Parlez-vous Françes? Don't worry - you don't need to speak French in order to enjoy the bright, comfortable and classic style of French Country in your home. From weathered walls to wide wooden tables, it is not hard to achieve the French Country look using the following guidelines.French Country style is all about well-used, worn-in, imperfect but beautiful architectural elements, furniture and accessories. Forget sleek lines, fine china, and black, white and gray color combos. Instead, fill your house with chunky wood tables, dozens of sweet-smelling flowers, and brightly patterned couches, curtains and pillows styled after the look of Provence, the southeast region in France that borders the Mediterranean Sea.

When choosing a French Country style home, think along the lines of cracked wood beams, curved panels, hand-carved decorations and raw material flooring and walls, like stone or exposed brick. Raw or distressed wood also can be used to cultivate a French Country atmosphere, as do uneven plaster walls.Don't worry about that spider crack in the paint in your kitchen, or the slight discoloration of the paint in your bedroom or living room. In French Country "speak", these imperfections simply add character.Other French Country architectural features include shutters for your windows, narrow, deeply cut window sills, and striped fabric awnings over windows to afford the home dweller extra protect from the heat.But what if you just want to add some French Country flair to the home you already have, without changing its walls, floors and windows? No sweat. Rustic furniture is a key element to the French Country style.

Think oversized rectangle or round wooden dining room tables, with a dull waxed or natural finish.Chairs and occasional tables of the French Country style can be curved or boast carved designs in the woodwork. Dining room chairs can have a ladderback style or vertical slats. Also, large armoires are well-suited to the French Country look, giving the owner a nice cool place to store dishes, linens, or even clothing.Finally, achieve that French Country style with the perfect fabrics and accessories that have that certain je ne sais quoi. Use toile material, a gauzy linen or cotton, in white, cream or yellow with bright Pulley Powder Metal Parts for sale contrasting colors. Choose themes such as monkeys, Chinese patterns, and eighteenth century courting scenes, all of which are predominant in French Country design.Large, thickly woven baskets, chunky clay or old metal pitchers, Chinoiserie pottery, and iron garden shelving units all fit in nicely with the French Country look.

So do ceramic plates, tiles, tablecloths and curtains sporting motifs of roosters, sunflowers, beetles or lavender. Save money by hunting for these and other accessories at flea markets and antique stores.The final touch needed to makeover your home in the style of French Country is the addition of flowers. Fresh sunflowers, lavender, and geraniums especially all say "French Country", and the more the better!Put flowers in old pitchers or copper pots, in window boxes, and glass vases. Use a variety of colors, and make sure the arrangements don't look too tame or stylized. Natural grasses are another way to bring the French Country look into you home.Whether you decide to go full out, adding wood beams and stone flooring to your home, or whether you just add a nice chunky wooden dining room table, carved chairs, or a roomy armoire to your existing furniture, the French Country look can be achieved by anyone who wants to bring a little of the Provence countryside into his or her everyday life.

Solid lumber is the traditional upholstered furniture frame material—used because it is easily worked, relatively inexpensive, readily available, and is durable and long lasting in use.Classic traditional joint construction is one of the ways to judge high quality upholstery, and solid hardwood frame components is another. The joint may have "lap joint" construction—where the end of each piece is cut away by 50% and then "lapped' over the adjacent piece to provide more gluing surface (look at your kitchen or bathroom drawer sides-to see a common use of this joint technique). Additionally, the strongest, most rapid setting glues contain volatile chemicals to create the strong bonds necessary between the veneer sheets.com to see a selection of eco-friendly living room furniture which are all made with classic traditional construction methods for maximum durability as well as long term comfort. The complex shapes found in traditional upholstered furniture lend themselves to the use of the easily shaped wood and the traditional joinery techniques used in the furniture industry and well known to generations of wood workers.

