Wednesday 11 April 2012

Map of hosepipe ban

Here is a detailed map of hosepipe ban in England, Spring 2012

Water companies across southern and eastern England are to introduce hosepipe bans amid drought conditions. Seven firms say they will impose water restrictions after two unusually dry winters left reservoirs, aquifers and rivers below normal levels. Southern Water, South East Water, Thames Water, Anglian Water, Sutton and East Surrey, Veolia Central and Veolia South East are to enforce restrictions.

Friday 6 January 2012

Upcycling - How to get the most from your old furniture



For those of you with an eco-conscience, recycling will already be a part of your daily life. Sorting your rubbish for recyclable materials, taking your clothes to charity shops and re-using water bottles are all common ways to recycle in the home – but why not go that step further and consider a trend that is becoming more and more popular - upcycling.

Upcycling can be applied to almost any object of furniture in your home and often involves a combination of modifying, cleaning up or completely remodelling existing furniture to add more value to the item. If you find yourself looking at your dining room table and chairs and thinking they need replacing, why not consider upcycling them instead?



The upcycling of furniture often takes one of two forms. This can be either customising an existing piece of furniture in your home, or buying a second hand piece of furniture with the intention of customising it to fit your needs or taste. For now though we will concentrate on getting the most from the furniture you already have in your home – what you can do to your existing furnishings to give them a whole new lease of life. 

A great example of how easy and effective upcycling your furniture can be is the customisation of your old dining chairs. It is simpler than you think to add value to an item such as this and either restore it to its former glory or add a creative touch to convert a dull object into something of beauty.

The first step is to re-paint the chair. Start by sanding the chair with a low grade sandpaper, to remove any traces of old paint. Then select your new colour and apply at least two coats to the chair, allowing time between each coat for the paint to dry. Another nice touch at this stage, if the chair has any detailed features, is to line these details with a fine paintbrush in a different colour to the coats you used originally. This can really bring out any period or detailed features of the chair and adds a little ‘wow’ factor to your project.

 
To compliment the new colour you may also wish to consider re-upholstering the chair. A good place to find cheap material to do this with are charity shops, where you will be able to pick up material (such as old dresses, curtains or table cloths) at a knock-down price. If you are interested in doing this there are a number of online guides and youtube videos (simply search for ‘chair reupholster’) which detail the techniques for re-upholstering a dining chair – which although time consuming, is a really satisfying way to give your tired old chairs a new lease of life.