Posts Tagged ‘wales’

Wedding Favours Your Guests Will Like

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

There are many presents that can be used as wedding favours, after all the point of wedding favours is to show your guests that you are grateful for them coming to your wedding and showing their support for your wedding. Therefore, you should really try to find wedding favors, that your guests will be keen on.

Naturally, the gift that most appeals to your guests, may not be one you would choose for yourself, but you are buying the wedding favours for your guests, not yourself. If you think about it, you should be able to come up with something that everyone will like and that you are pleased to give. In order to help you get the task done, we will offer you a few tips below.

Love spoons are a prevalent gift at Welsh and other Celtic weddings. A love spoon was a wooden spoon carved by a love sick man for the woman he loved. She would then either take or refuse the love spoon, although she was not bound by the acceptance of the spoon. Small versions are often used as wedding favours. They can be inscribed with dates and names and symbols of love such as a hearts, bells, vines, key holes, anchors and knots.

Wedding favours can also be suitable to eat. There are a pile of options open for couples who wish to give their guests some kind of edible favour. You can have many items personalized these days. Some firms specialize in personalized presents, which can also be given as wedding favours. Some examples of edible, personalized wedding favours might be: chocolate bars, mints, biscuits or gourmet chocolates. The box or wrapper could carry your photo or / and your names and the date.

Miniature wedding cakes are another idea for edible wedding favours. Miniature wedding cakes have a short shelf life so they will have to include a warning, which will in all probability be put on the wrapper automatically, but it is worth checking.

A half / quarter or miniature bottle of wine or other drink would also be quite easy to arrange as wine bottle labels can be bought in any home brew shop.

Picture frames are frequent wedding favors. You could give a picture frame and follow it up with a photo of the beneficiary of the frame enjoying your wedding party. This might be expensive and tricky to set up as you will have to keep records of who has been photographed and who has not. It would be terrible to miss someone out, would it not? You will probably also need a professional photographer or at least a dedicated amateur.

Wedding favours can be anything really, but I reckon that they are best if they are useful. We gave very atypical bottle-openers away at our wedding. They had a design of a couple getting married, our names and the date. They also had a magnet in them to collect the bottle top as it came off. I have seen dozens of our bottle-openers stuck on our guests’ fridges over the years and the wedding was three years ago.

Owen Jones, the writer of this piece, writes on many subjects, but is currently involved with Welsh love spoons, or Wales in general, go to our website at Welsh Products Online

categories: Wales,lovespoons,wedding favours,history,politics,social issues,religion,hobbies,celtic,education,government,travel,writing,other

The Welsh Terrier

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

Initially, Welsh terriers were bred for hunting rabbits, foxes and badgers, but public opinion and the drop in the lust for blood generally have gone in opposition to blood sports and so this native breed of Wales has become a show dog and a pet. Breeders attempt to surpass each other by breeding the Welsh terrier to have a thicker wiry coat and deeper colouration. The Welsh terrier is also a popular pet because it is one of the most easy-going terriers.

The Welsh terrier is a fun loving dog. It just loves to run, chase and play, which makes it a tremendous companion and a perfect pet. Welsh terriers require lots of exercise, so be prepared for lots of walking, if you decide to get one.

It is a good idea to ’socialize’ your dog as soon as possible. This means that you should introduce your Welsh terrier puppy to children and other dogs at an early age. The more you encourage your dog to play with other dogs as a puppy, the less trouble you will have with your dog fighting or barking at other dogs and cats. It’s the same story with children. Children can play very roughly, and a dog could be forgiven for biting back, but it can be avoided by introducing your Welsh terrier puppy to children while it is still young. The child might learn respect, but the dog will learn forbearance.

The Welsh terrier is easily trained, if you like your dog to perform tricks. it is an intelligent breed and, being former hunters, they are good at learning commands and tricks. Train your Welsh terrier with kindheartedness and reiteration. They like to retrieve sticks and play with a ball. Many people train their Welsh terriers to catch a flying Frisbee too.

A Welsh terrier will groom himself quite scrupulously, but you can help out by brushing him once a week in order to remove the dead and loose hair. This will also help reduce the amount of hairs dropping inside your house, although terriers in general, and wire-haired dogs in particular do not lose as much hair as soft coated dogs. You could also lend a hand by wiping him over with a damp cloth from time to time in order to pick up any dust on his coat.

