Using Blue and White Patterns for Table Settings

When we speak of traditional table settings, a common style that comes to mind is the classic blue and white antique ceramic combinations from either China or Europe.

What's good about this theme is that you can mix and match different pieces from separate sets such as antiques and contemporary pieces and still achieve a serene yet sophisticated effect.



Just remember a few basic tips when using the blue and white theme:

- The shades of blue must be uniform.

- Because of the intricacies of most blue and white porcelain designs, keep the tablecloth and table napkins plain so that the focal point will be the patterns or the other way around.

- You may combine solid whites or solid with the patterned ones to blend the traditional and contemporary pieces.

- To add color to the table, place fruits such as lemons or oranges.

I remember the tea sets that little girls play. I didn't see the sense in this particular role playing game when I was a child. Somehow, it suddenly makes a little sense to me now.

Choosing Lighting Fixtures for Bathroom Mirror Area

Bathroom mirrors sometimes function as makeup and shaving counters. Because if this, good lighting plan and implementation is important, especially if the bathroom does not have ample sunlight coming in. This is a common dilemma for those living in apartment buildings, condominiums and rented places where you're not lucky enough to have bathrooms with good, natural lighting.

More often, a bathroom mirror with three lighting fixtures is ideal. Two bulbs are to be placed on each side of the mirror using wall brackets and another directly on top of the counter or wash bowl. Use warm lighting hues for the top light and daylight bulbs for the side. This combination will give you ample blend of brightness and natural light effect to illuminate your natural skin tones - very important when applying makeup. Remember that bad lighting can also result in bad looking makeup. For men, a badly-shaved face.

 Do shop around for the best light bulbs at your local home depot. LED bulbs last longer, shine brighter, and consumes the least amount of electricity compared to regular bulbs. They may not be the cheapest bulbs around but the quality they offer will provide more savings for you in the long run. In fact, for a more economical set up, you can set just one long LED bulb on top of the mirror and you have a well-lighted bathroom counter.

Unless someone in the household is knowledgeable enough to do this project, better hire an electrical contractor to set it up.

image credit: pope24
under Creative Commons LicenseAttribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Simple Home Improvement You Can Do During Summer

Spring and summer ushers in great ideas on stuff to do at home and outdoors. The amount of things you want to accomplish can sometimes be overwhelming. You can start with these six simple home improvements that can give you much fulfillment to last the whole summer season.





1. Trim shrubs and hedges to boost the growth of your garden plants.

2. Recycle the grass and plant trimmings and turn them into a compost heap for your garden mulch.

3. Repaint or change your old mailbox if you have one. Mailboxes are always charming additions to front lawns.

4. Visit some garden supply stores and check for great bargains.

5. Check for tiny cracks in your driveway or walkway and repair them DIY manner.

6. Repaint an old furniture or a wall to give a room a fresh new look.


DIY home improvement is not that daunting at all. You can start with your wall for now.

Airbushing DIY: How to Paint a Denim Effect on Plastic

The various textures of everyday materials fascinate me. Denim is one of those things. So, for this second airbrush project, I wanted to achieve a blue-jeans inspired look for my Gundam Beargguy model kit. I'm still at the amateur level when it comes to gunpla and airbrush painting that's why I kept the steps simple. Industrial spray paint was used, decanted for airbrushing.

These were the steps I did. Note that all parts were painted with primer before adding the colors. Make sure that paint dries fully before proceeding to the next step.

 Step 1: I used a cream color base (50/ 50 cream and white mixture)
Step 2: I pre-shaded the edges with black paint.
Step 2: Using gauze each, part was covered and secured. In this case, I used hairpins, because that's the available material at hand. Safety pins would have been easier to manage.

Step 3: No. 21 Blue was applied to all parts. After painting, the gauze was removed to let the paint fully dry.

Step 4: I repeated step 2, this time applying No. 28 Dark Blue paint. 

Step 5: Remove gauze and allow to dry.

That's it - a simple and easy way to paint denim effect. The output resulted in an approximation of denim, but not too realistic because the spaces in between the threads are not to fine. Perhaps a better result could be achieved with double or triple layer of gauze. Maybe next time, I'll try that.

Table Setting Idea: Using Pastel Colors

A table setting using pastel colors exude serenity with its muted and ethereal beauty. Renaissance and Impressionist painters have used various combinations of pastel colors on their masterpieces. When transferred to the art of table setting, to achieve this, take note of these simple tips:

1) If you want a more serious or classy-rustic, effect for entertaining adults, focus on using pastel-colored ceramics either in blue, yellow, or green. For a more juvenile or girly effect, replace the blue and green with pink and orange.

2) Using a single color in various shades (monochromatic effect) distributed among different stoneware plates and bowls can create a cohesive look.

3) Mixing various shapes, sizes, and textures of pastel-colored ceramics makes the table setting more interesting. Experiment by combining fine ceramics with some accents using earthenware.

4) Use a white vase or one in translucent cream or butter yellow color.

The food and the wine will add the strong colors for this type of table setting.

Post note: Two summers ago, hubby and I took a course in Food and Beverage Services. It was also then that my interest in table set ups has been revived. I have a small notebook full of scribbles of ideas, which I might as well share here.


image credit: Dinner Series
under Creative Commons License
Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0)