Magic
MAGIC AND MAGIC TRICKS:
Become a Magician, Master Magic Tricks, and Mesmerize Your Friends or just simply make a Kid say, “Wow, how’d you do that? “From the vanishing coin to the floating playing card, simple magic tricks are sure to please everyone. Following step by step instructions, packed with photo illustrations and some practice, you can quickly be on your way to becoming a magician.
Magic is the art of entertaining by creating illusions through sleight of hand, misdirection, concealment and suggestion. Magicians have always been for entertainment, whereas witch doctors and medicine men may have used some of the same techniques but for other purposes. The first recorded Magicians date all the way back to Egyptian times. More history at the Wikipedia entry Magic and Illusion.
MAGIC TRICK CATEGORIES:
- Card tricks
- Coin and Money tricks
- Escape Artists
- Glass / Water tricks
- Hypnotism
- Levitation
- Mind Reading
- Major Illusions
- Optical Illusions
- Rope / String / Rings Tricks
MAGIC STORES FOR MAGIC TRICK SUPPLIES:
Magic Tricks from HobbyTronMagic Tricks – Fast same-day shipping! Huge in-stock inventory of professional magic tricks, books, videos/dvds and memorabilia
Following The Flea Markets
A great hobby, especially with the economic crunch we are in, is to shop the Flea Markets. Everybody loves a bargain and the exhilaration you feel when you discover that special item you’ve been looking for is incredible. Bargaining is expected, unlike shopping in a retail store, and once you get the hang of negotiating at a Flea Market, there’s no stopping you. Know your prices and you will do well. Flea Markets will carry new merchandise as well as used merchandise, antiques, collectibles, closeouts, and food items.Travel near, travel far – it’s up to you. You’ll find Flea Markets all over the country, all sizes, with all kinds of merchandise. And, if you do find something you like, don’t expect to find it there again the following week. So, if it’s something you are really interested in, don’t wait, otherwise it may be gone forever.
You might also want to try:
- Garage Sales
- Yard Sales
- Estate Sales
- Auctions
Web Sites To Visit:
- August Vacation Ideas. Read about the World’s Longest Yard Sale spanning 654 miles through five states.
- Find A Flea Market state by state.
Planning Your Own Garage/Yard Sale
Love Flea Markets and Yard Sales and want to try having a sale of your own? It can be a lot of fun and very profitable with just a little planning. So, let’s get started.1. Pick the date. Always have a back-up “rain date” scheduled as well. And, make it a family project. The kids can gather old toys and have a sale area all to themselves.
2. Check your attic, basement, closets, and garage. There’s a buyer for everything. So, even though you don’t need the item anymore, it might be just the article someone else is looking for.
3. Clean, wash, polish, scrub! Everything should be in the best possible condition for re-sale.
- Clothing should have all buttons, zippers intact.
- If possible, hang clothes rather than piling them on a table. They’ll look neater and more appealing.
- Appliances should be sparkling clean.
- Put a light bulb in the lamp you’re trying to sell and have an outlet nearby to plug it in to confirm it’s in good working condition. The extension cord will also come in handy for radios, TVs, microwaves, and any other electrical appliances you’re selling.
- Separate and organize like items for sale. Buyers can then focus on specific areas according to what they are looking for.
5. Make sure you have enough change. You’d be surprised how many people will walk in with a $20 bill only to purchase a dollar item. Don’t leave money in a cash box unattended as you will be walking around helping different customers. Keep all cash on your person or leave one person in charge of the cash box at all times.
6. Don’t forget to advertise! Use your local newspapers, supermarket bulletin boards, street signs, and flyers. Always give good directions, dates, and time of sale. Make it easy for people to find your house. Colorful balloons wrapped around the mailbox will draw quick attention to your sale. When the sale is over, remember to remove all signs.
7. When advertising, list large and specialty items (bedroom sets, collectibles, antiques etc.) and those things you specifically want to move out.
8. Invite a few neighbors to participate, bringing in some of their unwanted items. More merchandise brings in more people. Tell them to bring along a sandwich and enjoy lunch together when there’s a lull in the crowd.
Most of all, make it a fun day and you’ll find yourself looking forward to having these yard sales more frequently.
Fine Arts: Adding Color and Sound to Life
Art is everywhere you look, from the design on a dinner plate to the picture on the wall. Art is also found in the perfectly chosen words of a book or in the guitar solo you hear on the radio. Every school-age kid has the opportunity (whether they call it that or not) to practice their artistic skills in art, music and writing courses, but somehow the demands of adulthood pushes this artistic urge to the background.
