maintenance0405

Beyond Paint:
Decorating Walls With Stencils

Painting walls in various colors is a quick and easy way to decorate any room in your home. But when you're looking for something a bit more artistic and unique, you might try your hand at stenciling.

Stencils come in a variety of forms: Simple geometric shapes to elaborate scenery. Really good stencils can actually reproduce famous paintings and designs too.

A simple room decoration stencil pattern to start with is borders. Stenciling borders can be done in addition to existing wallpaper, or as a replacement. Stenciled borders can be repeated geometric designs, or more detailed repeating patterns such as vines, flowers or leaves. Borders can also be placed at the top of a wall, the bottom, or in dead center for variating effects and design influences.

Stencils allow you to create friezes as well. This is done simply by starting with a strong contrasting color at the top, and carried downward through gradually fading tints until they are lost in the general color of the wall

There once was a pink and silver room belonging to a young girl, where the salmon-pink walls were deepened in color at the top into almost a tint of vermilion which had in it a trace of green. It was, in fact, an addition of spring green dropped into the vermilion and carelessly stirred, so that it should be mixed but not incorporated. Over this shaded and mixed color for the space of three feet was stenciled a fountain-like pattern in cream-white, the arches of the pattern rilled in with almost a lace-work of design. The whole upper part had an effect like carved alabaster and was indescribably light and graceful.

This is an example of very delicate and truly artistic treatment of stencil-work, and one can easily see how it can be used either in simple or elaborate fashion with great effect.

Irregularly placed floating forms of Persian or Arabic design are often admirably stenciled in color upon a painted wall; but in this case the colors should be varied and not too strong. A group of forms floating away from a window-frame or cornice can be done in two shades of the wall color, one of which is positively darker and one lighter than the ground. If to these two shades some delicately contrasting color is occasionally added the effect is not only pleasing, but belongs to a thoroughly good style.

One seldom tires of a good stenciled wall; probably because it is intrinsic, and not applied in the sense of paper or textiles. It carries an air of permanency which discourages change or experiment, but it may take a bit of practice to do well.

About the Author
The Do It Yourself Home Decorating Network -
www.diyhomedecorating.com - A large and growing portal of home decorating and decor articles, tips, advice and excellent home decor shopping sections. This article may be republished on any website, as long as it remains unchanged, carries this copyright and reprint notice, and has a live link to our site.

How to Breathe Cleaner Air in Your Home
by Joe Hickman, HaLife.com

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concludes that indoor air quality is one of the top five environmental health risks in the U.S. today. They say indoor levels of pollutants can be two to five times as high as outdoor levels, and sometimes more.

Some problems of indoor pollution can be traced to energy efficiency, according to the Texas Institute for the Indoor Environment at the University of Texas. A tighter home is good for conserving energy but bad in terms of air pollution.

Second-Hand Smoke: For children, secondhand smoke increases the risk of bronchitis, pneumonia, and the severity and frequency of asthma episodes. It also can decrease lung function and increase the risk of ear infections and build-up of fluid in the middle ear. Children are vulnerable to secondhand smoke because they still are developing physically and have higher breathing rates than adults.

EPA is encouraging adults not to smoke in their car, home, or anywhere children are present. Don't hire baby sitters who smoke. For your kids, take the Smoke-Free Home Pledge (http://www.epa.gov/iaq/ets/).

Ozone, the key component in smog, has become an indoor problem. By itself, ozone is lower inside than outside. But when oily terpenes from products such as air fresheners, aroma-therapy candles, oils, and cleaning agents interact with ozone, they generate pollutants like formaldehyde.

Some other pollutants and what you can do about them:

Asbestos: Leave undamaged asbestos material alone. Call a qualified contractor if you must remove it.

Carbon monoxide: Keep gas appliances properly adjusted. Open fireplace flues. Don't run a car in an attached garage.

Dust mites, pollens, and pet dander: Wash bedding in hot water (130 degrees F). Use wool carpet or wood flooring. Use vacuums with high-efficiency filters.

Formaldehyde: Avoid pressed-wood products. Buy carpet with no formaldehyde
content; increase ventilation.

Lead: Use bottled water if drinking water tests positive for lead. Don't sand or burn off lead paint. Cover with wallpaper.

Mold: Install kitchen and bathroom fans vented to the outdoors. Clean air conditioning and heating equipment. Keep basement dry.

Radon: Have a home test. Seal cracks in basement floor. Ventilate crawl space.

Pesticides: Use nonchemical methods of pest control. Don't store, pour, or mix pesticides inside the home.

About the Author
Joe Hickman, editor of HaLife.com (http://halife.com) is a former EPA Web writer in Dallas.