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Netsuke was the functional pieces of art worn with the original Japanese Kimono. One of the most commonly known Netsuke styles is the Katabori-Netsuke. The Sashi-Netsuke or also known as the “Stab” Netsuke, averages around 6 inches long in length and literally resembles a stick like artistic formation. The Men-Netsuke, but also known as the “Mask Netsuke” is definitely the largest in size and dimensional being. The Flat-lidded Netsuke, or the Kagami-buta Netsuke is a flattened rounded, and hollowed out piece of artistic works, that ran the average size of the palm of a hand.

The artistic works of Netsuke can be placed at its height of necessity during the Edo time period of 1603 - 1867. Netsuke was the functional pieces of art worn with the original Japanese Kimono. It was specifically the fastening toggle of the bag or sash placed around the waste of the Japanese for carrying any needed or desired objects, as we would carry in our purses or clothing pockets nowadays. But since the traditional clothing of the Japanese had no pockets, the functional formations of Netsuke was a small piece of artistic works of need, along with the beauty and wide variations of expressions pertaining to everyday life and on into areas, that were somewhat culturally taboo topics of open conversation during that time period.

There had always been numerous types of materials that the traditional Netsuke carvings were created from. Some of the known materials have been, and still are various kinds of ivories and hard woods. The sizes of Netsuke was traditionally smaller in sizes, due to being physically worn, instead of being collected and displayed the way contemporary Netsuke has overtime come to be known. Since there has always been a tradition of beautiful, expressive and even story telling formations, the Netsuke of the past moved from a functional place of daily life to a worldly collector’s delight.

Due to the many variations of sizes, shapes and formations , there are many different tools that are specifically used for its carving. One of the most commonly known Netsuke styles is the Katabori-Netsuke. The more familiar name is the “Sculpture Netsuke”, and the average size is only 1 inch to 3 inches in height. The Sashi-Netsuke or also known as the “Stab” Netsuke, averages around 6 inches long in length and literally resembles a stick like artistic formation. The Men-Netsuke, but also known as the “Mask Netsuke” is definitely the largest in size and dimensional being. These will be approximately the dimensions and size of a full humanistic face. The Manju-Netsuke is one of thickest, and in the rounded, flat formation, usually has a slight size variation of only the size comparable to a Japanese confection. The Flat-lidded Netsuke, or the Kagami-buta Netsuke is a flattened rounded, and hollowed out piece of artistic works, that ran the average size of the palm of a hand.

There are several different categories of Netsuke artworks, totaling seven basis formations, and more of them than not, these beautifully exquisite pieces run smaller than the average hand size, but are packed with detailed expressions. It takes many different sizes and shapes of tools for the real Netsuke carvers to work the various materials to create such unique, but yet, story telling works of art.

Anita Satin Choudhary writes for Ivory and Art Gallery. Browse the gallery for unique collection of artifacts ranging from Netsuke to Porcelain and Silver Judaica.

Candle making can be a pleasurable or even profitable hobby, but one must be always cognizant of the fact that hot melted wax can cause many serious problems if proper precautions are not taken. Candle making safety tips include having a fire extinguisher and a box of baking soda on hand whenever you are melting wax. Use these to put out any wax fires that might start. First try to smother the fire with the baking soda. You can also use the top of your double boiler to smother a wax fire. You’ll need to have a double boiler for melting the wax, so it will be available. Don’t ever try to put out a wax fire with water, as the wax can burst and explode and burn the skin. Also don’t ever let your wax temperature exceed 280 degrees F (138 degrees C).

Other Candle Making Tips- Keep Kids and Pets Away

With the possibility looming of a wax fire as described above, it should be obvious that children and pets should be kept away from any hot wax. Even when the wax has been poured into a mold caution should be exercised. If the mold happens to be aluminum it can get very hot and burn the skin. Don’t ever heat wax or start to heat wax by putting it in a microwave oven. Heat can quickly build up inside the wax and cause it to explode. In any case melting wax should never be left unattended and you will need to have a wax thermometer to monitor the temperature of your wax at all times. Be careful not to let your wax get onto your heating element as it could very possibly ignite and cause a fire.

