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The title of this article seems to be pretty obvious to most people. However, this is a real diet fad that has been sweeping parts of Asia, including Hong Kong. Doctors and health authorities are working hard to dissuade people from selecting this option as the parasitic roundworms being used can cause very serious side effects.

Roundworms are an intestinal parasite that can cause weight loss in human hosts, which is clearly the attraction for these new fad dieters. However, what these people may not be aware of is the risk to their health that these worms can have. Typically, roundworm ingestion can result in minor negative health effects such as stomach and intestinal pain, nausea, diarrhea and malnutrition requiring simple medication to purge the parasites. For this reason, it is easy to see that some individuals might be tempted to intentionally ingest the parasite in order to trade these minor health concerns for a fast and passive weight loss solution.

These seemingly minor health concerns can, however, lead to much more pressing health issues as malnutrition in particular can weaken the body’s immune system making it more susceptible to other forms of infection.

Furthermore, believing that this solution does not come without its side effects is a big mistake; as with any radical new concept, there is the potential for things to go horribly wrong. Roundworm parasites can cause far more serious health concerns than those already listed, which on their own are bad enough. The more serious health concerns to be concerned about include intestinal blockage, pancreatic duct blockage and lung, liver, brain and eye infestations.

Intestinal blockage alone is a very serious health issue that can prove fatal in humans if it is not dealt with immediately. Pancreatic duct blockage is another serious health risk, with potential fatal complications. It goes without saying that parasites in the lungs, liver and brain are also extremely serious and that blindness is a potential outcome of eye infestations. Now if this list of potential complications doesn’t deter people from willfully ingesting the parasites then I don’t think anything will.

All too often these kinds of extreme measures for weight-loss result in serious health effect or an elevated risk of harm. Let’s just put this latest ill-advisable diet in the context of other failed fad-diets and weight-loss plans now known to be harmful with the 20/20 vision that hindsight offers.

To begin with there are the supplements and pills. Diuretics and laxatives have been used for a long time now but do not actually cause fat loss, which is what most people mean when they state their goal as weight-loss. Instead you simply lose water, which dehydrates you and can cause serious health effects such as electrolyte deficiency and kidney damage, and let’s not forget, death. Laxatives also cause long term users to retain water, effectively negating their use. It’s a bit like drinking coffee to function; eventually it does nothing you only consume it to prevent from crashing.

Overly restrictive diets in terms of what you can and cannot eat are another good example of crazy fad diets. While some people may claim that the Atkins diet fits into this category the jury is still out. What does qualify, however, is the cabbage soup diet. That’s right, nothing but cabbage soup. As a serious food lover, I have to ask myself if losing the weight would really be worth eating only cabbage soup. It goes without saying that this diet is seriously lacking in nutrients and sources of protein and fat, which our bodies do actually require to function healthily. Expect anemia and malnutrition.

Next there are the drugs, and in this case I am referring to ephedra extract, a traditional Chinese remedy concentrated into pill form. Ephedra seemed great at causing weight loss except for the fact that it does so by stimulating an amphetamine like reaction in the body which can cause serious and irreversible heart damage and in extreme cases, death, particularly following excessive use.

Interestingly with regards to this article’s topic, the website Toptenz.net rates a list of its chosen top ten most unhealthy fad diets. What comes out on top as the most ludicrous diet? A 1900’s-1920’s diet involving the deliberate ingestion of tapeworm eggs contained in capsules. Sound familiar? Interesting, I find, that they tried it, and ditched it 90 years ago!

So, to all the more gullable would be dieters out there, take a moment to consider the fact that charlatans and witch-doctors are still very active today and will stop at nothing to rob you of your money while feeding you parasitic roundworms and preying on your insecurities. Use your powers of critical analysis and see this for what it really is. In the long run, portion control, healthy eating practices and regular activity/exercise are always going to come out on top.

Baby Store Comparisons

New parents have a lot to think about when it comes to their baby. From pregnancy through all the stages of development, having a child requires a lot of investment and organisation. Fortunately, in this day and age there are numerous companies that make it their sole purpose in life to produce and sell the items that can make this whole process considerably less stressful. Many stores means many choices though, which can make things more complicated when trying to find all the items that you need. In this article we will look at four well known maternity and baby care stores to identify the differences in what they offer to give you a better idea of where to go to find what you need.