A Welsh terrier is very active and very inquisitive, so it is prudent to keep your dog in a yard that has been fenced off. However, the fence needs to be reasonably high, because the Welsh terrier has an excellent capacity to jump due to its long legs.

The Welsh terrier is Britain’s oldest breed of dog, but it is now under pressure. The British kennel club registers only 300 Welsh terrier puppies per year, whereas it registers tens of thousands of puppies of other, more fashionable, breeds. The Welsh terrier is a strong-willed animal, so it does need a strong-willed and patient owner.

However. if you want a Welsh terrier and you persevere with it, you will never look back. They have a lot to give and, as with so many things in life, you only get out what you are willing to put in.

If you are interested in Welsh corgi puppies, or Wales in general, visit our website at Welsh Products Online

How To Use Dairy Produce: Part 4 - Eggs (cont).

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

Basic Preparation Of Foods: Dairy Produce.

Eggs: Part 2

Poaching: boil 1.5 inches (40mm) water in a frying pan; add a teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of vinegar. Break an egg into a cup, inspect and tip into boiling water. Reduce the heat. Fold the white around the unbroken yolk with a spoon and continue to simmer for another 3-4 mins. Lift out with a draining spoon and serve on warm buttered toast.

Scrambling: beat the eggs well; add salt, pepper to taste and a dash of milk. Melt enough butter to cover the bottom of a shallow pan. Heat the eggs slowly, stirring constantly. Cook in a basin floating on boiling water, if preferred. Dish up when nearly completely set, in about 5 minutes.

Frying: Melt enough fat to easily cover the base of the pan. Tip egg in gently and gather white around the yolk. When the white has set, baste the yolk to taste and remove whole with a fish slice.

Baked: lightly grease an oven-proof dish and pour the eggs gently into it. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and butter to taste. Bake in a moderate oven and serve in the same pan after the whites have set.

Omelettes: buy a pan and keep it only for omelettes! The base should be smooth and clean. Allow two eggs per person; whip lightly and add salt and pepper to taste. Heat enough butter to cover the bottom of a frying pan. When the butter is fairly hot, gently tip in the beaten eggs; as it sets, lift the handle and draw the set mixture up towards the handle, allowing the liquid egg to run down onto the hot pan. When all the liquid has set, tilt the pan back and roll the omelette over. Serve straight away on a hot plate. The omelette can be filled with almost anything, before being rolled over.

Pouring Custard: beat 2-3 eggs per 1 pint of milk lightly. Heat the milk and pour gradually over the eggs; add sugar and flavouring; cook in a double pan or jug and hot water until the required thickness has been reached. If it is not to be served immediately, pour a thin layer of water onto the top to prevent a skin forming.

Baked Custard: proceed as above and then pour the custard into a greased dish; sprinkle lightly with nutmeg and place dish in water to halfway up its sides. Bake at 350 F for 35-45 mins; test its solidity by inserting a knife - it should be clean on removal.

Steamed Custard: proceed as for above, but cook in a steamer or a pan in boiling water. The length of cooking time is about the same too.

Custard Tarts: pour pouring custard into unbaked pastry cases and bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes. A little jam can be placed at the base of the pastry case first, if desired.

For deliciousgourmet Traditional Welsh Recipes, go along to our website at http://welsh-recipes.the-real-way.com/

Boarding Dogs In Kennels

Monday, April 12th, 2010

Are you the type of dog owner who likes to take your companion with you wherever you go? If you are then you know that that there are times when you can do this, but there are also times when you can not, for whatever reason.

On the occasions when that happens, you will often have to to find a boarding kennels that will take care of your dog while you are away.

A vacation is a time for relaxing, so you do not want to be worrying about your dog, if you can help it. Within your own country, it is not usually a big problem, but if you go to a foreign land, then taking your dog can be more trouble than it is worth. Not only for you, but for your doggy friend too.

If you can not board your dog with someone it knows, like a member of your family or a neighbour, then the only alternative is a boarding kennels.

