We all need to be Aware of Cats Killing our Beautiful Birds

We are losing too many of our beautiful birds simply because cat owners do not take responsibility for the carnage their beloved cats are causing around our homes.  In our local newspapers the other day they stated that one cat can destroy on an average of six insects, birds etc in one night.  Therefore millions will be destroyed all over Australia in one night.  We can stop this from happening with a little bit of effort.

 

The stray cat is hiding waiting for the unsuspecting prey

The beautiful bird sits resting in the tree oblivious of the cat.

We all need to do our bit to avoid our cats from destroying our beautiful birds.  There are many different types of exercise runs that we can instal around our backyards to keep the cats happy with plenty of exercise and keep our birds safe from the cats in our own back yard.

A Fiery Sunset

It doesn't matter how many sunset or sunrises you take a photo of, you never appear to get two that look alike.  We could not resist catching a snap of this one.

The magnificent Tiffany Lamps

It has been recorded that the first Tiffany lamp was created around 1895 which is incredible in itself as there is so much color and making one of these is not as simple as it looks.

Having said it is not easy to make one does not mean you cannot.  With the right equipment and a lot of patience anyone can make one.  Although I would suggest that you make lots of other things before trying something as magnificent and intricate as these.

Some consist of hundreds of little pieces of glass being cut out and then soldered together.  This is where the patience comes into it.  To learn more about these beautiful lamps read more

Many ways of being creative with stained glass

Stained glass does not just mean windows. There are many ways of being creative with stained glass. Yes you can make windows, skylights, terrariums, lamp shades, door inserts or even put windows in your glass cabinets.




My husband bought this old cupboard and it really needed a lot of tender loving care. He pulled it all to pieces and rebuilt the woodwork then worked on replacing the windows as most of it was broken. So piece by piece he cut out the bits of glass and renewed each section.



You can do this with any sort of cabinets. They do not necessarily have to have been a stained glass front to start with. All you need is a pattern of your choice and size it to your requirements and start cutting and grinding each piece until they fit exactly to your pattern. Good luck I hope this will give you the incentive to get started.

Our dog Playing in Pool with kids

Oyr Blue Heeler dog loves to play in the pool with the kids.  They throw it to him and he promptly bounces it back to them.  Dogs are part of the family just like the children.  They all should be allowed to interact with them.
Having said that you still have to be very wary that they do not bite anyone.  Never let a dog near your face.
This same dog in the video, give the kids a little nip (no not a bite) he just snaps his mouth.  In otherwords he is telling the kids that he has had enough.

We should all take notice of the signs that our pets give out.  Maybe then people would be less likely to be bitten.  This is not always the case though.

Beautiful Fire warms the travelers up at Willuna

Everyone needed this beautiful fire to warm us up at Wiluna because it was minus five degrees each morning way back in June 2010.

On the same morning our tables and chairs were covered with ice.

Stained-Glass-How to Download-Free-Stained Glass-Patterns on the internet

Starter Kits from Tracy's Glass

They also have free patterns

to download

Stained glass is such a beautiful hobby. Although it is a hobby that you will have to be careful when doing or you could end up with small splinters of glass in your fingers or if not wearing good shoes tread on some.

Sometimes the most expensive part to starting any hobby is buying the tools.  Once you have done that then you will need some new exciting patterns to start practicing with.  I would sugggest that you start simple doing things with straight cuts.  Once you feel more comfortable with that then you can move forward onto the more intricate items.

Although you as you will probably want to cut your costs, instead of spending hundreds of dollars by going out and buying all the latest books.  You can download patterns for making lamps, tarariums, mirrors, windows and all those other novelties on the net for FREE.

What could be better than Free Stained Glass Patterns?  read on to learn how to do this -

How to Earn Money Writing about Stained Glass at Info Barrel

If you are interested in writing about the craft of stained glass or lead lighting then you should check out info barrel.

This is a relatively new site and its membership is growing larger and stronger every day. Their members are very friendly and willing to help you with any problems you may have whether a new member or an oldie they will help you with any problems.

What type of articles can I write?

You can write on any subject that you like it does not have to be stained glass related. If you have a hobby and would love to write and show other people how they can learn how to create things and start new hobbies then this is the place for you.

