Any man can master fine art of greeting card selection if he's willing to follow a bit of female advice.

1. Know occasion. If it's her birthday, buy a birthday card. She won't appreciate a one-size-fits-all-occasions card on her anniversary either. All greeting card displays are organized by occasion. By reading category signs, you can go directly to "Birthdays", "Anniversaries" or any other particular category, saving precious time. It works just like beer case at supermarket...domestics and imports each have their own section.

2. Know woman. This is a do-able task, even for men in new relationships. Pay attention when she opens gift cards and shows them to you. File her reaction in that "stuff-I-gotta-remember" area... right there between "all babies are beautiful" and "fuchsia is not pink". If you've just met woman and absolutely don't have a clue about her tastes, choose a very generic card, but always include a handwritten note to personalize it. Women treasure greeting cards like men treasure power tools and hang on to them forever.

3. Never, ever... also for your "stuff-I-gotta-remember" file... buy a card that mentions age of woman or makes any reference to her age. It's an across-the-board given that women in general don't appreciate sentiments of this type. Nor do they find humor in greeting cards that make any reference to weight issues.

Avoid these types of greeting cards however appropriate you may think they are for occasion. Remember, you're buying a card for a woman here. Think of a greeting card for her just like she thinks of shoes. Just because they fit doesn't mean she'll enjoy wearing them. If you have any doubts, just look in her closet...her most favorite pair of shoes may be a size too small, but she feels like a million dollars when she wears them.

Greeting Cards to avoid like plague:

Themes making reference to cooking mishaps... so she set off fire sprinklers, she was trying to make your favorite meal. This includes no fire trucks, smoking food, or blackened ovens.

Clueless about how to protect beautiful acrylic painting you received as a birthday gift? Wondering how to mat and frame your new watercolor? Here’s a handy guide on how to care for your precious artwork, no matter what media it was created in.

. Handling . Storage . Transporting . Matting . Framing . Laminating . Display . Cleaning

Special care for different types of media

. Acrylics . Oils . Watercolors . Pastels . Charcoal, Pencil, Colored pencil, Crayon drawings . Ink drawings . Digital art

Handling

Always use great care in handling artwork. Never touch surface of art with your bare fingers as natural oils, acids and salts on your skin can transfer to artwork and cause permanent damage. If you must touch art, wear cotton gloves.

Storage

Artwork not displayed should be stored in a clean, dry, dark and well-ventilated area in moderate temperatures and humidity levels that do not fluctuate a great deal. Avoid storage in basements, attics or garages as extreme temperatures and moisture can damage artwork.

Store unframed art flat with acid-free paper between each item, or store individual items in archival-quality envelopes.

Avoid storing art between cardboard, as it is highly acidic and can damage artwork over time.

Store art created with charcoal, pastels, pencil or crayon between glass to avoid rubbing and damaging delicate artwork. Preferably mat item first with an acid-free mat and then cover it with glass to protect artwork from any kind of contact with its surface.

Never store unframed art in shipping tubes for any length of time. Remove art as soon as possible and lay it flat until you are ready to frame it. If a painting has been stored in a tube for a long time, consult a professional who will use utmost care and expertise in unrolling and relaxing artwork to avoid possible cracking and damage.

Never store framed art directly on floor. Instead, rest artwork on blocks or on shelves.

Transporting

Never leave artwork in your car for extended periods of time. Carry framed artwork by sides and avoid resting canvas against any items that may damage surface.

Roll prints carefully and insert into heavy duty shipping tubes. Remove artwork and unroll as soon as possible after transport to avoid permanent damage.

Matting

Have your artwork matted with an acid-free mat board. Poor quality mats may damage art over time due to chemicals in board that can transfer to artwork. The same is true for backing your art with cardboard which also has chemicals that may cause discoloration.

Never use rubber cement or white glue to adhere art to a surface as it can cause damage to your precious artwork.

Framing

Art created with ink, pencil, pastels or charcoal should be framed under glass. You may use Plexiglas only for pencil or ink drawings as any pastel or charcoal artwork may be damaged by build-up of electrostatic charge emitted from Plexiglas and similar plastics.

Make sure to completely seal back seams of frame and backing with acid-free tape.

To further protect your print from harmful UV rays you can ask your framer to use glare-free glass with a UV protective coating to cover artwork in frame.

The frame you choose should be slightly larger than your artwork. Humidity may cause paper to contract or expand and extra space between frame and artwork will allow for these changes without damaging art.

Never frame artwork without also using a mat board between art and frame. Wood may hold humidity that can transfer to artwork. You can use acid-free frame spacing instead of matting, if you prefer. Ask your art store to see what is available.

Also, if you have a glass insert to protect artwork, make sure you add a mat to prevent art from sticking to glass over time.

Laminating

Since nearly all laminating materials have UV inhibitors in them it makes sense to consider this option for protecting your prints, photos and digital art as well as other artwork such as delicate pastels and charcoals.

Consult a photo store to ensure that this process will not damage artwork you’re thinking of laminating.

Either bring your print or photo to a photo shop to have it professionally laminated to a base, or use a laminating machine if you would rather use a frame.