Home Improvement

Yay!!! Today is Saturday. Weekend is the time to relax at home or to do some home improvement project. I need to paint the gate and also fixing the fence in my garden. If you like to do your own home imprevement, you must have heard about Stanley Bostitch. With over 110 years of practical experience across a diverse range of applications, Stanley Bostitch® have the knowledge, facilities and expertise to stay ahead of demand. Innovative fastener and tool design and manufacture continue to maintain Stanley Bostitch® as leaders in fastening solutions. They have good selection of pneumatic tools, includes Nailers, Staplers, etc for industrial, construction and home improvement use.

Emerge Labs OrganicSkinCare.com

Emerge Labs Organic Skin Care presents a revolutionary technology that protects skin stem cells and combats chronological aging. The breakthrough patent-pending active organic ingredient, PhytoCellTec Malus Domsestica, boosts the production of human skin stem cells and protects human skin stem cells from stress, thus decreasing wrinkles and producing younger, fresher-looking skin. Using patent-pending plant cell culture technology, Emerge Labs Organic Skin Care introduces PhytoCellTec - cells from a rare Swiss apple that studies show protect skin stem cells thus promoting self-renewal capacity of the skin. The application of plant cell cultures to maintain the function of skin stem cells is a breakthrough in anti-aging.

Picking the Perfect Pin

Straight pins are a simple tool that we use every time we sew. Many of us take this tool for granted and may not be aware that different types of pins are designed for different fabrics and uses. For me, because I enjoy a wide variety of sewing projects, I have several types and lengths on hand for each of my special projects.

Pin Construction

Pins are made from brass, steel or stainless steel.

Brass pins are usually nickel-plated. Be careful with brass pins because the nickel-plating may leave a black mark that is not easy to remove on the fabric. The advantage of brass pins is they have a very sharp point and typically will not rust.

Steel pins are the least expensive to purchase, but the steel may rust. The advantage of a steel pin is that steel is stronger than brass -- an advantage when working with heavy wools or drapery fabric. Plus, I like working with steel pins because of my magnetic pin holder. (Remember: If you have a magnetic pin holder, don't place it near an electronic device or embroidery machine because it may damage the computer chips.) Sometimes steel pins will be nickel-plated, which helps to prevent rusting.

Stainless steel pins do not rust and are the strongest pins available. Their only disadvantage is they are the most expensive.

Pin Heads

Pin heads can be flat, may have a ball at the end or be T-shaped.

A flat head is the most common pin head because it is the least expensive to produce. This is a great standard pin for sewing lightweight fabric like cottons or broadcloths.

A ball head is one step up from the flat head. The advantage of a ball head is that it is easier to see. I prefer a ball head for all of my sewing, but especially for heavier fabrics like denim or bulky fabrics like sweatshirts or polar fleece. I find the head is easier to grab hold of for inserting and pulling out of the fabric.

A ball head may be made from either plastic or glass. Glass heads are more expensive than plastic heads, but, if your budget allows it, purchase glass heads over plastic heads. A plastic head will melt from the heat of an iron whereas the glass heads will not melt.

A T-shaped head is used for crafts and draperies. Typically the pin is longer, and the larger head makes it easier to insert into and pull out of multiple layers of fabrics or heavy wools.

Pin Length and Diameter

The length of a pin is stated in sixteenths of an inch. Translated, this means that a no. 16 pin is one inch long (or 16/16) while a no. 17 pin is 1 1/16 inches long. In general, pins range in length from a no. 8 (8/16 or 1/2 long) to a no. 24 (1 1/4 inches long). As a general rule, use longer pins for bulky fabric or layered fabrics and shorter pins for delicate fabrics.

The most common pin is called a dressmaking pin or no. 17. This pin is considered to have a medium diameter, and it is used just like the name implies, for general garment sewing.

A pleating pin, or no. 16, has a smaller diameter than a dressmaking pin. It is designed to be used on fine or delicate fabric.

A long pin, or no. 24, is used for heavyweight fabric (thick wools with lots of bulk), draperies or crafts.

Pin Points

And yes, even the point on a pin is different depending on its usage. However, most pins are considered "sharps," meaning the pin has a pointed tip. A sharp is the standard pin point, but you can also purchase ballpoint-tipped pins for knits.

Final Pin Tips

Here are a few additional tidbits of information for your pin selection. Before pinning into your fabric, always test your pin on scrap fabric. Some fabrics, like vinyl, leather and oilcloth, will have permanent holes from the pin. When pinning these types of fabric, always pin into the seam allowance.

Pins are just like needles; they will become dull, bent or broken after usage. Throw your old pins out, as a dull pin can cause a run in your fabric.

