Outdoor Sign Advice

We encounter a lot of advertising throughout our daily lives. It is hard not to tune it out, and it is hard for individual adverts to stand out amid the competition. Small business just starting out have a difficult time getting noticed. At least part of this can be rectified by making sure that signs and advertisements are well designed.

1 – Many customers of many different backgrounds will very briefly see you sign. Make sure they can take it all in, or at least take in the main message in, with that very brief glance.

2 – Proper design is crucial if the sign is to be effective. Less is more. Don’t crowd a sign with text if the viewer only gets a brief glance through a passing car. Text might work in some other situation, but never with a brief glance.

3 – Appreciate the principle of ‘first read’. Is there a focal point that conveys your message at a glance?

4 – The first impression of the sign should be the type of first impression you want for your company.

5 –Signs are more than just props. Many sales are impulse purchases. A good design may or may not cost more than a poor one, but it will be more effective and get those impulse customers.

6 – Look at colours and exactly what it is you are selling. Either do a lot of research on the effectiveness of colour combinations, and how they are appropriate for your product(s), or go by your intuition.

7- The rule about overcrowding applies double to the background. Most details are a distraction, so eliminate them.

Banner Shop Sydney

A banner must be brief, and direct the customer to the actual retail shop.

Posters Sydney

A poster can work by supplying a visual focal point that draws interested customers in for more details. Magazine advertising works in a similar way.

Stickers Sydney

Like a small scale version of a poster a sticker can draw people in with a focal point, and then supply some more details.

Super Gloss Mirror Finish

Painters Sydney

A high gloss mirror finish is found on a few wooden items like grand pianos, musical instruments, and some sculptures and fine furnishings. This type of finish requires more than the standard painting technique, which required a fair amount of skill in its own right. But the effort required can be justified for a few expensive items.

A mirror finish requires an extremely smooth surface. This smoothness is a combination of physically flattening the wood and then filling in the inherent gaps and imperfections. The filling in is done with a primer/filler, a more specialized version of normal wood primer that simply give a very flat surface.

The wooden surface need to be sanded flat, or to the required shape, and then primed. The surface should be left to dry for a least 24 hours. Check for any surface imperfections.

Paint the surface with super high gloss enamel. Avoid brush strokes.

Once dry, wait an additional 24 hours and very lightly roughen the painted surface with a green scouring pad. Be a light a possible, and avoid taking the paint off the edges.

Repeat the process and give several layers of enamel paint.

Do not use a scouring pad on the last coat. Instead use a cutting compound to give a satin finish. Porcelain cutting compounds (Kitchen Scrub) can work well for this. Do not polish! The cutting compound should give a slightly rough surface for the next step.

Make sure the surface is clean and spray with a high gloss clear coat. Use short, even, light strokes.

When dry, the result should have a deep mirror finish.

Painting Services Sydney

Painting services can recommend the best type of prime, paint and clear coat. Hardware stores are also a good source of advice. While we recommend professional house painting we realize that home have many furnishings that need painting too. Live in a home that make your life a better experience.

SPLENDID WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY

The human eye is very sensitive to slight visual details. It can see many subtleties and detect dim light through to fairly high intensities. Modern technology, with all its developments, cannot easily capture as much as our eyes can. High Dynamic Range Photography (HDR) goes a long way to bridging this gap.

Our earliest attempts at photography taught us that pictures taken in dim light often don’t produce good images. Our eyes adapt easily to the light, while the camera has to be manually adjusted. Often this can be solved with some technique and experience. But matters become more complex when a scene contains both bright and dim elements. Our eyes can handle this well, but our camera can only handle one extreme or the other; either the dim light or the bright light in the photograph looks right, but not both. This is where HDR come in.

High Dynamic Range systems capture images of the same scene taken at different exposures; three shots is standard. These shots are them combined to form a final images, with the light and dark details all intact.

HDR principle have been used in conventional film, but the process was difficult and the subject could not move between shots less the image be ruined. Some modern digital cameras have started to include a function that automatically takes HDR component shots. The rapid succession of these shots noticeable reduces problems with the subject movement.

Sydney Wedding Photographer

The average wedding photo might not benefit too much from the HDR process, but the framed print, or any studio photos might. If we have time to compose a good scene we can usually get superior results from HDR photos. Then again, HDR might well become standard when employing a professional photographer.

