Pixel Paint Scrapblog – Scrapbooking Tips and Ideas

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May 31, 2009

Design Your Own Candles and Save Money On Supplies

Category: Arts and Crafts – tkwriter 10:04 pm

Candle making can be a great past time, hobby, or business venture, very much like custom embroidery Chicago is also a great pass time and hobby.

While the supplies for candling making are remarkably inexpensive, the cost does start to add up over time. There are many ways you can cut back the cost of the candle making supplies, but I caution you not to sacrifice the quality of the products you purchase just to save a few dollars. This is especially important for those who sell their candles. If the quality of the product goes down because you are buying wax and other supplies that are of less quality, you will end up costing your business money over the long haul.

Keep a list of the candle making supplies you use. Include the brand, the price, and the amount of the item you get for that price. This will help you compare the prices with sales you run across and know if you are getting a better deal or not. Many craft stores run sales on candle making items before and right after the holidays. This can be a great time to stock up.

Checking online auction sites including Ebay and Yahoo Auctions can often be an excellent way to find the same candle making products you use at a discounted price. It could be that the seller of the items doesn’t have the time to make candles anymore or they simply have moved on to other things.

If you use a large volume of candle making supplies on a regular basis, consider buying them wholesale. You will pay more up front for your supplies, yet overall you will save a considerable amount of money. You can search such wholesalers on the internet and compare prices. Many online wholesalers offer free shipping as well so that is another area where you can save money if you normally purchase your candle making supplies online. If you know other people who make candles as well consider buying in bulk and sharing the cost as well as the supplies. This is an easy way for everyone to get a discount as well as reduce the cost at the time of purchase.

Some of the discount candle making products on the market are very comparable to the quality products you already use. A good way to tell is to compare the ingredients. You can research the necessary ingredients of each item on the internet. If the discount products contain all the major ingredients as the candle making supplies you already use, then give it a try. It is recommended that you only purchase one or two items at first to test the quality. Keep track of where you purchased the discounted items so you can return to that retailer or online store if you are happy with the quality of the products.

Containers and holders for your candles are one area you should never spend a great deal of money on. I won’t recommend buying them for regular price unless they are for a wedding or other very special occasion. You can buy mason jars, extra glassware, votive holders, and many other containers to use candle making at thrift stores and garage sales for a very reasonable price. You might also check the online auctions to purchase large quantities of candle making container and holders at a very good price.

The supplies used in candle making can cost you a great deal of money over time. To save money on the quality supplies you use, take the time to compare prices both online and at local retailers. Take advantage of discounts and sales throughout the year at craft stores. Be cautious when looking at discount candle making supplies. You want to make sure they offer the same quality that you are already using. Finding supplies at online auctions and buying them in bulk are also great ways to save you money on candle making supplies.
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May 27, 2009

Images Tell A Story With Professional Photography

Category: Original Art – tkwriter 9:07 pm

While many people make a living from sports photography, not everyone makes it in the field of art photography. This type of photography requires a great amount of creativity in producing images that can reach into the arts spectrum. Seen as fine art, it can include landscape photographs, scenic photographs, photographs of wildlife and even nude photography.

Fine art photography has gone through many changes throughout the years, yet photographers have learned that the steps to a beautiful photograph have for the most part stayed the same. While to those who are viewing the photographs, the pictures may seem highly elaborate and unique, fine art photographers know to keep it simple.

professional photography
Having too much going on in the scene can distort the picture and take away from the subject. They must know exactly whom or what they are shooting as their main character, especially in fashion photography and then make everything else magically disappear into the background when they are taking the photographic image.

Lighting plays a huge part in professional photography. Even if you have a perfect scene or subject to take a photograph of, if the lighting is not right, then the image will not turn out the way that the photographer wants. While, of course artificial lighting can be used, natural lighting is always the best, especially in arts photography.

They need to produce photographic imagery that will come to life in the eyes of the viewer.

sports photography
Those who work with art photography need to be extremely creative and must be able to do a lot of abstract thinking. The vivid photographic images that they produce can astound and captivate millions of individuals.

The people who work within this industry know how to take what might be an everyday photo to some and turn it into an extraordinary work of art. These free thinking individuals may actually have chosen this career because of their ability to draw out the living essence of the subject they are photographing.