Is it time to let your creative side flourish? How about one more reason: your health. Therapists have long used art to reduce stress and anxiety in patients. Physicians have discovered that art and music in the hospital environment can help patients handle their illnesses more effectively and possibly reduce hospital stays. Don’t wait for illness – get plugged in to your left-brain now!
First decide if you might simply enjoy other people’s art, or if you want to participate yourself as well.
Pick a topic and get started on your new hobby today.
- Drawing and Sketching can be one of the simplest ways to begin a lifelong love of art.
- Musical Instruments If you’ve never played an instrument seriously before, you’re missing out on a relaxing and mind enhancing activity.
One Womans Journey Into The Drawing World
Somehow I made it to adulthood only knowing how to draw people as stick figures. If you are one of those people, just know that the ability is within you.
On a whim, I decided to take a drawing course. My children were very young, and besides needing to have adult company, I also had an idea that I might someday write and illustrate my own children’s book. At the first class, I eyed my classmates – mostly older, mostly women, and mostly able to draw something other than stick figures. Nevertheless I timidly told my instructor that I was talent-less but could she please help me illustrate a children’s book.
Our assignment for the second class was to bring in a picture of something that we wanted to draw. I fumbled around children’s books, looking for the perfect picture to emulate, but couldn’t really find anything. Right before the class, I saw a photograph of my son and for some reason, threw it in my sketchbook.
The instructor was a little surprised given that portraits were a bit different than children’s book illustration, but I mumbled an excuse and began to study the photograph. The instructor told us to think of pencil drawing as just “filling in” the dark spots. Unlike elementary art, you don’t necessarily just outline your subject. Drawing has much to do with segmenting something into dark and light. Amazing.
Making that portrait of my son became an all-consuming task, and after a few false starts, the drawing started to take on just the hint of the photograph. I couldn’t have been more pleased, my son even recognized the likeness, and I was on my way to a lifelong love of drawing.
Several years have passed and I haven’t returned to portrait drawing, but I know one day I will. The pure delight of pencil on paper hasn’t left… It’s waiting for a willing pencil, the right subject, and a few hours of free time.
Doll Making
Doll Making is a great activity to either share with a child or one where you can express some truly creative and artistic flair.
From the traditional Teddy Bear, Raggedy Anne and Andy dolls or to the Halloween Scarecrow, basic clothes, fabrics and odds and ends can be used.
But for those looking for the artistic challenge, you can take Doll Making to great heights. The Original Doll Artist Council of America is a fantastic resource for aspiring Doll Making Artists to gather tips and motivation, filled with articles, tips and examples.
If you are looking for something a bit simpler and an easier project, there a number of kits and templates to get started. Joann’s Crafts offers a number of doll making and doll house making kits that are fun projects.
Do-It-Yourself Nesting
A Man’s Home Is His Castle!
Cocooning and nesting all relate to America’s love affair with house and home. With the stress of the daily rat race, we look to home life to be a sanctuary where we can relax and rejuvenate.High definition televisions and home entertainment systems are replacing night out at the movie theaters. Gourmet food delivery, cooking clubs and dinner parties with friends are replacing impersonal, crowded and over-priced restaurants.
These trends, plus the abundance of projects, makes the house and home the center point for a number of great hobby ideas.
From major renovation to puttering around in the garage, there are plenty of options on television for the “do-it-yourselfers”. The internet also offers a number of great resources that get down to brass tacks with ideas and advice.
For those who prefer dirt, rather than grease, under their fingernails, gardening provides unlimited options to interact with nature. From potted plants and mini-gardens to full blown hobby farms and fruit tree orchards, you can explore endless possibilities which will help you re-connect with nature, biology and ecology, which is something that is often lost in today’s hectic suburban, commuter lifestyles.
Cooking isn’t always a chore. With cooking clubs, cooking contests, and the creativity that gourmet cooking offers, combined with the love affair we have with food, there’s plenty to explore.
Finally, retire to your home entertainment center to enjoy music or a movie.
Hobbies provide us with activities that are enjoyable, that we do for our own pleasure. Our home is our major investment in terms of money, take the time to make it the major source and center point for you and your family’s enjoyment.
Read about the Arizona Home & Garden Show.
