How to Clean Gold Leaf Furniture

Home Painting / / by

Gold leaf furniture, also known as gilded furniture, which has an extremely thin layer of gold applied above the surface, providing the piece golden accents. Gold leaf is so thin you may easily damage it, so take extreme caution when cleaning furniture decorated with the material. A light dusting with a soft-bristled brush is the safest way to clean gold leaf without causing damage.

A Gentle Touch

Do not clean accurate gold leaf furniture exactly the same manner as comparable furniture without a gold leaf therapy. Moisture, like from wiping it down with a damp cloth, can cause the gold leaf to release from the furniture and wind up on the cloth instead. A soft makeup brush or other brush using extremely soft bristles eliminates dust from grooves and details without removing the gold leaf. A gentle vacuuming also will help remove dust, holding the vacuum nozzle slightly away from the furniture bit to prevent scratching it.

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How to utilize Shellac on Woodwork and Doors

Furnishings / / by

A favorite of French polishers and crafters alike, shellac is a fantastic go-to sealer for do-it-yourselfers who want an easy-to-use product for sealing and finishing wood. Shellac was once the normal sealer for architectural woodwork and inside doors. Whether you’ve got a grand Victorian manse or a modest, 1930s row home, you will discover shellac creates a warm, lustrous surface your neighbors will envy.

Shellac Basics

Shellac is a leaf secreted by the lac bug, a scale insect from the East Indies. The leaf is processed to shellac flakes, which can be dissolved in denatured alcohol for use. Some old-timers still purchase dry shellac flakes and mix them with denatured alcohol themselves. Prepared shellac has a one- to three-year shelf life. If the shellac isn’t fresh, test it by smearing some on a piece of scrap wood. If the shellac doesn’t harden by the morning after, don’t use it.

Prep Work

Prepare surfaces by cleaning them with a household cleaner and rinsing thoroughly. Use 220-grit sandpaper to smooth out rough spots and give the surface a scratchy finish. Wipe away dust with a damp cloth. If it is functional, remove doors and then place them on sawhorses or another horizontal surface for better control during program. Cover floors and neighboring objects using a drop cloth or a plastic tarp. Ventilate the room; use a fan if necessary.

Application

Soak a broad, natural-bristle brush or a clean, lint-free cloth in the shellac and wipe away excess on the side of the container. Working with the grain, apply shellac with long strokes, working fast and always next to some “wet edge” to prevent marring a partly dried surface. If the shellac becomes sticky during program, thin it with denatured alcohol in a 1 to 1 ratio for the initial coat. The surface is prepared for a second coat once it dries hard in about one to four hours.

Tips

Use 320-grit seams between coats to smooth brush marks and then knock stray pieces of debris and dust. Employ multiple coats until you attain the richness and color you desire. Do not sand the last coat. To prevent conspicuous brush marks that go against wood grain, work first on members whose grain dissolves in other members. On a two-paneled door, for example, finish the panels first, then the horizontal top, middle and bottom rails, and ultimately the vertical stiles.

Other Uses

Should you need to stain your woodwork or doors, cut shellac to one third strength with denatured alcohol and use it like a staining sealer to prevent blotchy staining. When dealing with paint, white-tinted shellac, marketed as alcohol-based primer, prevents knots, resin deposits and waxy or oily spots from showing through the top coat. Use it to reduce rust on steel tools or to get quick touch-ups on woodwork and hardwood floors.

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How to Remove Painted Tissue Paper In Your Walls

Home Painting / / by

One of the best benefits of artificial painting is that inspiration can strike when you least expect it, causing you to change your original strategy. For example, you might have opened a frottage technique, where you stain a moist, glazed wall using tissue paper only to decide to use the paper directly to the wall to get dimension as well as color. Now, however, it can be time to get your painted tissue paper to come down. Although you might not have as much fun taking away the paper as you did applying it, then it can keep you focused on your next artistic creation and make sure that you begin it with a clean slate.

Affix painter’s tape to your baseboards to capture the water and paper fragments that drip from the wall as you eliminate the tissue paper. As an additional safeguard for your floor, spread a drop cloth, old blanket or plastic adhesive sheets close to the wall.

Cut small pieces of cardboard the size of any sockets on your wall. Cover the cardboard using masking tape to block water from seeping to the outlets.

