal dining room. The family room, casual dining area and kitchen are integrated into one living space. French doors in the family room open out to a pergola at the far end of the house, which provides another access point to the front yard. From the dining area, more French doors lead to a screened porch. McHale Landscape Design was tapped to ensure that the existing landscape would blend with the new home. McHale’s plan called for adding features such as the front steps and refacing the brick retaining walls with stone to better complement the architecture. The family typically enters the home through the garage into a gracious lower-level hallway. An elevator connects all three levels. This active family with two large dogs is committed to living an orderly life, so an abundance of storage was essential. In addition, the couple has diametrically opposed style preferences; the husband leans toward the clean lines of modern furnishings while the wife prefers a more traditional approach. Luckily, those style differences were not an issue in the master bedroom suite, where the couple agreed on a more contemporary look and hired Vincent Sagart of DC-based Poliform | Sagart Studio to create a sleek yet welcoming bedroom with dark wenge paneling and built-ins against coffee-colored walls. “They wanted a contemporary solution for a bedroom interior with traditional architecture,” says Sagart, who also designed a clean-lined dressing room with paneled built-ins to conceal clutter. Spacious his and hers baths were added by Sullenberger. Both the hallway and the family room boast dark, traditional moldings and cabinetry while the furnishings tend toward contemporary. In a reversal, the white kitchen leans toward the sleeker trends of today, but a farm sink, chandelier and hefty cabinet legs beneath the island buffer its modern attitude. Throughout the house, this counterplay of traditional and contemporary, rustic and refined, lends a subtle contrast to a neutral palette.
Keeping Clean room
Sometimes what you don't do can be as important as what you do. Such was the case in Oderzo, a town 40 miles northeast of Venice, when architect Simone Micheli saw the raw attic he had been commissioned to build out as an apartment for Marco and Elena Bergamo. Micheli did his best not to get the most out of the 3,200 square feet available. "The idea was to create warmth-but more empty than full," he says. Marco Bergamo adds that he and his wife agreed it was important to maintain "very open spaces" delineated by just a few elements. The couple knew that Simone Micheli Architectural Hero was right for the job without even asking for a portfolio. That's because the Bergamo family owns a company that produces furniture components, and Micheli was a professional acquaintance. "We know other designers, but Simone has a unique style," Marco Bergamo says. Few others would have thought to leave the apartment's front half almost completely open. Its vastness is most striking when seen from the entry, as oak floorboards flow straight ahead, beneath a 13-foot-high cathedral ceiling painted in white. Most of the space is occupied by the living-dining area. Only one small corner is completely walled off, creating a powder room. In the opposite corner is the kitchen, partly screened from the rest of the open plan by a freestanding curved partition set on a diagonal. The side facing the living-dining area is predominantly surfaced in white glass mosaic tiles, accented by two perpendicular swaths of silver tiles and interrupted by a pass-through. Extending from this aperture on the kitchen side is a table and chairs. Functionality isn't overlooked when it comes to storage, either. Micheli devoted an entire kitchen wall to a run of seven pull-out cabinets, laquered white with massive stainless-steel pulls. Above the cooktop and sink, he wedged in additional cabinets by designing them with slanted tops to follow the sloping ceiling. Being on the top floor, the apartment is blessed with abundant sunshine, which streams in from skylights as well as the glass doors to four terraces. As for artificial light, Marco Bergamo says, "Simone pushed for interesting solutions, for example putting LED fixtures beneath the furniture." Indeed, the blue LEDs under the living area's gray sectional sofa-a custom design, like all the furnishings-give the impression of floating. Ditto for the LEDs under the master suite's cylindrical washbasin and platform bed. Micheli also added mirrors generously to the equation throughout. Among other design themes, unifying separate areas, are subtly rounded corners. They're found everywhere from the kitchen partition to the bathroom fixtures. And the partition's silver-on-white mosaic-tile motif is revisited on the walls and floors of the bathrooms.
Perfectly Choreographe
The main room still incorporates living and dining areas and an open kitchen, but he gave the latter some definition by adding a tiny island. More important, he zeroed in on what he terms a "dysfunctional" short corridor that led to the bedroom by passing between the bathroom and side-byside closets with awkward pivot doors. Ripping out those closets and building new ones on the bedroom's blank end wall accomplished a double objective: squaring off the room's bowlingalley proportions and widening the corridor enough to create a place for Architecture in the form of an office alcove. A built-in poplar desktop stretches the full width of the former closets. For the wall behind and the corridor's whole ceiling, he injected a dose of the neighborhood's "embellished vernacular" via his signature "functional ornament," as he puts it. The surfaces are clad in custom-milled poplar moldings partially painted white. Arriving at the right profile took more than 50 tries. After getting it right, he carved away the molding to reveal openings for lighting and wire management. Heavy new moldings for doors and windows replace the originals, which could not be saved. Instead of baseboard moldings, however, he used a small reveal. A swath of existing oak floorboards remains, while the ceiling is new. Because it's a soundproof plasterboard system, surfacemounted porcelain sockets substitute for recessed cans that might have transmitted noise from upstairs neighbors. The kitchen cabinets and islandstand on aluminum legs, letting the oak flooring sweep all the way through. In the living and dining areas, leggy furnishings maximize the Lilliputian layout by occupying the minimum amount of visual space. The small scale of a mid-century Danish settee, Re Moor feels, better suits room sizes in a 1920's building. Nevertheless, he went contemporary with a red wireframed occasional table. Like the vintage pieces, it touches the ground with a dancer's poise. Martha Graham would be proud. Click here
Cammpers Happy now
The SandCastle's two levels of sleeping and activity areas, totaling 19,000 square feet, spiral around a courtyard. Lined, outside and in, with a sandstone finish, the building looks as if it might actually have been sculpted from the dunes the hotel sits behind. Poking out from the exterior walls at odd, Flintstonian angles, iroko-clad volumes are meant to evoke boats and beach cabins. Windows can be slightly lopsided. "If you look at children's paintings, the shapes are irregular, spontaneous. When lines aren't always completely horizontal or vertical, kids recognize their own code of expression," she explains. The uniform sandstone color keeps things from getting too topsy-turvy. Paint appears only in the sleeping alcoves, where walls are blues and greens evocative of the Ionian Sea below. Providing alcoves, open to the curved hallway, rather than bedrooms with doors, is one of the ways that she encourages a sense of community among the SandCastle's junior inhabitants. "The children don't feel isolated, but they have their own space," she notes. Alcoves feature small bunks with built-in toy storage and kid-controlled night-lights. "There are also openings in between, little communication portals that encourage kids to be social," she adds. The corridor between the rows of alcoves serves not just as a thoroughfare and a vantage point for adult supervision but also as a playroom equipped with soft wool-upholstered floor cushions. And everything in the building is child-size, right down to the restroom and showers. The scale shift is even more apparent at the 8,300-square-foot Cocoon for younger kids, a short walk away. Not only are the ceilings of the two buildings only 7 feet 9 inches tall, the lowest clearance allowed by local code, but