'Make Stuff Sites' helping you make projects yourself

I love to make craft projects and I know there are many people who love to make or repair the things around them. I should say that "do-it-yourself" or "make stuff" comes in creative hobbies catagory. I found 2 sites with almost similar names and topic is also same, so I am reviewing both in this article.

1- Make Stuff is a site for crafter's, hobbyists, entrepreneurs and 'Do it yourself'lovers. You can make craft projects, homemade remedies, recycling crafts, and more yourself.

I liked the page "Recycling" because the projects are many and easy to make. I searched through 'Things you can do with cardboard tubes' and I was happy to find our many ideas and tips to recycle the cardboard tubes.
The list would impress you:

Things you can do with Breyer's ice cream containers.
Things you can do with old film cannisters.
Things you can do with berry baskets
Things you can do with old CD's
Things you can do with old CD jewel cases
Things you can do with old plastic pop bottles
Things you can do with old cardboard tubes
Things you can make with tin foil
How to make lamps & vases from glass bottles
Things you can do with old cardboard milk cartons
Things you can do with wire hangers
Things you can do with old egg cartons
Things you can do with old garden hoses
Things you can do with old newspaper
How to make your own recycled paper
How to preserve newspaper clippings
Things you can do with old baby food jars
Things you can make with wallpaper
Things you can do with tuna cans

So you can do a lot with the stuff which is trash.

- At "Formulas" is an interesting part of the site as you can even get 'cough and cold remedy'formula.
What you can get at this page?
Few of them are:
Homemade Soap Recipes 108 Timeless Remedies and Formulas
Make Your Own Aftershave Flexible Mold Compound / Rubber Molds
Make Your Own Astringent Fishing Bait - 10 Oil-Based Formulas
Make Your Own Bath Powder Frosting Windows(Duplicating Jack Frost)
Make Your Own Lip Balm How to Make Smoke With Dry Ice
Toothpaste,Mouthwash &

There are more pages like:

- kid stuff, cooking,

- gardening,

- holidays, and

- sewing.

There are also some articles

2- "How to make stuff":

It offers over many free projects to make among crafts, kids, recycling, science projects, cookie recipes and many do-it-yourself ideas.

"How to make stuff" is good for some ideas but I didn't like the site due to cluster of ads around the project idea, and moreover many links don't work like I wanted to know more about the site and I tried the "about" and "link to us" links, but it didn't show any result.

Crafts sites for hobbyists

Making crafts is a creative hobby, which is very popular among women and children. Many of the crafters are making good earning from their crafts. So this hobby can be a work at home opportunity for you. I am reviewing few crafts sites, which are about different crafts. You can get ideas, tips and more site links from their sites. Hobbyists who love to create or make crafts at their leisure for personal satisfaction or for selling can get useful information from these sites.

1- Crafts hobbies is a blog with a focas on crafts articles.

Start your search from right side bar post titles or from site map where you can get all the post links to search easily.

Few of the titles are:

Learn Origami
Make Origami
Origami Instructions
17 Tips For Getting Balloons to Last Longer in Hot Weather
Making Your Own Bird Feeder
Bartering: A Modern Day Phenomenon
Bookmarks As Unique As You
Why You Need A Display Case
Setting Up Your Display Case
Make Your Own Citronella Candles
Learn Exactly How To Repair Your Sewing Machine At Home!
A Few Tips About Comic Book Bags
Invitation Envelopes - Make or Break Your Party
Make Your Own Lampshades
Link to the site:
crafts hobbies

2- The Artful Crafter is an article site about crafts. In Craft Tips you will find ideas and suggestions to help you work smarter, faster and better. Throughout the pages of The Artful Crafter, you will find suggestions about good tools to use, about good books to read, about good computer programs to use to help you do everything from graphics design, scrapbook creation or even website setup.

There are articles from Craft Plans & Patterns, Craft Tips and Craft Letters. All crafts articles are listed on the Crafts Ideas page.

They also provide you guidance if you want to make this hobby profitable, and do a business, site provides tips and ideas about it.

