Making Your Own Faux Crackle Paint and Saving Money!
To start making your own crackle paint you will need to mix your water and glue formula in three different containers that will contain different mixture percentages. The reason for three different mixtures is that they will each produce a different crackle effect so that your final faux crackle painted finishes has some variety in the cracks leading to a more natural and realistic antiqued look. The first mixture contains 30 percent glue and 70 percent warm water, the second contains 50 percent glue and 50 percent warm water and the third 70 percent glue and 30 percent warm water.
Application Tools
You are going to need some nylon brushes, small buckets, blow dryer or heat gun, a table to work on, rags and a sponge sander.
Apply Base Coat
The base coat for your faux crackle painted finishes can be a stain or paint color of your choice. You will need to apply the stain or paint to the surface using a brush or roller, making sure to use the correct brush if you will be using oil based products. The base coat should dry for a complete 24 hours before applying the glue and water mixtures.
Applying the Glue and Water Mixtures
Apply the glue and water mixtures with a brush randomly throughout your project surface; this will create a variety of different cracks for a more natural look. By jabbing or twirling the brush this will also create an interesting variety of cracks in the final look of your faux painted crackle finishes. The top coat needs to be applied before the glue mixtures has completely dried on the surface, which can be anywhere from 2 to 4 minutes.
Applying the Top Coat
Mix any flat colored paint you want with 50 percent water so that it has the ability to break apart and form the cracks. Once you have the top coat mixture ready begin applying it to the surface using a roller or brush depending on what type of surface you are working with. Then once it has been applied hold the hair dryer or heat gun between 2 and 12 inches away and begin blowing the surface. By varying the distance this can add a variety of different cracks. You will soon see the cracks begin to appear. Once completed let the faux crackle painted finishes dry for 24 hours at which time you may apply a clear coat polyurethane finish for protection.
There are many more finishes at Faux Painting for Dummies where you can get more info on the crackle finish technique as well as many other different popular faux finishes. The faux crackle finish is in the Old World category of faux finishes and another easy finish to create is the old world parchment finish. There are numerous photos depicting many different faux finishes that can be very inspirational towards your next project. Hope you have fun making your own faux crackle paint!
Hope you enjoyed the article,
Nathan
Make Money Quick With Google Adsense
by: Jeff Schuman
Do you want to make money quick? In this article we are going to talk about one of the quickest ways you can make money. Making money quick is not only possible there are people doing it everyday with Google Adsense.
Google AdSense delivers text and image ads that match the content on your website. These are very targeted ads that you can choose the size and color of and they come across to your customer as helpful more than an ad itself.
Google Ads require virtually no maintenance and they help you put advertising on your website without actually having to deal with advertisers yourself. If you can copy and paste a small code you can have targeted advertising on your website in minutes.
Adsense is simple to join and it is free to join. Whether you
are an internet newbie or a veteran you can profit quickly by placing Google Adsense ads on your web pages.
Since Google does all of the work by finding the most profitable ads for your pages you can do what you do best….provide good content and lots of it. The more web pages you create the quicker you will be making money. You can learn more here:
https://www.google.com/adsense/
Once you have joined Google Adsense you will want to combine Google search with AdSense to monetize more of your web pages.
You can do this by placing a Google search box on your pages. Google AdSense combines Google’s search technology with thousands of keyword advertisers to deliver targeted text-based ads to search result pages. People find these ads useful and click on them, and when they do, Google pays you.
You can see an example of how this works right here on this web page. In fact we combine Google search and Google Adsense on almost every website and web pages we create. We have found it a very easy way to make money quick and to make money over and over. It’s great.
The internet offers many ways to make money quick. The nice thing about Google Adsense is you have the largest search engine in the world doing your advertising for you. This truely allows you to make money quickly and you can do it over and over with as many products as you want.
Hope you enjoyed the article,
Nathan
CompForLife.com
Ways to Increase Gas Mileage in Your Vehicle
Below are some tips and suggestions on ways to increase gas mileage in your vehicle:
Determine Your Gas Mileage
You will first want to calculate your vehicles gas mileage to set a baseline in which to work from to improve your overall mileage. Fill your tank, record the odometer reading, drive around until empty, then record the odometer ready when empty. Take your car to the gas station again and now record the gallons it takes to fill up(lets say 14 gallons). You can now subtract the first odometer reading from the second and divide the result by 14. This is your current MPG.