Possible Ban on Refugees

The Australian government is considering legislation to ban any refugees from ever entering Australia. This will even effect former refugees who have since become citizens of other countries. Under this legislation anybody who has ever been a refugee will be banned from Australia for life.

The issue with refugees is the illegal people smugglers. The refugees are being transported by illegal means, and the government want to put a stop to this. The problems in their country of origin and the suffering of the individual refugees is recognized, but putting an end to illegal people smuggling is more important. The total ban aims to send a clear message to the smugglers.

The proposed legislation is understandably controversial. Victorian member for Wills, Peter Khalil , senators David Leyonhjelm, Derryn Hinch, Stirling Griff, Skye Kakoschke-Moore and opposition leader Bill shorten have all criticized at least some of the legislations contents. There are concerns that Australia will not be fulfilling its current international obligations, and that the legislation will affect people already in the country. Article 31 of the United Nations 1951 Convention states that there should be no penalties imposed because of illegal entry.

Individuals who were Refugees when under the age of 18 years apparently will not be affected by the ban.

Immigration Lawyer Sydney

If you think you might be affected by government policy changes, talk to a migration agent, Sydney siders can talk to Hope Immigration.

Environmental wood

We hear a lot about climate change and CO2 in the atmosphere. What many people don’t realize is that wood is of great benefit for tackling this problem.

Environmental Timber flooring Perth

Growing trees absorb a significant amount of CO2 from the surrounding atmosphere. Once the tree is fully grown the amount of CO2 absorbed and the amount released falls into an equilibrium (or close to it). Subsequently, it is beneficial to constantly plant new trees to absorb CO2. Once grown, the harvested trees can be used for building purposes. Most of the CO2 absorbed when the tree was growing remains in the wood. The wood effectively stores the CO2 where is can do no harm. The CO2 remains stored so long as the wood is not burnt.

Other building materials such as metals and plastics are labour and process intensive, something which uses a lot of energy and produces a lot of CO2. Wood requires far less energy to produce, making is a better option for the environment. Wood also tends to have less chemical processing, though this does vary with laquours, polishes and finishes, meaning there are less harmful chemicals in the home than with some plastics. Formaldehyde is processing chemical used in many products, especially plastics. But it is not too difficult to obtain quality wood that is free from formaldehyde.

Building and Timber Floors Perth

Wood is also the most cost effective building solution for frames and floors. This is a rare case of something being a short term and long term saving. Wood is a stronger material, by weight, than most materials, and being cheaper it is a short term financial saving. It is also beneficial for the environment, which is a long term saving.

Bamboo Flooring Perth

Bamboo also looks to be environmentally beneficial; it also soaks up CO2 form the air. As it grows at a very fast rate, taking only 7 years to harvest, it may prove to be the most popular option for future use. How much CO2 is absorbs is still being studied; the shorter growing time may mean that it absorbs less Co2 over the course of its shorter lifespan. Yet even the most minimal estimates would still be quite beneficial.

Nutrition

Nutrition and Taekwondo Training

We are all both mind and body, two things constantly affecting each other through their close connection. Our mental state affects our ability to perform physically, the state of our physical body can affect our mental abilities. One important factor for both our physical and mental performance is the nutrition in our diet.

The benefits of a good diet are often not appreciated till the diet is actually practiced. It is easy to consider our compromised health to be normal rather than the side effect of poor nutrition.

Advantages of good diet when doing martial arts include;

Lower body fat, which is beneficial for speed.
Faster reflexes, a mental and physical aspect of martial arts.
Clearer thought.
More rapid improvement through training.
Significantly improved endurance.
Greatly improved immune system.
Better mood.

It is not difficult to know about the right food to eat, though it can be difficult to stick to the right food. Avoid all processed food and stick to food as it occurs in nature. This means steak and chicken rather than hotdogs or pastry. Cook fresh vegetables and eat fruit. We should know to stay away from junk food.

It can be a good practice to eat smaller meals every 2-3 hours rather than the traditional habit of eating larger meals three times per day.

Taekwondo Sydney

Drinking plenty of water, eating what we know is a healthy diet, and training well make all the different to martial arts and taekwondo training. We live better lives through doing things well.

Mouth Breathing

Our bodies naturally breathe through the nose. While it is quite possible to breathe through our mouths it is not optimal, and mouth breathing has been linked to many health problems, both major and minor. Mouth breathing in children can compromise proper development.

