Showing posts with label Websites. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Websites. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Women In Art
Wow...this is truly amazing to see all the different interpretations throughout the years
500 Years of Female Portraits in Western Art
by Philip Scott Johnson
Information on the individual portraits can be found here.
500 Years of Female Portraits in Western Art
by Philip Scott Johnson
Information on the individual portraits can be found here.
Friday, May 13, 2011
Origamic Architecture
So we have another family learning project with Ry, this time a lapbook on a planet. He's chosen Saturn. He is fairly determined that he will have a pop-up/pop-out of the planet, which while definitely a creative idea, is a tad beyond my knowledge. So while I was cruising round the internet looking for instructions on how to achieve a planetary pop-up I came across the most amazing site.
(click on the origamic architecture link in the first paragraph)
How awesome is that??? The site's bilingual, so don't worry if you find yourself staring at a bunch of French (unless of course you read French, which is a bonus for you, now isn't it?) just scroll until you find the English parts. There's a ton of instructions on how to do these, it's basically a .pdf page that has all your cut and fold lines marked (cut the solids, fold the dashed). It really can't get much simpler than that I think.
So go have fun and make some awesome pop-out art.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Hamsters
I have a hamster that I alternately love and loathe. I love him because he's cute and fluffy. I loathe him because his wheel has a squeak and his water bottle makes such a racket it can wake me up at night. I love him because he's been around for 2+ years, and I sometimes loathe him because...I honestly didn't think he would live this long. Which is a horrible thing to say, I know. I feel bad for even thinking it at times.
Then I saw this. A hamster mansion. The Biltmore of hamster habitats. And I want it. I want it bad. So, Rufus, if you manage to live for a few more years (and why not, you've outlived every other hamster I ever knew) this might just be in your future.
Then I saw this. A hamster mansion. The Biltmore of hamster habitats. And I want it. I want it bad. So, Rufus, if you manage to live for a few more years (and why not, you've outlived every other hamster I ever knew) this might just be in your future.
Monday, May 02, 2011
U is for Urban Exploration
From Wikipedia:
If you have never seen photos from an urban explorer, then you have no clue what you've been missing out on. Most of these people live by the motto "Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints." They venture into places long lost to society, worn down by years of neglect and often the elements as well.
Yet there's a haunting beauty to these places. Some are mere shells of their former selves, and some are time capsules looking as if the people who once roamed their floors simply left for lunch and never came back. It's almost become an art form to find the perfect abandoned place and capture it on film...or its digital equivalent.
Urban exploration (often shortened as urbex or UE) is the examination of the normally unseen or off-limits parts of urban areas or industrial facilities.[1] Urban exploration is also commonly referred to as infiltration, although some people consider infiltration to be more closely associated with the exploration of active or inhabited sites. It may also be referred to as "draining" (when exploring drains) "urban spelunking", "urban caving", or "building hacking".
The nature of this activity presents various risks, including both physical danger and the possibility of arrest and punishment. Many, but not all, of the activities associated with urban exploration could be considered trespassing or other violations of local or regional laws, including—but not limited to—invasion of privacy and certain broadly-interpreted anti-terrorism laws.
If you have never seen photos from an urban explorer, then you have no clue what you've been missing out on. Most of these people live by the motto "Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints." They venture into places long lost to society, worn down by years of neglect and often the elements as well.
Yet there's a haunting beauty to these places. Some are mere shells of their former selves, and some are time capsules looking as if the people who once roamed their floors simply left for lunch and never came back. It's almost become an art form to find the perfect abandoned place and capture it on film...or its digital equivalent.
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All artwork is copyright to their respective owners
Saturday, April 30, 2011
S is for Spoonflower
Spoonflower is a fabric lovers dream website. I ran across it a few years ago when it was just starting out and fell in love with it. It sells custom, printed on demand fabric created by you. Not feeling up to the task of creating your own fabric? That's okay, you can browse through other member's gallery until you find that design that screams buy me.