Other Precautions

You will need to have a good metal pouring pot to pour your wax into molds. Be sure to use one that can withstand high temperatures and has a handle and spout. Be sure to store your wax away from heat in a cool and dry place. If somehow melted wax does come in contact with the skin, run cold water over the area. This will cool the wax and make it solidify such that it can be pulled off the skin. You will most likely need to treat the affected skin area as you would treat a burn. Don’t allow water to drip into hot wax as it can explode and fly onto your skin and cause burns. If the exploding hot wax were to get into your eyes, it is obvious that very serious problems could result, so this tip is extremely important. Also, be sure to use only dyes and fragrances that have been designed specifically for candle making. Lastly, don’t ever pour melted wax down a drain.

Although candle making has its dangers due to the need to handle hot melted wax, most of the problems mentioned above can be easily avoided if you are aware of the dangers of hot wax and use common sense when making candles. If you have the right equipment and are prepared and consider the above candle making tips, your projects will be executed smoothly and serious problems will be avoided.

Walt Ballenberger is founder of Highly Scented Candles. For hand-crafted scented candles that are clean and long burning visit Highly Scented Candles

Ever wonder why some photos have a yellow or blue color cast? Why did this happen? Well it has to do with how your camera sees colors in a scene. Correct white balance is one of those technical aspects of photography that is often overlooked or misunderstood. But it can have a great impact on your photos, so it is important to understand how color in photography works.

What is White Balance?

Color is measured in temperature, in units of Kelvin. Warm colors have a low degrees Kelvin, while cooler temperatures have a higher degrees Kelvin. For example, the flame of a candle has a Kelvin temperature of around 1,500, while a blue sky has a Kelvin temperature of around 9,000. The human eye is very good at adjusting for variation in color temperature. Unless the temperature of the light is very extreme a white wall will generally look white. But a camera doesn’t have a human brain behind it (yet, anyway!) and so isn’t able to make the same adjustments. The result of this is a color cast that either looks too “cold” or too “warm”.

Adjusting White Balance

The purpose of adjusting white balance is to tell your camera to either warm things up or cool things down, depending on the lighting situation. So how do we do this? Most Digital cameras have automatic and semi automatic settings. Most commonly these are:

Automatic: where your camera takes a guess at the correct white balance. In most conditions this is pretty accurate, however in tricky lighting situations it is easily fooled.

Tungsten: used for shooting under tungsten (artificial) lighting such as an indoor bulb. As this type of lighting is quite warm, the setting cools down the colors slightly.

Daylight: used for shooting outside. Colors under a sky can appear quite blue so this setting is used to warm up a scene.

Different makes of cameras also have more variations on these settings, such as for cloudy conditions and flash photography.

Manually Adjusting White Balance

In most cases, using the automatic or semi automatic settings on your camera will produce good results. But if it’s just not doing it for you, or like me you are a complete control freak, most digital cameras will allow you to manually set the white balance.

This can be done in two ways. Some cameras have a setting that will allow you to set the white balance in degrees Kelvin. To do this of course you will need to know the temperature of your light source. This is easy to find out with a few test shots. For example, if you are shooting indoors under a standard house globe, you know that the temperature of the light will be quite low. Adjust your setting to a low number and take a test shot. Then check and make adjustments as needed until the color in your images looks right.

The second method is the tried and true grey card. By holding a neutral color in front of your lens, you are essentially telling the camera what white looks like. It then adjusts all other colors accordingly. To do this you need to have your white balance setting on manual.

With all the automatic settings that digital cameras have to supposedly make our lives easier, it is easy to be lazy and let the camera do all the work. However putting in a little extra effort into learning why things work the way they do gives you the edge next time you are dealing with a tricky lighting situation and helps you improve your photography.

Mark Eden is a freelance travel photographer and owner of Expanse Photography, a photographic services company You can see Mark’s, travel photography and contact Mark through the Expanse Photography website http://www.expansephotography.com.

