Welcome to Shopping and Product Reviews


Tuesday, November 07, 2006

5 Tips for Shopping for Moving Announcements

With all of the stress that can accompany moving form one home to another, providing your friends and family members your new address can be something that’s easily overlooked. And speaking of stress, why would you want to add to the hassle by creating your own moving announcements? That is one job that’s definitely better left to the professionals, but which pro is the right one for you?

In the world of quality online printers, there are a few items that make the best of the best stand out above the rest. These few have similar traits and offer similar services and products. To assist you on your mission, we’ve compiled 5 tips for you to keep in mind while you’re shopping for moving announcements.

1. Look for a variety of moving announcements for you to choose from. Do you really want the same announcement to come in the mail just a few weeks after you send yours out? The more options a printing company has available, the more likely you are to find the perfect one to reflect your own personality.

2. Insist on a solid and secure privacy policy. Of course, security is on the mind of everyone, especially for those shopping over the Internet. In addition to maintaining a secure website, the better companies won’t sell your email address or any other information that belongs to you. If you’re not positive that they adhere to this type of policy, be sure to ask.

3. Find a company that has been in business for a while. Fly-by-night operations that take your hard-earned money and send you nothing in return are all over the World Wide Web. To protect yourself, be sure that your printer of choice has been around for a while.

4. Be sure the business has a physical mailing address, not jut a post office box. Although a company may direct their mail to a PO box, it’s always a bit comforting if the place you’re hiring to do work for you has a real building.

5. Go for a nice extra-touch, like a photo option. To create a moving announcement that’s sure to be unlike any other ever sent, adding your photo with your new address will simply go unmatched. It will also aid in those coming to visit you and your new home in the future, for if they forget the street number, they probably won’t forget what your home looks like. Of course, you may never want to use it, but it’s nice to know it’s there.

On another note, specialty companies do offer the best in service and finished product, for that is all they do. They usually employ individuals who are trained within their field and are more apt to work with you from beginning to end.

The Best Portable DVD Player

The best portable dvd player would be a great gift for anyone who enjoys movies. Especially, if they're always on the go. Portable DVD Players are in high demand this holiday season.

There are many searches done for the best portable dvd player and discount portable dvd players but choosing the right one could be a little stressing.

A lot of people are starting to buy portable dvd players because they are great for solo viewing. But the main reason is because it's mobile. It's the perfect pacifier for children on long trips. You can take it camping. You can take it on airlines. You can take it with you while you're waiting on your car to be serviced. You know the long wait that really just takes 15 minutes to change the oil in your car but they keep you there forever.

I'm sorry. Don't get me started with these mechanics. That's another article in itself. But you get the point.

The best portable dvd player can be used at home as well. While you're cooking or doing any type of house work. You can take it outside and enjoy a beautiful day while watching your favorite movie. Guys will love this. Instead of a newspaper, take your portable dvd player to the bathroom. Then again, they may never come out.

In any case, the best portable dvd player can be used for on the go or at home in the kitchen, bedroom or bathroom.

When they were first released, the cost was upward of $1000. However, prices have come down a great deal in recent years. Now, you can get a basic but very functional portable dvd player for well under $200.

Since the Holiday Season is here, this would make a great gift for a husband, wife, teen or just about any loved one that love movies.

Monday, November 06, 2006

Door Knocker Engraving

An engraved door knocker makes a wonderful personalized gift or addition to your home. With a little forethought it can become a treasured family heirloom.

Over the years I have engraved scores of door knockers. Many of which were similar in style but each unique in its own way due to the message it carries.

It seems that there are a lot of choices to consider. As an engraver all I can do is offer advice and information.

First of all, think about what you would like to accomplish before you purchase your door knocker. They come in different shapes and sizes all offering differing engraving opportunities. Some are not engraveable at all. Be sure of what you are purchasing. It may be safest to purchase from the same place that is doing the engraving if possible.

When it comes to the engraving itself, there are quite a few choices to be made, for example:

Names, addresses, greetings, a combination of all of these.

Lets address the most common question, the engraving of a name.

Is it proper the engrave just the last name, the last name with an s making it plural, or the last name with an apostrophe s making it a possessive?

Any one of these would be correct given the message you want to convey.

Name only: This is always nice and is easily understood as the name of the family living behind in this home.

Names plural: Also nice as it states that more than one family member lives in this home.

Name's possessive: This method states that this residence belongs to this family.

Just to throw another cog into the wheel, How about putting the work "The" in front of the name?

The Shaylers -or- The Shayler's -or even- The Shayler Family if room allows.

I'll bet you did not think that there was so much to consider just getting a door knocker engraved. Well, there is more.

A name does not need to be used at all. You may want the street address or simply "Welcome". How about "Howdy"? Maybe "Bless This House"

Perhaps you are engraving a door knocker as a wedding or anniversary gift. Typically the engraving includes the new last name and a line with "Est. 2006" Est. being short for established.