Reduce Your Vehicle’s Excess Weight
The heavier your car is the more the engine has to work to pull the excess load. Getting rid of all unnecessary weight in your vehicle when on trips will assist to increase your mileage in the long run.
Avoid Idling the Vehicle
Idling is sometimes necessary, like at stop lights, signs, etc, but you will want to avoid all other unnecessary idling wherever possible, like in drive through lines, waiting for friends, etc. If you expect that you will not be moving for an extended period of time , turn off the ignition.
Avoid Aggressive Driving
Aggressive driving can have big effects on your cars gas mileage. Certain actions such as quick accelerations and hard breaking, and even jerky steering can have an effect on your car’s fuel efficiency, so don’t do it! Stay calm when you are driving and try to give yourself enough time to break gradually. Drive defensively not aggressively and you should be ok.
Keep Your Car Maintained
Keeping your car services and in good working order(as per manufacturers specifications) is another way to increase gas mileage. In addition to regular tune-ups you should ensure your tire pressure on all tires are as per dealer specifications. Tires which are low on air make your car work harder to accelerate which taxes your engine and therefore decreases your gas mileage. Always check your Owner’s Manual if you are unsure of your vehicle’s tire pressure requirements.
Change the Oil Regularly
Changing your oil regularly can help to improve your gas mileage. Choose the recommended grade of oil when doing this. Note: Motor oil which is advertised as Energy Conserving may be the ideal choice as it can reduce friction and assist to improve your fuel efficiency.
Replace the Air Filter Regularly
A clogged air filter can be a serious contributor to poor fuel efficiency. Clogging greatly reduces the oxygen to the engine as its using fuel. The decrease in oxygen can interfere with the correct fuel mixture which helps to reduce gas mileage. A clean air filter can also help to improve the performance of your engine.
The Right Octane
You will always want to stick with the manufacturer’s suggested gas octane rating when at the pump. If regular gas is recommended, then you will only be wasting more precious money purchasing a higher octane. Stick with what is recommended and you will be ok.
Aerodynamics
Decrease the drag on your vehicle and consequently increase your gas mileage by removing outside accessories, like ski and luggage racks if they are not required.
Other ways to increase gas mileage include keeping your air conditioning off whenever possible . This taxes the engine when on and consequently uses more gas when it is on.
Keep your windows closed whenever possible.
This decreases the drag coefficient of the vehicle which reduces natural resistance. Utilizing the tips offered above to increase your mileage will go along way to keep your vehicle driving at optimal efficiency while using the least amount of fuel necessary.
Do you want to know right now how you can drive around using Water as Fuel and laugh at rising gas costs while reducing emissions and preventing global warming? Click Here!
Hope you enjoyed the article,
Nathan
CompForLife.com
MOTIVATION – The Art of Positive Thinking
by Anne-Marie RONSEN
Everyone has goals. And you are probably no exceptions. You may have work and career-related goals like promotions, expanded responsibilities, and recognition as an expert in your industry. These are all fine, but be sure you don’t just focus on your job. Many people come to identify their success in life by their position in their job and the recognition they get there. If they become disabled or sick, or if they retire, they suddenly find that they don’t know themselves anymore. They have no identity at work so they don’t know who they are. They may have lost family and friends or have become strangers to these people, unaware of the important events that happened at home while they were at work.
So, they have to get to know themselves and their loved ones all over again. For some, this is an impossible task.
Be sure you set personal goals, family goals and general goals in your life for growth and happiness. Whether it is going on for a Masters Degree in the fine art you love, learning how to fly a plane, or playing the piano, you should have goals that keep you involved in other parts of your life.
Try writing your goals for each day and make number 1 focusing on happy thoughts for 5 minutes. Whatever you know you need to do for that single day, write it on your list. Time management is such a simple tool that really can make a difference to our happiness but most people just don’t utilize it.
Tick items off as you do them and this will make you feel a sense of achievement and happiness.
At the end of the day be thankful for all you managed to get done. Feel pleased with yourself and give yourself a pat on the back for jobs well done. The more you do this, the more it will come naturally and the happier you’ll feel.
Occasionally something will come up that has to take a priority and be dealt with quickly. Just add it to your list, get on with it and then tick it off.
What if there are items still on your list, at the end of the day? Don’t get stressed about it just schedule them for tomorrow. You don’t even need to work through the list methodically from 1 to ? – just do what you can, when you can and cross it off. You’ll soon learn just how much you can really do in a single day and then you’ll make your lists accordingly. Most of us start off writing long lists of things to do and sometimes get frustrated that we can never finish everything – be realistic. Your lists will never end – there’ll always be something that you need to do even if it’s sitting down to watch your favourite TV show.
