Archive for February 1st, 2010
So, una buncha de architectos have inventados a heat-resistant glue for erecciones, have they? (My real Spanish is pretty damn good, I’m just playing to the gallery, you understand.) Well, why am I not surprised it’s a Spanish invention?
Summers down in the Andalusian city of Seville are hot (but let me tell you this, it’s bleeding brass monkeys at night between November and March) and so it’s not uncommon for plazas in the center to have some form of shelter from the sun. This one above is one of the largest architectural timber structures ever built. Measuring 150 x 70 meters, Parasols, in Plaza de la Encarnación, is made of Kerto-Q (nope, me neither) polyurethane-coated timber beams. The structure is deemed unsuitable for “conventional mechanical joining methods”, whatever they may be. Ergo, glue that can withstand up to 70 degrees C of heat. The august body of cleverclogs that was charged with coming up with the sticky stuff was the Fraunhofer Institute for Wood Research WKI, in Germany. Phew.
Now then, what I’m about to say is by no means revenge on this little post from earlier in the month (my ex- and I are still on good terms) but architects’ glue that doesn’t melt could only have been invented in Spain. I remember going to Valencia for a long weekend about five years ago and staring, open-mouthed at the exposed brickwork in the bedroom of my (admittedly cheap and nasty) holiday villa. Every third brick had a dollop of mortar on top of it, making the wall looked like it had been mapped out using silly string and a Tim Burton-designed spirit level. I stayed out all night and slept on the beach the next day. [gizmag]
I have recently had a problem with my Moen mixer for the bathtub. As I searched the Internet for some insight before I attacked the faucet, I found very little in the way of images or step by step instruction. So, being a long time Maker and long time Instructables user / contributor, I thought I …
By: bhunter736
Today we begin DIY/How To month at Apartment Therapy. I do have a couple projects in mind but no definite plans for when to do them. However, maybe this DIY month is just the kick in the pants I need. I am starting small though and my first project is organizing my junk drawer and sharing my process with all of you.
Whether it’s fate, serendipity, or someone in IKEA’s design department really wanted a network rack he could put a table lamp on, the Lack-line of end tables is perfect network-rack size.
If you work in a commercial setting then, naturally, you’ll have commercial network racks. Commercial racks are both overkill in build and price for a home user or a small office with only a few rack devices; this clever hack is a great fit.
The Lack end tables from IKEA just happen to be the exact width of a network rack and you can easily screw rack devices right into their sturdy legs. Over at the wiki of eth0, a group that puts on seasonal conferences for geeks to get together and geek out together with projects and information sharing, they have a tutorial for converting your Lack table into a LackRack. Check out the link below for more information and additional photos.
Personal income jumped $4.5 billion in December, a 0.4% uptick and the sixth increase in a row, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. November featured a 0.5% rise of $61.1 billion.
In its third monthly gain, consumer spending swelled 0.2%, or 0.1% after inflation.
“This morning’s personal income and spending report is another positive sign that our economy continues to move in the right direction,” said the department's chief economist, Mark Doms. “Further stimulus expenditures will support the ongoing expansion in consumer spending and income.”
December saw a 0.4% expansion of $45.9 billion in disposable personal income, compared with the 0.5% increase of $60.7 billion the month before. In 2005 dollars, both months had 0.3% growth.
Personal-consumption expenditures were up 0.2%, or $22.6 billion, in December, compared with a 0.7% boom of $69.1 billion the month before. Adjusted for inflation, December increased 0.1% and November climbed 0.4%.
The price index for the category, excluding food and energy, was up 0.1% in December and up 1.5% over all of 2009.
Consumers hoarded $534.2 billion in December, or 4.8% of their disposable income. They stashed away $506.3 billion in November.
Wages and salaries improved by $6.3 billion in December, compared to an increase of $25.1 billion the month prior. Service industries bumped their payroll $11.5 billion, followed by a $2.9-billion surge for government positions.
But goods producers were paid $5.2 billion less, after seeing a $2.9-billion escalation in November. Pay in the manufacturing sector was also down $2.2 billion, compared with a $3.5-billion increase the month before.
– Tiffany Hsu
Photo: Shoppers make their way through the Glendale Galleria on Dec. 13, 2009. Credit: Christine Cotter / Los Angeles Times
U.S. consumer confidence reached a two-year high, but expectations for solid growth in 2010 are slim, according to a private study released today.
The final index of sentiment from the Thomson Reuters and University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers hit 74.4 in January, the highest point since January 2008. The tally represented a 2.6% increase from December’s 72.5 and a 21.6% boost from the 61.2 marked in January 2009.
But despite the generally positive feeling that the worst is over in the overall economy, consumers were dour about their personal finances, the report said. Unlike in past economic cycles, when consumers expected their own gains to keep pace with the nation’s, many now expect their incomes and job prospects to stay stagnant through 2010.
Consumers were feeling vulnerable about their fragile investments and reserve funds, while being weighed down by debts, squeezed by tight credit and shadowed by a cloud of foreclosures and bankruptcies.
“Persistently high joblessness as well as stagnating incomes will mean that consumers will remain cautious spenders, preferring to add to their savings and reserve funds,” said chief economist Richard Curtin in a statement. “Overall, the data indicate slowly improving consumer spending during the year ahead.”
The index of current economic conditions rose in January to 81.1, a 4% increase from December’s 78 and a 22% boom from the 66.5 noted a year earlier.
Consumer expectations jumped 1.7% to 70.1 from 68.9 in December, a 21.3% leap from 57.8 in January 2009.
Fewer consumers — 45% — said their finances had deteriorated; that's down from 49% in December and 53% last January. More than 20% said their finances had actually improved.
But 56% of households said they don’t expect their income to increase in 2010.
The survey data suggests, according to researchers, that total real personal spending will rise 1.8% in 2010, make this the slowest consumer exit from recession in the post-World War II period.
– Tiffany Hsu
Photo: Customers at ATMs in downtown Los Angeles in 2009. Credit: Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times
Q: I was wondering if any readers have retrofitted their existing kitchen cabinets with roll-out shelves. Has anyone used one of the companies that do this, such as ShelfGenie (www.shelfgenie.com) and what was their experience? Thanks!
Sent by Meg
Who wants a clean house? It seems that lately I’ve been watching a whole lot of Clean House, the personality-filled organizing and decorating program on The Style Network.
You live in a small space where adding even the smallest desk isn't an option, so you have to make due with the couch, a kitchen surface, or even working from bed. We've gathered laptop workspace solutions for those who measure available space in square inches and need to make each and every one of them count.
As we quietly close out the month of January and our focus on bedrooms, I thought I would share a selection of beautiful and inspirational bedrooms.
ABOUT
EpicTrendz, stylishly smart around the home.