How to articles are highly sort after, as are do it yourself, earning money, woodworking, business, technology and insurance articles.

Why not join info barrel with the rest of us and start earning money by writing articles in the comfort of your own home. No it is not easy, and you will not get rich overnight, but it is something you can do in your spare time.

When you have written many articles and they mature, you will start earning money even while you are asleep. That's right while you sleep people will be searching for articles to read and may click on an advert that interests them, in doing so you will start earning money from that.

It is so simple when you think about it, so why not give it a go. If I can earn money doing this anyone can. Read other peoples articles and you will see how easy it is to do.

Crocodile at Tumbling water CaravanPk Croc pool NT Australia

Scene from Katoomba hills

Downhill run on Victoria Pass in Australia

Leadlight Lamp Shade

The swaying bridge And West Oz Christmas Trees

Glass and Copper Foil Hanging Planter Pot

You can’t beat the glass look when the light shines through the different colors. This is another example of what you can do with glass. Planter pots look beautiful with your favorite plants in them using contrasting colors of plant to the glass.
When we first started making this we planted the plants directly into the glass terrariums. The water eventually discolored the copper turning it green. So we sealed the base inside and then put the plants into small pots that hang over hiding the actual pot. That way it preserved the condition of the terrarium and did not spoil the effect at all.

Cut out a square piece of colored glass of your choice 12” x 12”









1. Draw the lines directly onto your glass as show in the above sketch

2. Now draw a circle in centre like above

3. Draw the extra lines as show onto your glass and cut out all 12 pieces.

You now have to put the copper foil around the side of the four outside frame pieces and solder them back to the original shape only this time the centre circle pieces will be missing. It will just be the outside square.

Now you have to copper foil only six of the other pieces to make your pot and solder them together. Look at the picture of the finished project to understand the directions better.

Solder 3 fine chains (make sure they are evenly distributed) onto the top of the planter pot, then loop the three together. Now solder one hook onto the top of the inside circle on the frame so you can hang your little pot from it. Also solder a small loop to the top to hang the whole planter from, we used a chain and put another loop to hang from our ceiling onto a sky hook. We neatened the solder around all the edges to make it more professional.

As an added feature we soldered loops to edge and threaded rope right around the whole frame. It was just a personal touch. Whatever else you do just gives it your own personal stamp on the article.

As the pot is very small on this, I planted a small cactus in it for awhile. Now I just hang sprigs of lavender across it, sprigs of nice smelling herbs.

This hangs in the kitchen, above our kitchen sink and smells quite nice.

To make a pot covered with mosaic tiles

These pictures taken at Mt Palmer mines behind Southern Cross in Western Australia

How to make a stained glass mirror

Stained glass has been around for hundreds of years. Many people have different ideas as to what actual stained glass means. Church windows look beautiful with their pictures created with colored glass. These consist of thousands of tiny pieces of glass joined together with lead. They individually cut out each piece by hand and the pieces, trimmed on a grinder to fit the exact shape. They add one piece at a time, placing the led around the edges of each piece. The glass actually slots into the ridges of the lead, then soldered together.

TOOLS REQUIRED Different colored glass, piece of mirror, soldering iron, flux, solder, pattern, and lead.

METHOD TO MAKE MIRROR You need to have a pattern drawn to scale of the article you wish to make. Whether square, oblong or oval. To protect your pattern, place a piece of solid, not too thick clear plastic over the top and staple it into position. Make a frame of wood around the edge of pattern, if square mirror, place a piece of lead along one edge next to the wood.

Place the first piece of glass over pattern and cut to shape. When correct, slide that piece into the side of the lead. Continue in this manner, adding the mirror section to complete the drawing. Now brush flux on each join in lead and solder each piece of lead together, making sure the joins are smooth and not lumpy.

Turn mirror over and solder joins on the other side. You can solder a piece of wire onto the back to hang mirror. Another idea is to put this into a wooden frame. It would depend on design of your mirror. Many people make beautiful lampshades this way.

IMPORTANT Lead is poisonous, you can use gloves when handling, although this makes handling difficult. Make sure, you wash your hands after handling lead, and do not eat anything while handling it.read more