Some Small Kitchen Design Tips

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If you have a small kitchen to design then the problem of designing a great kitchen boils down to just what you can fit and where. There are many different cabinet designs and surface patterns that can help you provide your small kitchen design with a sense of space.

To create the small but efficient kitchen design, you need to work on three major areas of small kitchen design: storage, lighting, and appliances.

Small kitchens may seem to be a very difficult design challenge, but they can also be functional, beautiful and efficient. Even with a small budget and building restrictions, you can find that there are many options open to you to transform your kitchen into something more ideal for your needs.

To create a more spacious look for your small kitchen design the National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA) recommends designing more unique storage solutions, mixing natural and ambient lighting, taking advantage of more space saving appliances, and adding personalized touches.

A small kitchen design requires creativity in coming up with storage solutions. Some ideas to try include:

Putting an island in the center of the kitchen that can provide freestanding storage that is also convenient from any spot in the kitchen.
Using a galley kitchen design in which the cabinets and appliances line up on either side of a corridor can work out very well for a small kitchen space.
Today's appliance manufacturers have come up with more compact space-saving appliances make small kitchen design easier, such as refrigerators that are 24 inches deep instead of 30 inches deep, as well as appliances that can be hung underneath cabinets like microwaves.
Other small kitchen design tricks to create an eating area in the kitchen include using a drop table or a small sized round table with two small chairs that can be tucked into a corner. Or a built-in counter along the wall with chairs to provide an eating nook.
Another interesting challenge in small kitchen design is creating an illusion of space with under cabinet lighting or under the counter. With the proper type of lighting the kitchen can be made to appear larger and more pleasing.
The use of light colored cabinets with glass doors.
Installing deeper counters that can accommodate more appliances and increase work space.
Flooring tiles can be placed on a diagonal, and in a galley style kitchen hardwood flooring can be run the length of the kitchen.
For storage you can hang up pots and pans. This is a perfect way to free up cabinet space, and they add a certain charm and character to your small kitchen design. The insides of cabinet doors can be used to hang up everything from utensils, oven mitts, and other miscellaneous items. Pantry storage with units that go all the way to the ceiling with the upper cabinets to provide more space for seldom used items while making the lower cabinets more accessible with rollout shelves, lazy susans, and tilt-out bins.
Install a large kitchen sink, since larger sinks are considered to be more practical than small sinks when it comes to cleaning pots and pans.

Remember most kitchens are small. When you look in kitchen design magazines you naturally notice that the kitchens featured are large and so you might think your small kitchen in inadequate. But good small kitchen design means being able to create space and incorporating ample storage facilities and being able to fit in all the necessary appliances.

Space Saving Dining Room Furniture

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Though often underappreciated, your dining room and the way that it is decorated can have a major impact on how your house as a whole is viewed by guests. Many people feel that there is not much that can be done to decorate your dining room without spending a small fortune, causing them to settle for boring furniture and using wall decorations in an attempt to create somewhat of an ambiance. However, if you take the time to look around for some good deals, you may find that you can get the elegant furniture that you desire to transform your dining room from a room that seems bland to one that instantly catches the eyes of all of your guests.

When looking for deals on elegant dining room furniture, the first thing that you should do is
decide what sort of furniture you want for your dining room in the first place. If you decide that you want something with a classic wood look, for instance, then you can save time in your search by not looking at cosmopolitan leather barstools or upholstered dining chairs. Likewise, if you decide that you want to use modern-looking barstools as the main form of seating in your dining room, then you can save the time that you might spend pricing high-backed leather side chairs and wood-and-rush wave chairs. With a number of different styles and colors available in dining room furniture, there is no reason that you should not be able to get just the look in your dining room that you want.

After you determine the kind of look and dcor you want to achieve in your dining room, take a little bit of time to review your budget so that you will know exactly how much you can afford to spend. Remember that you will not necessarily have to spend a large amount of money in order to buy the elegant dining room furniture that you want. Therefore, even if it seems like you do not have a very large budget to work with, that does not mean that you will not be able to get the furniture that you want. Use your budget to determine both the maximum amount that you can spend on dining room furniture as well as the amount that you would prefer to spend if you can find a deal on the pieces that you purchase.

