| 15 ways to turn fabric scraps into something useful! Posted: Do you have a box or bag of fabric scraps? Do you need a justification to keep them hanging around? Here are some ideas for making some useful (and some not-necessarily-use-but-still-fun) things out of those favorite scraps! Steps Piece of leftover fabric with scrap ribbon pieces - Another idea is to make an animal shaped pillow from scraps, as shown in this image.
Fabric flowers for quilting, applique, or wiring - Keep your shoes smelling nice. Shoe stuffers are great for keeping shoes fresh, and they also make wonderful gifts or stall sellers for a bazaar.
Filling a sachet with herbs - Make a pin cushion. Any leftover scraps can be turned into a lovely pin cushion.
- Make a scarf. Scraps can create one-of-a-kind scarves that match your favorite clothing colors, or make wonderful gifts.
- Make a decorative mat. Scrap fabric mats are ideal for tableware, especially delightful for using outdoors for al fresco dining, or for homes with a naive country theme.
Scrap fabric decorations for the holiday season - Protect your iPod. iPods are prone to scratching without a cover; instead of buying one, simply make your own from your favorite colored scraps.
- Give a gift in a cloth bag. A cloth bag made from scraps is an ideal cover for a gift and your recipient can reuse the bag for another gift or for storage.
A canvas and scrap upholstery fabric bag Piecing together the quilt A ruffle added to scrapbooking tags A scrap fabric and old clothing stuffed toy - Ask your crafting friends what they use their scraps for. Everyone has their own uses for scraps - perhaps even get together and use up your scraps as a group! If you'd like to share your creations, consider leaving the instructions for your new creations on wikiHow.
Video Tips - Many crafters have good ideas and fun projects that they are happy to share.
- Use the scraps to stuff a pillow.
- Use buttons, sequins, bows, etc., that you've stored up to embellish your scrap fabric projects and finish them off neatly.
Things You'll Need - Fabric scraps
- Crafting supplies (yarn, thread, buttons, sequins, rhinestones, etc.)
- Project instructions
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| Today is International Museum Day. 20+ Tips for Enjoying a Trip to a Museum Posted: Enjoying a museum visit means finding out what works for you when you go. There are so many possible ways to keep yourself entertained in a wide variety of museums, that there is bound to be something that takes your fancy and enlivens the visit for you. Follow these steps, and you'll be prepared. Note that this article covers both the generalities of planning to ensure an entertaining visit, as well as giving the specifics of visiting some types of museums. Steps Preparation Being prepared is really important for ensuring your enjoyment at a museum. Doing a little research and planning in advance will give you a heads up as to what is worth seeing and doing and will help you to make the most of your time at the museum. It will also help you decide whether or not it's best to break down the visit into a series of visits, something that is possible if it's your local museum. - Decide what museum you will visit. There are so many different types of museum in existence, that you'd be hard pressed not to find one that pleases you. There are museums for art, information, re-enactments, military and war, transportation, science, open air, virtual and zoos.[1] Select one that excites your curiosity and you're halfway to having an enjoyable visit!
- Do some research before visiting.[2] Most museums now have online portals which allow you to explore the museum virtually. When looking up your chosen museum, look for such things as:
- The exhibits - see what is on exhibit at the museum at all times, as well as special exhibitions being held for a short time.
- The history of the museum - there will often be very interesting stories about the artifacts, benefactors, etc., that can make your visit all the more interesting.
- Activities - see whether there are talks, displays, tours, special activities that will happening on the day that you visit. Many museums hold regular activities that meet all age group interests.
- Fees, food and storage - although mundane, it's important to know how much the visit will cost, whether or not you can eat there, and whether or not there is storage for coats, bags, etc. You might also need to check about stroller and wheelchair access or hire, and find out about out transportation needs and car parking.
- Be prepared to learn at least one thing on your visit. It is always good to take away something new from your visit.
- Plan rest and refreshment breaks into your visit. Long periods of walking around, standing and interacting with displays can be wearying after a while; it is important to take breaks and to re-energize. This will provide you with a good opportunity to take stock of what you have seen and what else you might want to do in the museum, helping you to stay focused to avoid aimless wandering.
- Take a friend or two. Visiting museums is always a lot more fun when you are with someone else to share the experience with and to talk over what you're seeing.
Art Museums Art museums can be a great deal of fun provided you go with an open mind and don't expect to see the mass produced marketing imagery you see in the rest of your everyday life. Keeping an open mind about art can lead you to discover how centuries of people have thought, lived, and played before us. And one day, it'll be our lifestyles on those canvases, installations, and displays that people will stand gazing at too -- quite a grounding realization! If you're taking children to an art museum, it's a good idea to introduce them to online activities as well, to help them learn more about art, both before and after the visit. [3] - Take it slowly. Learning to love art is a process, not necessarily an instantaneous reaction. Be prepared to take the time to look around, and to react in your own way. If somebody knowledgeable about the art is helping you, that can be great but it can also make you feel that you don't know anything - if that happens, just let them know that you need to discover the art in your own way before having too many details given to you.