Do-It-Yourself Hobbies & Projects:
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Fantastic Fish Ponds – Jam-packed With Proven Techniques That Will Teach You How to Have the Ultimate Backyard Fish Pond and Make Sure Your Fish Are Healthy and Happy – Guaranteed! Curb Appeal Tips – Improve the curb appeal of your home, townhouse, or condo, or commercial property to get top dollar and sell it 10X faster! Kitchen Design – A step-by-step kitchen design eBook on how to research, design and build the Kitchen of your dreams. Budget Decorator – Secrets to Decorating Your Home with Creativity, Not Cash! How to Make Window Valances – You Can Easily Make Creative, Interesting Window Valances That Look Like You Paid a Professional Thousands of Dollars To Make. Water Garden & Garden Waterfall Construction Book – The Fire and Water E-book “How to Build Your Own Natural Waterfall” is the most complete pond construction guide available.Get Hooked on Crocheting
I remember learning to crochet when I was 5 years old. I hadn’t started school yet, so I didn’t know how to print or write, much less how to hold a pencil. However, holding a crocheting needle came easy – 3 or 4 easy stitches and you’re on your way.
In those days (and we’re going back a long time ago), doilies were in. Do you remember the pineapple doilies and the popcorn stitch? Every table, couch, and chair was decorated with a doily. From there we advanced to crocheting doll clothes.
Since then, imagination has brought us to a variety of beautiful (and very useful) items. Aside from the relaxation achieved in the quiet time of crocheting (as we all know, it can be done in front of the TV, long rides on an airplane, train, or bus, waiting in the doctor’s office and I’m sure a conscientious crocheter can think of a dozen other places) we’re now finding a lot of useful ways in which we can share this pleasant hobby. We’re finding so many people in need of, and appreciative of, handmade items.
- Newborn babies in hospitals in need of blankets and caps
- Chemo patients in need of hats
- The elderly in nursing homes in need of warm afghans for cold nights
- Gloves, scarves and hats for the homeless
- Crocheted Teddy Bears, Smiley Faces, and Angels for a child in need of a toy
Good Luck and Have Fun!
Cooking
What one pastime brings joy to all those it touches? Good Cooking! For those that enjoy creating delicious food, we delicious food lovers salute you.
It’s never been easier to get started in gourmet cooking. Cooking lessons are never farther away than your television with the popularity of FoodTV on cable and satellite television, and the cooking shows on Saturday morning Public Television. Just record your favorite cooking shows and play them back while you cook along in the kitchen!
If you’d like to learn more about cooking, consider taking some classes, subscribing to cooking magazines or reading cook books. The Internet, of course, is always a great way to gather information. And try some of these ideas:
Cooking Contests
Gourmet Clubs and Cooking Cliques:
Like any hobby, cooking can be carried on with friends who enjoy the activity as much as you do. So here are some ideas for social cooking:Gourmet Clubs:
Gather up a few friends and meet at someone’s home each month for a gourmet dinner. The host cooks the main dish, and the other members bring a dish from home or cook at the host’s home. It’s a great way to have a dinner party while keeping your work to a minimum.Mom’s Cooking Clubs:
Find 2 or 3 like-minded moms one afternoon and cook up a set of meals based on a certain ingredient that will take you through the next few days. For example, the club can cook ground beef that will be used for meatball sandwiches one day, lasagna the next day and a beef and barley stew the third day. This option takes a little agreement by the cooks and their families, but the camaraderie can make mundane cooking chores fun.Progressive Dinner Parties:
Grab a few neighborhood families to form a progressive dinner party. Start with appetizers at the first home, then move the entire party to the next home for the first course (soup or salad), the third home (the main dish) and the last home: the desert. If the first one goes well, consider having a monthly party like this. Kids love progressive dinner parties because they get to play with a new set of toys at every house.Contests
TRY YOUR LUCK!
Join in on the excitement of contests offered year-round. But remember, contests have expiration dates and change frequently, so be sure to check back often.- Win money at the Long Beach Island, NJ annual Surf Fishing Classic.
- Visit page on Cooking Contests for some great cooking and competitive eating contests.
- Go to Better Recipes and win cooking supplies in their daily giveaways.
- Visit Womans World Magazine for a variety of contests to win exercise equipment, children’s outdoor toys and books, and a variety of other prizes.
- Check out Woman’s Day contests and freebies. Prizes change frequently. See what they’re offering today.
