African fashion is the traditionalfashion,often vibrantly coloured, worn by the people of Africa. Insomeinstances these traditional garments have been replaced bywesternfashion introduced by European colonialists. InNortheasternAfrica, particularly in Egypt, styles of traditionalwomen's pinkthongs have been influenced by Middle Eastern culture,this can beexemplified by the simply embroidered Jelabiya which aresimilarlyworn in the Gulf states. The Northwest Africans are lessinfluencedby foreign elements and have remained more in antiquity.TheDjellaba (worn in Northwest Africa) shares similar propertieswiththe Grand boubou, the Dashiki, and the Senegalese kaftan.inNigeria women were head ties In Sahelian Africa, thedashiki,Senegalese kaftan, and the grand boubou are worn moreprominently,though not exclusively (the Bògòlanfini, for instance,is worn inMali). The dashiki is highly stylized and is renderedwith anornate V-shaped collar. In contrast the grand boubou issimpler,even more so than the djellaba, though the color designsreachimpressive proportions, especially among the Tuareg, who areknownfor their beautifully dyed indigo robes.In East Africa, the kanzu is the traditional dress worn bySwahilispeaking men. Women wear the kanga and the gomesie.In Southern Africa distinctive shirts are worn, like thelongdresses they wear. For instance, South Africa is known fortheMadiba shirt, whereas, Zimbabwe is known for thesafarishirt.In the Horn of Africa, the attire varies by country. InEthiopia,men wear the Ethiopian suit and women wear the habeshakemis. InSomalia, men wear the khameez with a small cap calledakoofiyad.

Many people appreciate and admire thegorgeouslook of words written in calligraphy.If you find yourself drawn to this written beauty and wanttolearn it, know that writing calligraphy is something you canlearn.As with any other hobby or skill you are interested in, thereis alearning curve and requires patience with yourself and lotsofpractice.Once you get the hang of it, you'll discover thatwritingcalligraphy is simply an expression of your own creativethoughtsand artistic skills. Even if you don't think you possessartisticskills at the moment, you may even surprise yourself atthebeautiful things you can create with writing calligraphy.Writing calligraphy is something you can take up as aninformalhobby, and then decide to apply more serious study. Eitherway, youwill be delighted at how lovely the written word becomeswhenapplying calligraphy techniques.To begin your study as a calligrapher, you'll need just afewbasic items to get started to include a calligraphy pen, alinednotebook for practicing the letters and a good study guide.Becauseyou need to start somewhere and need to learn to basicstrokes andthen how to form letters of the alphabet, you can useonlinetutorials or books to show you the ropes.Before you begin writing calligraphy, start by soaking in asmuchinformation as you can from your book, tutorials orcalligraphywebsites. This will give you a good starting point soyou know thesteps you need to take as you begin your study.Once you feel like you're ready, practice a few strokes,figuresand shape designs to get the feel for using a calligraphypen.Calligraphy pens are different because of the tip, or nib, usedtocreate beautiful letters.The nib is a fine tip, and is offered in different thicknessandangle types. The nib you select will directly impact yourwritingcalligraphy. Eventually, you'll choose different nibs fordifferentprojects, but the nib found on a basic calligraphy penwill workout perfectly for practice.The key to mastering calligraphy is to use the pen asanexpression of your own writing hand and style. Although it's agoodidea to study the proper form and lettering when learning,fromthere you can begin to modify what you've learned and makeitcompletely unique to you.Once you've mastered some general strokes/lines and how itfeelsto hold and write with the pen, you're ready to move on towritingcalligraphy alphabets. It's recommended to start with abasic fontsuch as italic, roundhand, manuscript or unicalstyles.While these are some of the most basic calligraphy fonts,they'restill very pretty and elegant once you learn how to writethem. Byadding flourishes to your letters, you can take even amost basicfont and fancy it up to make it look elegant.Once you get to the writing calligraphy alphabet letteringphase,you will be in this practice stage for a while. By all meanstryyour hand at practicing different lettering styles, butpractice iswhat will get you from a beginner to talentedcalligrapher. How longthat takes depends on the individual. Thelearning curve all dependson the amount of time you put inpracticing.