I know what your thinking. If any bum on the internet can create a fabric design, then obviously the standards aren't that great. But no. The standards are pretty high actually. And the designs are often amazing. The lovely thing that keeps the creative designing fresh and new are the weekly fabric contests. All members are given the opportunity to submit one design each week into a contest revolving around a specific theme. You can see past winners and themes here. Just be prepared for a cute and awesome overload : )
I know what your thinking. If any bum on the internet can create a fabric design, then obviously the standards aren't that great. But no. The standards are pretty high actually. And the designs are often amazing. The lovely thing that keeps the creative designing fresh and new are the weekly fabric contests. All members are given the opportunity to submit one design each week into a contest revolving around a specific theme. You can see past winners and themes here. Just be prepared for a cute and awesome overload : )
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
K is for KickStarter
I spent the day wracking my brain in vain, trying to think up a "k" word to write about. As I sat in despair, staring at my Krystals and deciding that writing about fast food would be a last resort, I received a weekly email update from a site I visit. Looking though the links, I found something great. It was awesome. It was so great it was beyond awesome. I wanted to write about it. I had to write about it. But alas...it did not start with a "k". So as I was bookmarking it to save for another letter further in the month, and feeling rather sad, I came to realization that while it might not start with a "k", the website sure did! Suddenly there was joy, my blogging mind was at peace, and all was right with the world once again.
I present to you the awesome website kickstarter.com . KickStarter is basically a funding website. You come up with an awesome idea, an idea so great that it will radically change the world as we know it. Okay, so maybe the idea's not quite at that level, but it's rather awesome none the less. However, you find yourself lacking funds to pull off said idea. This is where KickStarter comes into play. Submit your idea for funding, set a goal of how much and when, and if enough people support you, your dream just became a reality.
So I can already hear you say, "well gee, that's neat and all, but what do I get out of it?" This is the fun part. when you donate money, you become a "backer". Backer's usually recieve some form of compensation depending upon the level of their donation. What the compensation is varies for each project.
"But wait!" you say, "what's all this about setting a goal of how much and when?" A monetary goal is set in the vary beginning. If this project can raise X amount of money within this allotted time frame, it's a go. If the project fails to raise X amount of money within the allotted time frame, the project's dead.
"So what happened to the money I donated?" This is the genius of it all. When you become a backer the money you give is put on hold. It works in the same way a hotel reservation does; you give them your credit card number (or paypal in this case) in order to reserve your room (funding level) however they don't process the payment until you get there (the project is a go). So if the project receives enough money from backers, you pay, and if the project fails to get enough backers, it drops your hold and no money changes hands.
Since this site is open to anyone, you should really research the various projects to find the ones that are right for you. Below you'll find some projects that I find rather interesting, even if I'm not backing them.
I present to you the awesome website kickstarter.com . KickStarter is basically a funding website. You come up with an awesome idea, an idea so great that it will radically change the world as we know it. Okay, so maybe the idea's not quite at that level, but it's rather awesome none the less. However, you find yourself lacking funds to pull off said idea. This is where KickStarter comes into play. Submit your idea for funding, set a goal of how much and when, and if enough people support you, your dream just became a reality.
So I can already hear you say, "well gee, that's neat and all, but what do I get out of it?" This is the fun part. when you donate money, you become a "backer". Backer's usually recieve some form of compensation depending upon the level of their donation. What the compensation is varies for each project.
"But wait!" you say, "what's all this about setting a goal of how much and when?" A monetary goal is set in the vary beginning. If this project can raise X amount of money within this allotted time frame, it's a go. If the project fails to raise X amount of money within the allotted time frame, the project's dead.
"So what happened to the money I donated?" This is the genius of it all. When you become a backer the money you give is put on hold. It works in the same way a hotel reservation does; you give them your credit card number (or paypal in this case) in order to reserve your room (funding level) however they don't process the payment until you get there (the project is a go). So if the project receives enough money from backers, you pay, and if the project fails to get enough backers, it drops your hold and no money changes hands.
Since this site is open to anyone, you should really research the various projects to find the ones that are right for you. Below you'll find some projects that I find rather interesting, even if I'm not backing them.
