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Articles for the ‘Art’ Category

Atlanta Portrait Artist Melissa Crawford can now be found on Google Maps. She has lived in the Atlanta, Georgia area for 25 years. She started painting portraits full time from her home studio near Atlanta about 5 or 6 years ago.

She keeps busy painting commissioned portrait oil paintings for two portrait agencies and also has many commissions she receives on her own. She travels the country to do photo shoots for the commissioned portraits. She recently had to fly to Baltimore, MD in February 2010 while they were having a record snowstorm of over 38 inches in some places. She had to use one of the client’s car battery to power her lights in order for her to take her pictures for the portraits of their girls because their power was out at their home for over 24 hours.

Melissa is a Member of Merit of the Portrait Society of Atlanta where she has won numerous awards on her portrait paintings. She also paints landscapes in oil. She has some landscapes she has painted of local areas near Atlanta as well as paintings from her trips to Italy, France and England.

You can see many of the portraits and other paintings by Atlanta Portrait Artist Melissa Crawford by visiting her website at www.MelissaCrawfordArt.com.

Asking a person to tell you the sexiest poem ever is like asking them to tell you the most beautiful location in the world … the choice is just too vast and, besides, can’t it be said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder? Similarly, poetry in its many forms becomes extremely subjective, so add to the mix the indefinable idea of ’sexiness’ or erotic literature and you have what is essentially an impossibility.

More words have been written about love and romance than there are grains of sand on the beach and, if you consider the countless opinion polls on the internet, many of the following poems are considered to be sexy.

‘Romance’ by Edgar Allen Poe is one of those poems, referring very subtly as it does to “forbidden things.” Emily Dickinson’s ‘If those I loved were lost’ is also ranked high up in the opinion polls, even though many would find it hard to describe what they saw as ’sexiness’ among just eight lines. Even more mysterious is ‘Skunk Hour’ by Robert Lowell, which tells how a man in his prime living in a small part of Maine is unable to find love.

E.E. Cummings is certainly a definite favourite in terms of sexiness. In his interestingly titled “because I love you last night”, for instance, he enjoys using an imagery that rolls and tumbles similar to the woman of his fantasies, whose “face smile breasts gargled.”

“The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock” by T S Eliot, on this occasion referring to a man approaching old age, is also known as a sexy poem. Might it be because the first six lines are written in Italian?

There are poems that almost defy categorisation. For example, in one internet poll, Christina Rossetti’s narrative ‘Goblin Market’ ranks top of the charts. In this long pre-Raphaelite tale, the sinister goblins lure Laura and Lizzie with their refrain to “Come buy, come buy, our orchard fruits.” What starts as a seemingly innocent pastoral poem gets into the girls’ precipitous situation, with Lizzie eventually being overcome by the goblins. Its variety double-entendre nuances to juicy peaches, plums and figs are mixed in with a menace which has ended this poem being the topic of many an academic discussion. Is it a feminist poem or a religious allegory? Many people would clearly claim it’s just downright sexy.

Then there is obviously erotic verse, which starts with the concept of romantic poetry and drags it forceably to the opposite side of the spectrum. Neil Rollinson’s poetry, for instance, causes no bones regarding which category it belongs in. In ‘French’, where there is eroticism completely unmasked by any of the devices employed by Rossetti, he refers to “extra-curricular” activities with the private tutor in the “cool expanse of her bed.”

Either erotic or romantic, it seems the discussion regarding what makes a poem sexy is going to keep going strong for as much time as people keep reading poetry.

Although oil painting has been around for a very long time, even dating back to the 1400’s; it’s still relatively new compared to other forms of art. However, before oil painting came to be, paint was mixed with plaster that was found in frescoes or eggs in tempera paints. It was not until Jan Van Eyck came along, that oil painting rose to fame, as he attempted to have more realism in art.

In the early fifteenth century, Europe had the desire for a more realistic appearance in artwork. This was because before that, art was basically decorative and mythological in aspects; however, at the start of the Renaissance, artists began to realize concepts and guidelines behind ideals of color, as well as perspective. They wanted to create images and objects that were more realistic to the world around them, so as a result, artist started to paint more realistically.  
 