I have placed my dog in a bad kennel once and I learned a few lessons from that. I placed my Becky in a kennel in a highly regarded village just outside our town. I was happy with what I saw and the sales pitch of the owner, so I went to Spain, thinking that all was fine for both of us. I had a great holiday and went straight to the kennels from the airport on my return, although I had told them a fortnight before that I would pick Becky up the day after my arrival. I just could not wait to see her.

I went to the kennels and they were surprised to see me. Of course, I was a day early. They said that Becky was ‘resting’ and that it would be better to ‘come back tomorrow’. No way! So they took me to see her. I nearly cried. She was sitting in a good sized cage, but on newspaper sodden with pee.

She saw me and just looked down at her paws. I called her name again, but she did not want to know. I paid the bill and put her in the car on the front passenger seat where she always sat. She just looked out the window and showed no interest in me whatsoever.

It took three days before she would speak to me again! The moral of this story is not to be impressed by big adverts or impressive locations as I was. Ask your dog-owning friends, write into the local paper inviting recommendations, phone the local animal protection society or the kennel club or look on the Internet.

If you are interested in Welsh corgi puppies, or Wales in general, go to our website at Welsh Products Online

The Ancient History of Barry, South Wales: Part Two

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

In the Twelfth Century, William de Barri owned Barry Castle, but it was attacked and destroyed by Llewellyn Bren in 1316. It is said that the Cavaliers rebuilt it, but that it was subsequently destroyed again by the Roundheads, never to be rebuilt.

The Norman invaders were thoroughly detested by the local people and they had to build large mansions to defend themselves from frequent assaults on them by the people of the valleys and the mountains. During the reign of Henry III, there were 12 castles within six miles of Barry. In Glamorgan, there were 30 castles and in South Wales as a whole there were 150 !

Porthkerry and the church lying to its west is said to have taken its name from Ceri, who is said to have founded a port, ie ‘Port Ceri’. People say that Ceri ap Caid, the King of Essyllwg, resided in Porthkerry before the Christian era and that his bard, Corvinor, was the first to have built a ship with sails and a rudder for the race of Cymru. Some believe that Ceri was a nephew or grandson of Caractacus (Caradog) and that he assumed the leadership of the government in South Wales when Caractacus was sent to Rome.

John Wesley preached in the Porthkerry Church pulpit, and sometimes outside too, between 1741 and 1743. There are two very old churches still in use today in Barry, St. Cadocs Church in Cadoxton and Merthyr Dyfan Church in Merthyr Dyfan. One-hundred-and-fifty years ago, Cadoxton was the largest village in the Barry area: for example, in 1844 the Parliamentary register contained 25 names: 20 from Cadoxton and five from Barry. The one church was dedicated to St. Cadoc, who used to spend Lent on Flat Holm and Barry Island. The village took its name from the church, which was founded in 800 AD.

Merthyr Dyfan Church was founded in 600 AD and the name means Dyfan The Martyr. There were two saints of this name: one came to Barry to Christianize the inhabitants; the second lived in the 6th. Century and was the son of a Welsh chieftain. His sister was also martyred, giving her name to the town of Merthyr Tydfil.

The Christian faith grew exponentially in the Vale of Glamorgan and in the middle of the 2nd. Century, Llewrwg, Prince of Siluria, became the first king, anywhere in the world of all time, to be baptized into the Christian faith. He sent to Rome for more Chritian teachers and was sent Dyfan and Fagan. The former was martyred near the site of the church and the latter was canonized. St. Fagan’s just outside Cardiff was named after him.

If you are interested in Welsh corgi puppies, or Wales in general, go to our website at Welsh Products Online

Electric Screwdrivers

Sunday, November 15th, 2009

Have you ever had to deal with a stubborn screw that just would not go into the material as easily as you wanted? How about one that would not come out for you either? This is annoying as well as time wasting. Electric screwdrivers are a great resolution for these problems. They are very effective and inexpensive.

In line electric screwdrivers are designed for fundamental household projects. They are not very powerful, but more than adequate to get the task finished. For heavy duty work, consider using a drywall screwdriver. Some models offer various speeds. There are a number of models to choose from. Some are very similar in design to a straightforward screwdriver. Other are shaped like the number seven, with a handle for you to channel the screws in. Others come with a handle that pivots to help you to get into just about any angle you can come across.