All of these choices are very nice and are correct given the situation they are to be used in.

The words themselves are not the only choice to be made. You must also choose a font. Depending on the font used you may want all upper-case letters or mixed case letters.

A general rule of thumb is, if you are using a script or ornamental font always use mixed case (upper and lower case letters). Most just do not look right in all upper case.

Roman and block fonts look very nice in either case, all upper or mixed. The Roman and block fonts may not be the most attractive but they are definitely the easiest to read.

The shape and style of the door knocker may dictate the font and case used. A small engraving area may prefer all upper case to prevent a descender ( letters like y or g that go below the base line ) from making the words to small to read easily. All upper case has no descenders and may fill the area more uniformly.

Most engravers can advise you as to what the limitations are but again the final decision lies with the customer. I have engraved some ornamental fonts in all upper case (ugh!) because this is what was wanted.

Share Your Photos In A Unique Way With Photo Stamps

Photo stamps can be a fun and unique way of sharing your favorite photo with family and friends. You can use photo stamps for just about any occasion and purpose, from letters, postcards, invitations to cards and packages.

Photo stamps come in several different rates from thirty nine cents for first class standard to twenty four cents for postcards and photo stamps. Larger postage rates can be made for packages. Photo stamps cost from about $17.99 for a single sheet of twenty thirty nine cent stamps and many photo stamps sites offer a discount when two or more sheets are purchased at one time.

Many people wonder how the United States Postal Service can tell the difference between a photo stamp and a counterfeit photo stamp. The information based indicia is how the United States Postal Service can tell the difference. The information based indicia is a specially designed two dimensional bar code on the printed photo stamps between the border and photos.

The special designed bar code contains information such as the date of the creation of the photo stamps and the software package serial number. A great deal of research has gone into the information based indicia technology and the end result is that photo stamps are completely reliable and trust worthy.

The size of each photo stamp postage measures 1.9 inches in width and 1.4 inches in height and the actual photo area is 1.1 inches in width and 1.1 inches in height. When creating photo stamps the most important thing is the photo you choose for your stamp so keep in mind the actual size of the final image when choosing your photo. You have two choices when choosing your photo for your photo stamps you can either choose to take the photo with the photo stamp in mind or you can choose a photo that has already been taken.

When taking a photo for your photo stamps the composition of your photo is very important. When setting up the shot for you photo stamp, it is important to choose a setting without a lot of background objects, such as trees and buildings. Next, you want to choose a pose that when shrunk down to the actual photo size of 1.1 inches by 1.1 inches you can still clearly see what or who the photos are of.

When using a person as the object of your photo stamp, it is a good idea to just use a close up of the face. When using multiple people, try for a close up head shot getting all the people included in the photo to lean their heads towards one another. When using an inanimate object for your photo stamp make sure that when shrunk down to the actual image size on the stamp that you can still make out what the object is.

When choosing to use a photo that has already been taken, you want to try to use a editing program to shrink the photo down to 1.1 inches by 1.1 inches to make sure you can still see the photo clearly. When choosing your photo make sure to pick a photo with a clutter free background.

America's Top 3 Luggage Brands

When it comes to picking the ideal luggage, there are many options ranging from different prices, colors, materials, and styles. However, there is nothing more disappointing than the experience of getting cheap bags that will only last through a few trips.

Buying luggage with your vacation in mind is not the only think to consider before going shopping. Your bags need to be durable, affordable and have style, such that you can find with Samsonite luggage.

Quality is crucial to the survival of your luggage through all the handling it will endure during holiday times so buying your set of bags from one of the top luggage brands in America is an investment not an expenditure.

Samsonite luggage is one of the leading brands worldwide, along with American Tourister, and Victorinox, the renowned manufacturer of the Swiss knife that almost any household in the world has.

Buying the top America's brand guarantee your luggage set will withstand any event during your vacations, just keep in mind where are you going to and determine the size and quantity of luggage you may need.

American Tourister is the way to go to enjoy the spirit of pride reigning in the United States. Under this brand you can find luggage collections with suggestive names such as American Tourister Tribute, and American Tourister iLite American Set.

There are also premium collections including carry-on expandable upright or spinner luggage sets, similar to those available through the Samsonite luggage collection.

Victorinox is a brand that offers the "Carry with Confidence" guarantee that covers airline damage. The guarantee itself speaks aloud the quality found in each luggage set.

Keeping with the adventurer style, all the collection has suggestive names such as Victorinox Swiss Army NXT Luggage, Victorinox Swiss Army Werks Traveler, Victorinox Swiss Army Lingo, and Victorinox Swiss Army Adventure Gear.

However, Samsonite luggage is the top American brand and the favorite worldwide. Samsonite luggage has a motto that summarizes its popularity and durability: “Samsonite worldproof.”