Jan Van Eyck wanted to mimic in his paintings what nature really is and in order to do this, he made sure to paint every detail that he could of whatever object he focused on. His attention to detail made his paintings livelier; however, methods of painting and materials could not truly bring his work to full potential. Therefore, Van Eyck developed oil paintings, which changed the entire concept of painting known to artists. Before Van Eyck and others like him, painters in the Renaissance period did not have the luxury of being able to purchase colors that were already made. They had to make paints themselves, which were made from ground- up pigments contained in plants and minerals to attain shades from the entire color wheel. These were used to form a paste called tempera paint. The issue with this type of paint was that it dried quickly and made it almost impossible to have smooth transitions; hence, Van Eyck made the decision to use oil instead, which would allow him to work at a slower pace. With oil painting, accurate paintings came about.

To further create detailed images in his paintings, he also used a tiny pointed brush and many people, as well as other artists, became impressed with his work. They too began to use oil paints and due to this, oil paintings became a very popular form of art. Although today oil colors have evolved, its principals and color theory guidelines are still the same.  If you learn about this method and use oil paints correctly, you too can create wonderfully vivid and detailed paintings as Van Eyck and others of his time did. When you choose the medium of oil painting, you’ll be able to create paintings that are more detailed in settings, through the uses of shading and in addition, create portraits that are more lifelike. With time and effort, you will be able to mimic the greats of the Renaissance era.

Learn how to create beautiful oil paintings yourself by enrolling in an oil painting workshop with artist Caroline Jasper. Caroline’s workshops include both oil painting instruction and color instruction.

In recent years, one of the most popular trends among women has been the growth in lower back tattoos. This describes the practice of having a design tattooed on the center lower region of the back just above or below the waist line.

The popularity of this tattoo placement has been fuelled by the current fashion for low cut jeans and short tops, which provide the perfect setting to display these designs.

So if you’re thinking about getting a lower back tattoo, here are some of the main advantages and disadvantages to bear in mind.

The Advantages Of Lower Back Tattoos

In general, the placement of most tattoos means that they’re either permanently on show or hidden by clothing. But due to modern clothing trends including low cut jeans and crop tops, the lower back is the perfect place for a tattoo if you want to achieve a “now you see it, now you don’t” effect. This subtle approach to tattoo placement is similar to the growing trend among men for tattoos on the underside of the forearm. Unlike a front forearm tattoo which is highly visible, an inside design will be hidden for much of the time. But once you’ve seen the design, it will be more visible.

Another reason for the popularity of lower back tattoos is the sensuality of the placement. Some people find the “should I have seen that” glimpse of an exposed lower back tattoo extremely alluring. This is a major advantage if you want to project a sexy, adventurous image.

Placing a tattoo on your lower back also means that you won’t be able to see it under normal conditions. In fact, you’ll only see it if you’re extremely flexible or when you catch a glimpse of it in a mirror. So if you want a tattoo, but don’t want to see it all the time, a lower back placement might be the answer.

The Disadvantages Of Lower Back Tattoos

Lower back tattoos carry one major disadvantage – they’re extremely unoriginal. The trend has lasted for so long that millions of women all over the world have tattoos placed on their lower back. In fact, it has become almost impossible to find a new way to place a tattoo design on your lower back.

But beyond that, certain unflattering slang terms have developed to describe lower back tattoos and the women who have them, including “tramp stamp”, and “gramp stamp”, which refers to the idea that in 40 to 50 years, the world will be full of elderly women with lower back tattoos.

So if you’re looking for something a bit more original, it’s best to avoid lower back tattoos.

Another major disadvantage of tattoos placed on the lower back is the fact that you won’t be able to see your tattoo unless you look in a mirror. This may be an advantage if you want a tattoo but don’t want to look at it all the time. But if you want to see your new design on a regular basis, avoid getting a tattoo anywhere in your back.

An Original Alternative To Consider

If you like the idea of a lower back tattoo, but want to retain an element of originality, try placing your tattoo design further round your torso, so that it sits on the sound of the body above one or both of your hips. At present, tattoos placed in this location are relatively rare, so if you’re looking for something original, it might be worth considering.

In future years this could become a popular new trend, who knows. But for now, it’s ripe for early trendsetters to exploit.

