Saturday, January 9, 2010
10 Birthday Party Ideas
If you’re arranging a birthday party for your self, or for a friend, then perhaps you’ve already decided what you’re going to do. If you haven’t yet decided, then here are some ideas for you to consider.
1. Why not spend a weekend in a different city? With so many to explore, you’re bound to find somewhere with plenty to do that will keep you and your mates entertained.
2. Perhaps you’d like to have a track day, or go paint balling, or spend the day driving a tank. There are plenty of activities you could try, so why not do something different for this birthday?
3. Why not go shopping somewhere exciting, or in a big city for a change?. If you don’t live near a city, why not see what the shops in London, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Sheffield, Glasgow or Edinburgh have to offer.
4. Perhaps you’ll just want to spend time with friends and family, and enjoy a day off work to relax and do your own thing for a change.
5. What about a day at a spa or health club with your friends? You’re bound to enjoy being pampered with all sorts of beauty treatments, and feeling like a celebrity. If you’re not keen on being a year older, then perhaps you’ll feel better after some lotions and potions.
6. Maybe you’ll want to organize a big night out on the town for you and your friends. Instead of going to your local pub or restaurant, why not book a party at a nightclub and let their party organizers sort everything out for you.
7. You might want to have a sit down or buffet meal with your friends and family. It’s nice to have a meal out, and let somebody else do all the hard work.
8. Perhaps you’ll want some sort of entertainment. Why not see whether your can find a venue, and some musicians, dancers, magicians or other sorts of entertainers to keep you amused.
9. You might want to have a theme for your birthday party. Perhaps it’s a milestone birthday, and you want to celebrate it in style. Why not have a dress code, and see what you’d look like dressed as James Bond, or in 60s or 70s clothing.
10. Whatever sort of birthday party you choose, you’ll want to have fun, and make sure that it’s memorable for all the right reasons. If you’re organizing something for a friend or relative’s birthday, then you’ll need to remember to choose something that they will enjoy and not something for you.
Now you know more about how to organize a birthday celebration, perhaps now is the time to book your perfect birthday party.
Celebrating a birthday? Organizing a part for a friend’s birthday? Want something different and memorable? Find out how to organize the Perfect Birthday Party.
Discover more about the amazing Birthday Parties offered by Revolution, and Book A Birthday Party online today. If you’re looking for a great party venue, then you need Revolution. Find out everything you know at Revolution-Bars.co.uk today.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=M_James
5 Famous Art Heists to Talk About at Parties
Rare paintings are among the world’s most valuable objects. As such, they are often the topic of conversation, and even more often the targets of thieves. For hundreds of years art thieves have held a mystery and fascination. Sure, we know they are criminals… but they steal art! The allure of a criminal with fine taste is perfect fodder for gossip.
However, the reality is that there are two main purposes for art heists. Some paintings are stolen and sold on the black market. Other paintings — those too famous to be sold — are held for ransom. Either way, the thief is more interested in the price than painting.
Five of the most notable art heists in history are still talked about today.
1. Mona Lisa (da Vinci) - 1911
Being the most prestigious painting in history, Mona Lisa has had some prestigious owners. Later, she was displayed in the Louvre but on August 20, 1911, Mona Lisa was discovered missing from the French National Museum. All administrators of the Louvre were fired and the borders of the country sealed. Several months later, an art gallery in Florence announced they had caught the thief - Vincenzo Perugia, an Italian nationalist who believed the painting should be kept in France. Mona Lisa was returned to the Louvre January 4, 1914.
2. Storm on the Sea of Galilee (Rembrandt) & The Concert (Vermeer) - 1990
These famous paintings were owned by a private collector in Boston, Isabella Stewart Gardner, until her death in 1924. Her will stipulated the paintings remain in her small museum with no new additions and nothing was to be removed. And so it was - until March 18, 1990 when two men masquerading as Boston police officers made off with the paintings. The crime is yet to be solved and the paintings remain unrecovered.
3. The Scream & Madonna (Munch) - 2004
The works of Munch have been targeted for numerous thefts but the most famous was the theft of The Scream from Oslo, Norway on August 22, 2004. Armed gunmen boldly ripped the paintings from the walls and fled. The men were eventually caught and imprisoned but the paintings were damaged in the process. The Scream is very delicate because it is painted on cardboard.
4. View of the Sea at Scheveningen & Congregation Leaving the Reformed Church at Nuenen (Van Gogh) - 2002
On December 7, 2002, a group led the famous international art thief known as “The Monkey” noticed a ladder left out at the Amsterdam Van Gogh Museum. In broad daylight, they broke a second-story window with their towel-wrapped elbows. Using a makeshift rope ladder, they escaped through a different route. Two men were arrested through DNA evidence but the paintings were never recovered.
5. The Paraguayan National Fine Arts Museum (various paintings by Courbert, Tintoretto, Murillo, Piot) - 2002
When prospective art thieves heard Paraguay was hosting an expensive showing, they rented a shop nearby two months in advance and began digging an 80 foot tunnel to the museum. The thieves leisurely strolled over and helped themselves on July 30, 2002. The paintings have since been recovered.