restroom washbasins and toilets are miniature, and outdoor showers stand just 4 feet high, their fittings placed within reach of tiny hands. Helping toddlers feel at ease-rather than encouraging independence, like the SandCastle-the sleeping arrangements are fully communal here, the geometries more organic and fluid. "With everything soft and rounded, there's a smooth transition from one space to the next. It has the protective feeling of the womb," Paraskeva says. That effect is enhanced by the fact that the entire site is a kind of valley sunken 13 feet below the surrounding ground level, with green roofs on both buildings helping them blend with the landscape. In the very center, protected by the arcs of the buildings on either side, is an area that she'd planned to fill with water. That plan was scaled back, midway through construction, to a wading pool and weatherproof iroko decking surrounded by sand pits. Paraskeva used as many natural, sustainable materials as she could. "Wood is friendlier than synthetics to young children, who crawl and walk barefoot," she says. Iroko is everywhere, and lengths of bamboo appear as guardrails and as an inventive linear fixture. Careful planning has reduced energy use, even though temperatures on the Greek coast during the summer season, when the resort's in full swing, can reach more than 90 degrees Fahrenheit. The Cocoon's green roofs have insulating properties, both camps face north, minimizing sun exposure, and air shafts create natural ventilation. Of course, none of these eco credentials are going to impress a clientele that tends to come down on the side of bigger toys and more to climb on. The camps ultimately owe their child-appeal to Paraskeva's vivid imagination, which allows her to cloak even the most mundane details in a kid-friendly guise. She made light fixtures out of galvanized-steel buckets and cans, and even the fire escape looks like a playground slide.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Home building reality
Design play on now
Once you reach the park, however, and turn toward the main facade, the center erupts with life. A towering glass wall extends up the front of the building, exposing the entire lobby. Inside, rehearsal rooms are set on top of one another like unevenly stacked crates. When I first saw this view — at night, with the rooms lighted from behind — it made me think of gigantic figures on a stage jostling for space. It also suggested the lobby of Charles Garnier’s 19th-century Paris opera house, a soaring space where the public is as much a part of the spectacle as the works being performed onstage. But while Garnier’s creation reflected the exhibitionistic spirit of Paris’s rising bourgeoisie, drawing the energy of the well-dressed crowds strolling the boulevards up through the building, Mr. Gehry’s vision is more casual and democratic. People who can’t afford the price of a ticket will be able to set up folding chairs in the park and watch live feeds of performances, which will be projected onto the side of the building. During the day, when no performances are going on, visitors will be able to wander through the lobby and see directly into one of the main rehearsal halls. Paying concertgoers, on the other hand, are likely to arrive through the back door: a concrete parking structure tucked behind the building and wrapped in a lightweight metal screen decorated with colorful LED images. From there they will cross a bridge to a second-floor mezzanine, where they can gaze out at a spectacular view of the city’s Art Deco skyline, or (if they arrive late) look down at musicians preparing to enter the main hall. A vertiginous staircase, snaking down between the rehearsal rooms, will deposit them in the main lobby. The idea, according to Mr. Thomas, is not just to allow the audience to observe musicians going about their daily tasks, but also to draw musicians “out of their bubble” and make them more aware of the public around them. In doing so, he hopes to create a more accessible musical experience.
self on sense
Three years later, Franceski has added to those innate good lines to create a home that thoroughly reflects her design sensibility. She’s accomplished her goals using classically styled furniture and accessories enhanced by a sense of whimsy, an element of surprise or a contemporary flair—all punctuated by eye-catching artwork. “Spaces shouldn’t be too stuffy or take themselves too seriously,” says the designer. But before the transformative décor took shape, Franceski’s first, dramatic step was to bleach the floors. “They were dark-stained, builder-grade oak,” she explains, “and made the house feel enclosed. White floors made it light.” They also complemented the neutral palette of creams and beiges that Franceski chose as a backdrop for what she calls “pops of color from the artwork.” Located within a community of townhouses near Old Town Alexandria, Franceski’s home has a traditional exterior that fits its surroundings. The interior is designed like a center hall Colonial, with the living room to the right as you enter and the dining room to the left. Franceski points out the unusual rug that covers the living room floor; with its sunburst pattern, it radiates movement—which is what the designer liked about it—with punctuations of red that pick up the vintage red Marimekko textile piece on the wall. The room’s eclectic embellishments also include a framed, antique Mexican family tree, a large-scale abstract oil painting over the mantel and a vintage dress form. The living room deftly blends traditional architectural elements and transitional furnishings with modern lighting, artwork and accessories; Franceski carries the same look into the dining room. William Morris wall coverings emphasize the rectilinear shapes of the picture moldings. To counteract their straight lines, Franceski chose a dish cupboard with circular motifs on the doors. She adorned the neutrally hued walls with rectangles of wallpaper punctuated by round French upholstery tacks. A fanciful round mirror occupies one wall. An oversized, wood-bead chandelier with a copper frame hangs above a table for six. The dining room provides access to the galley kitchen via an adjoining room that Franceski uses as a butler’s pantry. The direct entrance to the sleek, gray-and-white granite kitchen—which Franceski has not altered—is back beyond the stairwell, straight ahead as you enter the house. Upstairs, the master suite illustrates the designer’s willingness to play with size, scale and form. She placed her elegant, Niermann Weeks four-poster bed in the center of the room (with three and a half feet between its head and the wall because, as she explains, “I wanted to be able to walk around the bed”), and juxtaposed a piece of folk art beside it for contrast. A pale pink ceiling, coral-hued satin draperies and soft bedding in blue and pink convey a sense of delicate femininity. On the other end of the second floor, a guest room includes a canopied day bed and a palette of blues and greens. The third floor is home to the designer’s office, a sunlit space that she has chosen to paint white, feeling that “it’s best to make choices involving color for clients against a neutral background.” A zebra skin on the floor draws the eye, and added crown moldings create visual interest in the space. Throughout the house, Franceski has repeated specific furnishings, colors and textiles in order to subtly tie rooms together—so the color on the entry hall wall (Farrow & Ball’s String No. 8) crops up again on the dining room ceiling, and a chair from the living room has a double in the master bedroom. “My rooms reveal themselves over time,” Franceski says. “It’s about finding your sense of self. You don’t want your house to look like your neighbors’. I like to help clients find their sense of self.” show here
Galery Living