Select the perfect tool — or even a combination of resources — to create holes in the tissue paper. Your goal here is to create holes in the paper so it’s possible to dissolve the adhesive underneath it. So if the tissue paper exhibits small cracks and bubbles, go over the wall using a straight pin, popping holes every few inches. If the tissue paper displays large bubbles and gaps, pop holes using a hair pick.

Fill a bucket with warm water and when it reaches a warm temperature that’s comfortable to the touch, wipe the wall with a large, soft sponge, similar to those utilized for washing automobiles. After the wall looks dry, repeat this step to loosen the glue under the paper.

Examine the grip of the glue by trying to remove the tissue paper using a putty knife. Based on the potency of the glue, it might come off easily at this point. If so, continue scraping away. Keep in mind it is the adhesive or glue that’s your authentic “nemesis” here since it is what is bonding the painted paper to the wall. Maintain a garbage bag nearby so you can toss glue and paper fragments promptly away.

Attack stubborn glue stains using a solution of 75 percent liquid fabric softener to 25 percent of warm water. Mix the solution in a bucket and pour it into a paint tray.

Cover the wall using the solution, employing a small or large paint roller. Use the solution just as though you were applying paint, going above the surface many times to ensure a consistent cover.

Permit the solution to sit down on the wall to get a minimum of 30 minutes. Lift the remaining paper or glue using a putty knife.

Finesse the wall, as it’s typical for little, gummy parts of glue to remain on the wall, also in this point. Remove any debris using a sponge or a putty knife.

Permit the wall to dry. Then rub together with the wall using a moist sponge and allow it to dry again. Clean it with a mild solution of sudsy water, then rub on it again while you envision plans for your next wall creation.

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Different types of Blue Spruce Shrubs

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The most common blue evergreen tree or shrub in the landscape is the Colorado blue spruce (Picea pungens). The large native tree is found in the Western mountainous areas of the USA. The Colorado blue spruce thrives in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 2 through 8. Many of these cultivated varieties, derived from the Colorado blue spruce, also develop well in these USDA zones.

Big Blue Spruce

The native Colorado blue spruce and its normal variation, Colorado blue spruce Glauca (P. pungens var. Glauca), can develop 50 to 80 feet in the landscape as well as taller in the wild. Most blue spruce varieties are smaller, even though the large ones. Moerheim (P. pungens “Moerheim”), Hoopsii (P. pungens “Hoopsii”) and also Iseli Fastigiata (P. pungens “Fastigiata”) are examples of large blue spruce varieties. Moerheim is a tree with dense foliage that reaches about 30 feet at maturity. It is a hardy, fast-growing tree with an irregular habit when young, becoming erect and pyramidal with age. Moerheim preserves its blue foliage throughout its growth phase. Possibly the strongest blue color is displayed by Hoopsii. It forms a neat upright tree of approximately 30 feet. Iseli Fastigiata also has great blue coloration and is very narrow with upward-pointing divisions, which makes a striking accent in the landscape.

Medium-Sized Blue Spruce

Medium-sized or semi-dwarf forms of Colorado blue spruce include Fat Albert (P. pungens “Fat Albert”) and Montgomery (P. pungens “Montgomery”). Fat Albert has glowing blue foliage and a squat, pyramidal shape. The tree is broad and rounded when young and will achieve 8 feet by 6 feet in 10 years following planting. Montgomery has a conical and globular shape with attractive silvery blue needles. It grows slowly, just 3 to 6 inches each year. After 10 years, Montgomery can reach 3 to 4 feet and a width of 3 feet.

Dwarf Blue Spruce

Dwarf Colorado blue spruce varieties have a tendency to get a globular form along with a slow growth habit. A good example of a dwarf variety is Glauca Globosa (P. pungens “Glauca Globosa”), which grows no more than 2 to 3 inches each year, eventually reaching a height of 2 or 3 feet. With time, it may become wider than tall and may develop one or more leaders, which should be pruned away to maintain its kind. Utilize neon blue spruces in rock gardens, mixed borders, as a low hedge or in containers. The shrubs are not fussy about the kind of soil, but prefer well-drained soil and a sunny or partially sunny location.

Prostrate Blue Spruce

The number Procumbens (P. pungens “Procumbens”), sometimes called “Prostrata,” is a low, spreading ground cover shrub. It grows 1 foot tall and also becomes 8 feet wide after 10 years. Procumbens is striking when used on slopes or when its silvery blue-green foliage spills over a rock wall.

