Create Your Own Marble Stationary

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Easy to follow instructions for creating your own stationary.

Personalized stationary is a great way to show off your penmanship and writing skills. Whether your sending letters, updating a resume, or making Christmas stationary, creating your own personalized stationary sets you apart from everyone else.


So how do you create your own marble stationary? By mixing a combination of oil-based paints of various colors and paint thinner floating on water, paper placed in the water absorbs a mix of colors that resembles marble.


Mix the Paint You’ll need a rectangular metal cake pan about four inches deep to create marble stationary. First pour in a half inch of water into the cake pan.


Now gather together four or more colors of oil-based paint that resemble marble. Mix about two drops of paint per two drops of turpentine into a glass bowl or cup until you have a smooth consistency. Drip a few drops of the mixed paint into the water. You’ll notice that it spreads across the top of the surface. Repeat the same steps with the next colors.


Craft Tip: Mix the oil-based paint solution and water with a stir stick, ONE TIME! Over mixing the solution will result in a muddy look to the paint. If the paint gets muddy, use a paper towel to remove the paint from the water.


Apply the Paper Take the paper by each end and bend it slightly so as the center of the paper touches the surface of the water first. Allow the two ends to lay into the water.


Immediately remove the paper with a pair of tongs or use your hands covered with latex gloves. Place the paper onto an old piece of newspaper and allow the excess water to drain out. Place another sheet of old newspaper over the marble stationary, using a heavy object like a book to press the papers together.


After a few hours, remove the marble stationary from between the old newspapers then hang it up, allowing it to dry for 24 hours. Once the marble stationary is dry, it may be wrinkled. Use two books to sandwich the marble paper between them to press them flat.


Craft Tip: For more intense colors, don’t sandwich the paper between newspapers. Allow it to dry “as is” on top of an old sheet of newspapers. You can do about 2-3 sheets of marble stationary before the paint runs out of the water and you have to reload the paint into the tray. Use a paper towel to remove any “mud” colored paint from the tray before reloading it with paint.

How to Build an Adirondack Chair

Complete plans and blueprints for building an outdoor all-wood Adirondack chair.

As far as outdoor and patio furniture goes, the Adirondack chair is a classic. With its deep bucket like seat and its fan shaped back, this chairs design makes it completely distinguishable from all other outdoor or patio furniture.


Building your own Adirondack chair from simple pressure treated 2x4’s requires just a few basic skills and you don’t need very many power tools. In fact, a circular saw, jig saw and screw gun are all of the tools that are required to complete this fantastic woodworking project that makes a fine addition to any porch or outdoor gathering.


The materials list for this job is just as short. You’ll need just one ten foot 2x12 and ten eight foot 2x4’s, all pressure treated lumber. Of course you’re not limited to just pressure treated lumber. The more expensive cedar is a great wood for outdoor patio furniture. As long as you treat the wood with some kind of sealant, you should be able to use nearly any wood you want. Don’t forget to get a box of 2 ½” galvanized wood screws to secure the whole project together.


Begin by cutting the 2x12 into three pieces 30” long. Cut one according to the blueprint for the front, then use a jig saw to create an arch. Use a string, nail and a pencil to trace the arch.


Now use the other two 30” pieces of the 2x12 to create each leg. Using the same string, nail and pencil, trace another arch on each board, just like you did with the front piece. Turn the 2x12 to a 45 degree angle to match the drawing and make the arches peak hit the top center of the 2x12. Now make a duplicate mark 5 ½” below the first arch. Square up the ends and cut out using a circular saw for the square cuts and a jig saw for the curved cuts.


Cut the remaining 2x4’s according to the measurements listed on the blueprints. You can sand, router or dress up your chair anyway you like at this time. Paint, stain or varnish should also be applied at this time.


Start the Adirondack chair assembly by screwing together the two outside legs and the front face arch with two screws at each point of attachment. Finish the basic structure by inserting the back support piece 13” from the bottom of the leg to the top of the arch.


Now attach each leg to the structure with three screws in each leg 11” from the bottom of the leg to the bottom of the arch leg. You may need to adjust these two measurements depending on how steep you may have cut each arch leg.


Next, attach each one of the back pieces that make up the fan shaped seatback using two screws in each board. Start with the center board first attaching it to the center of the back support piece. Add the two back support pieces with one screw into each fan-shaped seatback.


Finish the project by attaching the seat boards and the two armrests. Cut a simple notch on each armrest and using one screw attach it from the side of the armrest into the side of the fan-shaped seatback.

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5 Great Ways to Save Energy on Earth Day

Participate in Earth Day and save energy and money throughout the year

You exist. The population grows. Resources dwindle. While alternative resources lay in the distance, it is critical to be conservative to our current forms of energy.