Samsonite luggage mixes quality with style and reliability, matching any budget with a large collection that includes, among others, the Samsonite Pro-DLX, Samsonite Aspire Lite, Samsonite Silhouette 9, Samsonite F'Lite, Samsonite X'ion, and the Samsonite Signature Series.

Now, that you know about the top brands in America, determine your budget and find a reputable luggage store to buy your set. Keep in mind expandability and the requirements of heavy-duty wheels that you might need depending on the place to go.

Make sure that your luggage size fits the requirements of airlines and get only the approved carry-on size if you need to take a plane to enjoy your vacation.

Whether Samsonite luggage or any other brand, your bags should also have the possibility of expanding or accommodating additional items in case you decide to continue with a longer trip.

Sunday, November 05, 2006

Holiday Scented Candles for Scented Candle Lovers

Holiday scented candles are nothing new, we have enjoyed giving scented candles as gifts before, but this year offers new and exciting candles that anyone can enjoy. First of all, giving a scented candle is holiday gifts is no brainer, since candles are becoming more and more popular. Sure they are new things in the market such as room diffusers, scent effusion lamps, and there will always be potpourri, however nothing beats the flicker of a candle. The light it gives, the warmth it gives, and let's not forget the most important thing: the scent.

This year's scented candles proves to be exciting change from the ordinary. Sure there are the traditional bayberry, holly berry, and the favorite pine. However, this year scented candles offers unique fragrances that still instill the spirit of the holidays while delivering innovative gift giving.

# Cozy Christmas: A rich blend of Nutmeg, Rum, Cinnamon, Ginger, Chocolate. Yum.

# Santa's Pipe: A piping mix of Cherrywood, Raspberry, Vanilla, Tobacco

# North Pole: A fun and delicious combo of Chocolate and Wintermint

What a wonderful way to give a gift that is traditional, creative, and fun. Candles go a long way with gift giving, it's easy, disposable, and affordable. Don't forget about the many different holiday colors that candles give for home decoration. Home decor is a growing gift trend, and matching colors for the holidays, i.e. greens, reds, golds, are a great benefit to your gift. Enjoy your shopping for holiday scented candles with these great ideas.

Chocoholics Gift Basket

There's nothing better than a good friend, except a good friend with CHOCOLATE. -Linda Grayson, "The Pickwick Papers"

Chocoholics are addicted to chocolates and what more can they ask for as gift other than chocoholics gourmet gift baskets. Chocolates make a great gift option no matter what the occasion is. For chocoholics, irresistible chocolates and goodies packed nicely in a basket are a dream comes true. Whether you need to express your love for that special someone or want to give good wishes on Christmas, Thanksgiving or New Year, chocoholics gift baskets are ideal. They can also be used to express your gratitude or to show your affection on other occasions. Chocoholics gift baskets also make nice birthday gifts.

What is contained in chocoholics gourmet gift baskets?

Chocoholics gift baskets contain irresistible chocolates of various kinds like those with almonds and nuts, truffle bars a, chocolate cookies, chocolates cakes, delicious chocolate candies and more. You can also include a suitable gift that could be a jewelry piece, photo frame, a bottle of wine or champagne, a pack of cigars, bracelet, etc. in the gift basket along with a note.

You can buy chocoholics theme gift baskets depending on the occasion or can create one on your own. All you need is a beautiful basket, sinful chocolate goodies; you message in a card or note, packing material like ribbons and nice packing paper, etc.

Firefly Cell Phones Not Just for Kids

Lets face it kids love technology, cell phones are extremely popular with the younger set, but how can you watch the calls made, for both safety and keeping costs down?

A Firefly cell phone can be a great way to keep in contact with your offspring and to keep track of where they are and what cell phone calls are made. Also, they can be invaluable in case of an emergency. The Firefly cell phone offers a solution for parents who want the convenience of a cell phone but want a lot of control over how it's used. With the current rebates some free plus rebates some as much as $50 back, the price has come down a lot also.

From the Firefly website: The Firefly phone is about as simple as a cell phone can get. There's no keypad or camera, and a simple soap bar-style shape leaves out any moving parts. It's compact at 3.25 by 1.75 by 0.5 inches and extremely lightweight at 2 ounces, making it perfect for a kid sized pocket.

The bog screen shows the date, time, battery life, signal strength, and caller ID. Teenyboppers will be glad to see that it offers a choice of styles. While it comes with a cool see-through case, four additional color "skins" are available for purchase through Firefly. Since the Firefly has no keypad, you control the mobile through just five buttons. Below the display are the Talk and End keys. Besides doubling as soft keys when accessing the menus, the End button is the power control, and Talk opens the menus. Between and slightly below them is a large button that opens the contact list and serves as the OK key. The last two keys are dedicated controls for calling Mom and Dad. Overall, the controls are large and amply spaced.