As soon as you put in the wii sports resort game you will land on Wuhu Island, you will see your day can be packed with so many enjoyable activities. On Wuhu, it’s not possible to experience a dull moment. Twelve activities await visitors: Archery, Frisbee, Basketball, Biking, Canoeing, Power Cruising, Ping pong, Air Sports, Bowling, Swordplay, Golf, Wakeboarding, and many others.

The activities in wii sports resort make use of the precision controls of the Wii MotionPlus accessory so that you are taken closer to the physical reality whenever you play a particular activity. Real-world actions are perfectly replicated with the new technologies. Each activity has built in fun challenges that were designed to make the time pass rapidly. Fun, that is its ultimate goal. When you play basketball, you’ll be asked to jump when you shoot the ball. The game of archery increases distances and obstacles so that you train your and your eye to work seamlessly together.

All the activities will require the use of the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers in different ways. You may to paddle it when you canoe around the island’s lakes, or use it as a paddle when you go up and down the hills. The Wii sports resort controller MotionPlus accessory was designed to pick up every nuance of motion so that it gets translated on TV. You are also given the choice to compete with or against other players. The choice is entirely up to you. So whether it’s a game of Frisbee or a more competitive sport, the Wii motion Plus takes the motion-sensing controls of the Wii console to a greater level of precision.

Jane Eyre is one of the most romantic classic novels ever, and still a favorite among women who love romance novels and stories. It is a novel in five phases in which Charlotte Bronte carries us along a journey to a woman’s eternity. The novel Jane Eyre, a first person narrative by its main character Jane Eyre, starts at her childhood (rather, orphan-hood), moves on to her phase of education, then to the phase when she becomes a governess and falls in love, next the phase when she goes to St. John Rivers and finally come the final phase. What does finally happen to Jane Eyre? Read the full book on Online Literature.

Charlotte Bronte has brought out a lot of emotion in describing the thirteen years in Jane Eyre’s life. With solid language and flawless presentation, Jane Eyre can make the reader become emotional and cry at points, and feel a great surge of romance at other points of reading. Overall, Jane Eyer is an immortal classic – easily a top 10 romantic classic ever written – and still finds an amazingly enormous number of fans and followers. It is the novel that really established Charlotte Bronte, one of the three Bronte sisters, as a writer.

Nowadays Japanese is very hot and so are the little cats called maneki neko that you can see in every souvenir shop. They look very funny and are available in all forms and variations. They are also often used as a piggy bank where people save their money.

The maneki cat sculpture shows a cat with an upright claw and is used at the entrance of stores and restaurants. There is the believe that these sculptures made out of ceramic bring luck to its owner so more and more people jump in the trend all around the world.

The beckoning cat can also be found as air fresheners or keychains and even more creative variations are made every day. If you don’t have one of them you should have a look around at your local area or you could find some cheap ones right on the internet without a doubt.

Up until recently, everything seemed rosy on the employment front and on the financial front. Businesses were growing and unemployment seemed very low. Unfortunately this led to quite a few people becoming complacent and people let their amount of debt grow. Then everything went pear shaped and we had a global financial crisis. People began losing their jobs and it became harder to pay the bills and now some need bankruptcy help. 

If you are one of these people who let their debt get a little out of control and now are struggling to pay the bills because of being laid off or getting less hours at work, then this article may be for you. If your debt is out of control you are probably considering credit card bankruptcy. Before you head down this path you should speak to a professional and consider some bankruptcy alternatives options that I outline below: 

Debt consolidation loans- Instead of juggling different credit cards with different balances and different rates which can be very stressful, you may want to look at a debt consolidation loan. Combine all of your debts in to one amount and have one easy monthly repayment. If you do this and take the stress out of tracking multiple bills you may find that you can afford your payments at a lower interest rate. 

Speak to your creditors- If you owe people money, don’t avoid their phone calls. This will erode any goodwill that you have previously had with them. Speak to them about your issues and see what sort of arrangement that you can come to. These guys will not want you to declare bankruptcy as they want their money, even if it takes a bit longer for the money to appear in your pocket. 