Choose a electric screwdriver that fits well in your hand. Some of the handles are rough and others have a soft, foam grip on them. Hold the electric screwdriver in your hand and see how it feels after a few minutes. If you will be using it for long periods of time then comfort is very important. You don’t want to end up with sore hands or blisters.

Different electric screwdrivers have different amounts of torque electric and speeds. You will want to compare this information before deciding on the electric screwdriver you wish to purchase. Take some time to appraise what each power screwdriver is suggested for. Compare that with the work you are liable to take on with the electric screwdriver.

It is a good idea to maintain your power screwdriver fully charged. This will give you the best possible results from it. If the battery doesn’t hold a charge for very long, you will to swap the battery. Some people choose to buy a second battery from the start so that they can have one charging and one in the power screwdriver. This is highly recommended if you are going to be using the power screwdriver on a regular basis.

For those of you who mean to use your power screwdriver often, consider buying a power screwdriver kit. It comes with a sturdy carrying case. Inside you will find the power screwdriver and a slit for each accessory. You will normally get many sizes of bits to use. It will also include a power cord. Some of the power screwdriver kits also include an extra battery as well as a charger that plugs into your cigarette lighter. You can get a electric screwdriver kit at a much better price than having to purchase accessories individually.

Very few accidents truly transpire from using a power screwdriver, but they can. When using a power screwdriver, remember the driving force behind it. Both of your hands should be away from the area that turns. The turning blade can slice your hand if you aren’t careful. It is a good idea to use eye protection as well.

Power screwdrivers will drive through almost anything. It is very important that you make sure there are no power cords or wires behind the area where you are screwing. Keep your hair back from your face as well. Leaning forward to establish your progress can result in long hair getting caught and twisted on the blade.

Owen Jones, the author of this article writes on several subjects, but is currently involved with Jet Power Tools. If you would like to know more or check out some great offers, please go to our website at Woodworking Power Tools

Gardening Tools: An Outline

Sunday, November 15th, 2009

You doubtless already know the best way to keep your plants growing well in your garden. However, in order to keep your vegetables and garden plants growing well, you do require good quality soil, sunlight and adequate water. Although these are supplied by nature, you also need modern gardening tools to maintain your garden in good form. Gardening tools are a great help in taking care of your plants and providing the right growing conditions that have such a constructive effect on your plants’ health.

Inadequate gardening tools can also cause damage to your plants. In order to minimize this risk, you ought to use the best gardening tools you can afford. Frequently, when people talk about the ‘best gardening tools’, they really mean gardening tools that allow energy efficiency.

Here are some of the best gardening tools to be had on the market. They will impart better care than ever for your plants and your garden.

Lawnmowers: The Luxus Push Reel Mower was rated the best lawnmower by gardening lovers. It has a large top shield to protect overhanging fruit, flowers and shrubs. Another extraordinary gardening tool is the American Lawn Mower Deluxe. It has also been accredited as one of the best. It is hand operated, therefore emitting no pollution, but it is not practical on very long grass.

Garden Shredders In general, all garden shredders have a high power motor and a near-silent crushing system. This sort of gardening tool is employed to speed up shredding garden waste. Garden shredders can be electric or gas powered. The electric shredders are easy to assemble. They assist in disposing of tree and hedge prunings up to a maximum of 40 mm in diameter. This gardening tool is considered to be among the most useful by gardeners. They are obtainable with fixed wheels for added manoeuvrability.

Cultivators These modern gardening tools are available with special tines to help in cutting into firm, compressed soil without difficulty. Several cultivators are available with a free border edger. The cultivator is just the thing for clearing moss and aerating soil. This garden tool is especially helpful for turning over vegetable plots, flowerbeds, etc..

Leaf sweeper These gardening tools are extensively employed for removing large numbers of leaves from smaller lawns. They often include a very large 200-liter collector.

Hedge Trimmer This gardening tool has also been voted as important equipment by gardening equipment reviewers. It is used for trimming hedges and pruning plants.

Garden Fork This is a wonderful gardening tool used for aerating and transplanting. You can also use this gardening tool to split grasses and perennials. Furthermore, the spading fork is of use for working manure, mulch and sorting hay in smaller gardens.