Evelyn Avery knows a thing or two about displaying art. For almost 20 years, the proprietor of Avery Studios has been a go-to source for top designers seeking European period paintings and one-of-a-kind custom frames for their clients. Until recently, Avery would travel to DC from her home base in Atlanta and settle into a suite at The Willard or The Jefferson, where she would show designers her latest artwork and frames, then take special orders back to her factory. But last August Avery made a bold change: This Southern doyenne of gold leaf and gesso shuttered her Atlanta studio and relocated her workshop to Alexandria, Virginia. She moved into a permanent residence in DC’s tony West End that doubles as a gallery where she welcomes clients by appointment almost every day of the week. Since Washington has accounted for more than 90 percent of her sales in recent years, it made sense to head North when Avery Studios’ lease expired last summer. “I took a great big gulp and moved myself and the studio in six weeks,” Avery says. “It’s been the most monumental task of my life.” The move entailed shipping equipment and 50,000 feet of linear molding, building out a new 5,000-square-foot workshop and furnishing her modern new penthouse, which offers fabulous vistas of Georgetown, Rock Creek Park and the National Cathedral. With glass walls on three sides, the residence is hardly the typical backdrop one would expect for an 18th-, 19th- and 20th-century European art collection. But just as she embraces the challenge of creating a unique frame, Avery tackled head-on the dilemma of how to display classic art in such a hip, modern setting. Luckily, she also had some help from friend and longtime client, interior designer Barry Dixon, whom she first met in the mid-1990s when they collaborated on a show house. In drawing up plans for Avery’s pied-à-terre, Dixon addressed the fact that its main open living area left precious little space for hanging art. He suggested dividing the main room with screens made of woven bamboo panels. “We created a gallery on one side of the screen and a working/dining space with a big table where Evelyn can spread art out on the other,” Dixon explains. “On each end of the large rectangle, you have living spaces, one more intimate and casual and one a little bit more formal as a reception area for clients.” The screens provide a sense of intimacy without blocking light. Furnishings are a mix of antique and new pieces—many designed by Dixon. They complement the art in the modern space because of the designer’s fresh take on scale and proportion. Shades, rather than draperies, control light while curvaceous elements, from a large ottoman at the dining table to a round rug in the casual seating area, add a sense of play to the apartment’s clean lines. “I needed to throw in a curve or two, literally,” Dixon explains. Avery displays her collection according to theme, with pieces carefully hung throughout the home. A visit can take hours because, like a well-curated museum, the apartment is full of works that capture the eye and the imagination—from timeless engravings to landscapes and portraiture. The formal gallery is devoted to 19th-century art while the kitchen houses still lifes. In the dining area, miniature mirrors showcase the many period frame styles that Avery Studios can create. A print room brims with works on paper, while the bedroom is reserved for tranquil seascapes. Ironically, Avery, who has no formal training, found herself in the art business almost by accident 20 years ago. She began selling prints to help care for her ailing mother. “I didn’t have a clue what I was doing,” she recalls. The petite blonde with a keen eye, boundless energy and a knack for salesmanship soon began collecting finer pieces, focusing on 18th- to 20th-century European art. A buying trip to London fueled Avery’s passion for restored and original frames. “To me, the frame is kind of the completion of the art,” she explains. “I decided I wanted to make frames and opened Avery Studios.” The company focused on restoring antique frames (and, later, furniture and lamps) as well as creating reproduction and modern frames using Old World materials and techniques. Along the way, hard work, an entrepreneurial spirit and a series of fortunate breaks sealed Avery’s destiny. A few years ago, she was commissioned to procure and frame 1,000 pieces of art during The Jefferson Hotel’s multi-million-dollar historical restoration. And in 2010, her artists created a line of mirrors for Barry Dixon and Fortuny that are on display in the company’s New York and Venice showrooms, both recently designed by Dixon. Barry Dixon envisioned an artist’s atelier while creating Avery’s apartment. “You’re visiting a home but also an art dealer. You used to see a lot of places like this in the ’20s and ’30s in Paris and New York,” he explains. “Though it has no street presence, there is a hidden gallery of possibilities in this penthouse. It’s as quixotic and varied as the artwork Evelyn might have for sale.” Avery couldn’t be happier in her new DC home. “It’s been really nice to see the modern come together with the art,” she says, attributing the project’s success to Dixon. “Anything I’ve ever done with Barry over the years, whether it’s working on a show house or designing this apartment, has taught me. I’ve learned so much from him.”
Click here
Click here
interior designer
Virginia McLaughlin may look like your typical grandmother, but this sprightly, petite woman is anything but. Upon meeting the Frederick, Maryland-based artist, most people are bowled over by her mental and physical agility—and her energy, which, at her ripe age of 88, is remarkable. However, so is the fact that she’s still working, doing what she loves as she has for decades. She sees herself as a latter-day itinerant painter—an artistically gifted person who, in times gone by, traveled about decorating other people’s houses and possessions. “It was a different time back then. That’s the way they worked,” she says, sounding very comfortable to be walking along the same path, scrambling up ladders to single-handedly paint wall-size murals for clients, then letting happenstance determine her next job or project. Her work is always historically inspired, whether the installation is in a private home or a public place such as the Inn at Mount Vernon, where one of her murals depicts the homestead of George Washington as it was during his lifetime, complete with fishing boats and slaves. Her stylistic inspiration comes from two major sources: Rufus Porter, an 18th-century American itinerant painter, and Jean Zuber, a French muralist of about the same period. But painting murals is something that evolved for McLaughlin over time. She built on her early studies at Stevens College during her marriage to G. Donald McLaughlin, when they traveled the world for his career with the Central Intelligence Agency. Overseas, she was able to take furniture-painting classes in Germany and Chinese brush-stroke painting in the Far East. Returning home to raise a family near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, McLaughlin became interested first in Early American art, and then in 18th-century-style painting. “I tried to mimic the painting style that was often done on wooden boxes,” McLaughlin says, referring to decorative objects that were popular during that period. Gradually, she moved from small boxes with faux-wood grain to larger ones depicting historic silhouettes, inspired by museum pieces from the late 1700s. Then her paintings began to grow, and she moved on to storage-size pieces with historic scenes; it was just a small leap from there to the murals that have been her life’s work since then. Rufus Porter’s stylized trees and juxtaposition of light and shadow worked easily into her own style. Then she saw the Zuber panoramic wallpapers at the White House and became enthralled with the soaring trees in the foreground and the skies that ended in dark borders around the edges of his work. But inspiration and execution are two different things, and McLaughlin is very humble about her talent. “I feel that I have a higher power element that is involved with my art work,” she says. “I have passion for painting. It keeps me alive and the research fascinates me.” The work itself can take weeks, and according to McLaughlin, she doesn’t sketch, preferring to do a rough outline directly on the wall. She mixes her own colors using standard wall paint by Benjamin Moore for its durability and ease of cleanup. “I believe that the mural has to fit the space it’s in and its surroundings, but I’m still independent the way I paint it,” says McLaughlin, who is something of a celebrity in the Frederick area, not only for her artistic achievement, but also for the way she connects with clients. So what’s next for this very busy woman? She just launched a new web site (virginiamclaughlin.com) and landed a commission to paint a mural in the entrance hall of a historic house in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, that will mimic hand-painted Chinese silk wallpaper. “And, we’re working on getting a book published,” McLaughlin adds, uttering the words with the same delight she always seems to take in tackling something new.
