Ralph Lauren 2005 Summer Collection

Written by Sher Matsen


The Ralph Lauren Spring 2005 Collection is simply fabulous! The collection ranges from Shimmering Luxury to Breezy Elegance to Throwaway Glamour -repparttar common element appears to berepparttar 148571 color white. Lauren said he usedrepparttar 148572 sophistication of old-time Hollywood andrepparttar 148573 chic refinement of cafe society as starting points for his collection, which featured several halter gowns, fuzzy cashmere sweaters and some tailored jackets paired with capri-length pants or Bermuda shorts. The fabrics are flowy and romantic,repparttar 148574 colors are outstanding, andrepparttar 148575 statement is sexy! Ralph Lauren states "Spring is about romantic refinement - an old-Hollywood charm that's luxurios in a modern, off hand way." The spring line has a sexy blend of softness and glamour bringing outrepparttar 148576 feminine side in an elegant and sophisticated way. This is a collection most any woman can be part of. There are cuts and styles suited for all ages and body shapes.

Here's some great sites to seerepparttar 148577 Ralph Lauren Spring Fashions hittingrepparttar 148578 boutiques now. • NewYorkMetro • Ralph Lauren Runway Show • MSNBC News Coverage

Did anyone watchrepparttar 148579 Golden Globes? Emmy Rossum wore this fabulous Ralph Lauren gown - strapless, silhoutte shape to accentuate every curve with this fabulous flowing layers of material fromrepparttar 148580 knees down. Certainly a gown made for a star! How aboutrepparttar 148581 Amanda Coat with a cost of $1800.00? Amazing lines! The Bronson Vest with a cost of $898.00 teamed withrepparttar 148582 Amanda Skirt with a cost of $850.00. All lookers and all certainly make a fashion statement!

The History of Bakelite

Written by Sher Matsen


Dr. Leo Baekland, a scientist, was responsible forrepparttar discovery of bakelite. He was born in Belgian. In 1889 he immigratedrepparttar 148570 the USA hoping for better career opportunities. In 1907 he was working as independent chemist when by accident he discoveredrepparttar 148571 compound of carbolic acid and formaldehyde. When he tried to reheatrepparttar 148572 solidified compound he discovered it would not melt no matter how highrepparttar 148573 temperature.

Shortly after he trademarked “Bakelite” as well as two other variations “catalin” and “marblette” which today are also referred to as bakelite. Bakelite wasrepparttar 148574 first synthetic plastic. Because of its durability and beauty its uses were simply endless, it grew in popularity very quickly and within 15 years it had takenrepparttar 148575 world by storm. You could find everything from electrical plugs, to ornate jewelry made from bakelite. It was even used onrepparttar 148576 dashboard face ofrepparttar 148577 Mercedes Benz car.

It could be produced in a wide array of colors, but most common where white, brown, green and red. Bakelite dating back torepparttar 148578 1920s-1940’s has oxidized and developed a wonderful patina that is sometime a completely different hue thanrepparttar 148579 original color. For example, White is often seen as butterscotch, light blue changes to forest green, pink turns to orange.

Because of this invention, Dr Beakeland is seen asrepparttar 148580 father ofrepparttar 148581 present plastic industry. The costume jewelry fromrepparttar 148582 1920’s-1940’s bakelite era is highly sought after. So how do you determine if it is actually made of bakelite? There are a couple of fairly simple tests. Although not full proof they work pretty well. Smell – When bakelite is heated it has a very strong odor which comes fromrepparttar 148583 carbolic acid inrepparttar 148584 composition. On some pieces you can releaserepparttar 148585 smell simply by rubbing them hard with your thumb and creating heat. Others will need very hot water to releaserepparttar 148586 odor. Still on othersrepparttar 148587 odor is so faint you may not detect it. Sound – When you tap two bakelite pieces together they will make a deep clunking sound, rather thanrepparttar 148588 higher pitched clack of acrylic or Lucite plastics. This test isrepparttar 148589 most unreliable as it is difficult to interpretrepparttar 148590 sound becauserepparttar 148591 density ofrepparttar 148592 items affectsrepparttar 148593 sound you hear. Hot Pin Test – Bakelite is a thermoset plastic so it cannot be remolded with heat. To test if a piece is bakelite get a very very hot pin from an open flame source, then touchrepparttar 148594 pin torepparttar 148595 item. If it is bakelite it will not penetrate. It may give offrepparttar 148596 acid smell and it may leave a purple burn mark. Ifrepparttar 148597 pin penetrates or meltsrepparttar 148598 plastic then it is not bakelite. Use caution when doing this test as it can devaluerepparttar 148599 bakelite piece considerable, and it may do serious damage to other types of plastic shouldrepparttar 148600 piece turn out not to be bakelite. If you proceed with this test be sure to find a very inconspicuous spot. Also ifrepparttar 148601 material should be celluloid, it is very flammable and can be very dangerous. If you suspectrepparttar 148602 piece may be celluloid I recommend you “do not” conduct this test. When ever you are conducting this test you should wearrepparttar 148603 appropriate safety equipment such as eye goggles and gloves. Formula 409 or Scrubbing Bubbles or Simichrome – this product works very well to test whether an item is bakelite. Make surerepparttar 148604 item is clean, wetrepparttar 148605 end of a Q-tip with Formula 409 then touch it torepparttar 148606 piece. Ifrepparttar 148607 Q-tip turns yellow thenrepparttar 148608 piece is bakelite. If you believe a piece is bakelite but it doesn’t passrepparttar 148609 409 test don’t count it out. Sometimes polished bakelite will not react or passrepparttar 148610 test.

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