Everyone already knows that having a sense of humor always helps us get through the day. It’s always better to be able to laugh your way through difficulties but it’s not so easy, for some, to be able to do! Consider this though – how often has stress and anger stopped you from thinking clearly and being able to solve any problem? Most people just ‘give up’ and think that’s that only to find, that a couple of days later, the answer dawns on them when they weren’t even thinking about the problem anymore.
Why? Because as soon as they stop stressing about it, their mind is still quietly working away on finding a solution and as soon as it finds it, it throws it into your conscious mind. Now at this point most people make the mistake of completely ignoring the solution because they’ve moved on to another set of problems!
You need to start by deciding what is really a problem – most people think everything is a problem nowdays! Even trying to work out when you can take a 15 minute coffee break is considered a problem and what you’ll wear for that night out Saturday, is considered a problem. Come on people – these are not really problems yet you’re allowing them to fill up your mind and use valuable disc space. Forget the chatter stuff that’s going through your head and start asking yourself the right questions. When the answer, to your real problem(s) pops into your mind you need to be ready to act on it.
We all want to follow what our heart desires but all too often our heart’s desire changes hourly and our poor minds just don’t know what it is you actually want. This morning it’s a 15 minute coffee break. This afternoon it’s a new sports car that you saw go by whilst waiting at the bus stop on your way home from work. This evening it’s just a quiet evening with no interruptions. Tomorrow it’s that the boss will give you a hefty pay rise. Next week it’s a fancy holiday to an exotic location. Next month it’s a new home. The lists go on and on…….
We’re all guilty of it but you really need to learn to focus and differentiate between day dreams, wishes and real goals and solutions to real problems. Let the chatter go on quietly in the background but make sure you ask yourself the main question each and every day until you get the answer you need.
It does take courage to face your fears but if you ever want to conquer them and deal with them then you really must face them and the sooner the better. Stop letting life just happen to you! Take control, deal with what really needs dealing with and stop sweating the small stuff that really isn’t as important as you may have initially thought.
Appreciate and be grateful for what you already have rather than worrying about what you don’t have.
Remember art of positive thinking is one of the best things you can learn to do and it actually works. It really is possible for you to really begin changing you life using ‘mind over matter’. Start seeing life differently! And Think Like a Winner!
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Hope you enjoyed the article,
Nathan
CompForLife.com
Saving Money Is Easier Than You Think!
It’s so much easier said than done to save money. Well, somebody has given lists such as cutting your coffee, less entertainment, less shopping (no, you are killing me)… That works for your money but not for your life, because you save for a better one.
To better manage your money, here comes some tips:
First, set your goal in short-term and long-term. There must be something you want in desperation, like a car, a macbook. You will figure out what to cut to have your dream come true. Yes, you are not really saving money here, but you find the ways.
Second, make a budget and prioritize your spending. Track your monthly expenses and calculate the average for your regular payments (Rent, Phone Bills, utilities, gas etc.). Shopping and entertainment may change from month to month, set a minimum. When you have a total spending plan for the next month, save all the surplus for investment or open a savings account.
Third and the smarter way, when you have to buy something, find a cheap one. Actually this is easy because you are online. DO NOT save your cable expense.
The Internet has changed our way of life: Users get greater access to information than ever before. It also offers many opportunities for saving money. As online shopping has become more and more popular, businesses have been pressured into not only maintaining an online presence, but also competing for a thriving global consumer base. Online deals and specials are powerful persuasion for potential customers, and are therefore used by many retailers. If you know where to look, you can find many ways to save money online, such as traditional coupons that you can print out and carry with you, and online coupons that use links or coupon codes to save you money.
There are two ways applying the discount for online stores: linked coupons and coupon codes . With a linked coupon, you simply click on the link, and it takes you to the online store via a special URL; then when you finish the shopping, your savings will be applied to your shopping cart automatically. A coupon code is a special code you will need to enter when you check out. Because online stores depend on online coupons and promotions to boost sales, these codes are very easy to find. There are many websites dedicated to listing current online coupons and coupon codes such as couponcabin.com , couponsmarter.com etc. Most of these sites offer a search feature to help you find exactly what you’re looking for.