SketchChair: Furniture Designed by You
Urbio Vertical Garden
Once Upon a Time
Portable Fortitude: 54 Talismans; Reprint of unique deck
June 4, 2011: Drawing Day (1 million drawings in 1 day)
Monday, April 11, 2011
H is for Haiku
It took for eeeever to think up an H word, and I'm still a day behind.
So a haiku is a type of Japanese poetry that when translated over into English results in a 3 line poem of 5/7/5 syllables. Sounds pretty easy right? And it is...most of the time. I've written several over the years, every time poetry was covered in school it seemed writing one was a requirement. Which is why I was a bit perplexed when after half a day I still had nothing. Was I worried? No! After all, I have the internet and am well versed in the ways of google.
So I present to you a haiku generator! Tada! It randomly puts together lines of 5/7/5 so some...okay most...of the hiaku's generated will leave you a tad confused. At least I was. So I took the 5/7/5's that I liked (some are just too weird lol) and mashed them together to make my own haiku's
So a haiku is a type of Japanese poetry that when translated over into English results in a 3 line poem of 5/7/5 syllables. Sounds pretty easy right? And it is...most of the time. I've written several over the years, every time poetry was covered in school it seemed writing one was a requirement. Which is why I was a bit perplexed when after half a day I still had nothing. Was I worried? No! After all, I have the internet and am well versed in the ways of google.
So I present to you a haiku generator! Tada! It randomly puts together lines of 5/7/5 so some...okay most...of the hiaku's generated will leave you a tad confused. At least I was. So I took the 5/7/5's that I liked (some are just too weird lol) and mashed them together to make my own haiku's
lucid dreams calling
lost in silence in her eyes
a blown kiss wanders
robins call softer
the river sleeps lost, broken
haunted dreams struck down
So go give that generator a whirl and see what crazy haiku you can come up with : )
Wednesday, April 06, 2011
E is for Education
No matter how old we get, we never stop learning. So for this "E" post, I'm going to share some educational sites that I've come across that either I've enjoyed or my nephew has.
Reading:
Starfall: Great for beginning readers. This site was designed with grades k-2 in mind. For the newest of readers, they have a section that will walk you through the alphabet. You can then move on to phonics with short stories and then onto more advanced stories. Well...advanced up to 2nd grade : ) The nice thing is that each word has the option of being read to the user, so if you're not sure what the word is or how to pronounce it, click on it and it will be sounded out for you. The site also has some holiday activities and it looks like they're beginning to branch out into math as well.
International Children's Digital Library: This site has children's books from around the world. Granted most of them are rather old, but it's interesting to see how far children's literature has come over the years.
Math:
Math Fact Cafe: A good source for practice math sheets. Gives basic math along with time and money. You can chose from premade work sheets or set your own parameters to create your own. They also let you change the font size used along with how much work space is for the problem.
Social Studies:
Kids.gov: An interesting site dealing mostly in U.S. currency, past, present, and future. There are quite a few things to chose from on here, but here are two that we enjoyed: Design your own bill lets you try your hand at designing paper currency. The time machine lets you learn about the history of all those different designs on the backs of your coins.
Science:
Celestia: This is a must for anyone interested in space. The controls take a bit of getting use to, and be sure to check out the add-ons section to even further enhance the experience. Celestia is an interactive map to the universe. It allows you to track planets in orbit, watch their rotations, and see the night sky like you never have before. Some interesting features include turning on a night view of earth. This allows you to see the city lights from space and makes it an interesting way to spot some of the more populated places on the planet.
Edheads: An interesting mix of virtual activities. Kids can design virtual cell phones, learn about predicting weather, how simple machines work, and perform hip replacement surgery. There are a few different virtual surgeries, and they allow for the view of actual surgery photos, so preview this to make sure it's okay for your kids! A good way of showing what a family member will go through if a child is upset about their upcoming surgery.
Reading:
Starfall: Great for beginning readers. This site was designed with grades k-2 in mind. For the newest of readers, they have a section that will walk you through the alphabet. You can then move on to phonics with short stories and then onto more advanced stories. Well...advanced up to 2nd grade : ) The nice thing is that each word has the option of being read to the user, so if you're not sure what the word is or how to pronounce it, click on it and it will be sounded out for you. The site also has some holiday activities and it looks like they're beginning to branch out into math as well.