New Start To Your Life
While starting off with a career plan, there are many options and titles ready to confuse you with what you actually want and who you are. So what is the best possible way to discover a new career for your future? When you are on the hunt of a career that can interest you, it is best to go through the internet and search on your favorite search engines. You can also opt for the career placement tests to learn about the smartest career available for you. These tests make you aware of the skills that you possess and which, you can utilize to the fullest in searching for your career. Finding a new career is mostly the problem of folks who have just passed college life and need a proper support and guidance to deal with the heading confusion. Considering their likes and interests they can opt for a career option which can further open up better employment opportunities. If you are interested in marketing, there are a few new career options such as media marketing manager to oversee the marketing websites or being a copywriter to write articles and blogs for certain websites. Reputation manager is also a good option, who deals with internet marketing and ensures that all the negative details are removed. To find a new career, you need to be in constant touch with the latest technologies and emerging fields, just in case you found out what you were looking for! Look for the newspapers and attend seminars, related to career guidance, which can open up the horizons that are unknown to you. Another way to start with your new career is to speak to a recruiter. You can call and talk to a person, who specializes in the field, which you want to make your career in. He can prove to be the best information provider resource for you. Thus, for a better life, one must utilize and analyze all the possible options before entering into any career, in any field.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Reduce food packaging
The UAE's reliance on takeout, and the waste generated from it, are clearly out of control. If I could invent one environmentally friendly campaign in the UAE, it would replicate the TakeOutWithOut effort in the US. Launched with the catchphrases "Fill Your Stomach, Not the Landfill" and "Change Comes from Without", it is a new take on the environmental mantra of reduce, reuse and recycle. Instead the organisers ask that consumers "ReFuse, ReTake and ReConsider". Tell the restaurant you are ordering from that you don't need disposable plates, or cutlery or 20 napkins.
Or six straws or ketchup packets or sauces you won't even open, or for everything to be sealed in plastic wrap. ReTake implies eating off your own reusable items. Last week I wrote about replacing plastic cutlery, but it's also not difficult to keep a plate, bowl, mug and cup nearby at work. The campaign also suggests reconsidering your habits, such as ordering from more environmentally considerate outlets, or cutting down on takeout altogether. Could you stock up on some healthy foods at the beginning of the week, perhaps? Carry a sandwich? Bring leftovers? In addition to offering a variety of portable food options such as reusable snack and sandwich bags, Ekotribe has a really cool two-tier food carrying system based on the traditional Indian tiffin boxes. The To-Go Ware Classic is made of light stainless steel. It comes with a removable plate, a little sidekick for sauces and salad dressings, and works for hot or cold foods - even two-course meals. The store also sells the set with a recycled cotton sling carrier bag. Dh200 for the set, Dh140 just for the tiffin.
Or six straws or ketchup packets or sauces you won't even open, or for everything to be sealed in plastic wrap. ReTake implies eating off your own reusable items. Last week I wrote about replacing plastic cutlery, but it's also not difficult to keep a plate, bowl, mug and cup nearby at work. The campaign also suggests reconsidering your habits, such as ordering from more environmentally considerate outlets, or cutting down on takeout altogether. Could you stock up on some healthy foods at the beginning of the week, perhaps? Carry a sandwich? Bring leftovers? In addition to offering a variety of portable food options such as reusable snack and sandwich bags, Ekotribe has a really cool two-tier food carrying system based on the traditional Indian tiffin boxes. The To-Go Ware Classic is made of light stainless steel. It comes with a removable plate, a little sidekick for sauces and salad dressings, and works for hot or cold foods - even two-course meals. The store also sells the set with a recycled cotton sling carrier bag. Dh200 for the set, Dh140 just for the tiffin.
Feel at home in a new house
One of our friends back home in Montreal lived the expat life for several years: first in remote northern Guinea, where her husband worked on a bauxite project, and then in Warsaw, where he managed the construction of apartment buildings in the Polish capital during the post-communist building boom. When Karen found out that my family was planning our own adventure living in the UAE, her first piece of advice - after being satisfied that we were indeed serious about the move - was to insist that we take our home furnishings with us. "You'll appreciate coming back to your apartment after work or vacation, or when things are really rough," she said. "It'll feel like home." And indeed, our three-bedroom flat in Abu Dhabi does feel like home. Just about everything in the apartment came with us: from beds to bookcases, artwork to tchotchkes. The only items my wife, Denise, and I bought here were of necessity. Because I came seven months before they did, I needed a bed to sleep on, a table to eat off and an easy chair to relax in after work. These were all bought new and inexpensively at Ikea; kitchen appliances were bought new at Lulu; cookery items and utensils I bought here and there, in the Mina Zayed outdoor souq, Nefertiti's used-goods store, Home Centre. As much as we would have liked to have brought all our household possessions with us, there was too much to fit into the apartment. We sold some items, including many books and music, in a yard sale. We gave other things away, such as our television sets, love seat and chair, and our elliptical trainer, to friends. We kept very few items in storage, nor did it make sense to leave them in the house we were planning to rent; mostly this was out of necessity: to have non-resident status for tax purposes, we needed to make clear to the Canadian government we had no significant ties back home. I assumed that to mean, besides family members, healthcare card and a driver's licence, no hammocks.We also left behind a few pieces of original artwork that we thought might not make it through customs inspections. We had been warned that nudes were frowned on and could be confiscated. As it turned out, our boxes were never inspected. We could have brought the paintings with us, though we knew it was best to be safe than sorry. Two of the pieces were hugely sentimental and worth a decent amount of money because they were the original art for the covers of Denise's short story collections. We stored one and a friend has hung the other. Our friend Karen, as it turned out, was absolutely right. Our flat feels like home in a city and country that in many ways isn't and won't or can't ever be. In the living room behind an Ikea lounge chair, we placed an easel upon which rests an original painting by John Pohl, a Montreal painter with a colourful palette and unique sense of humour. The title of the painting is Still Life with Manifesto. When it hung in our house back in Montreal, it was in a hallway near the kitchen and at the foot of the stairs from the second floor. It wasn't the first thing I saw every morning, but pretty close. Now, it's the first thing I see upon return from work each night. It's the same painting, seen at a different time of the day, but it speaks "home" every time I see it.
