| Diet decor: Some unconventional home furnishing ideas | | Posted Friday, February 02, 2007 12:59:11 PM by Blog57 Team | | USA Today asked Brian Wansink, who wrote Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think, to suggest ways in which our home's basic interior design and decor may influence us toward overeating, and designer Christopher Lowell to suggest ways in which we can counter this phenomenon. The resulting article, published on January 19, was enlightening and thought provoking, but perhaps did not go far enough. People with severe, drastic, extreme weight problems may require severe, drastic, and even extreme measures to help them reduce their caloric intake. Accordingly, here are Wansink's five basic areas in which home design can influence our dining habits, followed by Lowell's corrective proposals, which are followed in turn by our more rigorous elaborations thereon. Dinnerware Wansink: Over time the standard dinner plate in our homes has increased from nine inches across to eleven or twelve inches.... | |
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| | | US Retail Sales Dip in October | | Posted Wednesday, November 15, 2006 1:01:22 PM by Blog57 Team | | (AXcess News) Houston, TX - Retail sales dipped modestly in October, falling 0.2 percent over September's results, the US Department of Commerce reported, though compared to year-ago results, retail sales grew 4.5 percent. While the results were lackluster, less automobile parts, USretail sales fell 0.4 percent. Compared to a year ago, October retail sales were up 4.5 percent, and excluding automobiles and parts, retail sales increased 3.1 percent. The National Retail Federation's (NRF) chief economist Rosalind Wells said the dip in the housing market had affected the home improvement sector while her outlook toward retail sales during the holiday shopping period was more optimistic. "Although gas prices have declined, the slow housing market appears to be hurting consumer spending power as home improvement and home furnishing categories begin to struggle," said Wells.... | |
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| | | Living in the whole house | | Posted Monday, November 13, 2006 7:12:39 AM by Blog57 Team | | Ken and Laura Solomon scaled down their home's square footage - and eliminated their mortgage payment - without sacrificing comfort or actual living space when they moved to Lakewood Ranch Greenbrook Village. In 1999, the Solomons bought a home in River Club, an upscale community in East Manatee. They decided the four-bedroom, 4,000-square-foot home was more house than they needed. After selling the house in 2003 for a tidy profit, they used that money and their equity to buy a smaller home in Greenbrook Village. Even though their family has grown from three to four since then, the Solomons are perfectly comfortable in their new house - which has one less bedroom and about 500 fewer square feet. "We have just as much or more 'living space,' " Laura Solomon said.... | |
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| | | Tough furniture business gets tougher | | Posted Friday, November 10, 2006 7:05:39 AM by Blog57 Team | | That familiar furniture store with an expansive showroom may be going the way of the old corner pharmacy and mom-and-pop grocery — and for some of the same reasons. On Rockville Pike in Rockville, Mastercraft Interiors and The Storehouse furniture stores are closing due to bankruptcies. In Virginia, Colony House Furniture of Centerville and Stanis Furniture in Fairfax have closed. Hooker Furniture of Martinsville, Va., recently closed manufacturing plants in Virginia and North Carolina. And Routzahn’s furniture store in Frederick is going through its toughest sales period in its 60 years. National chains, including La-Z-Boy, Ethan Allen, Bassett and Furniture Brands International, reported disappointing third-quarter sales outlooks. Overall furniture sales for the first nine months of 2006 were actually up 8.6 percent over the same period a year ago, according to a U.S.... | |
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| | | Ludhiana's textile business crosses Rs 300 cr | | Posted Tuesday, November 07, 2006 3:08:14 AM by Blog57 Team | | Ludhiana, Nov 6: The Ludhiana hosiery industry's home textile business has crossed Rs 300 crore mark, including in export, within a couple of years."Ludhiana alone supplies home furnishing items to the tune of Rs 150-200 crore per annum in the domestic market while exports vary between Rs 100-125 crore," an industry analyst said.Currently, Ludhiana markets home furnishing to Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and other metros cities and exports to the US and Europe.Realising high potential in home furnishing, more small scale manufacturers are now diversifying into the segment.Recently, Neva Garments, part of Duke group, forayed into this segment with launch of bed linen and quilts under the brand name of 'Neva Homz'."Manufacturers are getting better margins in home furnishing as compared to readymade garment business.... | |