If you have any prior knowledge of fundamentals of basket weaving then the instructions for basket weaving shall seem easy for you to understand and follow. If you take it on yourself then there are many online websites that offer a complete guide on how to get started with basket weaving and that shall help to make a pretty gift basket. But if you want to learn basket weaving or making it is highly recommended that you learn weaving in a step by step method so that you have complete knowledge of the various methods and clear idea of what weaving is. To make things plain and simple, here below are instructions for basic weaving making. Nearly the entire basketry work is accomplished with the combination of 4 methods of weaving as entailed here -

COILING

What coiling does is that it uses a bunch of strings or slim rods then used to stitch into a circle form with a slim, bendable structure to build coiled baskets. Numerous types of variations of stitching types & trappings for example interlacing multicolored strings couple with silver, golden or copper metallic string could be used in the basket so as to give it an exuberant appearance. Basic materials needed are yucca, straw, pine needles, palmetto, willow, sweet-grass & few other grasses. To provide a structure to the basket -

horsehair, raffia, ash wood-splint, palmetto, devil’s claw seined willow.

TWINING

This method requires us to use 2 or more bendable structures that can give the basket a twist like form from where weaving can be started. The method of having two weavers is known as pairing. Similarly when 3 more in access of 3 structures are warped it is known as waling. If you want eminent difference then simply twin rows firmly one above the other or leave the warp open, wrapping the warp, diagonally, crossing the warp or twining plain, are among them. Day lilies, elm bark, rabbit brush, cedar bark, reed, cordage, waxed linen or some more sort of fibers can be used for twining.

WEAVING

Two sets of basics are there in woven baskets. 1st basic - inflexible spokes used in creating a warp while the 2nd basic is the more soft elements that are weaved inside and then through outside to give shape to a weft. The supplies for a woven basket could be either round or flat & the variety of supplies can be many for instance wood-splint, willow, paper & reed.

PLAITING

Plaiting, is weaving of similar elements. Weavers & stakes are the same materials. The material is woven at the correct angles in either the horizontal, diagonal or vertical direction in twill or plain weave. Plaiting too can either be closed work or open checker-work.

Those materials that have been derived from hardwoods like Maple, White Oak or Ash and then are split or beaten into shape are for flat weavers. Splint and other pounded supplies like birch bark, river-cane, paper, flat reed & yucca are applied in plaiting. With the use of such basic basket making methods and applying more variations you can create many good baskets of your choice.

The idea is to give you a small yet detailed picture that makes the whole process a lot more understandable and easier to follow. If you really have the will to learn the technique of basket making then go ahead and learn it because once you have the art with you there’s no stopping you from making one.

For more free information on instruction for making gift baskets as well as making your own fruit basket, visit http://www.basketcrafting.com now.

“Printing Pictures on Canvas an integral part of life”

Photographs are an integral part of life. Thanks to photography, people can document every aspect of their life. These days, it is common to have friends who post photos of their wedding, vacation, new children, etc. on a blog or photo sharing website. Photography has certainly embraced the digital age. While digital photography has some major advantages over conventional photography, the old median should not be forgotten. And those who are not familiar with it should check out the new median of printing pictures on canvas.

The reason that the digital photography median is so popular is because most everyone has access to a digital camera in some form or other. Practically everyone has a cell phone and practically every cell phone sold today also has a digital camera embedded in it. And stand alone digital cameras and their necessary accessories like memory cards are dropping in price every single day. Digital photographs are also extremely easy to share with anyone, anywhere in the world. You do not have to wait for the photographs to be processed. Since they are digital, they are available instantly. Some cameras even have a screen so the photos can be viewed right after they are shot. Digital photographs can be posted to websites, sent through e-mails, or sent directly to another person through a chat application such as iChat.

Although digital photographs are extremely convenient in many senses, there is still something to be said about a photograph that is printed on paper, and can be held, placed in an album, or put in a frame. Most people would rather leave out bound photo albums on the coffee table in the living room for guests to peruse than leave out their computer and have a guest searching their computer for image files. Printed photographs are also much more appropriate to give as gifts. Although e-mailing somebody a photograph is a thoughtful gesture, I don’t think anyone would consider it to be a gift. A new and exciting median that is especially appropriate for gift giving is printing pictures on canvas. It is now possible to take almost any digital photograph and place it on the same material that one might find an elegant oil painting painted on. All printing pictures on canvas are done by hand. That is, all the sealing and stretching is done by hand.

Besides being a neat and unique gift, photographs on this median can last as long as one hundred years when kept in museum conditions. That is much longer than any print photograph will last. Even digital files can become corrupted. And hard drives can break and burn out. Most computers can barely last a couple of years, let alone one hundred years!