May 21, 2009

Rubber Stamps Still Save Time

Category: Rubber Stamping – tkwriter 7:33 pm

Rubber Stamps are still used daily in businesses (such as businesses offering Notary services, that use Notary Stamps), homes and classrooms. Rubber stamps are a great way to save time and to get a job completed quickly and easily. Rubber stamps can be purchased in self-inked, pre-inked or they can be used with an ink pad (Inked Stamp).

Pre-inked rubber stamps come in oil based ink, foam die, and industrial ink. Self-inked stamps are often quieter and more consistent than a traditional rubber stamp and ink pad. Inks can come in a variety of colors on any type of rubber stamp. Here are some great ways to use rubber stamps at home, in the classroom and in the office.

Rubber stamps can be used to date paperwork. A great way to organize incoming mail is to open the mail when it arrives and discard unnecessary advertisements or offers and stamp the other mail with the date that it arrived. This will help the bill payer know which bills should be addressed first and it will also help them keep tract of what is arriving in the mail on a daily basis. Another great reason to stamp the mail upon arrival is so that if a discrepancy arises a call can be made and an informed conversation can take place including when the bill arrived.

Rubber stamps are used in many successful classrooms daily. Custom stamps can be created to say from the desk of and include the teachers name and school. Stamps can be created to say sign and return. A rubber stamp with the date can also be used in the classroom. Students must have their homework stamped with the date that they turned in their homework assignment. This will save the teacher the time of having to log each assignment that is turned in late. The teacher can simply look at the date stamped on the assignment to determine if points need to be removed or if a note needs to be sent home to the parent. These papers can then be held until the parent teacher night so that the parent can see the amount of papers that have been turned in tardy.

There are many standard rubber stamps available to choose from. If you can not find the stamp that you are looking for than rubber stamps can created to suite whatever need you may have at home, in business or in the classroom. Excellent quality rubber stamps will last for years and are a handy office, home or classroom tool.

May 14, 2009

What is Etching and Why Does It Turn White?

Category: Arts and Crafts – tkwriter 9:53 pm

Etched glass is a common sight in today’s world, and it adds flair and a touch of elegance to many otherwise mundane pieces of glass. Though few consider it, there are actually two very distinct and different ways of producing etched glass, both methods differ in cost and also the final result.

Before illustrating the methods, it is valuable to understand the actual process of etching a glass surface. Etching is when you removing small amounts of a surface of a material to create designs. This is done in a controlled manner, to create often complex and beautiful patterns and illustrations. The traditional method of glass etching is sandblasting, which involved covering a “negative” of the design desired onto a glass surface. To clarify, this is the same as putting up tape on the surfaces you don’t want painted when spray painting. The same principle is applied to the glass, and then specialized equipment is used to bombard the glass with sand, which scratches away at the glass where it is not covered and creates a frosted effect.

The updated method is called “high definition chemical etching”. As opposed to using clunky equipment to bombard the surface of the glass with small particles of rock, this process uses chemicals to precisely remove a small amount of material from the surface of the glass. This results in much more detailed results, and also opens up the possibility of more depth and shading, as sandblasted etchings are all a uniform frosted white color.

The two methods are very distinctive and produce drastically different results. While sandblasting is better for general designs and large area work, high definition etching is much more delicate. Not only is it more gentle to touch, unlike sandblasted glass, it provides much more detailed work.

When considering custom work, high definition etching is definitely the best decision. When speaking of custom glass etching a important thing to know is that chemical etching is generally less expensive than sandblasting, partially explained by the fact that it doesn’t require complex and costly equipment. However, much work or skill goes into its production, as chemical etching is a precise and precarious process, which demands real skill. Pretty much in the etching business there is no such thing as a redo.

Etched glass is a beautiful way to add some elegance to any glass door, window, table, etc. Etched mirrors can add a classy accent to any home decor also. Each high definition etched mirror also has the amazing ability to remain reflective, even where they’ve been etched. This is not the case with sandblasted mirrors, as they turn a frosty color in the sections that they’ve been etched. This makes possible for some very elegant and tasteful surfaces.

May 11, 2009

Customized Zippo Lighter Designs

Category: Arts and Crafts – tkwriter 2:44 am

It is safe to assume that Zippo is the leading brand of cigarette lighters in the market. Indeed, it is so popular that many similar brands have tried to compete but none has established the same level of brand positioning as Zippo has achieved. Over the years, custom designs are available for these lighters that enabled smokers to manifest their personality through this accessory.