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Honeysuckle Truth

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Two of the most recognizable aspects of warmer months will be the brightly coloured blossoms and aromatic scent of honeysuckle in the atmosphere. Although invasive species can be thought of a garden nuisance, honeysuckle is often employed as an addition to a cover for fences and walls. As either a vine or a tree, honeysuckle is a robust, colorful addition to any yard or garden.

Description

Honeysuckle is the general, common name for about 200 species of deciduous, semi-evergreen flowering vines and shrubs. Even though honeysuckle often grows throughout Europe, Asia and various parts of the Americas, there are an estimated 100 species located in China alone. In addition to creating sweet-smelling, trumpet-shaped blossoms which range in color from white to yellow to bright orange, pink and red, honeysuckle plants also produce black, red or blue berries. Even though the nectar in the base of honeysuckle flowers can be absorbed, the berries are toxic and should not be eaten.

Forms

Sometimes referred to as woodbine and goat’s leaf, fragrant honeysuckle’s numerous species are proven to attract bees, birds and other wildlife. Two of the most widely recognized species of honeysuckle include Lonicera periclymenum, better called common honeysuckle, and Lonicera japonica, known as Japanese Honeysuckle. Common honeysuckle, typically found in Europe, can be known to climb up to 32 feet high, has white and yellow colored blooms and bananas red berries. Japanese Honeysuckle produces a vanilla scent and could possibly grow to over 80 feet. It also possesses double-tongued white flowers which turn yellow as they mature. Japanese Honeysuckle is also referred to as an invasive species and may be classified as a weed.

Maintenance & Care

Honeysuckle vines and shrubs often grow wild, but can be trained to develop a trellis or within a garden as groundcover. Even though honeysuckle is a hardy, low maintenance plant, it thrives in moist dirt. In summer months, watering and mulching is vital to preserving the roots and also discouraging aphids from attacking the plant. Many honeysuckle species grow well in full sunlight, but can also tolerate partial shade. While some varieties need some polishing during the winter season, most do not have to be pruned.

Fun Facts

In addition to being used as a cut flower in bouquets, baskets and potpourri, honeysuckle has long been related to superstition. Throughout the Victorian age in Great Britain, honeysuckle flowers were often grown in gardens and around the doorways of homes to ward off witches and evil spirits. It was also considered to cause fine dreams and enhance mood when put under a pillow. Now, honeysuckle is often utilised in herbal and aromatherapy pillows. Honeysuckle, sometimes referred to as woodbine, has also been often mentioned in classic British literature. The two William Shakespeare and Geoffrey Chaucer refer to this honeysuckle plant at “Twelfth Night,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “The Canterbury Tales.”

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How to Burn Wood in Outdoor Fireplaces

Gardening and Landscaping / / by

There is nothing more inviting on a cool fall or winter night than sitting with a roaring outdoor fireplace enjoying warm beverage or roasted marshmallows. Built from a number of materials, including stone and metal, outdoor fireplaces and are cared for and maintained in much the exact same way as a classic indoor model. Before lighting a blaze in your outdoor fireplace, then give it a good once over before correctly stacking the logs and light a match.

Inspect the fireplace to get cracks or creatures that may have called it home. Mend a brick fireplace using mortar and allow the item to dry according to the package directions prior to building a fire. Allow a professional to repair your metal model. Whether there are any creatures that have taken up home in your outdoor fireplace, then get in touch with the animal control agency to remove and relocate the animal.

Cover the bottom of your outdoor fireplace having a 1- to 2-inch layer of sand or ash. Both products help keep the flame and cut down on the demand for additional wood after on.

Set a larger log, or one that is at least 8-to-10 inches in diameter, against the back of the fireplace, with a tiny log on top of it. Just use dry, seasoned wood and never attempt to burn treated wood in almost any fireplace, like an exterior model.

Put a smaller, 4- to 6-inch log directly before the larger log in the back. Gently press both logs into the ash to aid them burn more.

Fill in the gaps between the smaller and larger log with crumpled-up paper and small pieces of wood and branches, or kindling. Light the branches and paper with a match or lighter.

Monitor the fire and add more kindling when required. For added protection, slip on a pair of insulated leather gloves while adding paper or wood to the fire.

Extinguish the fire by covering it with sand or ash. Never walk away from a burning fire or just dump the sand or ash on and assume it’s out. The fire is out when no embers are burning, so don’t leave until you are sure there’s not any prospect of this reigniting.

Wash out the ash before the next usage. Wait at least 24 hours following your final fire before scooping up the ash and any other remnants of your final blaze.