International Children's Digital Library: This site has children's books from around the world. Granted most of them are rather old, but it's interesting to see how far children's literature has come over the years.
Math:
Math Fact Cafe: A good source for practice math sheets. Gives basic math along with time and money. You can chose from premade work sheets or set your own parameters to create your own. They also let you change the font size used along with how much work space is for the problem.
Social Studies:
Kids.gov: An interesting site dealing mostly in U.S. currency, past, present, and future. There are quite a few things to chose from on here, but here are two that we enjoyed: Design your own bill lets you try your hand at designing paper currency. The time machine lets you learn about the history of all those different designs on the backs of your coins.
Science:
Celestia: This is a must for anyone interested in space. The controls take a bit of getting use to, and be sure to check out the add-ons section to even further enhance the experience. Celestia is an interactive map to the universe. It allows you to track planets in orbit, watch their rotations, and see the night sky like you never have before. Some interesting features include turning on a night view of earth. This allows you to see the city lights from space and makes it an interesting way to spot some of the more populated places on the planet.
Edheads: An interesting mix of virtual activities. Kids can design virtual cell phones, learn about predicting weather, how simple machines work, and perform hip replacement surgery. There are a few different virtual surgeries, and they allow for the view of actual surgery photos, so preview this to make sure it's okay for your kids! A good way of showing what a family member will go through if a child is upset about their upcoming surgery.
Monday, April 04, 2011
C is for Coupons
It seems like every where I look these days I hear about coupons and how great they are. They've had coupon gurus on the news, commercials for various stores saying how great their in store coupons are, and they even have a new tv show dedicated to hard core couponers. It's crazy.
My mom recently got into the coupon craze after taking a couponing class...yes, such things really do exist....and now happily (I assume) spends a few minutes each day going through the coupons from that days newspaper. Her little coupon pile is getting impressive and today she managed to save $100 and some change at Publix. She was thrilled and is still showing the receipt to everyone.
If you're in the central Florida area, this is the site mum loves and browses before shopping:
My mom recently got into the coupon craze after taking a couponing class...yes, such things really do exist....and now happily (I assume) spends a few minutes each day going through the coupons from that days newspaper. Her little coupon pile is getting impressive and today she managed to save $100 and some change at Publix. She was thrilled and is still showing the receipt to everyone.
If you're in the central Florida area, this is the site mum loves and browses before shopping:
It takes a bit of getting use to at first, I had to play around a bit to find out where everything was, but it has this really nifty section if you go to coupons > coupon database. Type in what you're looking for, the more generic the better I've found, and hit search. If a coupon for it exists it'll pop up and tell you where to find it.
Now I hear you ask, why more generic? I'll tell you! I was looking for candy for Easter and typed in Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, at the time I got nothing, no coupons in existence. For fun I typed in Reese's and located 3 different coupons for a mixed bag of candy that had Reese's in it. Since I liked the other candy it came with I was able to use a great coupon that I might have otherwise overlooked.
Should you want to learn more about couponing, the lady that runs that site will teach a class for you if you ask, but you'll need (I think) 10 people in attendance, so go gather up your friends!
I did learn one nifty trick from my mom after she took the class if you're lucky enough to have a Publix to shop at, you can use coupons for their BOGO...in fact you can use 2 coupons. So say I buy 2 packs of X that are on BOGO. I also have 2 coupons for $1 off X. When it rings up at the register it shows you've purchased 2 X's, then the store takes off the price of one of those X's (BOGO) then also your coupons, so that the one pack of X you're actually paying for just got $2 knocked off, which in some cases makes it practically free.
Now if you want to see the far end of couponing, go check out TLC's Extreme Couponing
Don't feel bad if you never reach their level. I decided after watching it that this is a form of approved hoarding for people with addictive personalities. When 1/3 of your house is stuffed with the spoils of your tri-weekly shopping trip, it's time to take a step back.
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