Prices of Zippo Lighters

Zippo lighters are reasonably priced despite its brand prominence. With as little as $18 to as much as $25, you can get your own personalized zippo lighter. Since it has been around for several decades, it brings forth nostalgia and a vintage essence that makes it a popular brand despite all these years. Add to that the fact that non-smokers love to collect Zippo lighters as well. Hence, it reaches quite a wide market instead of catering only to the smoking populace.

Available Design Choices

There are as much design choices available for customizing or personalizing your Zippo lighters. All of them are designed to suit your personality. Hence, you can use one that really exhibits your personality and you can do the same if you want to give it as a gift.

Below are just some of the design choices to pick from:

*Sports-themed: Sports is almost always quite popular with men. Hence, most of them choose engravings or designs that feature their favorite teams. Among the top motifs for Zippo lighters are MLB, NBA, NHL, and NFL Zippo Lighter.
*Themes that reflect profession: Here is another popular choice among men who want to embrace their masculinity. military zippo lighters and playboy zippo among the top choices in this category.
*Celebrity-themed: Have a favorite celebrity or TV personality in mind? You can also choose to incorporate famous Hollywood stars into your lighter if you want.

Why Are Zippo Lighters Popular?

There are as many reasons why men (and also women) love custom Zippo lighters as there are available designs. However, here are some of the general reasons why they appeal to the market so much:

• Zippo lighters, due to the name of the brand, are more than just there for function – they are used as status symbol. Being able to smoke using Zippo lighters represent exponential interpretations in a highly brand-conscious society.
• Zippo is the top brand of lighter in the market. Many have attempted to establish their own prominence but Zippo has successfully established its market in the old and newer generation.
• The variants of designs available enable one to freely express him or herself. There are different customized choices for you such that you can pick one the closely represents your personality. If you want to go a step further, there are also engraving options available.
• More than just a status symbol, using Zippo lighters with personalized designs make quite a statement. For one, it reflects your personality and what your interests are. Aside from that, you also earn an association with those symbols and figures. Let’s say you sport a military lighter, then it reflects your level of masculinity.

May 10, 2009

Building Your Antique Clock Collection

Category: Arts and Crafts – tkwriter 11:48 pm

Antique clocks are one of those highly valued items, with some dating as far back as the 15th to the 17th century. Indeed, they are classic items to have and many are collecting them. These items have a rich history and they also exude class, elegance, and durability for its ability to withstand all these years.

Common Collectible Clocks

There is a wide range of clock types and designs in the market. Nowadays, you will often only see 15th-17th century clocks in museums. Only a few individuals have their own private collection of these old and classical clocks. Hence, if you are interested in them, there are lots of collectible clocks that you can find and these are quite rare.

Collectible mantel clocks, for instance, area picture of function and elegance. They are made out of a variety of materials ranging from mahogany and other types of wood with a fine finish. They come in a variety of maritime designs that add style into your usual timekeeping devices.

Collectible mantel clocks are another popular choice among private antique clock collectors. These types of clocks are often placed on top of the fireplace, infusing a more sophisticated look to your salon where guests gather around. And yet, they are rare items in themselves that make an irresistible choice for collectors to the oldest and most stylish clocks to have ever made it into the market.

Factors To Consider When Buying

When buying a clock to use at home, it is not just about the item’s efficacy in telling time that you are looking for. You also want something that blends well with your efforts at adding an aesthetic touch to your home. This is one reason why a decorative wall clock is fast becoming a major option in every household.

For antique collectors, however, you cannot simply fall into the idea of buying just about any type of antique clock you see. You cannot to consider a few factors to ensure that you have quality clocks to boost your collection. These factors are discussed in detail below:

*Type of Antique Clock: This is a must for the antique clock enthusiast who is really into collecting rare and antique clocks to fill their collection.

*Price: This is one factor that any antique clock collector must be paying close attention to. Many could fall into the false notion that all antique materials are expensive. However, it is important to do some research before going out to shop. This will help give you a better idea of the pricing guideline so you know that the clocks are appropriately priced.