Few crafts you can find at the site are:

Beading
Candles
Collage
Computer Crafting
Cross Stitching
Decals
Decoupage
Digital Scrapbooking
Embossing
Fabric
Gift Bags
Gourds
Holiday Crafts
Homecoming Mums
Home Cured Clay
Jewelry Making
Leather
Mason Jars
Paper Crafts
Party & Wedding Planning
Quilting
Ribbon Crafts
Scrapbooking
Sewing
Soap Making
Stamping
Teen Crafts
Wall Coverings
Wood Working

Eileen Bergen, the creator of the site was a special education teacher for 15 years. The rest of the story she tells:

My husband, Chris, and I retired a few years ago. It didn’t take long for me to get bored with full retirement. Looking for something to do with my idle hands, I started designing my own greeting and calling cards using some user-friendly computer programs - since I had zero graphic design background.
My friends said they loved them; but I thought they were just being nice. When they started saying, “I’d like you to design some for me. How much would you charge?” I thought I might have the makings of a home-based business.

Since we live in a sparsely-populated rural area, I knew the local calling card market would quickly be saturated, so I moved on to place cards, invitations, and fliers. Soon my friends were bringing me completely unrelated product ideas. They said, “Eileen, you can make this!” So I started sewing again. I hadn’t sat at a sewing machine for about 30 years! Next came oilcloth tote bags, wine gift bags, panadières (fabric bread baskets), double eyeglass cases, etc., etc. I named my company … and life was good!
Two years later, after I had added beaded jewelry, fabric painting and woven bamboo placemats to my product line, Chris said, “Why don’t you put up a website? I can do the tech stuff … and with all you’ve learned in this business – what to do and, just as importantly, what not to do! – it would be very valuable to other home crafters.”


Resource link page.

Benefits of "Playing Board Games"

Games which children or adults play are meant to have fun. Digital age has brought a gift of video or computer games. Still many kind of outdoor or indoor games are favorite pass time of children and adults alike.
Games are great for developing life skills, hand-eye-coordination, mental agility and social skills. Games have a far greater educational influence than most people are aware of. Many children with developmental disabilities, who don't normally seem to react to their environments are often completely transformed when playing games.
Every hobby, leisure or recreation activity has its own benefits and playing board games also has many benefits. This article would provide you information and links about benefits of playing "Board Games"

A report of "CBS News" says:

"Study: Reading, Playing Board Games, Dancing May Prevent Dementia"

"(CBS) New research suggests that a brain workout on a regular basis can greatly reduce the risk of developing dementia, including Alzheimer's disease.

The Early Show medical correspondent Dr. Emily Senay says there are no hard answers when it comes to the benefits of a regular brain workout. But, she says, more evidence is building up that mentally–stimulating leisure activities can reduce the risk of dementia and help maintain cognitive abilities as people age.

They found a reduced incidence of dementia among the people who participated in reading, playing board games, playing musical instruments and dancing. And the researchers found that people who engage in the activities were more frequently less likely to develop dementia.

The study found one activity once a week reduced the risk of dementia by 7 percent. Risk reduction went up to 63 percent for those who participated in more activities more frequently.

The medical community is not sure why mental activity benefits the brain, but one theory suggests mental challenges may keep brain cells healthy and less prone to disease or damage.

Another theory, says Senay, is that mentally-stimulating activities may help build up cognitive reserve, so there is more brain cells to replace any that is lost."

Source for full article: Brain Workout Benefits

* At "Scholastic" they say that "Playing games with your kids is a perfect way to spend time together — and build learning skills at the same time."

- They satisfy your child's competitive urges and the desire to master new skills and concepts, such as:

• number and shape recognition, grouping, and counting
• letter recognition and reading
• visual perception and color recognition
• eye-hand coordination and manual dexterity

Games don't need to be overtly academic to be educational, however. Just by virtue of playing them, board games can teach important social skills, such as communicating verbally, sharing, waiting, taking turns, and enjoying interaction with others. Board games can foster the ability to focus, and lengthen your child's attention span by encouraging the completion of an exciting, enjoyable game. Even simple board games like Chutes and Ladders offer meta-messages and life skills: Your luck can change in an instant — for the better or for the worse. The message inherent in board games is: Never give up. Just when you feel despondent, you might hit the jackpot and ascend up high, if you stay in the game for just a few more moves.

The article also suggests "Choosing the Right Board Game at Every Age"
Read in detail at source article:
The Benefits of Board Games

* Playing board games can have positive impace on whole family.

Board games have been experiencing a growth spurt in the past decade. There are now over 42,000 board games and accessories on the market, and sales reached over $5 billion in 2004.