To have a picture converted into this median can be done for as little as twenty-five dollars for an eight-inch by ten-inch picture. A twenty-inch by thirty-four inch picture cost approximately one hundred dollars. That’s only one dollar per year for a picture that will last a century.

ZaZaGallery - Put your photos on canvas and be the buss in your community. Our fine art prints are gallery wrapped using the finest canvas and inks to create a museum grade art piece.Our product is unique so join the buss and visit us by clicking pictures on canvas Thank you, Hugh Parker.

The advancements in digital photography are constantly changing the techniques and standards of photographers. The luxury of digital photography has become more available over recent years, giving people the power to capture special moments and edit them to their personal satisfaction. From the amateurs to the professionals, this ever-evolving technology has had a beautiful influence on the way photos are taken, developed, and presented.

Photographs are no longer limited to the standard, glossy finish. By printing digital photos on canvas, people can give their photographs a natural, artistic quality that traditional printing often lacks. Canvas prints combine the detail and vibrant colors that digital photography allows with the unique look of oil paintings. The quality of the camera itself obviously affects the quality of photo produced, but the medium on which it is printed can determine the artist’s ultimate feel of expression. Unlike ordinary photo paper, canvas has a texture that gives the advantage of minimizing lower-quality resolution.

Another advantage of the canvas is its durability. With the protection of the water-resistant sealer, photos on canvas can survive conditions that regular photographs cannot. Not only are they protected from water damage, but they are less likely to fade when exposed to direct sunlight. Under the proper care, the canvas prints can last up to 100 years! Investing in canvas printing is a great way to display pictures that can be enjoyed by generations.

While it might be assumed to be an expensive process, printing digital photos on canvas is actually quite affordable, with prices starting as low as $30 (depending on customer specifications). Why pay the high price for decorative oil paintings when you can get the same look with your own personal photos?

Canvas prints make great gifts and home accents for both personal and professional settings. The canvas gives a creative touch and will attract attention that a small, framed picture will not. Customers have the option of a gallery wrapped canvas, which wraps the photograph around the edges of the canvas or a standard print that centers the picture on the front. Also, digital technology gives the added options of photo cropping and color enrichment.

With the help of photo editing and enhancement, the quality of pictures can be improved. However there are some guidelines that will allow for a superior canvas product. The clearer the picture and the higher the contrast between colors, the better it will look on canvas. Dark colors on a dark background will be much harder to print clearly than bright, distinguished colors. If a picture is blurry to begin with, it could look even more so when enlarged and stretched to fit the canvas. Pictures that are taken from a distance can be cropped to focus on the subject (whether it be a person or an object), allowing for more detail and better color on the canvas print. Changing the camera’s settings to the highest resolution possible will help the photographer to achieve the best picture.

All in all, printing digital photos on canvas is a unique, high-quality, affordable way to turn everyday photography into displayable artwork for all to appreciate.

ZaZaGallery - Put your photos on canvas and be the buss in your community. Our fine art prints are gallery wrapped using the finest canvas and inks to create a museum grade art piece.Our product is unique so join the buss and visit us by clicking pictures on canvas Thank you, Hugh Parker.

Everyone loves visiting a museum and appreciating the fine art of a picture gallery. The beautiful paintings seem to have a magical feel, as being almost larger than life. Every detail of paint strokes on the canvas seems to have its own story, all intertwined to create a masterpiece. This is what people mean when they say that a painting speaks to them, as if the art work itself is sending them a personal message. This is possible because of the surface of the painting itself. Only with canvas can paint and ink truly reach its full potential to create a piece of art. For many years it was impossible to convey this same effect with photography. With special paper, the process of getting pictures developed and printed was a long and arduous procedure. The outcome was a photo on paper that usually didn’t capture the full effect of the moment it was intending to immortalize.

Now that has changed. The technology to create a gallery wrapped photo on canvas make it possible for people to have the same feelings about digital photos as they do about those paintings hanging up in museums. Now you don’t have to be an artist to be able to move people, just be ready with a camera to capture that perfect image or moment and transform it into a gallery wrapped photo on canvas, and create works of art that will be suitable for any occasion and appreciated by many.

