Repainting The Ceramic Lamps

It still feels like Valentines Day. Perhaps, that is all because of the bright red colored ceramic lighting fixtures which adorns and lights up the interior and exterior of the house. We wanted to restore it to its original color which is white. But mom wants to keep its current color. She said that we have too much white in the house including the wall, armoires, and doors. The red colored ceramic lighting fixtures break the monotonous color in the house. The problem is, dad likes the red color the least and so are the rest of the family.

Nevertheless, we agreed to compromise. We all decided to keep all the bright red colored ceramic lights in the bathroom and the patio and the rest of the lamps will be repainted. Then we tried what we could to repaint the ceramic lamps white but the white latex paint is only turning everything pink. We tried using the sandpaper in removing the bright red paint from the bisque but that requires Herculean patience as the paint cannot be removed easily without damaging the texture of the ceramic sconces and ceiling lamps. We cannot use solvent or liquid cleaners to remove the latex paint as these will be absorbed by the ceramic lighting fixtures. No wonder mom let us win so easily. Although dad, knew what is going to happen in the end he still insisted on repainting the ceramic sconces just to irritate mom.

I guess pink colored bisque sconces are better than the bright red colored ones since the color is not that strong. However, I will try again cleaning the sconces with water until all the red latex pain from the sconces is all remove. But I have to do it every two weeks just to make sure that the sconces will not be damaged because of too much cleaning.

Farewell Old Lamp, Hello New Lamp

Finally, I have bid farewell to the old vanity lighting fixture which had been keeping our bathroom illuminated for the past four years. I wish it had lasted longer. But I guess four years is already long enough. It had served me well. I know I am grateful for its service and I know I am going to miss it. But I have to move on.

Now, I keep looking at the new vanity light which will serve us for as long as it could. I hope it will be longer than four years. I like this new addition to our home because it is not only handcrafted by expert artisans, it also made of earthenware clay, a natural material. In addition, this is also UL-listed which means that it is safe and efficient. This is the fifth ceramic lighting that we have so far and I suppose will not be the last especially when I my grand aunt also admires the new vanity light. She keeps asking me how I bought it and want to buy one for her bathroom as well. What she likes most about the 21 inched Starfish and Seashells Ceramic Vanity Light are the patterns etched on the ceramic lighting. The starfish and seashells patterns remind her of summer. It also reminds her of her childhood where she and my grandfather would gather seashells for their collection. They would place it in their aquarium. That aquarium had been converted to a terrarium since it can no longer hold water. But we still have the seashells.

The 21 inched Starfish and Seashells Ceramic Vanity Light is really something. I feel guilty for liking this new vanity lamp more than the old vanity lamp but I cannot help it. The rest of the family feels the same way too and we all wish that this new lamp will even surpass the years of service of the old vanity lamp.

My Grand Aunt's Visit

My grand aunt whom I have not seen since college gave us a surprise visit today. We received a phone call from her the day before that she will be coming over for my parents’ wedding anniversary so we really did not expect to see her sooner. Good thing that we had her room ready on the day she called that she will be coming over. Knowing how meticulous and particular she is when it comes to cleanliness and order, we made sure that her room in maintained everyday.

She was pleased with her room. We had it painted with her favorite color. We also changed the curtains with her favorite floral designs. She had been praising the window box which is blooming with her favorite flowers. She also loves the Tree Trunk Table Lamp. But she gave us a short lecture first about protecting Mother Nature and those who are patronizing products which are made from illegally cut trees is a sin against Mother Nature. I explained to her that no trees were harmed when they made the Tree Trunk Table Lamp. I told her that the table lamp is in fact made from ceramic and resin. I also explained that the table lamp looks like a real tree trunk because it was molded from a real tree and was painted to look like the real one. She was also please that the light bulb used in the table lamp is CFL or compact fluorescent lamp which is known to be an energy saving light.

This is going to be an interesting month for all of us with my grand aunt around. My grand aunt can be meticulous and strict and she can drive anyone crazy. But I know that her being meticulous and strict are all for the right reasons. I guess I am used to her since I stayed with her during my college years. I hope she could stay with us for good. I miss her.

How to Take Good Care Of Our Eyes

My eyes hurt every now and then. According to the EENT (Eyes, Ears, Nose and Throat) specialist, this is called eye strain or eye fatigue. Other than frequent headaches, red watery eyes and other eye discomforts, I have nothing else to worry as this is not life threatening. The most uncomfortable thing is that, even when I am inside my room, I cannot move around with out a pair shaded eye protection glasses or otherwise move around with my eyes close as bright lights will make me tear for no reason. 