"Millions of game enthusiasts already know that games are positive, social entertainment," said Mark Simmons, the founder of National Games Week (which just ran from November 19-25 this year) and publisher of Games Quarterly(TM).

Some benefits:

- Playing board games after a family dinner is an excellent way to get closer to your family (you'll often be surprised at where the conversation goes), while strengthening your family bond, and allowing kids to practice essential problem-solving and other cognitive skills.
- Playing "casual games" (board games, card games, word games, etc.) is an excellent way to kick back and relax, according to an online survey by RealNetworks, Inc., a casual games developer.

The survey found that:

64 percent of respondents said they play games as a way to unwind and relax

53 percent play for stress relief

42 percent believe game play is a way to keep his/her mind sharp

75 percent of those with children said they see educational benefits for their children who play casual games

"It's a wild concept, but I see this trend as a way for women and men to establish mental balance and embrace a healthy form of comfort," said women's lifestyle expert and author Jennifer Louden.

Source: The Amazing Health Benefits of Board Games for Adults as Well as Kids

Other sources: RESEARCH REVEALS CASUAL GAMES PROVIDE MENTAL BALANCE, STRESS RELIEF AND RELAXATION

* At "Games info depot": Board Games Benefits

Related post:
Playing "Board Games" - An ancient pastime

Playing "Board Games" - An ancient pastime

I love to play board games. At student age, I had many board games like "ludo, snakes and ladders, scrabble, monopoly and many more, but now I play board games at computer and my favourite games are "word games", "scrabble" etc, which I play from Board Game cd's. Being an educator and blogger I don't get much times, but whenever I am bored, I like to play "board games" for some moments.

Board games are not meant for any specific age group. Board games have been present for ages, and there is no doubt that it has been an ancient pastime/hobby from a long time ago.

Definition of Board Games:

"Board game is a game in which counters or pieces that are placed on, removed from, or moved across a "board" (a premarked surface, usually specific to that game). Like any other form of entertainment, board games can represent nearly any subject. However, most well-known mass-market board games are generally simple all ages family entertainment."

Board games have been played in most cultures and societies throughout history; some even pre-date literacy skill development in the earliest civilizations.

Board games first became widely popular among the general population early in the 20th century[citation needed] when the rise of the middle class with disposable income and leisure time made them a receptive audience to such games. This popularity expanded after the Second World War, a period from which many classic board games date.

Many board games are now available as computer games, including the option to have the computer act as an opponent; and many acclaimed computer games such as Civilization were originally based upon board games. The rise of computers has also led to a relative decline in the most complicated board games, as computers require less space, and the games don't have to be set up and cleared away. With the Internet, many board games can now be played online against a computer or other players. Some web sites allow play in real time and immediately show the opponent's moves, while most use e-mail to notify the players after each move (see the links at the end of this article).

Kind of board games:

There are a number of different categories that board games can be broken up into. The following is a list of some of the most common:

Abstract strategy games: like chess, checkers, Arimaa, irensei or go
German-style board games: or Eurogames, like The Settlers of Catan or Puerto Rico
Race games: like parchisi or backgammon
Roll-and-move games: like Monopoly or Life
Trivia games: like Trivial Pursuit
Word games: like Scrabble
Wargames: ranging from Risk to Advanced Squad Leader

List of board games contains the catagories like as:

- Two-player abstract strategy games: In abstract strategy games, players know the entire game state at all times, and random generators such as dice are not used.
- Two-player games involving chance or hidden information.
- Multi-player elimination games: Participants are typically eliminated before game end.
- European race games
- Multiplayer games without elimination: Everyone can play along to the end. These games are especially suited for mixed play with adults and children.
- Games of physical skill: Coordination, finesse, or other physical skills are necessary. Also known as dexterity games
- Children's games: The rules are easy to learn and the outcome mostly or entirely due to chance.
- Gaming Systems: These are sets that can be used to play multiple games.

Read the full article:
List of board games

JG8D69D

Learn Air brush lessons and tips

There was a time when only artists and illustrators used "air brush" technique for easiness and professional perfection. But now you can airbrush on any of the surfaces: motorcycles, illustrations, models, T-Shirts, leather, fingernails, crafts, batting or motorcycle helmets, goalie masks, canvas, wood, tanning, temp tattoo's, etc.