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Planting Sites for Apricot Trees

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Apricot trees (Prunus armeniaca) create juicy sweet fruit using fuzzy skins at U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 through 9. Apricot trees are temperate fruit trees, which need chilling time to make fruit. In mild winter areas without long cold weather, look for apricot varieties with low chill requirements. The fruit ripens from late spring and early summer. The ideal time to plant apricot trees is while they’re inactive, either in the winter or early spring. Choosing the right place provides the fruit tree an increased likelihood of survival.

Space

Conventional apricot trees reach up to 30 feet tall, but they might be held at 15 feet tall with pruning. Dwarf-sized apricot trees reach 6 to 19 feet tall. The trees need space so they’re not overcrowded. This improves the sunlight the trees get and increases the air circulation, which dries the leaves fast. Conventional apricot trees need at least an area with a diameter of 25 square feet, and dwarf trees need half that.

Protection

Strong winds damage apricot tree leaves and branches. Winds can strip blossoms and fruit from the branches. Search for a site protected from harsh winds. In neighborhoods, check for buildings which may block the end. If the site is located in a windy place, plant dense shrubs and trees to act as a windbreak.

Soil

Apricot trees prefer slightly acidic fertile soil. Examine the dirt having a commercially available test kit before amending the soil using well-rotted manure and compost. The soil needs to keep moisture without being soggy because the trees aren’t drought-tolerant. Don’t plant in soil with high amounts of mud or clay. Appropriate sites for apricot trees include rich soil to the depth of 4 to 6 feet. Loosen up the dirt with a scoop in the region before planting. In case hardpan soil exists under the site, break up the dirt so that the roots have room to develop.

Elevation

Do not choose a low-lying place where frost settles in the spring. These areas also have a tendency to fill up with water during rainstorms and have drainage problems. Standing water above the root zone will cause root rot. Plant the apricot trees onto a mound or in a raised bed at least 1 foot high.

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The way to Prune a Red Sunset Tree

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“Red Sunset” maple trees (Acer rubrum “Red Sunset”) and (Acer rubrum “Franksred”) appear perfect when pruned using a central leader, together with a single straight main division along with a balanced number of lateral branches on each side Grown in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 through 9, “Red Sunset” is named because of its dense canopy which includes bright red buds in spring along with also a splendid display of orange and red leaves in fall. “Red Sunset” trees grow 40 to 50 feet tall, which means you may have to prune the tree to maintain a smaller size if you have a limited growing space.

Prune “Red Sunset” maple trees in late winter before buds break or in early summer after the tree has flowered and is in full leaf exhibit.

Select one central leader and eliminate any other vertical main branches back to the point of origin on the trunk. Pick the straightest and most powerful division in the group of vertical branches.

Select strong branches for the scaffold branches, the main branches which stem from the central leader. Scaffold branches should have broad crotches, between 60- and also 90-degree angles together with the central leader, and be evenly positioned across the central leader. Make sure branches are available to sunlight, so that no upper branches shade from the lower branches.

Eliminate any scaffold branches you don’t wish to leave on the tree. Make a clean 45- to 60-degree angle cut at the point of origin on the trunk, cutting just beyond the branch collar, the ring of tissue where the branch meets the trunk, so the tree isn’t open to decay or disease.

Cut up to one-third of the entire branch length from each scaffold division, if desired. Make a downward-facing 45-degree angle cut just above a healthy bud to force branching just beneath the cut. This is known as a heading cut, and never needed, helps to encourage denser growth closer to the trunk. Also make this sort of cut to fill in any open spaces left as a consequence of removing injured branches. Don’t make these cuts on branches which are more than 1 year-old.

Stand back from the “Red Sunset” maple so that you can see the design of all branches; the tree canopy should be pyramidal to elliptical in shape, with the lower branches protruding further than the upper branches to permit for even sunlight supply to all branches. Look for regions of imbalance and branches which do not give rise to the powerful structure and tree form.

Cut dead, diseased or broken branches back to your nearest healthy bud or intersecting division. In addition to your yearly pruning instinct, eliminate these any time throughout the year as they occur.

Eliminate any lateral branches growing from the scaffold branches which have weak crotches with angles less than 45 levels, cutting them back to the point of origin with an intersecting division.

Cut out any rubbing branches, eliminating the division with a weaker crotch or that grows inward in favor of a division with a large crotch and outward growth direction.

Cut out any branches that grow inward toward the trunk in order to keep the canopy open to sunlight and air flow.