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| | | Wal-Mart: 'Cheap' better than 'chic'? | | Posted Wednesday, November 01, 2006 3:01:27 AM by Blog57 Team | | Is Wal-Mart, the king of "cheap," shooting itself in the foot by straying from its low-priced strategy in favor of more upscale offerings? In its weekly sales update on Saturday, the world's largest retailer reported that October sales at its U.S. stores open at least a year -- a key retail metric known as same-store sales -- rose a much weaker-than-expected 0.5 percent. .... | |
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| | | Lane Bryant Catalog to Undergo Name Change | | Posted Sunday, October 29, 2006 1:13:28 PM by Blog57 Team | | The company says it chose the Woman Within name because it is familiar to customers since it has been an intimates catalog for the past fifteen years. Redcats USA has a facility in Indianapolis that employs about 900 people and another in Plainfield with about 200 employees. Source: Inside INdiana Business Press Release New York, NY October 26, 2006 - Redcats USA, a multi-channel home shopping leader specializing in apparel, lifestyle & domestics and sporting goods, officially revealed today that Woman Within has been selected as the new name for the Lane Bryant Catalog. Woman Within is a familiar name to the customer, as it has been a successful intimates catalog for the past fifteen years, and embodies the spirit of our customer who already counts Woman Within among her favorite brands.... | |
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| | | Walmart.com gets sleek, streamlined | | Posted Wednesday, October 25, 2006 3:03:25 PM by Blog57 Team | | Wal-Mart revealed a new look for its Web site Tuesday, trading in its familiar smiley-face logo and low-prices motto for a more sophisticated design that will appeal to trend-conscious shoppers. The world's largest retailer said it has spent a year overhauling Walmart.com with bigger pictures, more product descriptions, a quicker checkout process and a cleaner look overall that will make shopping online easier but also drive traffic at its bricks-and-mortar stores. Walmart.com executives highlighted the changes during a Web cast Tuesday. .... | |
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| | | Asteco launches design consultancy service | | Posted Sunday, October 22, 2006 2:58:18 PM by Blog57 Team | | Expanding its service portfolio further, real estate and property services leader Asteco has launched a new consultancy service for customers called Design and Furnishing Solutions. The service aims to assist clients in all aspects of interior design and furnishing, maximising rental returns for both developers and investors. Asteco will also leverage its market credibility to help source reliable designers and suppliers who can quote pre-negotiated price packages. Astecos latest service will be headed by Kerrin Matthey whose areas of expertise include concept design, space planning, lighting and specifying finishes. With a degree in interior design from London, Matthey has nine years experience as a design consultant and a real estate sales manager working with prestigious international and regional projects.... | |
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| | | Called home | | Posted Thursday, October 19, 2006 7:02:54 PM by Blog57 Team | | The Pentecostal pastor's charismatic delivery includes calm periods, which serve as mere interludes to hyper-preaching. At times, he is shouting and outright screaming. Mostly, the Rev. Brad Nave's sermon is on a train-like roll.Many of those in the congregation at Apostolic Pentecostal Church in Bloomington raise one hand at times. Sometimes they raise both hands. Often they clap and shout "Halleluiah" and affirmations. At one point, a young man jumps up and down, as if in a mosh pit.When their energy wanes, Nave teases the listeners. After making a key point but hearing little reply, he exclaims facetiously, "Oh, I wish I had a believer in here!"The audience rebounds with claps and hollers.The emotionalism serves as a format, but not one devoid of substance, as this church preaches that Christianity is more than a Sunday pep rally.... | |
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