Air brushing allows artists and illustrators to create highly rendered images and a high level of realism. Airbrushes are commonly used by scale modeling enthusiasts because finer coats can be laid down, as well as opaque effects, like weathering, adding stains etc. The fine atomization of paint in modern airbrushes also makes it possible to accurately reproduce soft-edged mottled camouflage schemes, which are very hard to do convincingly by hand-brushing. (Luftwaffe aircraft are a good example of this)

Many Radio Control hobbyists also use the airbrush to create works of art on the lexan bodies. The paint jobs range from a basic one-color paint job to fine detailed works of art.

Definition of air brush:
Air brush is a small, air-operated tool that sprays various media including ink and dye, but most often paint by a process of nebulization. Spray guns developed from the airbrush and are still considered a type of airbrush.

Where to learn "air brush" techniques and tips?

How To Air Brush teaches you free airbrush basic lessons, how to articles, tutorials, tech tips and more covering airbrushing and custom painting.

The goal of this web site is to make learning "How To" airbrush and or learning new airbrushing skills as easy and fun an experience as humanly possible. You can use these techniques to airbrush on any these surfaces: motorcycles, Harley's, illustrations, models, T-Shirts, leather, fingernails, crafts, batting or motorcycle helmets, goalie masks, canvas, wood, tanning, temp tattoo's, etc.

Few tips are:

Drawing is learning to look at an objects proportions and how its proportions relate to surrounding objects, perspective in other words. How large is an eye in relationship to the nose, where do these objects line up in relationship to each other.

Using a projector will help you understand these relationship's while you practice both airbrushing and drawing. It's just a matter of learning, practicing the basic skills until you gain confidence in your airbrushing skills. The trick or magic after all is not in the ability to draw but in taking a simple line drawing and painting it so it seems to jump right off your painting surface, adding life to your drawing. Using stencils or templates is a great way to enter the world of airbrushing and custom painting that does not require much in the way of drawing skills.
- Lessons to start

- Find air brush articles

*** Another site where you get more techniques and tips is "Air brush Guru"

Hobbies and their importance for women

Hobbies, leisures or recreation are not pastime activities but they help us keeping our mind relaxed and it effects our health also. Peter Lichtenberg, Ph.D., director of the Institute of Gerontology at Wayne State University says:

"Hobbies can engage you physically and mentally. People who have a hobby "are generally healthier. We also know they are at a lower risk for depression and dementia. The great value of hobbies is they're a way for people to stay engaged on multiple levels."

So hobbies are important for all, but it is very strange fact that we don't take women's hobbies very seriously. Women are supposed to engage themselves in daily life, work and home chores. But women also need recreation in the form of hobbies or pastimes activities. I read an article at "Lifescript" which is from "Samantha Rhodes". Article is very informative but I abstracted few benefits she has mentioned in it.

1- It allows a woman the chance to relieve stress and revitalize the mind and body. Whatever hobby you choose to learn and enjoy, remember that not only are you allowing your creativity to flourish but you are also improving your overall well-being.

2- A hobby is a chance to allow your creative side to thrive. We all have hidden talents within us and no one but ourselves can discover what it is. By trying out different crafts you are interested in learning, you will be more likely to discover your hidden creative treasure.

3- It allows you the chance to do something with your children, your spouse, or your friends. A hobby can bring you closer to someone, especially if you share the same passion and interest for a particular area. Children are great examples of why hobbies are important. Kids love to get elbow-deep in a craft project because it gives them the feeling of accomplishment.

4- Hobbies even make great gifts for friends and family because you are creating something unique and from the heart.

5- Hobbies can even save you a few dollars. As an example if sewing is your forte, you can make clothes for your children without having to fork out a load of cash for an outfit they will outgrow in a year.

Why Hobbies Are Beneficial For Women

Related post:

The role of hobbies in our lives

Read hobby articles at "Hobby.net"

I love to read about hobbies, pastimes, leisures and recreation activities. Because at different stages of life I had many hobbies and still enjoy some recreation activites. Like "blogging" has become my favourite hobby at this moment from few years, because I get my 'reading and writing' satisfaction from one place. I search for hobby articles at the net, because these artilces, directories and froums show opinion of people, and these article are a source of information as well.

Hobby.net.au is an online "hobby directory", where you can read article about hobbies or pastimes.