The joint depends completely on the glue strength for its security. For dowel joints—the two mating parts are aligned and then a hole drilled in to each part so a round dowel or multiple dowels can be inserted. It is strong and can be made in a number of standard thicknesses so the parts can be engineered for maximum efficiency based on calculated strengths necessary.Plywood has become a substitute for lumber, especially in less expensive upholstery, it comes in standard sheets so multiple pattern cuts can be engineered to reduce waste and maximize the amount of usable parts from each sheet. They are solid wood and plywood. The two that require the most precision and are the strongest are dowel joints and mortise and tenon joints. The primary drawback to plywood in this use is that while it is extremely strong across the face of the board, and has excellent twist and sag resistance, the edges of the plywood, which will inevitably be connected in joints, and have screws, nails, or staples installed, is the weak point of the plywood panel.

In lower priced upholstery there are some frame construction techniques that are much faster for production and take less skill to make—though they do not provide the durability of the traditional woodworking joints. The advantage of this joint for furniture production is that the parts to not have to be as accurately machined and aligned. The frame is the foundation of the piece and must not only provide the base to which all the upholstered components are applied, but it must stand up to many years of use in your home,--- the rough-housing teens, the Saturday afternoon naps as well as the ladies tea parties—so having a living room furniture frame that will "support' your family for many years is the reason to ask how the frame is made. You are invited to visit the website. Mortise and tenon joints are similar in that the rectangular tenon is typically shaped on to the end of one of the mating pieces and a rectangular slot (mortise) is cut in to the other piece.

Fiberboard and flakeboard are also used in some promotional frames, but most manufacturers use lumber frames, plywood frames or some combination of the two materials. The dowels are then glued in place to hold the parts in perfect alignment even when treated roughly. Both these techniques require some skill and precision in the furniture manufacturing process. It is true that metal is used in some frame parts. China Injection Molding Powder Metallurgy Copper-Based Parts Suppliers The fastening materials are going into the end grain and edges of the veneer sheets that make up the plywood panel where there is no engineered strength. These non-eco-friendly adhesives contribute to indoor air pollution and have been restricted in many locales—and more to come.There are a number of traditional furniture joinery methods used in making upholstery frames. The tenon slips in to the mortise and glued in place so that the joint is strong and secure. Upholstery manufacturers who make "production line" pieces often use long staples to join frame parts together—glue is used on the joints as well on the plain ends of the joined parts and the staples hold the joint until the glue sets.

Lightweight synthetics, for example, dry much more quickly than bath towels and cotton robes. Solid food build up can clog the drain, causing the dishwasher to use more energy in the wash process.-- Wash most clothes in warm or cold water - and always select cold for the rinse. China Custom MIM products Powder Metal Parts Manufacturers8232;
And there's power and cold cash to be saving in coming clean on your home's # major systems and appliances. (Detergent and bleach work best in warmer water but any temperature rinse will wash away suds. If not, replace it.-- Read the laundry detergent directions - use only the amount recommended.After all, a clean, lubricated properly adjusted furnace can save you up to 5 percent of heating costs.3 Laundry RoomThese tips are designed to save energy and cash without sacrificing clean shirts and socks:Washing Machine.

Set the water heater thermostat at 120 F.Now the good news: While we can't do much about a volatile economy, we can control the amount of energy our homes are using.) Use hot water only if absolutely necessary to kill germs or mold and mildew.. Skip the flexible vinyl duct - it restricts air flow, is easily crushed and may not withstand high temperatures from the dryer. Accumulated dust and lint can reduce cooling performance - which translates to higher energy usage.-- Check and clean the dishwasher drain. The hot air will make your cooling system work harder.-- Clean the lint filter after every load.Other Tips-- Keep heat-producing appliances like washers, dryers and refrigerators away from your thermostat.-- Select settings carefully.