Hope you enjoyed the article,
Thanks,
Nathan
CompForLife.com
Another Whoo For Ebay, Ebay Alternatives Are Up
Another blow to the ebay business! Ebay is falling like a rock because they still do not know what their true client is… Are they catering to the buyers or to sellers that pay the listing fees. With all the recent policy changes in the last 6 months, it is very hard to make a sell or even stay compliant with the ebay policies.
Power Sellers and regular sellers are fed up, while looking for alternative ebay type sites to sell their products. It seems that ebay just does not care for who they piss off or change the policies to disallow everybody. This business action just makes it seem that they are big and do not care about their users, whether it buyers or sellers. They are just going downhill, and waiting to loose control to crash and burn. The core of any brokerage business is your sellers because they are the ones that pay the fees… Buyers are attracted because they do not pay anything for the transaction, they just feel that they are getting a deal on the item they agreed to purchase. Just watch the video below,click the link, another whoo!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-JjepaCDOM
Here is an ebay alternative site that I have found is worthy of mentioning…SoAuctionIt.com . For the remainder of May, they are having FREE auction style listings and 50% off Buy It Now Fees… This site has No Tiered Listing Fees, No Final Value Fees, No Reserve Fees, Just One Flat Fee to sell your items. Visit today and receive $10 added to your sellers account to apply for any listing upgrades.
Thanks,
Nathan
CompForLife.com
Federal Stimulus Package won’t do a thing!
The Federal Stimulus package is not even going to make a dent… Inflation is on the rise because of the cost of gas on the National Level. Not because of the economy is slow. People are holding tight of their money because of the rise of the gas prices has hurt their normal expense for transportation, in which has taken a away from the splurging factor of non neccessary items. The economy is also hurt by the crash of the subprime market for refinancing, the money just is not flowing like like it was two years ago. It is much harder to obtain a new loan because of the criteria has set the bar much higher. This has hurt the housing sales in turn has created more homes to go into foreclosure because of the owners not being able to qualify and or get their home sold before foreclosure. On the Adjustable Rate Mortgages, they have flexed higher becuse they have expired on their initial term and the homeowners could not refinance because of the subprime meltdown.
Do you see how everything is melting down? I can remember when the gas prices creep up in 2001, that the would open ip the reserves to lower price of gas. Why isn’t Pres. Bush doing this? Oh, that’s right, this where he makes his true money, its in the oil. The President’s income for being President is nothing compared to what he makes with his involvement of crude oil. Inflation occurs when the cost of utilities or neccessary commodity items have the price risen because of the demand versus supply. Will Americans pay bills with their Federal Stimulus money?
The American people that recieve this money, will spend spend it but in what manner? Will they go to Wal-Mart because they know that they can get the lowest price of goods? Do they realize that Wal-Mart is the biggest supporter of imported goods, this is how they keep the cost so low? Will the people use it to catch up on their bills that have fallen behind on? Will they use it to spend on their kids, such as summer clothes or new shoes? Just a few questions to keep in mind. The lowest price items are going to be attractive to these americans trying to stretch thir dollars that received back from the federal government. On the lower class that this package was intended for, has been limited to only $300, is that right, I believe that they need this stimulus the most because the impacts of the cost of living and the means for transportation. Personally, i will not see any of this, but I have read the articles and heard from other people what they have received.
It is sad because I recently met a few people that were loving life two years ago, working their full time job and enjoying quality time with their family on the weekend. Now, these people have 2-3 jobs just get by. Retailers have cut back on pay raises and benefit items, such as health has been raised. What will offset this insanity? The federal government is the stimulus package. Bull! These people working so hard just to get by. Life is meant to be enjoyed, you live to work, not work to live. Do you think working all that time will wear on your body? If you have the time, you will ensure that your body is taken care of and exersice is essential to your health. This is why Americans are so overweight, because they work so hard and are exhausted when they get home that do nothing. People need to make the time and make a change to their lifestyle. It is not the federal stimulus that is the answer.
Additianal income online can be achieveable if you utilize your resources and execute the knowledge on a daily basis. Time blocking is a key element to stay focused and to be productive in a timely manner. Quit those part time jobs and earn the money online so you make it in your own time and relax your body from having the wear and tear to take care of your family. You can sell items on soauctionit.com for a small fee and is cheaper than ebay. Sellers are needed and will receive $10 into their account upon signing up on the site.
Thanks,
Nathan
CompForLife.com
Monsterchange 