The catagories you can find and read the articles are: Animals, Arts and Crafts, Automobile, Chemistry, Collecting, Computer and Internet, Conlanging, Cooking, DIY (Do it yourself) Fanfiction, Film Making, Games, Gardening, Family Tree and Genealogy, Geofiction, Historical Reenactment, Home Brewing, Kites,
Literature, Magic, Music, Observation and Spotting, Performing Arts, Photography, Radio, RC Models, Robot, Scale Model, Sport and Activities.

For example I have copied paragraph from the link "drawing"

"Drawing as a hobby can be a lifelong source of pleasure, for both you and those around you. Kids love having someone draw for them, and they are completely non-critical! Chances are you can learn from each other, too. If you love drawing, or want to start doing it, let us give you a helping hand. This is a place for all you budding artists out there, to ask and share and learn. We look forward to sharing in your love of drawing."
Read full article here: 'drawing'

There are many articles, which you can read by going direct to catagory bar and clicking on the link.

Get in touch with other hobbyists at forums and message boards

Forums and message boards are a good place to discuss and learn about hobbies and leisures. Most of the forums have one or more sections where hobbyist can talk about their leisures or hobbies, but I have researched for the forums where you can get information, advice or tips about variety of hobbies.
These community sites provide opportunity to get in touch with other hobbyists. I am also a member of few forums, and it is interesting to have contact with the people having same interests.

Few forums/message boards for hobbies and hobbyists:

* Do it yourself": It is a big community where members are 171,607 in number, so you can get a lot of useful stuff here.

* Nj Guido has 8034 registered members.

* Bored of studies forum consistes of 254,394 members with 3,030,541 posts.

* Un-explained mysteries forum 63510 registered members with a total of 2362983 posts.

* Discuss anything

* RC tech forum 61,749 members, with 4,517,595 posts.

Recreation, hobbies and leisures providing refreshment to life

We often use the terms "hobby", "leisure", "recreation", and we know it very well that recreation, leisure or hobbies are an essential part of our lives, providing refreshment to us. Hobbies, leisures or recreational activities keep us occupied between work and family, and cultivating a good hobby have calming or helpful therapeutic side effects.

"Research has shown that recreation contributes to life satisfaction, quality of life, health and wellness, and that the use of recreation as a diversion may have clinical applications to individuals with chronic pain and other health impairments.

Recreation is essential to the longevity of human beings, especially because it helps counteract stress. According to research cited in Time magazine, stress is a major factor in many of the leading causes of death in the United States"

Do you know the difference between them these terms?

"Hobbies and leisures" have the similar meanings, as per their definitions.

"Leisure" - according to Wiki pedia:

"Leisure or free time, is a period of time spent out of work and essential domestic activity."
whereas "hobby" is defined as:

"A hobby is a spare-time recreational pursuit."

Here comes another words "recreation":

"Recreation or fun is the expenditure of time in a manner designed for therapeutic refreshment of one's body or mind. While leisure is more likely a form of entertainment or rest, recreation is active for the participant but in a refreshing and diverting manner."

To read more about the topic at "Wikipedia": recreation

Few links to the sites with leisure or recreation information:

- Leisure activity.co.uk experiences and researches all kinds of different leisure activities and then review them to give you an idea of each one. There are many fun and leisure ideas and suggestions according to occassion like for winter, for sunny days and fun for all family.

- A blog to share harder to find information about a variety of recreational topics and ideas. Recreation ease

Related post:

Benefits of hobbies and leisures

Hobbies at "Wet Paint"

Wet paint is a social community site. A Wetpaint website is built on the power of collaborative thinking.

The story behind creation of this site is quite interesting:

"The idea behind Wetpaint came to us when one of our friends was diagnosed with cancer. After the initial shock wore off, he did what most of us would do; he went online to learn everything he could about the disease. He found lots of facts, but not the stuff he really wanted to know—like how other people with cancer were coping. As we sat helplessly on the sidelines of our friend's dilemma, it dawned on us: why not make it easy for groups of people to share information, experiences and build social communities around anything they want?
A Wetpaint website is built on the power of collaborative thinking. Here, you can create websites that mix all the best features of wikis, blogs, forums and social networks into a rich, user-generated community based around the whatever-it-is that rocks your socks. A social website that’s so easy to use, anyone can participate.
The Wetpaint name comes from our natural sense of curiosity. The urge to touch something when we see a “Wet paint” sign. The urge to leave our mark. This curiosity and the surprising results that occur from collaboration are all part of Wetpaint."