And finally, don't sew or serge over your pins. A pin slightly distorts the seam allowance and may lead to seams that don't lay as flat or may be crooked. Serging over a pin will dull the blades of your serger; however, your pin will be neatly chopped in two pieces.

It Is in The Gene

Sometimes I wonder how come some people can eat a lot (and I mean a lot) and yet won’t gain excess weight, and some people exercises regularly and watch what they eat and they still cannot reduce their weight. It must be because of their genes. I mean if your parents are not obese, most probably you won’t obese too, but I might be wrong.

If you have money, and you are concerned about your health because you are obese, you might consider lapband as your alternative way to reduce your weight. Make sure you have an experienced lap-band doctor to do the surgery.

SurfRecon

So, you suspect that your employees are surfing porn sites at work, but you don’t want to confront them because you don’t want to create hostile work environment lawsuit. What to do? Easy, you just have to install one of those pornography detection tools like SurfRecon ERT. SurfRecon ERT (emergency response tool) allows an IT or HR professional to quickly and discreetly review a suspect computer for pornographic content, without have to expose themselves to that content.

Plastic Surgery

I am not against plastic surgery if it is necessary, because everybody deserve to feel confidence about themselves. However, I can not understand on people that do plastic surgery just because they want to look like their movie star idol.

Anyway, deciding on plastic surgery is an important decision to make. Deciding on which plastic surgeon is an even greater task. Find a Kansas City Plastic Surgeons in Kansas City that offers breast augmentation, liposuction, rhinoplasty and more. View before and after photos and make an educated decision.

Credit Card Comparison Site

Although I don’t really like to use credit card, but I really need one in order to buy things online. Recently I come across this cool website that list all the credit cards available and compares them together side by side. You can even search based on categories, like the one with low interest, the one that can give you cash back, or the one that give you instant approval, or you can search credit card based on brand (like visa , master, discover, or amex). It’s all there. The even have articles about how to search the best credit card.

Kitchen Towels

I always dream to have a very nice and big kitchen. A kitchen that is clean and pretty, the one that you don't mind to stay for the whole day. My kitchen is kind of small, messy and hot. No wonder I hate to cook. Probably I will make these kitchen towels to make my kitchen nicer.

Fake Caller ID

Nowadays my husband doesn’t want to pick up my phone when he is busy in the office. Well, I have to admit that I call him frequently and not all the call was about something important. However, I want him to pick up my phone even he is in the middle of important meeting. Just tell me that he is busy, then I will hang up.

Probably I have to get Caller ID Spoofing. For those that never heard, with Caller ID Spoofing you can change what shows on the Caller ID. 123Spoof.com is now offering Free Unlimited 2 minute ad-supported Free Spoofing Calls.

YupeePhone

YupeePhone is the web site of Yupee Phone LLC, a distributor of Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) equipment and service. Their services are available worldwide and they are prepaid.

Their advantages are they do not require a contract; do not charge maintenance, connection, disconnection or any other "fees" of that nature; calling between our users is free, even if they are in different countries or continents; rates are updated automatically on our pages and in your account; you have 24/7 access to your online account, and there you can see your calling history, paid invoices, current rates and profile; adding more funds to your account is easy via Paypal's secure and trusted credit card processing services.

Lightship Research

Lightship Research is a well-known Chicago-based research and recruiting firm that has been helping corporate hiring authorities, executive recruiters, and individual job hunters since 1982.
Read below testimonial:

"I got laid off as the Vice President of Sales and Marketing of a new media company in the Bay area. I was recommended by a recruiter to call Lightship Research to help me with my job search, as I wanted to relocate to New York City. I was a little skeptical at first, as I had always used traditional recruiters in the past, but they were not producing any interviews and I needed a job quickly. I spoke with a reference that had used their services and decided to give them a try. Their strategist was very knowledgeable and came up with some good ideas. They really know how to get under the radar and find companies, that you would never have thought of and then find the direct hiring authority. I got four interviews and an offer in 30 days (yes in this economy), which I accepted. Lightship Research http://www.lightshipresearch.com you rock!"

D. Manning, SF

Interesting Blog

There is new blog called College Pro Painters. Actually this blog a reginal blog hub for College Pro Denver Colorado area however I found this blog is interesting. The content includes; news, painting tips, and regional information about College Pro Painters Denver. Although at this point they only have 2 posts but I found them very useful. I always like to read something about home improvement. I found that this kind of post motivate me to do some home improvement on my own house. We all know how expensive it is to hire a professional, so whenever possible, I like to do it myself.

Frogging

Sometimes when you read on knitting or crocheting blog, you come accross "frogging" word. What is frogging? Where does it come from?

The term "frogging" means to take the needle out of your stitches and remove some work done in error. The term comes from the sound a frog might make: rip it, rip it, rip it!If you need to remove only a few stitches or have a complicated stitch pattern, the term we use is tink, which is knit spelled backward, indicating that you are unknitting, but only one stitch at a time.