Creating a gallery wrapped photo on canvas is a reasonably simple process that has become readily available through online shopping and printing technologies. All a customer must do is upload their photo with a website and order their desired frame size. The printers then go through the process of printing your picture onto the canvas using the best canvas and ink the industry has to offer. A gallery wrapped photo on canvas is then stretched large enough to wrap around the sides of a stretched frame that the canvas is mounted on. This gives your picture a nice three-dimensional feel as opposed to two-dimensional photographs. By stretching the canvas around a frame to which it is mounted on, a gallery wrapped photo on canvas is ready to hang on the wall as soon as you receive your order. It is so nice, that in many instances they can be hung or put on display without another outside frame being needed. A great look for any environment!

A gallery wrapped photo on canvas is a perfect way to celebrate past memories, and create great gifts. Some of the most popular photos that are transferred onto canvas are ones with babies, pets, wedding pictures, family pictures, reunion pictures, graduation pictures, vacation pictures, and many other special photos that may either hold a special place in a person’s heart, or be visually pleasing to look at. For these reasons, a gallery wrapped photo on canvas is a great way to liven up any room, and represent cutting edge technology in the art of photography.

ZaZaGallery - Put your photos on canvas and be the buss in your community. Our fine art prints are gallery wrapped using the finest canvas and inks to create a museum grade art piece.Our product is unique so join the buss and visit us by clicking pictures on canvas Thank you, Hugh Parker.

Scrapbooking has joined the digital age. We can now make complete scrapbooking pages on our computers. Even those of us who prefer traditional scrapbooking tend to use the computer for our journaling to print clean, neat captions and narratives on our layouts. Handwriting on pages may not be as pretty as a computer font, but it is so much more personal and meaningful to our families.

Why do we hesitate to use our own handwriting in our albums? There are a few reasons. The most common one is concern that our handwriting is too messy or won’t be able to be read by others. We should all try to get beyond this and realize how important it is to our family to preserve something as unique as our handwriting. Think about those handwritten letters and recipes from a grandparent and how important they are to you now.

Another reason people resist handwriting on page layouts is fear that they will make a mistake that can’t be erased. There are many ways to correct a handwriting error. First, use a paper journaling block to write on first. You can always use a second one if you make a mistake. You can also correct a mistake by placing a new piece of paper over the error on the page, and write again on that piece. Finally, stickers work wonders when it comes to covering up most kinds of scrapbooking mistakes.

The right pen makes a big difference when it comes to handwriting success. Look carefully at the paper you are using, and choose the best pen for that type of surface. Many pens will smear or run on certain types of papers. Choose a pen with the appropriate width as well. Trying to write in a small space with a wide tip will be a definite handwriting challenge.

Practice, practice, practice. Write out the journaling first on a scrap piece of paper. Read it over slowly out loud. This will help you spot errors in spelling and grammar. For longer narrative writing, you may want to have someone else proofread it for you before you place it on your page. Be sure to test the pen on a small piece of the paper you want to use. Writing a draft will let you know how much room you need to write on as well.

Are you one of those people that write uphill? If you find it difficult to write in a straight line, use lined journaling blocks. You can make them yourself, buy a stamp with lines designed for this purpose, or purchase pre-lined journaling papers. Another tip is to use the natural lines in your layouts. Write along stripes on patterned paper. Handwrite phrases around a frame. You can even print on the edges of your borders.

Handwriting is uniquely personal. It’s also a form of validation, like our signature. A page layout with handwritten journaling adds character to a scrapbook album. It’s a glimpse into who you are. Your family will treasure your scrapbook pages even more, because it tells them about your personality and even reflects your mood. A computer font can’t add the depth and emotion to your words that your handwriting can.

Christine Perry is an avid scrapbooker and has over 10 years of scrapbooking experience. Her favorite scrapbooking subjects are her reluctant teenagers. She invites you to her website, http://www.intoscrapbooking.com for more scrapbooking tips and information on Mother’s Day cards for scrapbooking.

Dazzling and trendy — but who says only women gets to wear it?

Sure enough, men are also into accessorizing themselves as it adds more character, style, and personality from an everyday plain get-up morphing into a look that deserves more than just a second glance.