Part of the site which is associated with "hobbies" there are many pages about various activities.

What is "leisure" ?

"It is in his pleasure that a man really lives; it is from his leisure that he constructs the true fabric of self.
~Agnes Repplier"

We use this word very frequently but usually we don't think more about the meaning in details.

Wikipedia describes it:

Leisure or free time, is a period of time spent out of work and essential domestic activity. It is also the period of recreational and discretionary time before or after compulsory activities such as eating and sleeping, going to work or running a business, attending school and doing homework, household chores, and day-to-day stress. The distinction between leisure and compulsory activities is loosely applied, i.e. people sometimes do work-oriented tasks for pleasure as well as for long-term utility.

For an experience to qualify as leisure, it must meet three criteria:

1) The experience is a state of mind.

2) It must be entered into voluntarily.

3) It must be intrinsically motivating of its own merit.

The word leisure comes from the Latin word licere, meaning “to be permitted” or “to be free,” via Old French leisir, and first appeared in the early fourteenth century.

Types of leisure

Active leisure activities involve the exertion of physical or mental energy. Low-impact physical activities include walking and yoga, which expend little energy and have little contact or competition. High-impact activities such as kick-boxing and soccer consume much energy and are competitive. Some active leisure activities involve almost no physical activity, but do require a substantial mental effort, such as playing chess or painting a picture. Active leisure and recreation overlap significantly.

Passive leisure activities are those in which a person does not exert any significant physical or mental energy, such as going to the cinema, watching television, or gambling on slot machines. Some leisure experts discourage these types of leisure activity, on the grounds that they do not provide the benefits offered by active leisure activities. For example, acting in a community drama (an active leisure activity) could build a person's skills or self-confidence. Nevertheless, passive leisure activities are a good way of relaxing for many people.

Examples of leisure activities

A woman relaxes in an urban park and enjoys a book during her lunch break.People who work indoors and spend most of their time sitting and doing sedentary office work can add physical activity to their lives by doing sports during their leisure time, such as playing a ball game, going camping, hiking or fishing. On the other hand, people whose jobs involve a lot of physical activity may prefer to spend their free time doing quiet, relaxing activities, such as reading books or magazines or watching TV. Some people find that collecting stamps, postcards, badges, model cars or ships, bottles, or antiques is a relaxing hobby.

Free time is organized in many schools and institutions. Schools offer many extracurricular activities including hobby groups, sports activities, and choirs. Other institutions such as retirement homes and hospitals also offer activities such as clubs and meetings for playing games.

Most people like socializing with friends for dinner or a drink after a hard day at work. For many young people, having a regular night out a week is a normal part of their free time, whether it is joining friends for a drink in a pub, dining out in a restaurant, watching a film, playing video games or dancing the night away at a club.

Some people do leisure activities that also have a longer-term goal. In some cases, people do a leisure activity that they hope to turn into a full-time activity (e.g., volunteer paramedics who hope to eventually become professional paramedics). Many people also study part-time in evening university or college courses, both for the love of learning, and to help their career prospects.

Source: Wikipedia

And few quotes about "leisure" from 'Quote Garden':

* Leisure only means a chance to do other jobs that demand attention.
~Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
* The real problem of leisure time is how to keep others from using yours.
~Arthur Lacey
* He enjoys true leisure who has time to improve his soul's estate.
~Henry David Thoreau
* Any notion of the serious life of leisure, as well as men's taste and capacity to live it, has disappeared. Leisure [has become] entertainment.
~Allan Bloom, The Closing of the American Mind, 1987
* Leisure: A fancy word for people who don't want to admit they're bored.
~Gene Perret
* If you are losing your leisure, look out; you may be losing your soul.
~Logan P. Smith
* I would not exchange my leisure hours for all the wealth in the world.
~Comte de Mirabeau

Related posts:

* Recreation, hobbies and leisures providing refreshment to life

* Benefits of hobbies and leisures

Read hobby related articles at "Buzzle"

"Buzzle" is a place to share knowledge, an online community, a place for finding information about everything from animals to tourism. There are lot of interesting and useful articles on number of catagories, which you can choose from left sideb bar.