Home Shopping: Unexpected delights in the mail
Nestled behind a petrol station in Corbridge, north-east England, is a converted workshop with two large red metal letters (found in a Paris flea market) above the door. Opened by the retired fashion designers Simon Young and Jenny Vaughan in 2003, RE stocks a vast range of unusual home accessories, from vintage glass jelly moulds to Amish tin barn stars. Luckily, you don't have to travel to Corbridge to shop there; it's all available online via a colourful website that reflects the unique RE look. The "RE-found objects" are organised into categories with mysterious, inviting names such as hardwaRE, shoRE and fiREside. As you browse, you feel more like an explorer than a shopper, stumbling upon serendipitous delights with every click of your mouse. The founders say: "There's no point attempting to shoehorn the range of RE's stock into a paragraph" - and they're right. There's up-cycled macabRE dinnerware - pretty vintage floral plates decorated with sinister diagrams of skulls, lizards and scorpions, or pretty butterflies. A gREen fingers section includes antique watering cans, rusty metal letters and old flower pots, while the REalm department is filled with British-themed accessories - cushions sewn from old silk flags, fabrics printed with maps and adorned with pearl button crowns. Have a look at the REcipe collection for vintage rolling pins, elegant glass carafes and tea towels with cutlery designs. Despite the eclectic mix of global buys and vintage finds, somehow, the products all sit together harmoniously to cREate one fabulous look, thanks, no doubt, to the expert curator talents of the creative owners. It's hard to choose a favourite, but I like the RElic range best. With hand-painted tins from Peru and multicoloured Mexican charms, it's a real celebration of Latin American style, not quite what you'd expect to find in a Corbridge garage. But that's the magical thing about RE; you soon learn to expect the unexpected.
Home click here
Home click here
The Hobbit casting
While casting good-looking chaps and chapesses might be fine for slushy teenage vampire flicks, it seems the world of dwarfs and dragons is a very different kettle of fish. The line-up for Peter Jackson's forthcoming version of The Hobbit is slowly taking shape, with the welcome news last week that Sir Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis will reprise their roles as Gandalf and Gollum respectively. The roles of each of the 13 dwarfs accompanying Bilbo on his merry little quest have finally been filled. But the news that Thorin Oakenshield, the leader of this vertically challenged company, was to be played by an actor with a not-that-appalling appearance, sparked minor fury in the fan ranks.
"So far, the biggest controversy among fans with the casting of The Hobbit has to be the casting of Richard Armitage as Thorin," says Pat Dawson, a senior staff member of the Tolkien fansite TheOneRing.net. Armitage, best known for a major role in the BBC spy drama Spooks, is considered by many to be a somewhat handsome gentleman, and certainly not "grim-faced" as Tolkien described his dwarfs. And it's this that is causing the upset.
"It would, quite frankly, ruin the movie if the dwarfs are portrayed as anything more or less than what they are: short, strong, muscular, slightly over-weight, bearded and 'grim-faced'," one commenter on the site exclaimed. "Authenticity is very important."
There were similar murmurings of disapproval when The Lord of the Rings was in pre-production, when Elijah Wood was cast as Frodo Baggins, but then it was regarding the actor's age rather than his attractiveness. "Many fans thought from the beginning that he was too young to play Frodo," says Dawson, pointing to the fact that in the books he celebrated his 50th birthday shortly before setting out from Hobbiton with his all-powerful piece of jewellery. "While 50 is relatively young for a hobbit, Frodo being played by a 20-something was too much of a stretch."
"Martin Freeman is perfect for the role of Bilbo," says Dawson. "He's been a fan favourite from early on in the rumour cycle because he not only looks so 'Hobbity', but he's an accomplished actor in his own right." While Dawson suggests that most fans prefer relative unknowns, to avoid being "jarred out of the film by recognising a big-name actor 'playing' a beloved character", she says that so perfect is Freeman that almost everyone will be able to overlook his recognisability from The Office, Love, Actually, and numerous others.
One thing fans haven't complained about so far is size, and it's not purely because they've been casting diminutive actors.
"With special effects the directors have more freedom in choosing their talent," says the Los Angeles-based casting agent Victoria Burrows, who was heavily involved in the casting for The Lord of the Rings trilogy. "In the case of The Lord of the Rings, we did veer towards shorter actors as it made production work better, but if we loved an actor, they were hired." Alongside helping cast Wood, Mortensen and Sean Austin, Burrows brought into the fellowship John Rhys Davies, who managed to play the three-foot dwarf Gimli despite being over twice that height in reality.
In fact, Rhys Davies's height actually helped the filming process as he was in good proportion to the hobbit actors, who were around 5' 6". Had he been shorter, shots of the entire fellowship would have required three camera passes rather than two.
Casting
"So far, the biggest controversy among fans with the casting of The Hobbit has to be the casting of Richard Armitage as Thorin," says Pat Dawson, a senior staff member of the Tolkien fansite TheOneRing.net. Armitage, best known for a major role in the BBC spy drama Spooks, is considered by many to be a somewhat handsome gentleman, and certainly not "grim-faced" as Tolkien described his dwarfs. And it's this that is causing the upset.
"It would, quite frankly, ruin the movie if the dwarfs are portrayed as anything more or less than what they are: short, strong, muscular, slightly over-weight, bearded and 'grim-faced'," one commenter on the site exclaimed. "Authenticity is very important."