Earth Hour Day is a recently instituted day in which participants can illustrate their awareness of global warming via cutting the power for an hour. This day of awareness is organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).


The WWF, along with the help of The Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney’s energy was reduced by 2 percent for an hour on March 31, 2007, 7:30 p.m.


35 other countries participated on March 29th, 2008. Many landmark cities turned off their non-essential lighting such as the Golden Gate Bridge in California and the Empire State Building in New York. Over 36 million people participated in Earth Hour 2008.


More energy was saved in 2009, when 88 more countries and 4,000 more cities joined Earth Day on March 29th. In Ireland, 700,000 lights worth of energy went out for an hour. In Sweden, Earth Hour dropped energy use by 5 percent for the hour. Toronto saved 15 percent of their average energy use for the hour.


Earth Hour Day 2010 will be held March 27, 2010, 9:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.


You can participate Earth Hour day and everyday of the year with these 5 easy energy saving tips:


1. Turn off Excessive Lights. Is your kitchen light on while you are in the living room? Do you need five light bulbs in your fixture? While many elegant light fixtures come with multiple settings for light, consider your room’s size when determining the amount of required light. A one light fixture will make a less pricy electric bill. If you do insist on multi light fixtures, opt for florescent bulbs that save energy with a lower wattage.


2. Secure your Insulation. Examine your home for cracks and holes in walls, ceilings, doors, windows, everywhere. Any place where air can escape or enter will hinder your energy conservation. Whether you are trying to push hot air in, or out, you will waste energy if you have to combat with the weather.

3. Unplug inactive appliances. Your gadgets can consume energy even when not in use. Plasma TVs, entertainment centers, your cell phone charger, all consume energy if they are not unplugged. A computer on standby could use the same amount of power as a refrigerator.


4. Save Water. Gallons of water consumed by many people each week are wasted. Try to take quicker showers. If you want to enjoy the water go to a pool or local body of water. Fill your dishwasher as full as reasonably possible before washing your dishes. Installing faucet aerators and low-pressure shower heads could cut water use by 50 percent.


5. Preserve Your Gas. Car companies are making great strides towards more fuel efficient cars. Whether you drive a gas guzzler or a smart car, you can make an attempt to get all of your errand done at once and in a logical geographical order so you save as much gas and money as possible.


The more the world is populated, the greener everyone must strive to be. Participating in earth day and using energy saving tips throughout the year saves the earth’s resources and your money.



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How to Paint or Stain Your Deck

Painting or staining your deck is easy with these quick lessons and great advice on how to paint your deck.

Painting or staining a wood deck is a great way to keep it looking new for years to come as it protects the wood from damaging sun and rain. It brightens up the look of the standard “green” that is known as pressure treated lumber with any color of your choice to match any number of themes, designs or motifs you may have or want on your outdoor deck.


While painting or staining a deck may be ascetically pleasing, it helps also protects the lumber from the elements as well as protecting you from harmful chemicals that may leach out of pressure treated lumber and into your yard, water supply or skin. Most new pressure treated material is made from less toxic versions of copper chromium arsenic, but older decks that may contain higher traces of arsenic would certainly benefit from a fresh coat of deck paint or stain.


Clean Your Deck Sweep all of the dirt and debris from the deck surface. If you have really built on mildew or mold, excessive dirt or a new deck you’ll need to pressure wash the deck first; just make certain it’s dry by allowing it to sit for at least 24 hours. Use a commercial deck scrub/wash made from oxygenated bleach to properly clean the deck. Use a stain sealer remover at this time if you have oil based paint or flaky, cracking or old paint. Add deck brightener as per directions and wash thoroughly.


Inside Tip: Use a pool brush with a long handle to easily and quickly scrub away stubborn stains. Don’t worry about small spots of old stain or paint that might not come off with a stain remover; when it dries you can easily scrap it off with a wire brush. Clean the deck with plenty of water to ensure all of the chemicals used in the cleaning process are washed away.


Applying Paint or Stain Before you start you’ll need a few good paintbrushes and rollers. Choosing between water-based paint and oil-based is really up to your preference. In different times water-based stains and paints were inferior in protective qualities compared to there oil-based counterparts. Because of severe environmental restrictions involving oil-based paints and stains, companies have had to focus there attention on developing better technologies with water-based paints and stains. In my opinion, many if not all water-based paints are equal to or superior to oil-based products.


While there are several ways to apply paint or stain to a deck, those being spraying, rolling and brushing, it is best to stick to using a roller and brush. Nothing penetrates those tiny cracks and crevices better than using a thick napped roller cover and a heavy brush.


Inside tip: Don’t over apply paint or stain, rather allow the wood to only absorb what it can. Too much paint or stain prevents the wood from breathing naturally and allowing small amounts of oxygen and water to pass through the wood. This creates humidity within the wood which cannot be released and will cause paint or stain to flake off or crack.