"Hobbyists, collectors and artists of all kinds can find information about memorabilia, collectibles and novelties, and the vast variety of recreational pastimes. Whether you're a amateur hobbyist or a serious collector, you can find helpful information about many different types of hobbies. Learn about the interests of other hobbyists. Find out about recent trends in hobbies and how you can prosper with your hobby."

There are many Hobbies and special interests articles which you can freely read.

I am only quoting few of the article links:

* Preschool Activities for Kids: Creative preschool activities for children help them to have fun while they learn. Use these ideas for preschool activities.

* Why Not Become A Beekeeper?
What you need to do to become a beekeeper whether you are a man, woman, or young child, old or young. A life time hobby you can adopt.

* Learn Digital Photography - Fireworks Photo Hints
Now you can shoot beautiful digital photos and create awesome digital memories - guaranteed!

* Exotic Butterfly Art
Exotic butterfly art is one of the most sought-after artworks today. The artists use real butterflies to make a butterfly.

* A Great Hobby: Floral Arrangement!
Arranging flowers as a hobby can easily turn into a catchy "virus". You’ll simply fall in love with it! I did and it is worth it! It constantly brings loads of joy and beauty in my heart and house as well!

* Making Paper Flowers
There are many ways to create artistic and creative paper flowers, which can be used in many ways for decorative purposes. Here are some easy ways to make paper flowers.

Check the link: art and crafts for more articles.

Collecting Hobbies: "Collecting post cards"

I have been involved in collecting post cards many years ago, and still enjoy watching those old post cards. Most of the cards are collected from penpals around the world. I still love to see old, hand painted or interesting themed postcards. This article would take you to the sites, resouces about post card hobbyist thus you can learn about this hobby from these sites.

Definition of post card:

 

A postcard or post card is a rectangular piece of thick paper or thin cardboard intended for writing and mailing without an envelope and at a lower rate than a letter. Stamp collectors distinguish between postcards (which require a stamp) and postal cards (which have the postage pre-printed on them). While a postcard is usually printed by a private company, individual or organization, a postal card is issued by the relevant postal authority.
The United States Postal Service defines a postcard as: rectangular, at least 3-½ inches high x 5 inches long x .007 inch thick and no more than 4-¼ inches high x 6 inches long x .016 inches thick;[1] (in metric; 12.7 cm x 8.9 cm) however, some postcards have deviated from this (for example, shaped postcards).

The study and collecting of postcards is termed deltiology.

Resources and links for post card collectors:

* Emotions cards is a post card and greeting card museum. You can learn about the history of postcards and greeting cards from Victorian times to the 20th century. Here you can find card gallies, histroy section or the art of greeting cards section to browse.


* Post crossing is a post card crossing project where "you send a postcard and receive one back from a random postcrosser somewhere in the world!”

"The goal of this project is to allow people to receive postcards from all over the world, for free. Well, almost free! The main idea is that: if you send a postcard, you'll receive at least one back, from a random Postcrosser from somewhere in the world."

If you want to take part in this project, it is free and process is:

First you request an address from the site, mail the postcard to the address and wait to receive a postcard.
- Sign up here.

* post card.co.uk provides you with all the information about post cards. You can search for dealers, suppliers or printing services or about an old card. Ths site is from The Postcard Traders Association
The Association does all it can to promote both publication and collecting of postcards. It also aims to encourage fair trading within the Postcard hobby and, as such, has agreed a code of ethics which all members are required to adhere to.

* Chicago Postcard Museum is a fascinating exhibition of rare, antique, vintage, contemporary and novelty Chicago postcards. There is approximately 15% of the Museum's postcard collection currently online.

* International Federation of Postcard Dealers an organization of postcard dealers, but also promotes the interests of postcard collectors as well. Its purpose is to encourage professionalism, increase confidence, strengthen ethics and promote the postcard hobby worldwide. Currently there are 120 members.
- More Exchange links

* Post cardy.com is an informative and entertaining site.

Postcardy.com has three main goals:

- To provide information on postcards and postcard collecting
- To encourage others to share their postcard collections and information on the web
- To serve as a guide to some of the best postcard websites
The resources page contains links to a wide variety of websites related to postcards. The emphasis is on informational sites—not sites devoted to selling or trading postcards.

- Link to resouces

- Many links to post card sites: click here