- Win $100,000 a week for one year with PCH. On-going giveaways.
- Enter the Do It Yourself Projects contest for current and future sweepstakes and giveaways. Crafts, Woodworking, Garden, Indoor and Outdoor Projects year round.
Christmas Holiday Lights
Light Up Your Life With The Christmas Spirit
Treat the family to a perfect holiday celebration of Light Shows. Check with the local zoos as many of them across the country have adopted the magical tradition of Zoo Lights, usually trying to outdo themselves each year with fantastic displays.
Also, check with the local botanical gardens as many of them participate in yearly light traditions.
Near the water? Lighted boat festivals are popular across the country, bringing people from far and near.
Many areas offer tours of the more spectacularly lit neighborhoods. A popular and fun event is the Tacky Light Tour, where neighbors try to outdo each other with outrageous displays.
And the ever-popular Tree Lighting Ceremony is celebrated all around the country from New York City to Chicago to San Francisco and numerous little cities in between.
Visit December Vacation Ideas and our December Hobby Ideas page for Light Show suggestions around the country.
Chess
FEATURED LINKS
The Free Internet Chess Server, with over 150,000 registered users, is one of the oldest and one of the largest internet chess servers. Whether serious with your chess or just looking for the occasional game, whether looking for another player or eager to challenge a strong computer, whether you like a blitz chess or you are fond of one of the many variants, here you can play chess over the internet for free.
Drawing
September 12, 2013 by
Drawing and Sketching can be one of the simplest ways to begin a lifelong love of art. Even if you later move on to painting, learning how to sketch and draw can make you a better painter in many cases. And best of all, the tools are simple, clean-up is non-existent, and you can draw even if you only have ten free minutes a day!
Where to Start:
Attending a local community class on drawing is an excellent way to begin. Books also help, and you might consider Sketching and Drawing (First Step Series). It gives examples of different techniques and is excellent for beginners exploring different methods of drawing and sketching.
Once you’ve tried drawing a few different subjects, you might discover that you have a specific interest in drawing landscapes, people or cartoons.
Articles:
One Womans Journey Into The Drawing World
Beyond the Pencil
Put away your pencil. Instead, experiment with the many tools that create gorgeous and innovate drawings.
Charcoal– With the advantage of its rich black color and ease of spreading with your fingers, but the disadvantage of being messy, you should definitely experiment with this medium. You can use charcoal dust, sharpened charcoal (to use like a pencil), and sticks of charcoal. Use a putty eraser to remove errors and create contrast. A fixative keeps stray dust from getting everywhere when you’re done or at different points in your work.
Colored Pencils – add some color to your drawing with colored pencils. Don’t just buy the grocery kind. Get PrismaColor pencils, the artists’ choice – at your arts and crafts stores.
Pastel– pastel pencils are good for line drawing. Get pastel sticks to create a more impressionistic piece.
Pen and Ink – Pens come in different “nib” sizes, from fine to thick. “India ink” is a common type and is a permanent ink (impossible to get out of clothes)
Beer Can Collecting
Beer Can Collecting is alive and well. The internet is helping to bring together collectors, buyers and sellers of the vintage beer, brewery collectables and even soda can fans.
The first beer can was produced in October, 1935 by the American Can Company and Gottfried Krueger Brewing Company.
Although the prohibition years put a damper on beer cans and brewery collectables, the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s provided a wealth of great collectable items that capture the spirit and style of those eras.
During the 1970s, the beer can collecting hobby took off with thousands of collectors beginning collections and starting the valuable process of preserving these classic icons.
Beer Can Terms
Flat Top: Similar to today’s beer can shape. The All-American Beer can is an example.
Crowntainer: The Schmidt’s Beer shows an example of a crowntainer. Notice the bottle cap top and how the can top has a gradually reducing neck.
Cone Top: Type of Can with a top shaped like a … yes, you guessed it a Cone. The Atlantic Beer can above shows that it looks like a cross between the flat top and the crown.
Beer Cans Buy, Sell or Trade
We found these sites on the web looking to buy your old beer can collections:
- Larwood Limited. Ted Larson has been collecting since 1975 and is one of the top dealers of Vintage Beer Cans in the U.S. He buys collections and sells through his catalog and website.
- Beer Can Man
Conventions and Hobby Links
- Brewery Collectibles Club of America
How is Beer Made?