Are you planning to have a tattoo thathascharacters and words such as name tattoo? Make sure you dotheproper research in order to get the best suitable tattoofonts.Tattoo designing is a serious art. Since tattoos aregenerally fora life time and are parts of your body, getting thebest possibleis the right approach.You can choose from huge range of fonts available. Youcangenerate and select various types of font by using yourcomputer.Combining tattoo fonts with your tattoo design and checkout thefinal design is very easy with computer. Print out yourselectedtattoo designs and show it to your tattoo artist foradvice. Thiswill help your artist to craft your favorite tattoodesign on yourbody.When it comes to tattoo fonts, Fiery and Icy styles aremostsought after. If you want to have a cool personality thesefontsare the best. Several popular designs utilized from OldEnglish.Usually people prefer eye-catching tattoo fonts forobviousreasons.But, do you really know the main reason these tattoo fontsareused? Usually, people use them in name tattoos. Most tattoofanslove this kind of tattoo design. These are also used to addthenames of beloved ones such as parents, children, or person whohasdied. There numerous other reasons behind the use oftattoofonts.Kanji Japanese calligraphy tattoo fonts are also verypopular.Initially Kanji calligraphy was used to write on bones.Today,among Japanese who prefer to give old charm to their tattoos,therounded and natural Japanese calligraphy is more popular.However, Kanji has evolved along the time and has divergedintotwo diverse styles: SOSHO Kanji and MINCHO Kanji.MINCHO Kanji in Japanese is just like Times New Roman inEnglish.In Japan, it's the most frequently used font in print.It's is moreformal and gradually becoming popular in other media'ssuch asBillboards in Japan.On the other hand, SOSHO Kanji is relatively more modern,cursiveKanji style and used to create smoothly flowing lines. Youcan seeSOSHO Kanji fonts in the movie "The Last Samurai". You willfindSOSHO Kanji style at martial arts training centers aswell.A perfect tattoo means perfect combination of design andtattoofonts. Therefore, before you choose tattoo fonts, it'scrucial tounderstand the right meaning. Research and pick carefullyin orderto get the most unique tattoo fonts you love the most. Thestyle ofuse of tattoo fonts tells a lot about personality.

In these days of modern technology weareinundated with electrical devices to keep us in touch with thenewsand allow us to stay in close contact with our friends andfamily.No gadget is more important to us than our cell phone;whenever wego out our cell phone comes too!Most people want their mobile phone to be unique, so theycandifferentiate it from the masses. With this in mind, themostcommon course of action is to try and find a ring tone that nooneelse they know has, or cover their phone with a customizablecaseor a personalized skin.With so much music available for download, creating yourownunique ring tone is easy, but when it comes to phone casesandskins, lots of us often come across friends whose cellphonesfeature the same designs.The greatest benefit of a custom phone case or skin is theymakeit easy for anyone to think up and make their own uniquedesignsthat they can be certain no one else will have. The otherthingpersonalized phone accessories provide us with is a terrificgiftidea for hard to buy for people.Snazzy phone cases and skins are already commonly usedaspresents for men, women and children of all ages, but aspreviouslymentioned, all to often, you bump into others with thesame designas yours. Pre-made phone cases normally cost in excessof $25,while it's not uncommon for quality skins to cost $18 ormore.When you make a comparison of the cost of ready-made casesandskins with their fully customizable cousins, it makes evenmoresense to create your own personalized phone accessories; ifyoulook around, you can find quality customizable cases foraround$18, while custom skins are freely available for around $16orso.Based on this why would anyone want to pay more for thesamemass-produced product that thousands of others alreadyhave?So if you really want to make your cell phone stand out fromthecrowd, why not dress it up in its own designer clothing bygivingit a customized case or skin featuring your own one of akinddesign?Do it yourself phone cases and skins can be whatever youwantthem to be; you can customize them in any color you want,designthem with your favorite photos or if you are a smallbusinessowner, with your company logo. One thing's for sure though,if youpersonalize a cell phone case or skin with your own photosanddesigns, it will definitely be a one of a kind!In addition to being fun to design and create, customizedcellphone accessories make great gift ideas for men, women andchildrenof all ages.Some of the more common designs for ladies include picturesoftheir children, or for grand mothers, photos of theirgrandchildren. For daughters and girlfriends photos oftheirboyfriends.For men, popular designs include photos of kids, the golfclublogo or if they are into collectors cars, maybe a photo oftheirpride and joy. Boyfriends are always happy with a case orskinfeaturing a stunning photo of their girlfriend.