Eliminate any water suckers as they develop at the base of the tree or in branch crotches. These tiny branches tend to grow straight up and never become strong, therefore it is best to eliminate them so the tree doesn’t waste its energy growing them.

Thin out a few extra branches as needed if the canopy becomes too dense to start up all the branches to even sunlight supply and air flow. Choose the lowest branches or the ones that make the tree look unbalanced and cut those branches back to the point of origin on the scaffold branches.

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The way to Combine a Headboard and Footboard to a Rail Bed

Eclectic Homes / / by

When you’re assembling your bed, you might realize that the bed maker used one of the two systems to connect the rails into your headboard and footboard. The rails may have hooks which fit into slots, or else they may have brackets for bolts. Either way, assembly is seldom an issue.

The Bolt-and-Bracket System

If the bed maker used the bolt-and-bracket system, you will see flat brackets attached to the ends of the rails and bolt holes in the headboard and footboard. On each side, slip a bolt during the headboard, connect it into the railing and then tighten the nut finger-tight; attach the rails into the footboard in the exact same way. The underside supports of the rails should face the middle of the bed. After connecting the footboard to the other ends of the rails, insert the rest of the bolts and tighten all the nuts with a wrench.

The Hook-and-Pin System

If your bed rails have hooks, you will see slots on the legs of the headboard and footboard. Turn the rails so that the hooks face down, and add one end of one rail to the slot to the leg of this headboard — the underside support of the railing should face toward the middle of the bed. Insert another rail into the flip side of the headboard, and then hook the other ends of both rails into the footboard. Push down firmly on the rails with your feet after you have made all four links to seat the hooks on the pins within the slots.

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Natural Cactus Fungus Remover

Fireplaces / / by

Though a healthy cactus is lovely and interesting to look at, one that is experiencing a fungal infection isn’t. Several different types of fungal pathogens influence cactuses. While cures for fungal diseases for cactuses are several, those which are available are natural and organic.

Copper Sulfate Fungicide Mixture

Copper, sulfur and lime are approved fungicides for its growing and dormant seasons. Mix 6 1/2 tsp of copper sulfate with 3 tbsp of hydrated lime and 2 pints of water. Filter the mixture through cheesecloth to remove any undissolved particles, and add the liquid to 1 gallon of water and pour the mix to a lawn sprayer. Liberally spray your cactuses with the mix, repeating every seven to 10 days and whenever it rains. This therapy works for cactuses suffering from Anthracnose and stem rot. Anthracnose is distinguished by light brownish fungal lesions with pink pustules. Stem rot typically affects younger cactuses, starting as small yellow spots and turning to brown spores that cause shriveling and shrinkage of the plant.

Removing Diseased Cactuses

Several cactus fungal diseases have no cure, such as leaf spot, dry rot and antiviral place. All three are characterized by discolored circular spots with fruiting bodies which grow as the disease progresses. No fungicides will cure your cactus of these diseases. In case your cactus has one of these diseases, the most natural method to control that the fungus is to remove and destroy the contaminated cactus. Always use caution and wear protective clothing, including long sleeves and gloves when removing a contaminated cactus.

Preventing Fungal Diseases

Fungal pathogens infect cactuses which are weak as a result of improper growing states or maintenance. Providing your cactus with the correct maintenance is a natural preventive to avoid infection. Wet soils are the usual cause for cactus disease and cactuses cannot live in wet or waterlogged soil for extended. Ensure your cactuses have soil with excellent drainage. When expanding them in a container, choose a specially invented cactus potting mix and consistently use a pot with a minumum of one drainage hole. When growing cactuses in the garden, provide a sand mixture amended with 25 percent pumice to give drainage but also retain nutrients.

Good, Old-Fashioned Water

If you notice fluffy white funguslike bodies in your cactus, this is the indication of a mealybug problem, although you may mistake it for a fungal disease. Also called cochineal insects, mealybugs are little red insects which feed on cactus, producing fluffy white sticky mounds to shield them from the components since they eat. They’re common on prickly pear (Opuntia humifusa), that grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 through 10, and relevant species. You can normally control a little infestation with a strong stream of water in a garden hose. Spray the cactus with water, making sure the stream is not strong enough to damage the plant. To get tough-to-remove mealybugs in hard-to-reach places, use a cup of warm water with two drops of unscented dish soap and a soft toothbrush. As always, exercise caution and wear gloves when working on a cactus.

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