Once you have a pretty good idea of what sort of dining room furniture that you want to buy as well as the amount that you would like to spend on it, begin perusing different stores in order to see what sort of elegant dining room furniture pieces they have available. Should you notice any specific designs of dining room tables, dining chairs, or barstools that particularly catch your attention, make note of their name as well as where you found them. You may be able to find your favorite Tiffany bi-cast leather chairs or the 9-piece counter-height dining room collection that you loved at another store for a significant discount. Taking the time to shop around in a few places as well as online will enable you to find the best deal on all of your dining room decorations.

While shopping around for your new dining room furniture, do not forget to take advantage of the benefits offered by the internet. Not only will you be able to get online and research different dining room furniture designs and the prices charged by various retailers for similar dining room sets, but you may even find some or all of the elegant dining room furniture that you want from retailers who operate online as well. Many shoppers do not even consider shopping for dining room furniture online because they worry about having to pay excessive shipping charges on anything that they might order. Luckily, a vast number of retailers offer either free of flat-rate shipping on many furniture items, letting you save money on ordered dining room furniture by having it shipped right to your door at a lower price while paying little or nothing for the shipping charges. Stores that offer both online and physical shopping outlets may also offer free shipping to a local store, allowing you to pick up your order at your own convenience.

If your dining room furniture needs to be assembled, make sure that you follow all directions so that it will look as elegant as the show model that made you want to buy the dining room furniture in the first place. Once you have your furniture assembled, all that you have left to do is to arrange it as best fits your dining room and finish your decorating to further bring out the beauty of your new dining room furniture

Arianna Jordan is a freelance writer who writes about home decorating, often focusing on a specific type of furniture such as dining room furniture.

Starting A Cake Decorating Business From Home

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Are you thinking of starting a cake decorating business from home? If so, you are not alone. But as with any business idea, having the dream is only the first part of the equation. And working with food usually involves quite a bit more preparation, health department requirements, and possibly licenses that must be in place before you open your doors for business.

One of the most difficult things for people who want to run a cake decorating business from home, or even a small cupcake business from home, is wading through the regulations, zoning, and licensing requirements. It can be discouraging for someone who has never done this before! But don't worry. There are plenty of people who have accomplished this before you, and you can now learn from them.

Here are a few tips to get you started on the right foot, before you go out and buy your equipment and business cards!

Business Plan or Blueprint

Whether you are starting a cake decorating business from home or any other business, you should not do anything before you have written (blank) a business plan or at least an outline of how you are going to conduct your business. For help with a business plan, you can contact the Small Business Administration for assistance, or pick up any number of books on the subject. Paula Spencer, who is a well-known cake decorator, has a book dedicated specifically to the start-up of a cake decorating business. This is discussed further, below.

What about Licensing?

As part of your business plan, call or get online with your State or Local government, and explain that you are interested in running a cake decorating business. Let them know if you are planning to use your home, or if you are planning on renting kitchen space. Ask them exactly what you need to do, and what regulations you will need to follow.

Every state or city is different, so it is very important to start off on the right foot. The resources noted below can help you create a plan of how to proceed.

Is my kitchen big enough?

One problem many people have is a lack of a commercial style kitchen. If this is your biggest stumbling block, here is a very creative idea that many others have used! Most towns have churches and various organizations that already have commercial kitchens in place.

You can ask the directors of any of these organizations if you could use the kitchens part-time in exchange for either a donation (perhaps even a donation of one of your creations for their events!) or a set fee.

You might be surprised at how welcoming one or more of these places might be!

Once you know that you will be able to legally open your business and have your necessary permits in place, here are a few ideas to get you started without breaking your budget.

Start small.

If you already have some cake decorating experience behind you, you probably have at least some basic cake decorating equipment.

Unless your business plan allows for some larger purchases, start small and build up a little business before buying tons of supplies. The resources listed below can help guide you in the essentials that you'll need before starting out.

Here are some ways you can test Here are some ways you can test the waters fairly inexpensively.

You can tell day cares and elementary schools that you are offering to bake cake pops or cupcakes for parties or school events.

You can offer a theme party; for example, you can bring unfrosted Bake Pops(TM) or cupcakes, and supervise the children in dipping these in some sort of frosting. Or have a "cupcake bar" so the kids can order the specific flavor of icing they want on their cupcakes. If they are old enough and if there is enough ability to watch them, they can frost their own cupcakes.