- Try to find out what the artist was seeking to say in his or her pictures. Instead of just staring at the Mona Lisa in blank awe, determine what Leonardo Da Vinci's intent was. This will keep you busy for a while. It can be even more fun doing this with a friend, with both of you guessing together, or giving each other competing viewpoints.
- Find a painting that really appeals to you. Try to notice all the details of the painting, and determine what they might mean. For instance, if a painting is a family portrait, and only one person is wearing black, it might mean that this particular person was dead at the time of the painting. Asking "what if…" expands your assumptions.
- Find a statue. If there is a large crowd, find someone who looks like the statue. If you're with a friend, you can try posing as the statue.
- Look at a scenery painting. Try to imagine someone you know in the scene, and imagine them doing different things. You can add other people, and see what you can come up with. For some more fun, you could start out with putting your best friend in, and then add famous people such as Albert Einstein, Carrie Underwood, etc.
- Look at installation art. This can be mind-boggling and mind-expanding all at once. Think about what the artist is trying to convey - what could possibly be going through the artist's mind? Think about how to installation impacts you, and whether you agree with it being termed art or not.
Information Museums In most major cultural centers, information museums are no longer the dull, lifeless places of yore. Museums everywhere are now actively trying to be interactive places of learning, allowing visitors to touch, play with, and experience many of the displays. Look for the most interactive information museums when you make your decision to visit a museum, as this will increase the likelihood that you're going to have an absolutely fantastic time visiting the museum -- from natural history to aviation museums, there are many possibilities open to you. - Find something you like on arrival. When you first arrive, ask for the map. Locate the places on the map of interest to you - usually there will be at least one thing that catches your eye. For instance, if you like dinosaurs, go to the fossil section, or any area that is specially set aside for dinosaur displays. If you find several things of interest, plan your time and movements accordingly to make sure that you don't miss seeing all of the attractions.
- Get interactive. Find the interactive features for each exhibit and interact; play the games, watch the stories, move things around, test your knowledge, and generally get involved. You'll find you learn a lot more by doing this than simply reading the information plaques.
- Take photos. Check that you are allowed to do so first, as the rules vary from museum to museum. Let a friend take a picture of you with the Tyrannosaurus Rex. With a little bit of knowledge of angles, you can make it seem like you are petting the dinosaur's head, or getting eaten by it!
- Visit specific areas of the museum and look for certain items. Making the visit into a bit of a seek-and-find hunt can really turn it into an exciting occasion. Here are some possible ideas:
- Visit the geology section. Find your favorite color stone. Find your birth stone. You can even read about where the rocks were found and learn about how geologists tell the ages of rocks from their features.
- Visit the animal section. Look for the largest and smallest stuffed animal. Look for the oldest mammal and the smallest mammal. Look for the bird with the most colorful feathers and the bird with the strangest habits (such as collecting all things blue).
- Visit the astronomy section. Find the largest star. Find the youngest galaxy. Learn all that you can about black holes. Learn about star clusters in constellations.
- Visit the section detailing disasters in your country or region. Find the largest or worst disaster. Was it natural or human-made? Was it avoidable or completely unexpected? Is it likely to happen again and if so, what can you do to protect yourself?
- Listen to the descriptions. Most museums have headphones that you can rent, and plug them into the little hole next to an exhibit. This will help a lot if you don't enjoy reading descriptions.
- Some museums, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC have entire wings dedicated to different civilizations of the past (ancient Greece and Rome, Egypt, the Americas, and Asian civilizations.) The Egyptian wing even has sections of ancient temples to walk through. It can be fun, entertaining, and very interesting to walk through them and try to imagine it from the point of view of the people who built them or lived there. Then, try walking through again, and imagine it from the point of view of the explorers and archeologists who uncovered them. You can do that with the smaller exhibits (which display jewelry, every day objects of the time, etc.)
Living Museums Living museums are museums where a certain era or occasion is re-enacted, right down to the staff wearing costumes of the period. It's very hard to not enjoy yourself at one of these, so aim for a visit to a living museum whenever you do have the chance. - Check out what is on offer by way of live displays. There could be a wide range of things happening, from sword play to making rope the old-fashioned way. Mark down the different displays that interest you and be sure to get to each one on time. It's hard not to enjoy watching things happen right before you and it's a lesson that doesn't require reading.