*Size: This one depends on the type of clock and your own personal preference. Grandfather clocks, for example are large types of clock. Meanwhile, mantel clocks or table clocks are relatively smaller and can be kept inside your cabinet or elsewhere you want to store your collection.

*Condition: This is just as important as any other factors above. When buying clocks, look at them objectively to be able to properly make an assessment of these clocks. However, there are also a variety of restoration processes available in order to make your clock appear and function as good as new.

May 3, 2009

Free 3d Glasses – 3D Films – You will be in a position to Watch Them Right in your house

Category: Scrapbooking Videos – tkwriter 5:30 pm

3D Flicks – You will be in a position to Watch Them Right in your house .
Free 3D Glasses

Back in the 1950′s 3-D flicks were hot. Whenever a studio would release a new B-movie horror feature they were faced with the issue of whether or not they would make the picture in 3-D or not. Showing a 3-D movie in the 1950′s was very hit or miss, as sometimes the technology would work and sometimes it wouldn’t. Patrons were asked to put plastic or paper special 3-D glasses over their eyes to get the full effect of the 3-D film and when the flick started you could not move your head or you would lose the effect. Thousands of sore necks later the flick industry started to desert the concept of the 3-D movie and soon the whole concept was lost and forgotten for a little whilst. That was until the concept of 3-D films in your house was created.

The concept of the 3-D film was revived in latter 1970′s and early 1980′s by television. Many TV stations would make large events out of being able to show you 3-D films in your house and you can feel like the action is coming right at you. This was short lived though as the TV stations made one disastrous error in their logistics. The 3-D movie started to make a little comeback in the mid-1980′s but, once more, without any major feature films using the format it just drifted away into obscurity.
3D Glasses
The concept behind the 3-D movie was never really forgotten but the 2 major problems with making mass recognition with the 3-D movie wanted to be addressed before it would get any sort of real funding. The first problem is the concept behind not permitting spectators to move their heads to get the 3-D effect. The other problem was getting major studios to buy into the format and start releasing major motion photos in 3-D to get the public’s attention. All of that was solved in the early 2000′s with the IMAX.

They also added to the biggest sound system ever put into a movie theater and all of a sudden you had the perfect venue for 3-D flicks. Shortly Hollywood studios started to experiment with making pictures in both a 3-D format for IMAX. IMAX soon started to develop their own way of making 3-D projections from standard movie prints and soon people were swarming to the IMAX to see the 3-D version of their fave new release.
Free 3D Glasses
With the IMAX revolutionizing 3-D pictures it is extremely possible that seeing a film in 3-D could be as common in the next few years as putting in a DVD at home and watching your favorite movie in the comfort of your living room.

May 1, 2009

Body Art

Category: Arts and Crafts – tkwriter 12:15 pm

Drawing were made on Thee body by dipping sharp bones into natural-colored paint, Thousands of years ago. These sharpened bones punctured Thee skin leaving everlasting designs on Thee body. Decorating our bodies is one of man’s oldest forms of self-expression. It is proved by research Theat tattooing is an 8000 year old practice. But for some, being tattooed branded you as a slave.

In some parts of Thee world, having body art was a sign of honor and prestige. It was a sign of beauty in other countries. There are many cultures who respect Thee design of an artistically-covered body.

Yeast Infection Of The Mouth

Many people Theat are tattooed claim Theat once you have your first shortly you will want to have another. It makes sense to me. There are many people who spend hours upon hours in Thee gym pumping up Theeir muscles to perfect proportions. They are after Theat define sculpted body, so why not use it for a permanent canvas? A talented tattoo artist can make a good income by being in Thee right location, body art is becoming more and more popular. It is not just a dying fad, bad rebel attitude Theat used to be associated with people being covered in tattoos, This doesn’t apply today.

Rising among Thee popularity of today’s form of body art is Thee body piercings. People use This form of body art as an act of self-expression and They will pierce many parts of Theeir bodies. The place for an earring or stud is just Thee ear anymore. It is common to see multiple studs in Thee face of a young adult today. Nose, lips, tongue, eyebrows, chin, bellybuttons, and nipples to name a few. Having body art leaves none to Thee imagination. Yeah, you can even get a stud down There.

Body art may look cool and make people do a double take but remember before you get tattooed That They don’t come off easily, so make sure of what you really want before it’s done.