With a little ingenuity, you can make a name for yourself as a cake decorator without spending thousands of dollars. You will need to learn the correct way to price your cakes, how to prepare orders and contracts, and how to determine the size cake you will need for any given job. Don't worry! There are formulas available that will help you learn this. Take your passion and creativity to the next level and start making money from home as a cake decorator!

The Most Impressive Metal Roofs

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Metal roofing systems can be fabricated in a factory and delivered directly to a job ready for installation or you can have the panels made right on the job so you can cut and shape each piece precisely and as you desire.

The natural properties of a metal roof are very impressive. Metal panels are durable and long lasting as well as virtually maintenance free. They offer tons of remodeling benefits like the ability to be installed over almost any type of existing roof system and the wide array of color options and styles that can be used to match any home style.

Standing seam metal roofs have become popular in parts of the country that present harsh weather conditions such as the Deep South, where conditions are hot and humid for many months of the year. They are also admired by northerners because of their ability to withstand heavy snow and wind loads.

Some of the other advantages of significant value are the fire resistant properties and the universal styling that enables blending to almost any home's design. Metal roofs offer what many believe to be the perfect styles for upscale homes as well as homes of lesser value, such as mobile homes. The most popular of any style is the standing seam metal roof, which has been used throughout the world on almost every type of home imaginable.

A standing seam roof is constructed of many interlocking panels that run vertically from the roof's ridge (the top of the roof) to the eave. The interlocking seam where two panels join together is raised above the roof's flat surface, allowing water to run off without seeping between panels.

Standing seam roofs come in many shapes and sizes. In some instances, the vertical panels are cut to length at a factory and delivered to the job site. Metal panels can also be made at the job using portable metal fabrication equipment. Other options include standing seam "shingles" that arrive prepackaged (typically in three to five-foot lengths) and are installed in a staggered pattern for visual effect.

Two types of methods are commonly used to secure the panels to the roof sheathing. Hidden fasteners are secured to the raised portion of each panel, and subsequently covered by the next adjoining panel during installation. The second (and less costly) method utilizes exposed fasteners that are driven through each metal panel into the roof sheathing.

Now we can discuss how standing seam metal roofs are constructed. Let's assume the metal roof panels are going to be formed on the jobsite instead of in a metal fabricators shop or factory.

The metal roof panels are made individually to accommodate the required length. This reduces jobsite waste, as short and long panels can be cut to the appropriate length. To form the interlocking panes, a metal fabrication machine called a brake is used to shape metal into various designs.

A sharp-toothed hydraulic shear cuts each panel to the appropriate length without damaging the panel ends. Although some hand trimming is involved, the panels are formed and cut to length and ready to install in just a few minutes.

The New Paradigm in Business Philanthropy Monkey Jungle and Zip Line Adventures

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Monkey Jungle and Zip Line Adventures is a new concept in self-sustaining, charitable giving.

- It is the first business in the world in which all its profits, all, are assigned to help the poor. This is business philanthropy at its highesta binding together of business and charity to become one.

How is this accomplished?

Firstly, there is Monkey Jungle the business, an eco-adventure tourist attraction in Sosua on the north coast of the Dominican Republic, eight miles (13 kilometers) back in the country, and not far from Cabarete.

Adventure

- Guests play and interact with 13 squirrel monkeys, plus 7 new babies, while feeding them organic fruit in a two-acre jungle grotto on a 250 acre organic farm from whence comes their food. This is particularly a great adventure for children to get closer to nature while having a lot of fun.

- Seven zip lines, each with its own dramatic view, criss-cross the ranchs hills and valleys.

The zip lines are certified by the Association for Challenge Course Technology (ACCT) in the United States and are the only ones in the Dominican Republic with double cables for extra safety, thus exceeding most everybodys standards of safety. This falls in line with the old maxim: a craftsman is man who does a job better than most people think worth doing.

- Guests can also dine on a lunch of hamburgers made with Monkey Jungles own, grass-fed, organic beef. (If you go to Whole Foods or Trader Joes you buy organic or grass fed, not both. And when it is grass fed, the last six weeks the animal is in a lot being fed corn. Not so with the MJ ranchit is grass fed up to the moment it is slaughtered. And tender. The whole thing is tender because of the way it is slaughtered.)