 

According to the good doctor, this happened because I have been working my eyes too much. All I need to do is to give my eyes a rest for at least a minute or two when they start to hurt already. He also gave me a few tips to prevent this from happening in the future such as the proper adjustment of the computer screen which should be 20-26 inches away from my eyes and a little below eye level. Adding a glare filter on the screen also helps. I should also get proper sleep. Moreover, lighting is also a big factor in preventing eye strain. However, no matter how hard it is to follow my doctor’s advice, I still to follow every one of them. Well, except for sleep, adhering to the proper computer screen adjustment, adding a glare filter, and proper lighting. As for the lighting, the 6.5 inched Block Pendant Light with Star Pattern in my room is just perfect as the star patterns throw a soft glow which does not hurt my eyes. I was thinking of painting this ceramic lighting to a different shade but I decided to keep its white bisque. It is also good thing that my brother had the dimmers installed in every lighting fixture in the house. 

Taking good care of our eyes is important. Eye strain or eye fatigue is probably not life threatening but if we disregard our doctor’s advice this may lead to blindness. Surely, we do not want to lose our eyesight because of negligence.

Valentine's Day Party

 

A few weeks from now, we will be celebrating Valentines Day. Lovers from all walks of life are planning on how they could make that day special for their love ones. More often than not, lovers would celebrate this special day somewhere romantic. However, some couples are more practical these days. Instead of going somewhere romantic they would spend it at home just like what my parents every Valentine’s Day. 

But Valentine’s Day is not only meant for two people who are in love. This is also celebrated by friends and families like what we do every Valentine’s day. We would invite our friends and relatives at home to celebrate with us. Normally, we hire a catering service to serve the food but this year we all agreed to prepare the meals for the Valentine’s Day party especially that my brother who is a great cook will be home. We also did a lot of cleaning especially in the backyard where the party will be held. We also checked the wall lighting sconces as well as the ceiling lights if in case they need to be replaced. Thankfully, they are all good except the cleaning lady forgot to clean it. You can even write your own name after all the dust accumulated on the 7- inched Ceramic Cylinder Sconce with Abstract Cut Outs. We also bought pink color enamel paint since we decided to paint tiny pink tiny hearts on the ceramic lights. 

My siblings and I just wanted that our parents will be happy on this special day as this is not just any Valentine's Day. It is also going to be the 40th year that our mom accepted our dad's marriage proposal. With the help of everyone I am hopeful the Valentine’s Day party will be a great success. Advance Happy Valentine's Day to all.

Customizing The Ceramic Lights

When my sister in law said we will paint the newly bought ceramic lighting fixtures specifically the 12.5 inched Ceramic Bowl Sconce with Star Border for my niece’s bedroom I thought how impractical and a waste that would be since the ones we bought were already customized to be painted in bosc pear color. I did not know that my “artistic side” was challenged when she mentioned that she wanted the surface of the ceramic lights with moon and star shapes. We could have requested to have these shapes painted on the children's light fixture since we have already requested to have them painted in a bosc pear color.

I was already thinking of shipping it back but paying for the shipping fee sounds even more impractical when I know that I have the skills to paint the shapes she wanted on the ceramic. It was a good thing that the person who assisted us mentioned that we can use latex or no flat paint to repaint the ceramic if in case we get tired of the color and decided to change it in the future. I am glad that we still have some available paints from the last paint job we did on the house. Anyway, with the use of a pencil, I drew the shapes of the stars and the moon on the surface of the ceramic lighting and painted the shapes with the latex paint just as what my sister in law wanted.

The result? I can see it in my sister in law’s face that she is pleased with the paint job I did on the ceramic lighting. For me, painting the ceramic lighting fixtures is easy as 123. However, to those who are too busy to do the painting, calling the customer service to have your ceramic lights customized is the best option.

Pros And Cons Of Shopping

 

Almost everyone I know these days have been buying their stuffs online-from the most basic needs as food and clothing to our wants such as our high-end electronic gadgets. It is easier and less stressful to shop online rather than going to the grocery stores or shopping malls. Of course, it also has some advantages and disadvantages. There are certain risks involve whenever you do your shopping online such as identity theft, hacking, and phishing. These happen when you shop in some untrusted websites. So you must really be careful in giving out your personal information. It is important that you only shop in trusted websites. You should also make sure that the computer or smartphone you are using is equipped with anti-phishing softwares to prevent these online criminals from stealing your vital information.

Another problem that may occur when we shop online is that we may get the wrong product since we are only dependent on the images shown on the websites. There is also a huge possibility that the item has factory defects. Of course you can still return these items but it is kind of a hassle sending items back to the shop. However, these are the risks which online shoppers like me are willing to take.

Moreover, we should also be aware in buying DIY items. These DIY products like ceramic lighting fixtures and window shutters only include special instructions such as how to install the product, etc. A friend of mine recently bought an interior sconce from one of the trusted online stores. It was a 7.5 inched Side Light Burst Asymmetrical Ceramic Sconce. The ceramic sconce was not installed right away since she does not know how to do it in spite of the instructions that came with it. She also tried calling the customer service for help but everything sounds Greek to her. So she waited for husband to come home to do the installation. It was quite a lesson learned but in spite of all the trouble it had cost her, she still buy products which require installation.

Shopping online or going to the actual store has some pros and cons. We just have to be extra careful whenever we use our credit cards or provide our personal information. We should always bear in mind that we should only buy what we need otherwise we will end up with a lot of debts.