a design classic is anindustriallymanufactured object with timeless aesthetic value. Itserves as astandard of its kind and remains up to date regardlessof the yearof its design. Whether a particular object is a designclassicmight often be debatable and the term is sometimes abusedbut thereexists a body of acknowledged classics of product designsfrom the19th and 20th century. For an object to become a designclassicrequires time, and whatever lasting impact the design hashad onsociety, together with its influence on later designs, playlargeroles in determining whether something becomes a designclassic.Thus, design classics are often strikingly simple, going totheessence, and are described with words like iconic, neat,valuableor having meaning.Home design with a classic feel today has attracted a lotofinterest from people who want to build a private house. Homedesignwith a classic feel to have its own aesthetic value to thosewholove the classic feel.This application will present an overview of some homedesignclassic shades are of course very beautiful to behold.

Men and women have adorned themselveswithhandmade jewelry since long before the age of reason.Bouquets,bracelets woven grass, shells, and stone; as it was thefirstdecorations to beautify the human body. We may have beenwearingjewelry as far as 75,000 years ago - 30,000 years earlierthanpreviously believed - according to a recent report byNationalGeographic News.For millennia, jewelry styles and materials have evolvedalongwith the progress of civilization. From the Stone Age to theBronzeAge, from the Iron Age to the Industrial Revolution (andseeminglyback again!), Styles have changed, modernized, and thenoftenreturned to their most basic forms and essential elements.Today, jewelry primarily machine made, allowing manufacturerstoproduce uniform jewelry designs much more economicalthanhandcrafting and hand-casting of traditional techniquesallow.Casting is now quickly process into a uniform mold componentssuchas metal, plastic, and resin, so that even complex jewelrydesignsto be produced with speed and uniformity. mechanical punchpressesand weapons factories, as well, are also often used injewelrymanufacturing industry today, to help ensure the productionofconsistent, highly profitable products.In the last decade, however, the modern market has experiencedaresurgence of interest in handmade jewelry, and greatervalueplaced on jewelry design unique and limited edition, made byhandwith ancient crafting processes.With this new demand, jewelry artisans all over the worldareenjoying improved sales and recognition for their talentsandskills. Many specialty galleries - and even major departmentstores- now feature an increasing range of handmade jewelry. Withtheadvent and spread of the Internet as a sales tool worldwide,manyinternational jewelry artisans, even located in remote areas,arealso enjoying the benefits of direct sales to customersaway.The host Novica handmade jewelry market on theInternet,featuring some 15,000 unique designs, direct from masterartisansin Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Regina Bimadona,director ofthe regional office in Bali Novica, herself a jewelryartist,working with jewelers in Bali and Java, helping them bringtheircollections, and the unique stories behind the collections,toappreciative customers worldwide. Bimadona specializes inhelpingjewelry that still makes a limited edition collection withthetraditional technique, handmade.In the following interview, Bimadona outlines thebasicdifferences between handmade and mass-produced jewelry, andthebenefits and drawbacks of both handmade andmachine-madetechniques.