Mothercare is a well known brand and as the name suggests, the store specialises in maternity wear, covering all types of clothing from tops and trousers to dresses, skirts and swimwear. However, the store also provides all of the additional items required by new parents to care for a new baby. This includes pushchairs, nursery items, car seats, baby clothes, bathing items, feeding aids, safety items, bedroom furnishings and toys and gifts. All of these categories are listed on their website with more sub-categories for more specific options. Mothercare aims to provide everything that new parents could require all at one central location to simplify the whole process.

A similar store to Mothercare is Mamas & Papas. They provide a lot of similar products to each other but do not feature the same products. The key here is the choice that these two competing stores offer. To decide which one stocks the items that are more suitable for you, a visit to each store’s website is advised. Each store appears to offer a wider range of certain products over the other. For example, Mothercare has a stronger range of baby seats based on what is available on the website, while Mamas & Papas seems to have more selection when it comes to push chairs. The selection of maternity wear in Mamas & Papas also appears to be more up-market from Mothercare with a stronger focus on designer ranges and fashion collections.

Another well known baby care store is Kiddicare.com. Kiddicare.com specialises in baby care items rather than providing the full range of products such as the two stores already looked at. The main difference with Kiddicare.com, however, is that it is exclusively an online store and offers all of the conveniences and discounts normally associated with this type of shopping. By purchasing online, the items are delivered directly to your door and often at a price at least comparable if not cheaper than at a ‘brick and mortar’ store where overheads often lead to higher prices. The other stores do offer online purchase but not exclusively, meaning they do not benefit from the savings of not having physical stores or clerks.

The final store we will look at is one of the most well recognised baby and child stores, The Early Learning Centre. The Early Learning Centre is different from the other stores we have discussed already in that it does not provide many of the products that the other stores focus on such as clothing, prams and cribs. The Early Learning Centre focuses instead on toys and games specifically designed to develop children’s physical and mental capacities from ages 0 through 6+. They breakdown the specific learning skills their products can help to develop into a number of categories including:

The helpful age guidelines aid parents in finding the right types of toys for their baby based on their level of development. This means that items bought will always be appropriate and not too simple or complex. The Early Learning Centre also runs a website with online orders and a store finder, making purchases easy and effortless. The other stores mentioned also stock baby toys and games but these have not been specifically designed by childhood development specialists in the way that The Early Learning Centre’s products have. This means that for parents concerned about ensuring that their children have the most stimulating and developmentally constructive toys and games available to them, The Early Learning Centre is the best option out of the four companies listed here.

All in all, the stores described in this article represent a good range of product offerings available to new parents. Mothercare and Mamas & Papas share a similar range of products with the former more likely to offer better deals but the later offering a slightly elevated level of style and refinement. Kiddicare.com offers a solid range of childcare items with a focus on online purchasing, making it a convenient and most likely affordable option in terms of the larger items needed. Finally, The Early Learning Centre appears to be the most suitable option for your child’s mental stimulation, ensuring that the time spent playing is both enjoyable and constructive, helping to grow your child into a confident and capable person. Hopefully this information will assist you in finding what you need at this exciting and challenging new phase in your lives.

So you have decided to go on holiday. The problem is that’s about as far as you got in the planning phase. Where exactly should you go? Which airline should you fly with and what hotels to stay at? If you find that researching all of these details is simply too time consuming or dauntingly complicated then you might need to look at packaged holiday providers. There are a number of such providers in the United Kingdom but for the purposes of this article, we will look into just four of them, focusing on which are better for long haul trips, short haul trips and which provide the best price ranges for different types of packages such as family, relaxation and adventure packages.

