Archive for December, 2009

Area Rugs 101

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Area rugs are a great way to accentuate portions of a room and add to the mood and ambience of the interior decoration by harmonizing colors and shapes. Ideally, the primary colors of the rug should complement the wall, furniture, and furnishing colors. The rugs can be used to focus attention on another aspect of interior decoration or can be used as the center of attraction. Large, centrally placed medallion rugs garner maximum attention. Area rugs are available in a variety of materials, textures, and shapes.

Area rugs are an excellent combination of form and utility and beautifully crafted hand rugs are veritable works of art. Most handmade area rugs are made from fine quality wool that is capable of withstanding the rigors of heavy traffic and regular cleanings. High quality handmade area rugs may have a density of 750 knots per square inch and above.

Area rugs have evolved into unique shapes and designs all over the world. Oval braided rugs have history dating back to the colonial period in the U.S. They are popular even today and oval braided rugs in shades such as brown, blue, or green lend a rustic feel to a room. Area rugs can also have a luxurious lush pile in warm colors that accentuate a feeling of cozy comfort. Mexican rugs and dhurries from India can alter the tone of an arrangement of furniture such that it acquires a characteristic distinct from the rest of the room.

Area rugs require to be taken care of and if the rug is not too bulky, it can be taken to the cleaners who have the expertise of handling area rugs made from different materials. Care should be taken that furniture is not placed on the newly washed wet rugs otherwise the rugs will carry permanent marks. Spills should be diluted with water and brushed gently from outside to the center.
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Initially, sewing machines were manufactured for garment factory production lines, allowing for clothing to become uniformly mass-produced. It was French tailor Barthelemy Thimonnier who invented the first functioning sewing machine in 1830 for use in his garment factory.

This original machine used only one thread and a hooked needle for a chain stitch. His factory was burnt down and he was nearly killed by an angry mob of French tailors who were afraid his machines would leave them unemployed. A few years later in America, Walter Hunt shared the same fears, and abandoned the work to patent his own version of a straight-seam sewing machine. The fears were unfounded, as industrial sewing machines created multiple job opportunities worldwide.
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Battery powered chainsaws are fairly rare in the United States, but if you are interested in a battery powered chainsaw you can find them. It may take some digging to do. There is one brand currently being offered that claims a single chain blade can cut 4,000 pieces of PVC pipe with only a small amount of oil required.

This saw has a chain tip guard to prevent kickback and extend chain life. The electric brake stops within ½ second of releasing the trigger. It also has hand guards. A hex wrench allows for rapid blade changes and adjustments.

The chain guard allows fast entry to the blade and motor housing area. The 12 V.N1-MH battery gives you a longer operating time. You can buy an optional handle if you will need a longer reach. This 4.6 pound dynamo cuts through a variety of PVC piping diameters.
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Antique wood cook stoves can be found in many specialist stove restoration stores both online and offline, and are surprisingly popular even now in the early 21st century. Many stoves originally built in the 1800s or early 1900s are still used today having been fully restored and refurbished. The question is, why use an antique stove?

Firstly, we should explain exactly what a wood cook stove actually is. A wood burning cook stove is a traditional cooking appliance which requires no external electricity supply and which rather than using gas, electricity or other fossil fuels can operate purely by burning natural wood. This wood for your wood burning cook stove can be bought from a hardwood supplier or even chopped yourself from your own timber supplies.

An antique wood cook stove could be defined as one which is not just a piece designed for show or created simply to look historically accurate, but something which is original, did once work and preferably is still in working order today. Again though we are left with the question, why use an antique wood cook stove in preference to more convenient modern stove and cooking systems?

Firstly many antique stoves are bought by working farms, country and historic houses or simply to complete a period home or kitchen. In many cases antique stoves are used because they match the period during which the home or kitchen was first constructed, or because the absolute authenticity of all the fixtures and fittings in the building is a key selling point for a particular business. Many antiques are of course bought by museums for display purposes only, and many of these are not in working order.
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