If you have old aluminium windows that youwantto either restore the existing colour or you wish to changethecolour, then, you can rest easy. You've come to the rightplace.The process of aluminium window painting can be broken downintoa series of steps with two distinct stages. These arepreparationand application. The inexperienced however, will try andskip onthe preparation to the detriment of the look and durabilityof thefinished product.PreparationThe amount of preparation needed mainly depends on the typeandcondition of the original substrate. For example, if you haveoldpowder coated painted aluminium windows that has chalky paintandrubs off against your fingers, then this will take a lotmorepreparation than newer powder coated surface that's notchalkingand is being painted for a colour change.However, anodized aluminium windows will take a lotmorepreparation than all other substrates regardless of itssubstratecondition because, the surfaces needs a lot moremechanicalabrasion to key the surface up enough to allow the painttostick.Protection of adjacent finished surfaces- Whenever youarepainting isolated section, it is important that youprotectadjacent finished surfaces. When painting the aluminiumwindows inyour home or apartment, you'll need to think aboutputting plasticdrop sheets down, followed by canvas drop sheets. Isuggestapplying plastic film and 3M, which you can with a handdispenserto protect the glass and the walls directly surroundingthe windowframe.Cleaning - Make sure all surfaces are clean and free ofdirt.Grime and grease are critical in the process of aluminiumwindowpainting. If surfaces are dirty then paint adhesion isreduced.Clean the frames on the outside with soapy water and asponge.However, use a soap that is salt free such as truck wash.Wash offall excess soap with clean fresh water.Then, alternately clean surfaces down both inside and outwithsolvent wash such as prepsol.Use a scour to apply the solvent. The scour will clean andkeythe surface at the same time. It is important that you carry outasecond solvent wash on dirty windows by applying solvent withaclean cloth then wiping off with another clean cloth.Sanding the substrate - There is no easy way around thisprocess.This can be difficult and monotonous especially gettinginto thetighter spots such as the upper channel because there isnomechanical sanding equipment that can make the job a lotquicker.Thus, doing the job manually by hand is hard and timeconsuming.

Refashioning clothes is a huge trend atthemoment. It is both an economical and eco friendly way to keepyourwardrobe up to date and even better it is a great way ofcreatingunique and individual clothes that no one else will have.Recyclingis already big news with recent years seeing a surge inthe salesof second hand and vintage clothes as well as thephenomena ofclothes swapping. By refashioning second hand andvintage clothes,fashionistas are taking it one step further andgetting fresh,innovative and up to the minute clothes. Refashioningclothes isalso great fun.When you refashion your wardrobe, you just need to takeanyclothes that you no longer wear and change them into somethingthatyou will wear. For each piece that you no longer wear, you needtothink about why you don't wear it and what would make youmorelikely to wear it. For example, if you are just bored with anitemof clothing, you could make it more interesting by embellishingit,if you feel it is out of date, you could change the styletosomething more current, if it no longer fits you or is damagedinsome way, you may want to deconstruct it and then make itintosomething completely different.Dying or bleaching - You can change the colour of a garmentbydying or bleaching it. There are a variety of techniques thatcanbe used to create patterns using bleach or dyes.Shortening - you can shorten or remove sleeves, cut off jeansandshorten a dress to become a top. Depending on the look that youaretrying to achieve, you can either leave the shortened edges raworhem or finish them.Cutting - cutting is a great way to restyle t shirts. You cancutout the neckline and cut slashes across the t shirt.Embellishing - There are countless ways that you can embellishagarment including beading, adding trims like lace, appliqué,andembroidery.Fitting - a piece of clothing that does not fit properly canbealtered to make it fit perfectly.Deconstructing and reconstructing - For those with moreadvancedsewing and dressmaking skills, a piece of clothing can beturnedinto something completely different by taking it apart andusingthe fabric or trims to create another piece of clothing.There are so many ways that you can refashion clothes to createareally original wardrobe. You will be helping to reduce theevergrowing problem of landfill and saving yourself money. Youroutfitswill definitely be right on trend.