- Try the local or era-specific foods. Some living museums offer food made from the period and often you can watch it being cooked or baked, and then sample it. This can be a great way to experience what sorts of things people used to eat.
- Dress up if you can. If the living museum provides dressing up costumes for you try, get right into the action. Have a friend take photos and spend time walking around the complex in your costume, pretending to blend into the era and surroundings for a short time.
- Imagine what it must have been like to have lived during the times depicted by the living museum. Would you have been happy? Would you have been able to keep warm enough? Would the food have been to your liking? Would you have enjoyed going to school or to work in those times? Compare how wealthy and poor people lived in those times; compare their lifestyles with how we live today.
Transportation Museums Transportation museums can cover all types of transport including aviation, shipping, trams, buses, and cars. Enthusiasts of any type of vehicle will always find something to entertain them at such a museum but if you find yourself not so enthused, here are some fun things to do as well. - Get on board! If the display allows you to clamber on board a ship, a bus, a plane, take the opportunity. This can be really fun as you explore the decks, the cockpit, the steering, the sleeping quarters, etc., of each type of transport.
- Take a trip. Some transportation museums have running, working versions of old transportation for you to try. This is a great way to take the weight off your legs and simply sit down and enjoy the ride! Trains, boats, and model trains are often used for this purpose.
- Think about the people who used to fly, drive, steer, navigate, or work with the transport items you're viewing. Transport is a great way to learn about the history of your city or region because it affects people in so many ways - working for transportation companies, getting to work, traveling on vacation, being rescued, etc. It can be a very visual way of building a picture in your own mind about the past of your hometown or country.
Video Tips - Bring an MP3 player. If nothing seems to keep you entertained, entertain yourself.
You might not be ready for this… - Always check opening days and times. Some museums are shut on traditional days, such as Mondays, depending on where you are in the world. Another benefit of checking opening times is to find out when museums offer free or reduced price entrance, or special event days or nights.
- International Museum Day is May 18, 2010, and is usually celebrated on or around this date every year. It's a good excuse to get out and enjoy your local museum culture.
- Dress comfortably. Shoes that you enjoy walking in are a must, as is being warm or cool enough.
- Take snacks if you can't afford the prices in the cafe, or you don't want to wait in line too long. Be sure to eat them only where permitted though - crumbs on the displays might not be appreciated.
Warnings - Do not climb on the displays. An alarm will most likely go off, and you'll end up being warned off by security.
- Don't bring your children to anything scary. They will most likely not enjoy looking at the diagram of a guillotine, and watching a video on how it works. Also beware of interactive rides - these can really frighten some children - ask in advance if you can get a refund for a child that balks at staying on the ride.
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| How to Get a Job After You've Been Fired Posted: Obviously, getting fired isn't an ideal situation to ever be in. All the same, it's certainly a situation that can be dealt with strategically, so that you get back into the workforce again quickly, with a minimum of discomfort. Steps Deciding what happens next - Accept what has happened to you. It is a lot more difficult to move forward unencumbered by the past jetsam if you haven't worked it through. Whether or not you were at fault as the reason for firing, you need to be ready to move on and find a positive way forward. It is also important to have worked out any issues concerning wrongful termination because this can prevent you from moving on.
- Leave shame behind. You shouldn't be ashamed of being laid off from a job in the majority of cases. If an employer should ask, and the reason was as part of "lay-offs", explain that it was a lay-off, as lay-offs are typically financially or strategically motivated, and are less an issue of employee performance.
- Understand why you were fired. If others were also being fired you shouldn't consider it as an attack on you personally but a "lay-off", which is more and more common in today's corporate world.
- Don't take generalized reasons too much to heart. Some companies may direct specific reasons to why they are firing you but that could just be their way of conducting lay-offs.
- Use the lay-off situation to your advantage. If others were laid off, use this as a way of explaining that the company had been laying off employees for sometime and you were let go along with ___ other people that week.
- Consider which industry you want to work in. This is a very important step as you don't necessarily have to stay in the field you've always been in. Do some research into other options and see if you meet the requirements, or whether you can perhaps spend some time studying to bridge your existing knowledge into the new field.
- Accept the work involved in finding a new job. Looking for work is like a job in its own right. You will need to research, prepare your resume (see next step), look for vacancies, talk to people, make decisions about what does and does not lead to profitable results for you. Expect to put in a decent few hours each day on finding a new job.
- Spruce up your resume. It's likely it's not in the best shape that it could be. Given the subjective nature of resumes, it's a good time to think about a small outlay of funds to have a professional fix it for you, to ensure that you are polished as highly as possible and ready to get out there again. Alternately, if you would really prefer to make your own, put in some good effort and time into it, and do some background research to find free resources on making it as effective as possible.