All the water used on the premises is from a tested well that is toxin-free of both human pollution and the run off of toxic, synthetic agricultural chemicals. It is pure, like nature intended.

Treating the Staff Right

All the workers get an above-average salary. When most of them started work, they had no motor cycles, the common form of transportation for the poor. Now most of them do. They all get a free hot lunch daily.

The seven-member, zip-line guide team get free housing: private bed rooms, a common kitchen, a living room with flat screen TV, two showers and two toilets. All have a dramatic view of the rain forest, rolling hills and the fields of the organic farm.

It is an understatement to say the staff gets treated well.

Clinic for the Poor

- The second half of the partnership is the on-site, absolutely free clinic for the poor consisting of medical, dental and eye services. All the profits of the business go to the organizing charity, which is the Haitian and Dominican Assistance Corporation, a 501c3 non-profit corporation

The clinic staff consists of a paid Dominican doctor, eye examiner, dentist and manager. Volunteers include a second dentist, two registered nurses and eight assistants who tend to 150 poor every Saturday. When appropriate, patients get free medicine from the on-premise pharmacy run by a volunteer, retired pharmacist.

All this volunteering leaves more money to purchase the US$250,000 inventory of medicines that treat diabetes, high cholesterol, heart conditions, kidney ailments and a host of physical ailments that plague humanity.

- The founders and corporate officers of this new, combined business and philanthropic enterprise are Candy and Chuck Ritzen. They take no salary or money from the business or clinics for personal needs. None.

It is not a give-back situation: Because it takes nothing.

Author's Bio:

D. O. Christian Rieger has traveled half way around the world, from Maui, to Morocco to Mauritius and about 300 places in between. From 1964 to 1973 he wrote articles about futures markets, gold and international trade for Investment Dealers Digest. For more information, photos and videos, visit www.monkeyjungledr.com and www.youtube.com/user/MonkeyJungleDR?feature=mhee.

The Park - A short story about self-image

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The other day I was reflecting on lifes journey. In my youth I had looked at life as a straight path. My goal was always clear in my mind as to my spiritual direction. Then, as the saying goes, life happened? Now, in my forties, I sense that life is more like a maze than a straight path. Certain turns do lead to dead ends. At first I looked at these missteps as time lost. Today, however, I see them as valuable, even sacred, steps in what constitutes my path?

These days my path is quite challenging. In my personal life, events are transpiring that require all my available spiritual, emotional, and physical strength. To be honest, at certain moments, I have felt unequal to the challenge. So, to reflect on what was and perhaps even to regain the strength and fortitude of youth, it occurred to me to visit my childhood home and stomping grounds. This visit was to become an awakening lesson in perspectives.

First, I first drove by my childhood home. I had to stop along the side of the road and marvel at the sight of it. It looked so small, obviously having shrunk in thirty-five years. I saw the windows to my and my older brothers rooms and reflected on all the good times we shared growing up. Playing Toss up and Tackle; sneaking into his room in the middle of the night to read juicy love letters from his girlfriends (Mission Impossible was a big TV hit at the time and I saw myself as a secret agent sneaking into enemy territory while they slept to read secret documents, which in fact they were); my brother almost burning down the kitchen trying to cook pizza for us when our parents were out.

Pulling away from my childhood home, I decided to make the long drive to the park where I used to play. Only it wasnt a long drive? but just a few blocks away--not even a quarter of a mile! I had to laugh as I parked my car, remembering how long the walk seemed to me when I was a child.

Of course, the park had drastically altered in my absence. Gone was the main attraction, THE SLIDE: That simple structure of metal that became the barometer of courage for generations of little boys and girls trying to become masters of their own confusing, ever-changing worlds.

Now, its hard to estimate how tall the slide actually was. No doubt it wasnt the hundred-foot image I had of it as a child. Whatever its actual size, at that time, it was daunting to my friends and me. Access to this particular slide was gained by climbing up a ladder to a platform. This platform provided a path to two slides at right angles to each other. Conquering the slide was accomplished in stages that were well followed by your playground peers. It was a process that took many years and each stage was a rite of passage.