The harder your fridge has to work to keep food chilled, the more energy is required.-- Presoak or us the soak cycle when washing heavily soiled garments.-- Check the outside dryer exhaust vent periodically to see that it closes tightly. Forced-air heating system filters should be replaced monthly during the heating season, unless they are metallic-mesh electrostatic filters, in which case they should be cleaned.-- Dry in batches (two or more loads in a row) to take advantage of the already-warm dryer drum. Over-sudsing makes your machine work harder.-- Gas-fired heating systems need to be checked every other year.-- Clean or replace filters as needed.Save money by cleaning? With the economy teetering on the brink of full-blown recession, it's time to rethink - when - or if - to use your home's big appliances and systems.-- Regularly pull the refrigerator away from the wall and vacuum or sweep away lingering lint, dust and stray crumbs. Separate clothes and dry similar types together. Switching the washer temperature setting from hot to warm could reduce a load's energy use by half.

Heating and Cooling SystemsRegular maintenance, whether by you or a professional, is essential to keeping these systems running at peak performance. Remove the toe grille and vacuum the coils underneath with the hose nozzle; roll away from the wall to clean the coils behind.-- Dry only full loads as small loads waste energy. Delicate clothes don't need as long a wash cycle as the children's dirty play clothes.-- Oil-fired boilers should be professionally cleaned and tuned once a year.-- Regularly defrost manual-defrost units; don't allow frost to build up more than 1/4 inch.Clothes Dryer-- Make sure your dryer is vented properly.1 The RefrigeratorTo keep the fridge chilling nicely and efficiently:-- Clean the coils every three months or so. Each 10-degree reduction will cut the cost of washing clothes by up to 13 percent. While owners' manuals provide the most specific information on maintaining appliances and heating and cooling systems, this list will show you how a little cleaning time can save you a (mildly) shocking amount of energy and money. 

The butt joint is the simplest joint to make since it merely involves cutting the wood to the appropriate length and butting them together.If you are passionate about poker, and are looking to build or purchase a custom chip case to house your chips, consider incorporating a few woodworking extras to take it up a notch. The strength, flexibility, and toughness of wooden joints derive from the properties of the joining materials and from how they are used in the joints. Usually, the panel is not glued to the frame - it is left to 'float' within it so that seasonal movement of the wood comprising the panel does not distort the frame or crack to wood. You need to mill the plywood edge that fits in the dado of your project. Veneer is cost effective and strong, however, it can blister, delaminate, or peel back at the edges. The glass can be left clear to display of your chips, or etched with a decorative design or perhaps the name of your home casino. It is also the weakest because it relies upon glue alone to hold it together. Here are a few design recommendations that will make an ordinary wooden chip case extraordinary. Also, since veneer is glued to a plywood or medium density fiberboard substrate the edges must be covered.

Veneer plywood is usually not available in exotic woods.Use Inlays to Step it Up a NotchInlay is a decorative technique of inserting pieces of colored materials into depressions in a base object to form patterns or pictures. The advantages of using solid wood include durability, strength, and practicality. Foreign veneers are thinner still and can be tough to saw without splintering, and sand without destroying.-made hardwood plywood has face veneers averaging 1/30? in thickness. Noted for its resistance to being pulled apart (tensile strength), the dovetail joint is commonly used to join the sides of a drawer to the front.. In woodworking, veneer refers to thin slices of wood, usually thinner than 3 mm (1/8 inch), that are typically glued onto core panels (typically, wood, particle board or medium density fiberboard) to produce flat panels for cabinets, parquet floors and furniture. Therefore, different joinery techniques are used to meet differing requirements. Veneer panels also can vary in thickness from their stated dimension due to the foreign origin of much of this material and the resulting metric thickness measurement. Using this technique can create a one-of-a-kind piece suitable for display.A butt joint is a joinery technique in which two pieces of wood are joined by simply butting them together. Because the orientation of the wood usually presents only an end grain to long grain gluing surface, the resulting joint is inherently weak. Use Dovetail Joints not Butt JointsJoinery involves joining together pieces of wood, to create furniture, structures, toys, and other items.