These five art heists are only the tip of the iceberg. The total list of famous paintings that have been stolen over the years is pages long and these top five can be supplemented with 25 runners up. Although many of the paintings are eventually recovered, some go missing for years until they resurface.
Darla Blackmon writes for EverythingLongBeach.com, a community website that covers Long Beach arts, news, and events. Discover art worth stealing with a visit to one of the Long Beach museums. Just be sure to look with your eyes not with your hands!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Darla_Blackmon
How to Throw the Perfect Dinner Party - Don’t Forget the Dinner Candles!
Dinner parties are now more popular than they have ever been thanks to TV shows such as Come Dine With Me, and economic disasters such as the recession, and are a wonderful way to spend quality time with friends in the comfort of your own home.
Most people like to impress when they throw a dinner party, be this through the food they serve or, if cooking isn’t a strong point, the grandeur of the dinner table. Nothing makes a table’s presentation more grand and sophisticated than some tall dinner candles, which will bathe your diners in a delightful glow.
Below are some tips on how to make sure your dinner party runs smoothly, and that all guests have a great time.
Alcohol
Many hosts make the mistake of thinking that the most important factor in any dinner party is the food. Although the food is of course very important, equally important is the alcohol you choose to serve. Most people enjoy a drink or two; it lubricates conversations and allows everyone to relax. Failing to provide enough alcohol will go against you; there is nothing worse than a table full of guest expecting another drink and discovering you have just emptied the last bottle of wine, especially if you’ve invited the type of guests that don’t know when they’ve had enough, or even worse, they haven’t actually had any themselves yet.
To be safe, have one bottle of wine per guest. It’s very likely you won’t consume anywhere near this amount, unless you are hosting for a group of friends you met through Alcoholics Anonymous, in which case you may find that dinner descends into chaos, which food spilled on the floor and dinner candles knocked over, but it’s far better to have too much than too little.
Food
It sounds obvious, but be sure to check that there are no allergies amongst your guests, and that no one has any strange food-avoidances that are now oh-so-fashionable, such as vegetarianism. If you’re entertaining close friends, you will of course know this information already, but beware of the martyr-type guest who will delight in telling you of their food phobia only after you have placed their plate in front of them, and will gain perverse satisfaction in going dinnerless and staring all night whimsically at the dinner candles instead.
Music
Anything with a tempo faster than funky house will give people indigestion, or worse.
Dinner candles
As with everything nowadays, your possessions are what people judge you on, and dinner candles offer no exception. If you don’t already have some, it’s best to invest in those that are free from animal-derived tallow, as you may have a secret self-appointed candle connoisseur in your party sitting with bated nostrils waiting to delight in commenting on the unpleasant waxy smell animal-derived dinner candles can emit.
Gino Hitshopi is highly experienced in the realm of dinner candles, having worked in the candles industry for many years. For more information please visit: http://www.thecandlelightcompany.co.uk/
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Gino_Hitshopi
Planning a Child’s Birthday Party
You can save money by holding your child’s birthday party at home. A little planning can make the job very easy and simple.
Rope in a relative to make a birthday cake if possible. Most grandmothers will enjoy helping you with the party and be happy to make a cake. If they don’t cook then they might even offer to buy the cake! This will save you money and encourage them to come along to the party to help get it organised and clean up afterwards. Asking if they’d help will make them feel part of your child’s life and will normally go down well.
Planning - buy all the food well in advance and make jelly early the previous day to ensure it’s going to set in time and if it does not set then you will have time to buy more jelly and remake it. Traditional party food is simple. Sausage rolls, sandwiches cut into tiny triangles, crisps and jelly are all essentials. Simple sandwich fillings like ham or chicken are best with a vegetarian one too perhaps such as egg or cheese. You could also put out cherry tomatoes and carrot sticks as these can be fun too.
Party games need a little preparation particularly Pass the Parcel. Wrap one bigger prize and then add new layers of paper (Gift wrap or newspaper is the traditional and cheaper option). Inside each layer put a couple of sweets so that every child will get something. The parcel gets passed round whilst music is played. The music stops and that child unwraps a layer. One layer per child is best so as to not get bored with playing the game. Musical chairs or musical statues is a simple yet fun game. Chairs needs as many chairs as players minus one. The music is played and children walk round the chairs and when it stops they have to sit on a chair. Each round a chair is taken away and the child left standing is out. The game continues to when it’s just two children and one chair. This final round rewards the winner with a small prize. You could reward each child as they leave the game with a lolly pop for their party bag.
Party bags are the little treat people take away with them and traditionally would have consisted of just the piece of cake wrapped up. They have developed into a whole new world of excitement though. It’s entirely up to you on how much you spend and if you’re on a budget then buying simple things like little notebooks and pencils that can be bought in large packs and split up is an effective and easy thing to do. You can put sweets or toys in the goodie bag too if you like.
For information about Children’s toys and gift ideas visit http://www.top10toysfor.co.uk/ where you’ll find brilliant new toys and some great bargains
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Diane_Drinkwater