There were similar murmurings of disapproval when The Lord of the Rings was in pre-production, when Elijah Wood was cast as Frodo Baggins, but then it was regarding the actor's age rather than his attractiveness. "Many fans thought from the beginning that he was too young to play Frodo," says Dawson, pointing to the fact that in the books he celebrated his 50th birthday shortly before setting out from Hobbiton with his all-powerful piece of jewellery. "While 50 is relatively young for a hobbit, Frodo being played by a 20-something was too much of a stretch."
"Martin Freeman is perfect for the role of Bilbo," says Dawson. "He's been a fan favourite from early on in the rumour cycle because he not only looks so 'Hobbity', but he's an accomplished actor in his own right." While Dawson suggests that most fans prefer relative unknowns, to avoid being "jarred out of the film by recognising a big-name actor 'playing' a beloved character", she says that so perfect is Freeman that almost everyone will be able to overlook his recognisability from The Office, Love, Actually, and numerous others.
One thing fans haven't complained about so far is size, and it's not purely because they've been casting diminutive actors.
"With special effects the directors have more freedom in choosing their talent," says the Los Angeles-based casting agent Victoria Burrows, who was heavily involved in the casting for The Lord of the Rings trilogy. "In the case of The Lord of the Rings, we did veer towards shorter actors as it made production work better, but if we loved an actor, they were hired." Alongside helping cast Wood, Mortensen and Sean Austin, Burrows brought into the fellowship John Rhys Davies, who managed to play the three-foot dwarf Gimli despite being over twice that height in reality.
In fact, Rhys Davies's height actually helped the filming process as he was in good proportion to the hobbit actors, who were around 5' 6". Had he been shorter, shots of the entire fellowship would have required three camera passes rather than two.
Casting
Camera Bags and Cases
Camera bags and cases are the most important purchase you will need to consider once you have bought a camera. Cameras are seen as an investment, as they can usually last a photographer at least two years before being replaced. In order to protect your purchase, you will need a sturdy bag. It is also a good idea to get a case that offers a number of other functions as well. When looking at camera bags, you can think about your needs and purchase one according to them. Padding The inside of the camera bag should be lined with the proper amount of padding in order to keep your investment safe. Cheaper camera bags may offer less padding, meaning your camera is more likely to be damaged in this case than others. Typically, the more money you spend, the higher quality and thicker padding you will receive. This does not mean you need to purchase the most expensive bag out there. Find a reasonably priced bag that will still provide a great deal of padding to protect your camera. Size Size is another important consideration when browsing through camera bags and cases. You want to be sure that you camera fits securely into the bag without moving around too much. Though the padding should keep the camera safe, the camera can actually become damaged from excessive bouncing around inside the bag. If you want to be able to carry additional items in your camera bag, consider these items when making your purchase. Compartments Many camera bags come with a number of extra compartments that will allow you to store accessories along with your camera. These storage areas may be found on the front, back, or sides of the main camera space. They can sometimes be large enough to hold extra lens and film. Other smaller sections would be ideal for batteries, cleaning supplies, cell phone, and keys. Design You will want a camera bag with a design that you enjoy so that you will be proud to carry the case around with you. There are many different styles when it comes to camera bags. You can purchase the single shoulder strap version or a backpack style. The design of the camera bag you choose can help you distribute the weight of your camera and accessories over your body, helping you carry the items without straining your shoulders or back. As you can see, there are a few considerations to make when shopping for camera bags and cases. Not all camera bags are created equal, so you want to be sure you get the right one for you. Overall, make sure that you purchase something that will hold all of the items you need with you for your photography sessions.
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The Best Designer Jeans For Men
Buying a pair of designer jeans can be a great investment which will not only look great, they will feel fantastic too. January sales are the perfect time to go out and buy some new mens fashion. You can beat off those post Christmas blues with a new look. You may be tempted to save some money by purchasing cheaper high street branded goods. These are sometimes a good buy however they will never be able to make you any money when you sell them, unlike a designer brand. You can often sell them on auction websites or by visiting a specialized vintage store. This means that your collection can be sold off to raise money for a new wardrobe the following season or year. Even mens clothes which are several years old can make money if they are in good condition. There are many different cuts to choose from and which you choose will come down to personal preference. Mens skinny jeans have been popular during the last year, as well as straight leg. For more casual looks you might want to go for a regular fit, or a flared leg. Buying labels may be more expensive but you will get what you pay for. In this case you can be sure that the fit will be perfect and that they are designed by a talented and respected designer. The denim will be of a better grade compared to cheaper alternatives, and the stitching will be impeccable. Mens clothing is a booming business and there is a large range of different styles available to buy. The latest fashion for spring 2011 has seen lots of mens suits on the runway.
The straight leg is prominent so if you want to follow fashion then this is the style to go for. Wear your smart suit with mens dress shirts for a night out on the town. Dressing in expensive clothes can make you feel more confident and that confidence makes you look more attractive. If you are single this can be a great way to get people to notice you. Do not neglect your footwear, have a handsome pair of mens dress shoes to finish the look perfectly. If you are on a tight budget then you might want to consider looking for second hand options. There are plenty of people selling their unwanted clothes which in some cases have hardly been used. You can find large discounted warehouses which are able to pass savings down to the customers thanks to bulk buying and low overhead costs. It is worth spending out on quality as they have been carefully designed to flatter your body perfectly. They can be more slimming and even make you bum look fantastic. The positioning of the pockets, the lines of the seams as well as the coloring of the fabric are meticulously thought out to ensure you look at your best. If you are on a low budget try to buy one or two quality pieces and dress around them for an independent look. Learn what looks good on your body shape and see how clothing can make you feel like a whole new man.