The first one we will look at is Expedia.co.uk, a web based travel agency with services worldwide and subsequently worldwide connections and know-how. Expedia offers the largest range of package holidays out of all of the travel agencies covered in this article. In addition to this, the holidays offered are often at very competitive prices. Expedia also offers the ability to build your own package holiday in an easy and convenient way on line and receive a quotation for this quickly and stress free. If you choose to opt only for a flight and hotel package, without destination activities included, this is also available. For travellers specifically interested in specialist activity holidays, Expedia offers a section dedicated just to this, with a convenient search engine that allows searching by specific key words such as rock climbing, wind surfing or wine tours. Long or short haul, Expedia is a good overall solution if you want just one place to find the right vacation for you, but it will not be the cheapest option. For that you may need to look at more specialized companies or providers of last minute deals.

Directholidays.co.uk provides such a service on their website with special deals for last minute bookings on packaged holidays to destinations all over the world. Most of these deals are for short haul destinations, although occasionally more exotic locales can appear. The way this works is that any empty seats on flights leaving by a certain date are worth whatever they can get for them as the moment the flight takes off, the empty seats are worth nothing. So, if you can be ready to leave at a moment’s notice then keeping an eye out for these last minute deals can be a great way to save money and possibly go to destinations you wouldn’t have considered or even thought of otherwise. Directholidays.co.uk also offers other services such as long haul deals, flight deals, hotel deals and early booking offers, all also available on their website. Their long haul destinations are especially interesting as they specialise in trips to the Americas, the Middle East and Central Europe.

The third UK holiday provider is Mark Warner, which specialises in providing packaged holidays in a specific set of locations at a number of their partner accommodation providers. Essentially, these are resort destination holidays, split into three broad categories; Ski holidays, Sun holidays and Winter Sun holidays. The Ski holidays focus on a number of well known destinations in France, Italy and Austria, such as Val d’Isère, Courmayeur and St Anton, with often more than one chalet type accommodation option available at each. The sun holidays are more varied in their locations and activities than the ski holidays, and often include watersports, golf, spa treatments, volleyball and tennis as the main available activities. Locations include Turkey, Corsica, Egypt, Greece, Portugal and Sardinia. One of the key factors differentiating Mark Warner from other providers is the much more tailored approach that they provide. By operating only a small select number of packages, they are able to attend to their customers much more closely. In addition to this, Mark Warner also offer a good childcare service allowing parents a much greater degree of freedom when holidaying without having to worry about where the kids are. Finally, Mark Warner holidays are packaged such that no additional expenses are necessary while on holiday, making it a truly all in one holiday package. If a stress free holiday is what you are looking for then Mark Warner is a very good option to go for.

Finally, we have MyTravel.com, a package holiday provider that belongs to the Thomas Cook group of companies. MyTravel.com offers a large number of options to cater for all tastes and budgets. These include options such as different board plans (self catering, half board, club board etc), car hire, insurance, hotels and holiday themes such as sun, ski and cruise holidays. Cruise destinations include Africa, Alaska, the Caribbean, Europe, North Europe, the Far East, the Mediterranean, Panama Canal and the Red Sea as well as Transatlantic and World cruises. What makes MyTravel.com a good option is that with the entire Thomas Cook group available to it, the travel agents have a very wide range of providers within their network that they can connect with to provide you with the package holiday to suit your requirements. The ski themed holidays are especially attractive as they give you the option to sign up with group packages where strangers are grouped together, providing both the savings of a group holiday with the social setting of a mixer holiday. Families, Couples and Singles are also catered for in their offerings.

Hopefully the information above should provide you with some idea of which travel agency will provide the service that you require. Whether it is the carefully packaged sun or ski holidays provided by Mark Warner, the last minute and long haul deals from directholidays.co.uk, the huge range of options available from Expedia.co.uk or the cruise and casual packages from MyTravel.com, there is bound to be the right package for your needs.