Mattock The mattock is an essential gardening tool for splitting up clay soils and working around older trees with large roots. A mattock can be employed as a replacement for a pick and a hoe in your garden.

So, if you are new to gardening or you want to buy a gardening enthusiast a useful gift, check out what they already have and pick something from this list.

Owen Jones, the author of this article writes on several subjects, but is currently involved with Black and Decker Tools. If you would like to know more or check out some great offers, please go to our website at Woodworking Power Tools

categories: carpentry,woodwork,tools,apprenticeships,family,careers,social issues,history,genealogy,small business,sociology,Wales,UK,other

A Family History of Carpentry

Friday, October 30th, 2009

My family has had carpenters in it for at least four generations and I can not go back any farther than that. My father’s father came from Anglesey, an island off north Wales called Ynys Mon in Welsh. I visited his place of birth once. We were directed by a local old-timer to a meadow, but we could not see a house or any ruins. I scrambled up unto a mound of earth to get a better view and then we realized that I was standing on his old home.

He had lived in a hole in the ground covered over with earth! A door was still on it, overgrown after 70 years or so of neglect and there was a kind of stone chimney in the long grass on the top. I was 10 years old and my Dad was 33 and it was the only time either of us went the length of Wales to look up our family history. It is more than probable that my great-grandfather was a shepherd.

My grandfather ran away from home at 14 years of age to Liverpool and became an apprentice ship’s carpenter. That would have been in 1914. What a time to choose to go out into the big world - the start of the First World War in Europe. He could not speak English at the time, but must have taught himself as he learned his apprenticeship.

He passed out as the best in his year and was given a set of the finest woodworking tools of the age. Each tool had a small brass plate in the handle with his name etched onto it. My father still treasured them when I was growing up.

I never met my granndfather; he died a month before I was born, but I was named after him and, knowing that I was due and that he was going, he left me a teething ring, which I still have. More to the point of this article though, there was not a single power tool in his tool bag when he died in 1954.

My father was the youngest son and when he was old enough, he had to leave school to be apprentice to his father who had stopped his roaming by then. Growing up with my father in the 1950’s and 1960’s, I do not remember him using power tools either. He used a brace-and-bit for drilling, several assorted hand-sharpened saws for cutting and his only consent to modern technology, a Yankee, which was a pump-action screwdriver. Everything he needed to hang a door or cut a roof was in one bag or later on a box, which he made himself.

I went away to study and travel and when I returned for good 12 years later, my brother had finished his carpenter’s apprenticeship and was working for my Dad. That would have been in about 1980 and my brother still vows to ths day that Dad only bought power tools then because he, my brother, had learned how use them in technical college. Something which my father always denied, although it did seem a bit of a coincidence to me. My brother, now in his Fifties, still uses hand tools where he can, but also has the full range of power tools in a near-by van.

His son, now nearly 30 is also a carpenter and he has a power tool for every job and throw-away saws. How times have changed.

Owen Jones, the author of this article writes on several subjects, but is currently involved with Black and Decker Power Tools. If you would like to know more or check out some great offers, please go to our website at Woodworking Power Tools

The Ancient Roots of Barry, South Wales: Part 2.

Tuesday, September 29th, 2009

In the Eighteenth Century, they found dishes, saws, knives, flints, a scraper, a prehistoric horn celt with strange markings, a spokeshave and some arrowheads from the Neolithic Period. These artifacts are safely ensconced in the Museum of Wales in Cardiff, but unfortunately, no one at the time thought the find significant enough to warrant a dig and now there are houses on it.

An ancient Roman kitchen, complete with remains and utensils underwent a similar fate. In 1533, Leland was made the Kings Antiquary and was directed to make a tour of all places where records were held. This took him nine years and his description of the island was:

“It is about a mile in circumference and has good corn, grass and some wood, and there is no dwelling on the Island, but in the midst of it is a fair little Chapel of St. Baruch which is visited by many pilgrims. It took the name Barri from this holy man who was buried there and whose remains are yet on the Island”. (The Welsh name for Barry is Y Barri).