Where Do You See Yourself?

Recently, Mecedes-Benz launched their latest product, new 2010 GLK. This is a mid size premium SUV car with innovative and cutting-edge design. If you want to know about key technical and product insight you should visit their site. Not only describing about the product, this site also features an interactive media gallery full of clear downloadable images and informational videos highlighting the all-new GLK, you can even book a test drive here!

This site is inspired by the innovative design of the bold new Mercedes GLK, so expect to see cutting-edge style with an independent spirit. Staying true to their slogan “Where Do You See Yourself?”, visitors are able to create an image of their own GLK experience, which then remains as the site’s backdrop for the duration of the visit; and is also available as a downloadable desktop wallpaper.

If you are a big fan of Mercedes Benz, this site is worth checking out. As Mark Forsyth, Manager of Interactive Marketing and CRM at Mercedes-Benz Canada notes: “A key objective of the site was to provide prospective customers with an emotional connection to the GLK, as well as to celebrate the style and uniqueness that the vehicle clearly possesses."

General Thread Rules

With the array of thread available, how do you know which thread is best for your project? The following are some guidelines to help you select the perfect thread for your project.

Color: Pick thread that is one shade darker than the fabric.

Weight: Match the thread weight to the fabric weight. Threads are ranked by a number system. A high number indicates a light (or fine) thread, and the medium weight of thread is a 50 weight.

Fiber: Try to match thread fiber to fabric fiber. Cotton fabric should be sewn with cotton thread; polyester or manmade fiber should be sewn with polyester thread. If possible, don't sew natural fibers with polyester thread. Polyester fiber is stronger than most natural thread, so over time, the stronger polyester thread can break the weaker cotton fiber of the fabric. For quilting, look for thread labeled "machine quilting" or "hand quilting."

Twist: The amount of spin of the thread fibers. A thread with a high amount of twist will be smoother, shinier and stronger than thread with little or no twist.

Eyewear

If you are looking for prescription eyewear frames or you are an optometrits or eye clinics you probably want to take a look at Zen Eyewear. Zen Eyewear manufactures prescription eyewear frames and sells primarily to private optometrists and eye clinics. They have a wide variety of styles and take pride in being able to offer frames at great prices in current economy, where everybody trying to buy less expensive stuffs. Even their price is low, their quality is not. After all, quality and trendy styles are important to them.

Serger Thread

Serger threads are available in the same fibers as general sewing threads, with the exception of woolly nylon. Woolly nylon is a nylon thread that has little or no twist. Used in the upper looper for a rolled edge or in the upper and lower loopers for lingerie sewing, this thread is designed to gently relax after it's sewn and cover the edge finish. It has lots of stretch and is soft against your skin. Its one drawback is that it will melt in the dryer or under a hot steam iron.

Most serger thread is sold by the cone. Look for cone thread that is tightly wrapped and consistent in width. When using your serger for edge finishing, don't worry too much about matching the thread color. Most serger owners will invest in the basic colors of thread, black, brown, gray and white, to match the edge finishes as needed. If using your serger for seaming and edge finishing, it's the outside needle that creates the seam. Often, just matching this thread to the fabric is enough.

Psoriasis Drug that Can Kill Patients

If you or your family member has psoriasis and are taking the psoriasis drug called Raptiva then you need to becareful because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is investigating the psoriasis drug Raptiva for a possible link to a rare, but often deadly, brain infection called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). At least two people have died and others may also have developed PML while taking Raptiva, made by Genentech. Raptiva has also been associated with meningitis, immune-mediated hemolytic anemia, and other life-threatening infections.

Probably you are wondering what is psoriasis. Psoriasis is a chronic immune-system disease which causes red, thick patches to develop on the skin. It is most common in people with diabetes, obesity, and heart disease and affects up to 7.5 million people in the United States. My brother has psoriasis in the scalp and at first we thought it was just dandruff, however it turned out to be psoriasis. I think I need to call him to tell him about the dangers of using this medicine.

If you or a loved one that has taken the psoriasis drug Raptiva and has suffered an injury or death, you may have legal rights. You and your family may be eligible to receive financial compensation for your medical bills, pain and suffering, lost wages, and other damages paid by the drug company or other responsible parties. Raptiva is now being investigated by the FDA for a possible link to a deadly brain infection, called PML. See here for more info: http://www.youhaverights.com/dangerous-drugs/raptiva

Strawberry Sweater for Kids

I found this adorable sweater for little girl. It has a matching purse as well. The frog closure, stripes and colorwork all make for a fun project, and it may help you look forward to spring a bit! Wouldn't this be a lovely gift for Easter? Get started now, and it will be ready by April 12. If you are interested to make, you can print the free pattern here.