External Hard Drives and Online Back-ups

As the world becomes more and more digital in its operations, the volumes of data in existence are increasing exponentially. In 1990, an IBM 386 was considered to have a high storage volume if it had a 40 megabyte hard drive. Today, in 2010, data storage tends to be measured in gigabytes (1000 times the size of a megabyte) and terabyte (1000 times the size of a gigabyte) hard drives are now readily available. With more and more of us making the switch to digital photos, storing movies and music on our PCs and working from home, data storage is becoming an issue for all of us. However, data security is also an important issue. We can easily store the information but what can we do to back it up and protect it from accidental loss?
It has been estimated that 8% of all new hard drives fail in some way within the first 24 months of use. This is a frighteningly high statistic if you consider that all of your business information, personal photos or other accumulated data could be lost in an instant. This risk can be decreased by choosing reputable brands when purchasing a computer, or an additional internal hard drive if you are adding drives to your desktop, but cannot ever truly be eliminated. The solution is data back-up in one of two ways: external hard drives and online data storage. This article looks at how to select an external hard drive and whether this is in fact the best option or if online storage would be better.
External hard drives are essentially the same as the hard drive inside your computer only they are packaged in varying forms of protective casing, allowing them to operate safely externally to the computer, as the name would suggest. External hard drives also differ from their internal variants in the way they connect to your PC. An internal drive connects to the motherboard of your computer while an external hard drive uses either USB or Firewire connections. These will be discussed later.
So, when selecting your external hard drive, there are a few main points to consider as outlined below:
1. Storage requirements
2. Data Access Speed
3. Data Transfer Speed
The first of these is quite straight forward. Your storage requirements should be quite self evident and are probably the reason you are reading this article in the first place. However, you need to be very careful to ensure that you do not underestimate your future requirements. There is no sense simply acquiring the storage to the amount you currently require and then having to buy an additional hard drive a few months later. As a rule of thumb, triple your current estimated requirement. This should be as a minimum as we have already established that data storage requirements are growing exponentially.
Another important feature to consider when purchasing your hard drive is the speed at which the drive can access the information stored on it. This is measured in revolutions per minute of the disk itself, or RPM. The higher the RPM rating, the faster the hard drive can retrieve information stored on it to transfer to your PC.
Data transfer speeds are important also as there is fun in attempting to back up 500 GB of information and having it take all day. The solution to this lies in the connection that you use and the cache size of the hard drive. As already mentioned, two main varieties of connection exist and many external hard drive manufacturers offer both options. These are USB 2.0 and Firewire. USB 2.0 is ubiquitous across all PC and Mac computers manufactured today and is the primary method of connection for all manner of external devices from webcams to keyboards and of course, external hard drives. Firewire is less common place but is featured as an option on many PCs and most Macs. The difference between these two options is that USB data transfer will be slowed down with the more devices connected to your computer’s USB card whereas firewire will more or less give a direct line to your computer’s data storage. This means that if you have a lot of USB peripherals attached to your computer (webcam, keyboard, mouse, iPod dock etc) then your USB data transfer will be slowed down but firewire will not.
Another important aspect to data transfer speed is the size of your hard disk’s cache. This acts as a buffer in case either your external hard drive or your computer cannot keep up with the transfer rates, preventing the data from backing up and slowing things down. The higher the cache, the less chance of data transfer being slowed down.
All of these options come at a higher price, of course, so it is important to select wisely based on your specific needs. There is one other option, however, which is online storage. In the next part of the article we will look at the advantages and disadvantage of this option compared to external hard drives.
First let’s look at the downsides to external hard drives so we can assess why this option may not be the only one to consider. First of all, external hard drives are susceptible to all the fragilities of internal hard drives with the added risks of losing, dropping or otherwise damaging them in ways made possible directly due to their mobility. Therefore, even though your data is backed up, it is still not completely safe.
Another reason to look at other options is the requirement to take the hard drive with you if you need to access the files stored on it. This means carrying what can be quite a large item around with you, once again exposing it to harm. If you forget to take it with you then there is no way to access the information stored on it.
Finally, external hard drives have limited storage volumes, which means that, especially given the exponential increase in data, you may very quickly find yourself in need of additional hard drives. This only increases the risks already mentioned.
Online back-ups, however, solve many of these issues for you. An online back-up service such as Mozy utilize the same sort of data safety systems as banks, ensuring that loss of information is virtually impossible due to multiple back-ups in different locations. Therefore, there is no need to be concerned with data loss.
Online storage is also available wherever you go. The only need is for an internet connection and you can upload or download anything you need to. There is no need for carrying any additional pieces of hardware.
Finally, online storage solutions often offer unlimited storage expansion so that no matter how much your storage requirements increase you never need to look for another location to store it. A quick upgrade of your account will expand your storage by the required amount.
However, online storage also has its downsides. First of all, it does not come cheaply. Conducting a quick bit of research for this article, it was found that for business storage solutions, separate monthly subscriptions are required for each server and computer uploading to the service as well as monthly fees for the specific volume of storage required. This can very quickly escalate to almost the price of one external storage device per month for the equivalent volume of storage. Expanding this storage as your needs increase will also require additional charges.
Another downside to this solution is the flip side of the “access anywhere” feature of online storage. It requires a high speed internet connection and this is not always available. Downloading the data from online also takes a considerable amount of time, longer than via a direct connection to the storage device, and soaks up bandwidth allowances. For people on restricted bandwidth allocations this can be a serious issue and can increase the associated costs.