Beer dates back to the earliest recorded times. It is an alcoholic beverage where sugars from barley, wheat, other grains or rice is used to produce sugars which combined with yeast ferment to produce alcohol. Flavored with different hops and variations in brewing techniques, beer is as unique and distinctive a beverage as any.
Beer enthusiasts can enjoy and participate in the process through Home Brewing.
Over the last 70 years, the beer industry has grown and changed considerably, many collect Beer Cans and Brewery Memorabila.
While other beer fans go for the in-home bar setup complete with state of the art beer gear.
How is Beer Made?
Most beers are made from malted barley. Barley is a type of grain which is then soaked in water allowing it to begin to germinate. It is then quickly dried out producing malt which can then be crushed and mixed providing beer with its distinctive flavor.
Other grains such as wheat and rye as well as rice can be used with each having a unique flavor.
Hops are used for flavoring, often adding a bitter taste.
Yeast, when mixed with the natural sugars from the malted barley, causes fermentation which produces alcohol.
Different types of yeasts produce different types of beer. Dark, stout beers often use yeast that floats to the top and forms a thick layer on top of the beer. Whereas certain lagers are produced using a yeast which ferments at lower temperatures and settles to the bottom.
Water is the final, and many times, critical ingredient.
How is light beer made?
Beer Brewers discovered that if they used certain enzymes, they increase the amount of fermentation that occurs. Specifically, one enzyme would convert more starch from carbohydrates into alcohol. This allowed them to use ‘lower carb’ based malts and grain ingredients.
Another enzyme went even further in this conversion producing a higher alcohol content which allows them to, yes, add more water and still maintain the same alcohol level.
So, light beer is made by increasing the amount of starch that gets converted into alcohol by introducing more and different enzymes which then allows the brewer to reduce calories through different grains or by adding more water to balance the extra alcohol.
Magazines:
For America’s favorite Beer Magazine, Draft, click here!
More Sites To Get You Started:
Read about the Craft Brewers Conference in Chicago on April Hobby Ideas page.
For basic start-up information and all equipment needed, visit Beer & Wine Making.
Visit New Jersey’s Premier Hands-on Microbrewery, located inside Grape Beginnings Winery in historic Freehold, NJ. For information, call 732-431-BEER
Beer Types
Ale: Usually a dark gold to reddish in color, more fruity flavored, beer made from top-fermenting yeasts which is yeast rises to the top of the beer vats during fermentation.
Draught Beer: Any beer served from a keg. Usually contains less carbonation than bottled beer so it tastes slightly different and usually better.
Dry Beer: Usually golden in color, this beer has little or no after taste since most of the sugars are converted into alcohol during fermentation.
Lager: Most popular type of beer based on using bottom-fermenting yeasts where the yeast settles to the bottom. Light in color and often highly carbonated.
Ice Beers: During the brewing process, the beer is reduced in temperature until the point where it begins to crystalize in ice. These ice crystals are then removed, thereby removing extra water, leaving behind a higher alcohol level.
Malt: By-product of grains after first soaking them in water starting the germination process, then drying out producing a powdery substance.
Mash: Mixing malt with water, then raising it to boiling tempertures begins to turn the starches into sugars that will be used in fermentation.
Stout: Dark beers usually from roasted malts.
Beer Can Terms
Flat Top: Similar to today’s beer can shape. The All-American Beer can is an example.
Crowntainer: The Schmidt’s Beer shows an example of a crowntainer. Notice the bottle cap top and how the can top has a gradually reducing neck.
Cone Top: Type of Can with a top shaped like a … yes, you guessed it a Cone. The Atlantic Beer can above shows that it looks like a cross between the flat top and the crown.
Laugh Your Way to Better Health
As the saying goes, “Laughter is the best medicine”. And believing this, Dr. Madan Kataria, an Indian physician, developed an exercise routine combining yoga breathing and laughter, bringing more oxygen into the body and brain. The assumption being that the brain does not recognize the difference from a real laugh and fake laughter; therefore, any kind of laughter is beneficial to the body and the mind. Dr. Kataria started with a group of five followers, and now there are over 6,000 laughter clubs around the world.
According to Dr. Kataria’s web site, Laughter Yoga helps:
- Aid digestion and stimulates circulation
- Eases pain in serious illnesses such as cancer
- Helps in depression and enhances good mental health, creating a feeling of happiness
- Reduces stress
- Increases good cholesterol
- Boosts immunity
- Lowers the levels of the stress hormone, cortisol
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