The straight leg is prominent so if you want to follow fashion then this is the style to go for. Wear your smart suit with mens dress shirts for a night out on the town. Dressing in expensive clothes can make you feel more confident and that confidence makes you look more attractive. If you are single this can be a great way to get people to notice you. Do not neglect your footwear, have a handsome pair of mens dress shoes to finish the look perfectly. If you are on a tight budget then you might want to consider looking for second hand options. There are plenty of people selling their unwanted clothes which in some cases have hardly been used. You can find large discounted warehouses which are able to pass savings down to the customers thanks to bulk buying and low overhead costs. It is worth spending out on quality as they have been carefully designed to flatter your body perfectly. They can be more slimming and even make you bum look fantastic. The positioning of the pockets, the lines of the seams as well as the coloring of the fabric are meticulously thought out to ensure you look at your best. If you are on a low budget try to buy one or two quality pieces and dress around them for an independent look. Learn what looks good on your body shape and see how clothing can make you feel like a whole new man.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Are antique fairs making a comeback? again now
If last year’s figures are anything to go by, scouting for hidden treasures at antique fairs has become a national pastime. LAPADA Art and Antiques Fair in Berkeley Square gained 15 per cent more visitors than previously. Similarly, the two largest antique fairs in Europe, Newark and Ardingly, reported an average rise of 12 per cent on the attendances across their 26 shows in 2010. With such a growing interest in antique fairs, it was only a matter of time before tech geeks designed an iPhone app. Launched last week, the Antiques
Roadshow iPhone App demonstrates how antique fairs appeal to a young demographic. Players virtually collect, appraise and bid on antiques based on images of real objects. ‘Antiques Roadshow remains a huge hit on-air, and local events draw large crowds,’ says Marsha Bemko, Executive Producer of the Antiques Roadshow. ‘The series is part adventure, part history and part treasure hunt, and now the app takes it to another level, allowing players to become antiques dealers-in-training.’ Whether this app will boom or bust is yet to be seen but what is certain is that antique fairs are a growing sector in the antique industry. This is a welcome respite after years of hardship. The late Nineties were tough for the antique market as shoppers veered online for bargains and withheld spending. Fairs and markets responded by getting smaller forcing many stallholders out of business. But those dreary days are coming to an end. Why the renewed interest in antique fairs? ‘Despite the recession over the last couple of years we have seen an upturn in business,’ says Robbie Timms of S&S Timms Antiques. ‘I think one of the reasons surprisingly was the recession itself. Interest rates dropped so low that antiques and art became a viable long-term investment compared to elsewhere in the market.’ People take comfort in the (perhaps delusional) belief that spending on antiques is a way of hanging onto their money. Finances aside, the rise in antique fairs is also due to a change in taste. Nostalgia and the traditional look are back in the game as we hope to give our homes more personality. Most of us aren't looking specifically for antiques, more for pretty things to live with. 'The market for antiques is subdued generally, but what people like to do is surround themselves with a look, an image that reflects themselves as a person,’ says Matthew Adams who holds monthly antique fairs at Chelsea Town Hall. ‘They want a bit of fun and a bit of creativity and there is a plethora of makeover shows on television.' These home makeover TV programmes encourage us to look beyond the high street when furnishing our homes and introduce antique fairs to the mainstream. ‘After ten years of a more minimalist look being featured in magazines, now buying vintage and antique items is trendy with programmes such as Kirstie Allsopp’s Homemade Home,’ says Timms. Allsopp described Ardingly antiques fair as her ‘Nirvana’ and was filmed browsing the stalls at Shepton Mallet antiques fair. The result was instantaneous with the fairs’ websites receiving 4,000 extra hits. ‘Another reason I think business is improving is that looking round antiques fairs and shops is becoming a more popular pastime,’ observes Timms. Whether you spend or not at an antiques fair doesn’t seem to matter. People enjoy the experience of browsing through the unknown and chatting to stallholders. Next week is the thrice-yearly Decorative Fair at Battersea that will specialise in vintage and antique lighting and mirrors. If the last show – the Autumn 2010 Decorative Fair – is anything to judge by, it should be a triumph. Described by exhibitors as ‘a feeding frenzy’ with people ‘queuing to buy,’ the September show was a resounding success with some dealers almost selling out on the first day. ‘Antique fairs are not making a comeback because they never really went away,’ insists Pippa Roberts of the Decorative Antiques and Textiles Fair. ‘Having said that, in the past 18 months ago, there are more new antique fairs; a couple are upmarket boutique fairs and there are at least ten new regional ones. Demand for more antique markets comes from exhibitors, many of whom are shop owners who aren’t getting the footfall in their local shops. Demand also comes from customers who find it much easier to shop under one roof. Lovely as it is to trail around regional antique shops, most of us don’t have lots of time to spare at weekends. Dealers are looking to meet customers and the customers are looking for convenience.’ Comeback or not, business is booming for antique fairs.
Roadshow iPhone App demonstrates how antique fairs appeal to a young demographic. Players virtually collect, appraise and bid on antiques based on images of real objects. ‘Antiques Roadshow remains a huge hit on-air, and local events draw large crowds,’ says Marsha Bemko, Executive Producer of the Antiques Roadshow. ‘The series is part adventure, part history and part treasure hunt, and now the app takes it to another level, allowing players to become antiques dealers-in-training.’ Whether this app will boom or bust is yet to be seen but what is certain is that antique fairs are a growing sector in the antique industry. This is a welcome respite after years of hardship. The late Nineties were tough for the antique market as shoppers veered online for bargains and withheld spending. Fairs and markets responded by getting smaller forcing many stallholders out of business. But those dreary days are coming to an end. Why the renewed interest in antique fairs? ‘Despite the recession over the last couple of years we have seen an upturn in business,’ says Robbie Timms of S&S Timms Antiques. ‘I think one of the reasons surprisingly was the recession itself. Interest rates dropped so low that antiques and art became a viable long-term investment compared to elsewhere in the market.’ People take comfort in the (perhaps delusional) belief that spending on antiques is a way of hanging onto their money. Finances aside, the rise in antique fairs is also due to a change in taste. Nostalgia and the traditional look are back in the game as we hope to give our homes more personality. Most of us aren't looking specifically for antiques, more for pretty things to live with. 'The market for antiques is subdued generally, but what people like to do is surround themselves with a look, an image that reflects themselves as a person,’ says Matthew Adams who holds monthly antique fairs at Chelsea Town Hall. ‘They want a bit of fun and a bit of creativity and there is a plethora of makeover shows on television.' These home makeover TV programmes encourage us to look beyond the high street when furnishing our homes and introduce antique fairs to the mainstream. ‘After ten years of a more minimalist look being featured in magazines, now buying vintage and antique items is trendy with programmes such as Kirstie Allsopp’s Homemade Home,’ says Timms. Allsopp described Ardingly antiques fair as her ‘Nirvana’ and was filmed browsing the stalls at Shepton Mallet antiques fair. The result was instantaneous with the fairs’ websites receiving 4,000 extra hits. ‘Another reason I think business is improving is that looking round antiques fairs and shops is becoming a more popular pastime,’ observes Timms. Whether you spend or not at an antiques fair doesn’t seem to matter. People enjoy the experience of browsing through the unknown and chatting to stallholders. Next week is the thrice-yearly Decorative Fair at Battersea that will specialise in vintage and antique lighting and mirrors. If the last show – the Autumn 2010 Decorative Fair – is anything to judge by, it should be a triumph. Described by exhibitors as ‘a feeding frenzy’ with people ‘queuing to buy,’ the September show was a resounding success with some dealers almost selling out on the first day. ‘Antique fairs are not making a comeback because they never really went away,’ insists Pippa Roberts of the Decorative Antiques and Textiles Fair. ‘Having said that, in the past 18 months ago, there are more new antique fairs; a couple are upmarket boutique fairs and there are at least ten new regional ones. Demand for more antique markets comes from exhibitors, many of whom are shop owners who aren’t getting the footfall in their local shops. Demand also comes from customers who find it much easier to shop under one roof. Lovely as it is to trail around regional antique shops, most of us don’t have lots of time to spare at weekends. Dealers are looking to meet customers and the customers are looking for convenience.’ Comeback or not, business is booming for antique fairs.