The same technique can be used with a glass insert instead of a wood panel. Once glued, a wooden dovetail joint requires no mechanical fasteners.Inlay is frequently used in production of decorative furniture, where pieces of colored wood or metal are inserted into the veneer. You should especially avoid any type of Oil finish such as Tung or Danish oil, as these oils can penetrate into the clay poker chip over time. If you really want a good-fitting joint, the solution requires extra work. U.A dovetail joint is a joint technique most commonly used in woodworking joinery. The joints have to be strong, or the case will fall apart under the weight. Inlays frequently use wood veneer, but other materials like stone or shell may also be used. Some species, such as black walnut, are sliced thinner, to 1/32?.So whether you are building or purchasing a custom wooden poker chip case to house your chips, consider incorporating these few little extras to take it up a notch and make your ordinary wooden case extraordinary.Inlay differs from marquetry, a similar technique, in that marquetry is applied over an entire surface of an object, whereas inlay consists of small pieces inserted into cut spaces in the base material. Polyurethane or a non-soluble varnish is an ideal choice, as it does not stain or seep into your chips.

When designing a poker chip case, you again have to take into account the weight of the chips.Use a Polyurethane not Oil FinishOne thing to consider when finishing a wooden chip case is to use a chip friendly finish. There are also numerous exotic wood types to choose from. The basic idea is to capture a 'floating' panel within a sturdy frame, as opposed to techniques like slab drawer fronts which are simply single pieces of material with exposed end grains. A series of pins cut to extend from the end of one board interlock with a series of tails cut into the end of another board. Use Solid Wood not VeneerWhen designing a poker chip case, you have to take into account the weight of the chips, which can approach 50 lbs for a 1000 poker chip case.Frame and panel construction (also called "rail and stile") is a woodworking technique commonly used in the making of doors, wainscoting, and other decorative features China Custom Disc hub core Powder Metal Parts Manufacturers for cabinets and furniture. Hardwood plywood veneer selection is often limited, and you may have to special-order and still be limited to a dozen or so of the most common wood types.S. The variation in thickness also impacts your joints.Use a Raised Panel or Glass Top Adding a decorative lid to your poker chip case can also create a unique custom effect. 

Another big tip! If you've left the smoker outside uncovered, check to make sure the lava rocks are dry. Put a match to the paper in the bottom and the draft of the "chimney" will make the coals burn. As far as I know, you just can't do that with today's grills. I prefer charcoal smokers of course, but I've had excellent results with electric smokers also. Stick with charcoal lighter. It's best to stay with prescribed fuels that don't stink. Smoking takes awhile, so give it the time it deserves!. I use both in my back yard barbequing.Outdoor cooking isn't for everyone. I think it is just a ploy to get the men out of the house for a while. Some folks even think there is a secret ingredient that I haven't shared with anyone! I usually smoke three or four Boston butts at a time.First rule! If you're using charcoal and you're using a liquid lighter, know what you are dousing on those briquettes!

It is really not the volume of the whoooomp that determines whether your coals will burn consistently. If so, don't plug in the heating iron! It's not a wise move because you will blow the iron up! Drain the water out of the base first, let the lava rocks dry, then have a safe barbeque. I salt and pepper the meat liberally, and then put the lid back on the smoker and I'm finished for about an hour. It's PATIENCE! Allow yourself enough time to cook the meat thoroughly. The costs are going to range from roughly $75 to $500 depending on the one you choose. that the people he feeds will appreciate the food he has cooked. I think most of them are good, but you can usually get just as much satisfaction from a cheap one instead of the high priced smokers. One big tip! Never use kerosene to start your charcoal! No matter how long you let your charcoal burn, no matter how much more briquettes on the coals, your rib eyes will have that subtle aroma and taste of kerosene. You have to have a smoker. Never use gasoline, lacquer thinner, lantern fluid or any of those things that will blow you out of your shoes. First I load the coal pan with charcoal, and then use a charcoal lighter fluid to start the coals. That's the way outdoor cooking is supposed to be; a man conquering the elements!Really, cooking on a gas grill is a nice and comfortable way to grill steaks, chickens, burgers, chops and vegetables. We are a society of instant gratification.