Viking raiders attacked the south Wales coastline, often taking hostages from monasteries in the 10th. Century, but they did not try to settle in the area. The island was long known as the Saints Retreat or the Island of Saints. Later, in the early 16th. Century, the island was used by smugglers and pirates and was nicknamed the Smugglers Fortress. This coincided with the increase in shipping to and from Bristol, Britain’s second biggest port at the time.

The island soon became the centre for smuggling and piracy in the Bristol Channel. In 1784, Barry Island became known as ‘The Fortress of Knight’. Kight was the most frequent and feared pirate in the channel but people were too afraid to speak out against him. He was also a local celebrity. His ship was armed and named ‘John O’ Combe’. The navy eventually routed him and he moved down to Lundy Island, which he also turned into a fortress. However, he and his successor, Arthur, went back to Barry so often that Customs requested the government to send a cutter to Penarth and 60 soldiers to Barry on permanent duty.

The small seaside village of Rhoose, five miles from Barry, was so well-known for its wreckers that George II sent troops to break up them up. They landed at Aberthaw, just up the coast a bit further, “the Rhoose men’s favourite landing zone, from where they could easily transport the contraband along Port Road to Cardiff, the main market for such things”. While digging out for the docks at Barry in the late nineteenth century, several large caves were filled in. They had probably been used by the pirates who were moved on in about 1850.

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How To Use Dairy Produce: Part 1 - Milk

Tuesday, August 18th, 2009

The Basic Preparation Of Foodstuffs: Dairy Products

These basic tips may seem unnecessary for most modern households with a refrigerator, but modern devices can make people lazy and it is well-worth while knowing ‘why’ we must do certain things. It is also worth remembering these tips when refrigerators are not at hand or are so small that they will not hold everything, such as when camping or boating or on holiday in some parts of the world.

MILK:

Milk has been called ‘nature’s perfect food’, because no other food, taken alone, can support adult life. It is of the first importance for the growth and development of young people, but it must be clean as bacteria also find it very nourishing and quickly multiply in it. If milk is not bought pasteurized, then it should be scalded and quickly cooled before consumption.

How To Scald Milk: Rinse a clean pan with cold water, pour in the milk and apply heat until bubbles form around the side of the pan. Maintain the milk at this temperature, ie, not letting it boil, for three minutes. Do not let it overheat, as milk burns quite easily. Pour immediately into a clean bottle and stand it in a basin of cold water and cover with a fine cloth to discourage|prevent flies and dust getting in.

How To Keep Milk Fresh: If milk is not be kept in the containers in which it was bought, transfer it to a clean jug, which has been rinsed with cold water. A warm container will cause milk to stick to the sides and go off more quickly. Keep milk in the coolest place in the larder and always covered. it is worth remembering that draughts are often at ground-level and that hot air rises. Never keep milk in an airless cupboard and in hot weather stand the jug in a bowl of water with the cloth covering dangling in the water. The cloth will soak up water, which will evaporate, which uses up heat, ensuring that the containers remain cool. Keep milk away from strong-smelling foods, as it absorbs odours easily. Never mix new milk with old.

Sour Milk: When milk comes straight from the cow, it is a little alkaline, but as time passes, lactic acid is created and it becomes what is called ’sour’. Pasteurizing or scalding the milk retards this process. Milk which is just “on the turn” can be rejuvenated by boiling with a pinch of bicarbonate of soda to restore its alkalinity. However, once the milk has gone too far and has curdled, it can be strained through (cheese) cloth, thus separating the curds from the whey. The curds can be used as a filling for cakes, tarts, scones etc and the whey can be used as the liquid for making scones, cakes and soups etc., because it still retains a lot of goodness.

Evaporated Milk: Evaporated milk is ordinary milk, which has had some of its water evaporated by heat in some way or another before being containerised. Once reconstituted by adding water, it will last only a little longer than fresh milk does.

Condensed Milk: This form of milk is simply evaporated milk to which sugar has been added before being placed in its container. Sugar acts as a preservative and will preserve the milk for about a week. Do not keep in the tin, but decant it into a jug or bottle.

Dried Milk: Dried milk comes in a variety of forms and notice should be taken of the instructions on the label. Specialized products can be bought for babies, invalids, convalescents and dieters, all of which contain varying amounts and types of added vitamins and minerals. Usually, they are very much lower in fat content than ordinary milk.

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