- Network. Talk to the people you know to find out what jobs are available, or whether they have anything available. Don't forget family and friend networks either. And look back at references - some of these people might have something available for you too.
Applying - Do not mention being fired in cover letters or in resumes.[1] These documents should remain upbeat and positive in their presentation.
- Leave out difficult explanations on job application forms. On your application, write "would like to discuss in person", or "job ended", or "terminated", under the reason for leaving.[2]
- Leave out that which can just increase doubt for no good reason. If you were only with a job for a few days/weeks before being fired, there's no reason to even list it on your application/resume. Consider it as a trial period rather than as a real job.
The interview - Be prepared. At this point, you might be asked "Why were you fired?" once it becomes clear from the application form that something is up. Have a read through Joyce Lain Kennedy's suggested answers as a way to begin preparing yourself. And be prepared to not labor the point; Kennedy says "Practice in advance what you'll say. Then keep it brief, keep it honest and keep it moving."[3]
- Be honest. When telling interviewers why you were fired, start by telling the truth. Tell people what happened and what you have learned from the experience.
- You can disguise the reason for your termination but don't stoop to lying that it happened. Lying to an employer about your reason for leaving could result in your immediate termination. Most don't specify between firings and layoffs but lay-offs are usually indicative of a business decision.
- Take responsibility for what happened. It is incredibly important that you don't point fingers looking for other people to blame. That will simply suggest to your potential new employer that you don't stand up and take responsibility and that you gossip vindictively.
- Don't speak poorly about your former employer even after you've been fired. This is especially important when speaking to future employers and interviewers. Tell them how loyal you were to the company, how you had hoped to retire from there someday and how unfortunate it was to be downsized.
- Tell them how great everyone was. Even if you were plainly fired, a glowing review of the old company makes you seem less threatening.
- Keep your answer about the firing issue brief. Don't start rambling and tell a long story which could get you into more trouble by making you look defensive.
Making use of references - Use your references to defend you. If you can find several former colleagues or management-level staff who can give a reference and positively explain your departure, you'll be one step closer in your job search.
- Remember that not all employers have the time or inclination to check references, so bear that in mind. If the job you were fired from is further down on your resume, there's a good chance the employer isn't going to bother checking it, so admitting to being fired from that job isn't always in your best interest.
- Be aware that most reference calls to your former employer will simply state that you worked there from (dates of employment). In a number of jurisdictions, employers can be sued if they divulge specific issues about your employment.
Injecting realism into your new job hunt - Be prepared for losing out on some job opportunities. The reality is that some potential employers will shy away from you when they find out you were fired and the reason behind it. In some cases, you might not be able to avoid this if the employer doesn't have an open mind or if the reason you were fired was very serious.
Tips - Remember that the severity of the reason you were fired can make things more difficult. It is much easier to explain away a few late or missed days of work than it is to rationalize stealing thousands of dollars of merchandise.
- Remember that layoffs, firings, downsizing and corporate restructuring are more common in today's corporate workplace. Depending on your industry these changes can be quite common and completely overlooked in hiring decisions. Getting fired nowadays doesn't carry the same negative stigma it may have done 20-30 years ago.
- If you can, omit the job from your resume. If you worked there less than three months, it's much easier to claim to be unemployed during that time than to try to explain a firing in a position that was a poor match for you. Naturally, you shouldn't include anything positive from this prior job either. Being fired has a tremendous negative connotation and avoiding it, if at all possible, is best.
- There is one school of thought that suggests it is better not to admit to having been fired.[4] In this case, you would need to resort to saying that you left to do consulting, the company downsized, etc., but avoid using the word "fired". The theory behind this is that it puts you in a very weak light and caters to those who don't like to give second chances by hiring someone who has knowingly been fired. The problem with this approach is proving you have done something else in the interim, so you might want to think this line through carefully. The better view is to put as positive a gloss on the situation as possible.
- Consider the matter of privacy. Looked at from this perspective, it could be thought that it isn't anyone else's business why you left a previous job. Thus, any prospective employer is going to have to evaluate you on your interview skills, your resume and your strong references. Again, the trouble with this view is that most employers do think it is their business, for sound business reasons of wanting to be sure that they're getting someone of good value and who is trustworthy.
Warnings - Probably the worst thing you can do is lie during an interview when explaining why you got fired. If you've been fired and are then caught in a lie, that makes you a liar who got fired, so you'll then have two strikes against you. If you get fired again, it's hard to explain that you got fired for lying about how you got fired - how can they trust you?
- Be all the more careful if your town or city is small and has a "village gossip" mentality. Within the same industry, people will tend to know what has happened, so be truthful!
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