The ladies give them the idea that cooking on the grill is almost important as breathing, especially if it's done by him! That will get the guy outside with his chest puffed up, carrying a can of charcoal starter and a match. It seems that women had rather stay in the kitchen.Smokers, both electric and charcoal, are set up pretty much in the same way.Most of the outdoor chefs I've run across are men. Some chefs soak the hickory in water for thirty minutes or so before adding them to the coals. Most people do not do that. You don't have to worry about the whooomp either! The heating iron works well but it's just not the same as seeing flames shoot as high as your house. You only get that with a liquid lighter that you're not supposed to use in the first place.Let's talk about charcoal grills versus gas grills. Just plug it into an outlet, let it get red hot and stick it under the charcoal. Simply pour a little water in the can, set the can on the lava rocks in the bottom of the smoker, and when starts to simmer, you have hickory, cherry or pecan steam permeating your Boston butt! This is the city folks' way of making barbeque. You could use one of the instant light charcoals if you wish, but just make sure than when you add charcoal, you use the regular briquettes or your meat will taste funny. The ones that I use are tall round ones that have a trap door opening on the side so you can add charcoal or water in the water bowl. The dry wood smoking and burning will give you a mild taste of hickory, not the smell and taste of a burning barn! When the meat reaches 180 degrees on the meat the thermometer, take it off and tear it apart with forks. I prefer to lay the wood chunks on the live coals. You can add barbeque sauce at this time or serve it on the table. Next lay the meat on the two racks of the smoker. If we want something, we want it now! That just won't work when you're trying for the best tasting barbeque you can cook. Your grill will smell like a piece of construction equipment. Of course there is the prestige of getting one of those sleek, black ones with the chrome smoke pipes.

There are other methods to ignite your charcoal. This way separates the pork easily. Some even think there is a secret to my success when I cook a pork loin or Boston butts and wind up with some of the most delicious barbeque you have ever tasted. Gives you sort of a chill just to think of owning one of those, doesn't it?Meat smoked on an electric grill is great if you have some wood smoke flavor to make it tasty. It's easy.For three Boston butts, I usually let them cook for about 12 hours, adding charcoal and hickory chunks to the hot coals about every hour and China Powdered Metallurgy Stainless Steel Parts Company a half. Use the chimney type device where you put the charcoal in an inverted cone and push a couple of sheets of newspaper in the bottom.There is also the electric heating iron category of charcoal starters. If it has rained since your last cookout, chances are that the bottom of the smoker is covered in water. After the coals are lit and the flames have died, fill up the metal water bowl with about a quart of water.My personal favorite is the charcoal smoker. It doesn't take long to get a pile of charcoal glowing and shimmering with heat. It's just manlier to battle the flames and rescue a steak just in the nick of time, from being overly cooked. I know you can buy little cans of wood chips to add some character to your cooking. Boring! Maybe that's why I prefer charcoal. There is one ingredient so unique, so necessary to cooking good barbeque. Cooking with gas is almost like cooking on the gas stove in the kitchen. There are other kinds of course and you can find them at a hardware store or outdoor market place. This helps keep the meat moist. I have never been able to keep that apparatus around the house for more than a summer due to rust, being stepped on or having the neighbors' borrow it. Each time he (or she) steps out of his home into his back yard, armed with copper brush, tongs and forks; he faces a challenge to beat his best individual performance on the backyard grill. 