Stage one consisted of being able to climb the ladder without mommy or daddy being directly behind you. Stage two was accomplished by climbing back up to the platform by scampering up the slide instead of using the ladder. Stage three meant sitting on wax paper as you slid down the slide--a truly scary experience the first few times (Indeed, warp speed had yet to enter our vocabulary, but if it had we certainly would have used it).

Next came the courage to climb over the railing on the platform and slide down the center support pole like a fireman. The fifth and final test was reversing that process by climbing back up the pole and maneuvering yourself onto the platform. Not something for the faint of heart, as at one point you are dangling off the edge of the platform as you prepare to swing a leg up to secure a hold.

As I sat on the park bench I marveled at the intensity of my struggles to master THE SLIDE. It consumed me and I must admit a lot of my self-image at the time hinged on my success or failure at the various stages. I wished I could somehow go back in time and tell my little boy self? that he is something greater than his perceived successes and failures. To not waste life by judging his worth by whether he is keeping up with his peers or not. Then it occurred to me that perhaps in thirty-five years I would look back at my current struggles in the same light. My self-image is certainly being affected now by my current successes and failures. Perhaps, now too, I am something more.

I left the park much lighter in spirit and with a smile upon my face. Life is indeed a beautiful journey.

The Spooky History Of Halloween

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Interesting facts about Halloween Halloween is a popular celebration, celebrated in Autumn in the northern hemisphere and spring in the southern hemisphere. Wearing scary costumes, carving pumpkins, trick-or-treating and Halloween-themed decorating are all fun traditions partaken on the day. But, how did Halloween came to life? When did this kind of celebration start?
The custom of celebrating Halloween started back in the days when the ancient Celts were roaming Britain and other areas in Europe. It was first known as Samhain (meaning Summers End) and was celebrated at the end of the summer, a time of year when the Celts believed that the line between the real world and the world of ghosts and spirits got significantly thinner. When this happened, the ancient Celts thought that the creatures of the other world, which possessed all sorts of strange powers, had the chance to walk into our world. The Celts would blacken their faces and dress up in white costumes to trick their dead ancestors into thinking they were also spirits, allowing them some level of safety on the night when the dead returned.

From the Celts, the holiday passed to the Christians, bearing the name of All Hallows Eve, which was the day celebrated before the 1st of November, before All Saints Day. Even though the ancient Celtic holiday got governed by a different religion, the power of spirits still existed in peoples minds and they were both respected and feared. In order to protect themselves and their livestock and gain benevolence from the spirits, people used to offer them food, drink, and even portions of their crops. It was believed that the spirits of people that passed away returned to their homes, in search of hospitality so extra places were set at the table and by the fire, making the spirits feel welcome once they returned.

The carved pumpkin became a symbol of Halloween, although it wasnt the first vegetable used during this celebration - in Scotland and Ireland turnips were carved. The North American immigrants introduced the pumpkin as it was much larger, softer and generally easier to carve figures and lanterns. The first recordings of pumpkin carvings in America date back to 1973 and it was initially associated with the period of the harvest and not with Halloween. The first association between Halloween and the carved pumpkin happened during the 19th century.

Another favourite Halloween custom trick-or-treating began in the Middle Ages where both children and adults would dress up and go begging door to door for food in exchange for songs and prayers. A popular song they would use is: A soul! a soul! a soul-cake! Please good Missis, a soul-cake! An apple, a pear, a plum, or a cherry, Any good thing to make us all merry. One for Peter, two for Paul Three for Him who made us all.

The trick part of trick-or-treating began when children, who were dressed in disguise, saw an opportunity to extort money and treats through fear of reprise. But, as one newspaper reported in 1927, the acts were nothing more than strenuous fun with just a few missing wagon wheels and barrels which were later recovered in the streets outside.

Today, Halloween is celebrated in many places around the world. Children still dress as ghosts and spirits but Halloween costumes can now be anything from super heroes to fairies its more about the dressing up and less about spirits crossing over. Many traditions have remained however, including the carving of the Halloween pumpkin, decorating and trick-or-treating for sweets.

Happy Samhain, All Hallows Eve & Halloween!

Festive Gifts @ Byron Bay Gifts