Sell of all of those things that you don’t need- Another option to help you ease your debt burden without resorting to credit card bankruptcy is for you to sell any unwanted and unused goods that you have lying around to help pay the bills. You could also look at downgrading your car and maybe moving house. 

If, at the end of the day, you cannot fix your problems then declaring bankruptcy may be your only option. It is in your best interests to discuss with a professional bankruptcy attorney the options I have mentioned above before taking any rash steps.

When you start playing FishVille by Zynga, you can see why there are such a lot of reasons to require to level up swiftly.

The complicated possibilities for game play that you can unlock by reaching higher levels are quite exciting.  But naturally, as with any good thing, it is getting harder to advance in the game the higher up you get.  Basic strategies involve raising the best fish to make you the most experience and coins, and they are the Mini Dart Goby and the Sardine respectively.  The previous gives the most return in experience while the second gives the most return in coins.  Raise either one depending on your rapid wants.  Another basic methodology is to “buy experience”.

Most items acquired in the Fishville store give experience ( XP ) when bought.  This is an early game system and is going to be used as frequently as possible .  FishVille neigbors means more FishVille gifts both to be given and received.  There are some items that you can only get if you’re given them as gifts, so give them to your buddies and ask your friends to send them back to you.  The bulk of these gifts are free, so there’s actually no reason not to send as much as you can.  Just remember though, the more neighbours you have, the more gifts you’ll be certain to get.

There are such a lot of options when you’re making an attempt to pick which fish to raise in your tanks in FishVille that it can be difficult to even begin to work out what the differences are and how they could be vital.  Naturally, the level you are on demand have a major result on the sorts of fish in FishVille that you are going to be able to make a choice from, but there are one or two factors you’ll have to consider when you are making your call in any case of what your options basically are.  When the method is at first revealed, it can appear rather complex.  But when you see why you’re looking for what you’re making an attempt to find, you’ll begin to see that most of the time, your calls will actually be pretty straight forward.

I wish you a lot of fun playing Fishville!

For more Fishville Secrets visit Fishville Secrets

One of the most popular themes for a child’s room is the sports theme.  In today’s competitive world, sports offer a sense of achievement or of challenge to achieve one’s highest ability.  A healthy sense of confidence and team playing has been built in children participating in sports, and this positive influence can be supported in a passive and cheerful way in the simple application of sports posters, items, and kids sports bedding in a child’s room.  There is kids sports bedding that can be found incorporating many different colors and shapes in general sport subjects of, among others, baseball, basketball, skateboarding or racing.  However, if a particular team or league is preferred, sets featuring the NFL, MBA, NHL and NASCAR teams are available with images of star athletes if desired.

Inevitably, the kids who are most often offered sport-themed bedding sets are boys.  Traditionally, participation in sports has encouraged many boys expression of emotion as athletic aggression, and fulfills a boy’s sense of the strength and strategy that many men have held dear for centuries as a definition of who they are.  Passing this tradition on to a young boy can be encouraged with quality time watching a favorite team, playing together in the yard or field, as well as the right comforter or set of sports sheets.  Kids sports bedding with sharp, strong colors and active or bold images can be easily found for any boy who has a favorite team or sport.
 
Sport themes that adorn bedrooms are not only enjoyed by boys, of course.  There are countless girls who find their most shining moment on a court or field, and the healthy attributes that are associated with the activity and mental stamina of playing sports helps girls to realize what great achievements they are capable of.  However as girls they are more prone to appreciate the delicate and simple aspects of decoration, so kids sports bedding for girls have found a niche with more subdued tones and gentler shapes than the boys sets.  There are also girls cheerleading themes, and some kids sports bedding for girls include valances as well as canopies.  Sports-themed quilts and sheets can exude a sense of active intensity with subtle colors that sets the sport-loving girl apart from the boys without the all-too-typical princess or rock star feel.
 
Kids sports bedding is made for boys and girls of any age, from a crib bedding set for a baby to a respectable, less animated kids sports bedding for the teen.  The bedding comes in a variety of sizes, including twin, extra long twin bedding, and full.  Along with the gift of kids sports bedding, the option of adding an extra long twin comforter, sports pajamas, and bath accessories is also a delightful way of showing support and pride to a young athlete.