Approximately 1. This type of I. The foreign exchange market is the largest financial market in the world. during the Middle Ages also gained acceptance. The conference held in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire rejected John Maynard Keynes suggestion for a new world reserve currency in favor of a system built on the US Dollar. Ultimately, prices of commodities had hit bottom, appearing attractive to other nations, who would sprint into buying fury that injected the economy with gold until it increased its money supply, drive down interest rates and restore wealth into the economy. The obvious limitations of such a system encouraged establishing more generally accepted mediums of exchange.U.Near the end of World War II, the Bretton Woods agreement was reached on the initiative of the USA in July 1944. International institutions such as the IMF, The World Bank and GATT were created in the same period as the emerging victors of WWII searched for a way to avoid the destabilizing monetary crises leading to the war.The last few decades have seen foreign exchange trading develop into the world's largest global market. From 1931 until 1973, the FOREX market went through a series of changes.

Trade was carried among people of Africa, Asia etc through this system. Speculation hardly ever happened, and certainly the enormous speculative activity in the market today would have been frowned upon.While commercial companies have had to face a much more volatile currency environment in recent years, investors and financial institutions have discovered a new playground. It is estimated that more than USD 1,200 Billion are traded every day. However, for this type of gold exchange, there was not necessarily a Centrals bank need for full coverage of the government's currency reserves. The size of the FOREX market now dwarfs any other investment market.In Asia, the lack of sustainability of fixed foreign exchange rates has gained new relevance with the events in South East Asia in the latter part of 1997, where currency after currency was devalued against the US dollar, leaving other fixed exchange rates in particular in South America also looking very vulnerable.9 trillion dollars are traded daily in the foreign exchange market. They are credited with the first use of paper notes and receipts. In the 1980s, it became the key center in the Eurodollar market when British banks began lending dollars as an alternative to pounds in order to maintain their leading position in global finance.O. It was important that a common base of value could be established.In order to protect local national interests, increased foreign exchange controls were introduced to prevent market forces from punishing monetary irresponsibility. The FOREX exchange market initially worked under the central banks and the governmental institutions but later on it accommodated the various institutions, at present it also includes the dot com booms and the world wide web. However, the gold exchange standard had its weaknesses of boom-bust patterns.Before the First World war, most Central banks supported their currencies with convertibility to gold.

The European Economic Community introduced a new system of fixed exchange rates in 1979, the European Monetary System. was introduced more successfully through force than through persuasion and is now the basis of today's modern currencies. The quest continued in Europe for currency stability with the 1991 signing of The Maastricht treaty. Restrictions on capital flows have been removed in most countries, leaving the market forces free to adjust foreign exchange rates according to their perceived values..00 per ounce of Gold and fixing the other main currencies to the dollar, initially intended to be on a permanent basis. As an economy strengthened, it would import a great deal from out of the country until it ran down its gold reserves required to support its money; as a result, the money supply would diminish, interest rates escalate and economic activity slowed to the point of recession.The Bretton Woods system came under increasing pressure as national economies moved in different directions during the 1960's. London was, and remains the principal offshore market.. The Great Depression and the removal of the gold standard in 1931 created a serious lull in FOREX market activity.U.

The dollar was not any longer suited as the sole international currency at a time when it was under severe pressure from increasing US budget and trade deficits. These China Custom Mechanical structure Powder Metal Parts Factory changes greatly affected the global economies at the time and speculation in the FOREX markets during these times was little. In some economies, items such as teeth, feathers even stones served this purpose, but soon various metals, in particular gold and silver, established themselves as an accepted means of payment as well as a reliable storage of value. It can be said easily that FOREX market is a lucrative opportunity for the modern day savvy investor. In those days, the value of goods were expressed in terms of other goods(also called as the Barter System). Coins were initially minted from the preferred metal and in stable political regimes, the introduction of a paper form of governmental I. A number of realignments held the system alive for a long time but eventually Bretton Woods collapsed in the early 1970's following president Nixon's suspension of the gold convertibility in August 1971.O. This did not occur very often, however when a group mindset fostered this disastrous notion of converting back to gold in mass, panic resulted in so-called "Run on banks " The combination of a greater supply of paper money without the gold to cover led to devastating inflation and resulting political instability.The origin of FOREX trading traces its history to centuries ago. This was to not only fix exchange rates but also actually replace many of them with the Euro in 2002.