Since the ancient times, men and women have been accessorizing to promote social status and affiliation to a particular group. At one point, though, it was viewed that men wearing jewellery are considered effeminate. With the introduction of modern concepts, men wearing what were previously considered only for women are now treated as self expression.

However, there is a fine line between choosing the correct bling blings that still pull off a masculine look as opposed to being a walking advertisement for a jewelry store. Before choosing any of these fancy items, be sure to evaluate your level of comfort wearing them and the over-all appearance that you would want to project.

Earrings would definitely be one of the first jewelries in that bling bling list. Creativity and variety are the key points here since they are not limited to only the earlobes. Piercing eyebrows, tongue, lips or any other part of the body are contemporary self expressions although it is strongly suggested not to go overboard by getting too much. You might want to let others appreciate your piercing and not make them wince by just looking at you.

If you are tall, avoid wearing long necklaces so as not to emphasize your height and instead maintain a semblance of lateral balance. It is best to opt for chains with lesser length in this case. The reverse is true if you’re leaning on the shorter height. Longer chains would work on you while the necklaces closer to the neck would only make you look shorter than you really are.

Muscular guys can manage to wear weighty necklaces while those with leaner bodies are advised to choose lighter ones. Consider the volume of the necklace you are choosing since it would look and feel awkward if the entire appearance would be out of proportion.

Same principle with the necklaces would actually apply in selecting rings and bracelets. These four are the basic accessories for men and combining them with each other or with any other types of jewelries are not possible, depending on the occasion. Tone down the others if you have chosen one particular showy piece so as not to make the details clash instead of complimenting you.

One last thought: while it is true that there are, shall we say, universal guidelines in picking up jewellery for both men and women, it is important to stress your own attributes and be confident.

Fashion would probably demand the uniformity of trend and style and with it is the constant change all throughout the season. But the best criterion is really your personality.

Remember that individual character makes the full works and jewellery only enhances what you’ve already got.

Perhaps, all of us are familiar with the scene in a play wherein a husband would give his wife a piece of precious jewellery. Then she opens the box with much enthusiasm and excitement. The wife would then have a jaw drop as she looks into the box. She receives a black leather choker from her very loving husband with silver studs around, which looks like a dog collar. Such is just an example of a tragic-comedy story that we are often familiar with related to stories of necklaces. More stories could be related to necklaces like the emergence of its use among men. Along the years, men’s accessories are not anymore confined to just neckties. Today, men are also capable of wearing necklaces as fashion accessories. You just have to be observant, and notice that many men today are fond of wearing necklaces as part of their get-up.

There are a lot of variations that we can see today. Men have beaded necklace, perhaps for the spiritually leaning man. There are chokers that we often see among men who are body builders in the gym. Likewise, there are chunky gold necklaces for men who are younger and bolder. For sophisticated men, meanwhile, we see them with the classic silver necklace that spell maturity and elegance. Whatever kind of necklace a man wears, it surely adds to the fashion get-up of a person. Also, the male race seems to get more pride out of these necklaces.

The progress and growth in the field of necklaces as fine jewellers has indeed satisfied men’s interest toward jewellery. Jeweller companies like Tiffany’s have actually expanded the traditional cufflink and watch collection to add a range of men’s line of jewellers like pendants, necklaces, bracelets, and rings. In addition, the company has also managed to design some masculine jewellry styles in steel, titanium, and silver.

In a poll conducted in the United States, at least 75 perent of the surveyed men enjoy wearing jewellery as their accessories while 80 percent of the surveyed women stated that they find it sexy when men wear jewellery. Indeed, today’s generation of males have become more conscious on their fashion statement and over-all get-up. In recent years, it seems that necklace is an accessory that would complete a man’s looks.

Also, we have observed more and more male television personalities who succumb to wearing necklaces which are seen as attractive by some of the viewers.

The traditional notion that necklaces are just for women is totally gone. Because today, gender is not an issue when it comes to accessories and ornaments. What is important is that the person who wears them carry it with great confidence and pride. Most of the times, accessories and jewelleries like necklace is an added accent for a person to appear more pleasing in the eyes of the public.

We may never know the future trends that might emerge in the industry of necklaces worn by men. But one thing is for sure, necklaces play a great role in improving the posture of men.