How to find inspiration
After moving from a small flat to a whole house, I panicked: I had little furniture, no budget and zero direction. Inspiration was clouded by the threat of expensive mistakes and "blank canvas" alarm. So where can one turn for ideas? Inspiration is everywhere If you're tuned in, that is. One friend took layout tips from the kitchens in Desperate Housewives, while a bachelor colleague made manly shelves after seeing Steve McQueen's bedroom in Bullitt. Consult the classics From one-room living to how to arrange "things" on shelves and walls, Conran's 1970s interiors bible The House Book (Mitchell Beazley) is invaluable. Make a mood board By collating photos, fabric scraps (such as the Lucienne Day) and magazine pages, broad themes should emerge (vintage, minimal, lavish, bright, muted, classic).
If they don't, ask a friend to edit. Get out the scissors Have a look at designspongeonline.com, where even the DIY-shy can get ideas; the box-file shelving is a personal favourite. Make use of old favourites Take a loved picture or object and build a room around its colours, period detail, or simply the feeling it evokes – it's easier than starting with infinite choice. Similarly, follow a loose theme through all rooms. Tricia Guild's A Certain Style (Quadrille) is full of inspiration on this. Box clever Efficient storage can free up whole chunks of room, so don't underestimate the creative boost of a flick through the Lakeland catalogue. Colour co-ordination Kevin McCloud's books on colour, divided by periods, styles and palettes, are immensely practical.
If they don't, ask a friend to edit. Get out the scissors Have a look at designspongeonline.com, where even the DIY-shy can get ideas; the box-file shelving is a personal favourite. Make use of old favourites Take a loved picture or object and build a room around its colours, period detail, or simply the feeling it evokes – it's easier than starting with infinite choice. Similarly, follow a loose theme through all rooms. Tricia Guild's A Certain Style (Quadrille) is full of inspiration on this. Box clever Efficient storage can free up whole chunks of room, so don't underestimate the creative boost of a flick through the Lakeland catalogue. Colour co-ordination Kevin McCloud's books on colour, divided by periods, styles and palettes, are immensely practical.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Capital collection of creative ideas
The fashion world has gone back to its atelier and this month, London plays host to the arts. Collecting art is no longer just about acquiring paintings to hang on the wall; nowadays it's about the design itself becoming the art. Which means that instead of just buying something to sit on while you watch television, you are investing in a piece of furniture that is also a work of art. It's also a way of spending eye-watering sums of money on a chair – but that's not the point. There are several art fairs in the capital this month, from Frieze – billed as the UK's most important contemporary-art event, to Zoo and the Affordable Art Fair, but it all comes together at Design Art London, in Berkeley Square. For the second year running, 32 of the most prestigious galleries in the world will showcase modern classics, vintage one-offs and limited-edition cutting-edge contemporary pieces. For most of us, it will be a question of buying a ticket to see something inspiring rather than investing in something to take home, but it's no less important for that. Loic Le Gaillard, owner of the Carpenters Workshop Gallery, says: "We hope that this will paint a picture of what the world will look like in 2010. These are the best artists in the world. "I can't say if the high street will be producing these pieces in two years' time, but we are showing high-quality design and it is bound to have an influence. "Our exhibitors are creating beautiful sculptures, either by using modern technology and computers, like Zaha Hadid does, or by hand, using traditional marble, then you look more closely and discover they have a function as well. So you first see a piece of art and then you realise that you can sit on it, or dine off it, and that it has a function as well as form." Galleries from Paris, Milan, Brussels, Copenhagen, Chicago and New York will all be at the fair, showcasing designers from Le Corbusier, Arne Jacobsen and Jean Prouvé, to modernists such as Ron Arad, Marc Newson and Hadid. Not forgetting Marc Quinn at the Carpenters Workshop. The artist, better known for his sculptures made of blood and his marble statue of Alison Lapper on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square, has produced a collection of furniture. "This is the first time a major artist has moved into furniture design, and it is very exciting," says Le Gaillard. Quinn has made five pieces in a limited edition of eight, including a side table, bench and desk. The fair also includes lighting, ceramics and glass, as well as sculpture as furniture. Now, as you will need at least £3,000 in your pocket if you are thinking of investing, here are the highlights of the show – and how to get the look for a fraction of the price.
Investing in Real Estate Now
Real estate investing is one of the recognised paths to becoming wealthy.There are a number of different strategies that you can use to set yourself up financially for the rest of your life. As with any form of investing,there will be different opinions on what are the best methods to use and the different risks involved.You need to investigate the risks and sort out which strategy suits you best. As with any endeavour that you undertake,knowledge is power,so it is best to read books and research the markets that you are going to invest in. There are many books written on real estate investing and all of the different investing strategies are well covered.A simple strategy that can pay off is to purchase a property to rent out.Over time as the rent and value increases then you can look at purchasing another property.By following this simple plan then you can accumulate a number of properties to fund your lifestyle or retirement. Once your cashflow is positive and you have built up enough equity from the first property then this is the time to look at another property. You will generally find that with two properties the rent and equity will build up quicker than one property and let you purchase the third property a bit quicker than it took to get the second property. You can repeat this process for a while and then sell off one or two properties to reduce the debt and then live off the rent.It is very important with any form of investing to not over commit yourself financially so that you are not forced to sell due to unforeseen circumstances. You must also allow for things such as vacancies, additional property costs or periods of unemployment.It would also be wise to not have all of the properties in one location as a local downturn may affect your investment plan. Getting started is sometimes the hardest part which is why most people never attain the financial freedom that they want so why not start right now. The books on investing written by Robert Kiyosaki are a good place to start your education and are available online.
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