Mouth breathing may occur because an individual cannot breathe well through their nose. This might be because of enlarged tonsils, nasal polyps, any of several disruptions to the airways, or because of a chronic allergy.

Children who habitually mouth breathe can compromise their lower jaw and dental development; they hold their tongue in the wrong place and keep their jaw open, leading them to form longer faces and misaligned teeth. Mouth breathing causes some facial muscles to develop at the expense of others.

Nasal breathing nose is necessary for the production of Nitric oxide, something required for appropriate childhood growth, oxygen levels, blood pressure, cognitive functioning and general wellbeing. Mouth breathers will compromise all these areas of their life.

Significantly for teeth, breathing through the mouth causes the teeth to dry out. This lack of saliva, as well as being uncomfortable, significantly increases problems with decay.

Even if the cause of the mouth breathing is treated individuals may find they continue their habit of breathing through their mouth. Retraining may be required.

Dental Auburn

It is best to address breathing problems while an individual is still young, lest the breathing issues affect their development. If you notice a dry mouth, night-time snoring or simply become aware of mouth breathing, then talk to your Shine Newington dentist about any concerns.

We look after many surrounding areas, including Ermington dental patients and Dental Wentworth point clients.

Hints For a Heathier Life

Eating a better diet makes all the difference. Even if we only feel a slight improvement it is worth the effort. A healthier system improves every aspect of our life.

Make things convenient for yourself.

People often complain they don’t have the time, which is a semi-valid issue. Or else, they have trouble motivating themselves. But this is our heath we are taking about; making time to improve our health means we can do everything else a little better.

Try preparing things to use beforehand. Cut up some vegetables and fruit and leave them in the fridge ready to be blended in the morning. You may feel this is a lot of trouble in the morning, but if it’s ready to go you find there is minimal effort. Drinking some vegetable/fruit juice in the morning is a solid way to improve your health.

Most processes food is of poor quality, the exceptions being foods specifically designed to be healthy. Superfoods smoothie mix is made from organic ingredients, and is free from preservatives. This avoids all the problems associated with other convenient foods.

Superfood Smoothies Australia

Order some superfoods smoothie online and have them ready to use at home, work, in the car or carry one in the purse/briefcase. Avoid bad snaking habits by having a better option with you at all times.

Do and Don’ of Hydrosupply Floor Heating

With Hydronic underfloor heating always:

Make sure there is a lifetime warranty. Whether it is water or electrical heating the system should work for the life of the house.
Before anything, look at the type of flooring you have, or intend to have. Underfloor heating is suitable with almost any surface, but some are more suitable than others.
Look at underfloor heating DIY kits. These are custom designed and include all the Hydronic controls and valves needed for your particular home situation.
Consider Solar hydronic heating, which will be a huge saving in the long term.
Give preference to a wet back boiler, which expose more water to the heating surface, subsequently proving more efficient.
Check the level of technical support. It is good to know that expertise and Hydronic supplies are there in the unlikely event of an emergency.
Consider whether you want an advanced system that automatically adjusts to your lifestyle the seasonal conditions or just some controls for basic heating.
Always get advice and an estimate beforehand.

Never

Never Compromise on quality, or make the mistake of thinking you can add more in the future. Underfloor heating is a permanent part of the house – install the system you will be wanting to use for decades ahead.
Never exceed 27 degrees calcium on the Underfloor heating thermostat. This should be more than worm enough.

Martial Arts Quotes

Knowledge and mental attitude are part of any physical training, especially Martial arts training. A few insights, few good quotes can mean we approach our training in a more effective manner.

“By knowing things that exist, you can know that which does not exist.”

“In the void is virtue, and no evil. Wisdom has existence, principle has existence, the Way has existence, spirit is nothingness.”

Miyamoto Musashi – The Book of Five rings

“Training is one of the most neglected phases of athletics. Too much time is given to the development of skill and too little to the development of the individual for participation. …

“Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.

Bruce Lee

“In the struggle between the stone and water, in time, the water wins”

“Fall down 7 times, get up 8 times.”

Japanese Proverbs

“Use your head, or somebody else might.”

“The more you sweat in practice the less you bleed in practice”

Anon

“There is no finish line. When you reach one goal, fine a new one”

Chuck Norris

Karate is a form of martial arts in which people who have had years and years of training can, using only their hands and feet, make some of the worst movies in the history of the world.

— Dave Barry