The questions you must ask yourself therefore, before making a decision are the following:
• Are you storage requirements anticipated to increase significantly over the coming months or years?
• Do you have ready and affordable access to fast internet connections?
• Do you need to be able to access or upload your files from multiple locations or offices?
• Is the safety of your files worth the additional fees for online storage security?

If your answers to these are ‘yes’ then online storage is likely the best option. If not, however, you may want to start looking for an external hard drive, just remember, multiply your current storage requirements by 3.

Finding the right item when shopping can be both time consuming and tedious. Picking the right store to shop at is often the deciding factor as different stores offer subtly different products. But not always. That’s right, the differences are subtle but important if you are to avoid a drawn out process of trial and error. The main stores discussed in this article are Marks & Spencer, Debenhams, John Lewis and House of Fraser. Each one offers select unique products and styles which may or may not suit your preferences and tastes. Simply looking at the stores’ websites will not give a good impression of their differences as they are remarkably similar. We have delved a little deeper to find out exactly what each one offers that is unique.

Marks & Spencer are the first store we will look at. Marks & Spencer differ from the other stores in that they offer a unique range of their own products. Marks & Spencer products are available in the ranges of cookware, food, gifts and clothing. They also offer their own range of featured designers and labels, as most of these department stores do. These include their own Autograph range, Big & Tall, Blue Harbour, Collezione and North Coast in the men’s range and Autograph, Classic Indigo Collection, Limited Collection, per una and Portfolio in the women’s range. These clothing ranges are also featured in the lingerie section. Finally, Marks & Spencer also host an in house coffee shop and restaurant, allowing customers to dine in during their shopping.

Debenhams, on the other hand, tends not to produce their own self branded products but does feature specific designer’s products unique to their stores. Rocha.John Rocha, Red Herring, St George by Duffer, Thomas Nash, Jeff Banks, Mantaray, Maine New England, J by Jasper Conran, Fred Perry and Ben Sherman are the clothing lines featured amongst Debenhams’ men’s clothing lines. Women’s lines include a larger range including Mantaray, Betty Jakson.Black, Radley, Principles and Principles Petit by Ben de Lisi, amongst others, in addition to those already listed under the men’s section. Adidas, Nike, Puma, Reebok and more also all feature amongst the big name brands sold in their sportswear section. Debenhams also features a special weddings section, offering a range of products and services.
John Lewis tends to offer more designer selections in the clothing range than the previous two department stores. In the men’s range of products, well known men’s and women’s brands featured in store include Levi’s, Ted Baker, CK Underwear, Ray-ban, Elle Macpherson Intimates, Dune and Gant as well as other featured designers such as Mulberry, Hackett London, Ben Sherman and John Casely-Hayford for John Lewis.

Finally, we come to House of Fraser, which possibly offers the most select range of designer clothing, including well known name brands such as 55 DSL, A39- Saville Row, Aqua Di Parma, Armani Jeans, Banana Republic, Billabong, Bvlgari, Calvin Klein, Davidoff, Diesel, Dior, Dolce Gabbana and many more. In fact, that is only as far as ‘D’ in the men’s range; the list goes on. House of Fraser also includes a wedding list service which among gift offerings also offers tailored honeymoon packages prepared by their Honeymoon Concierge.
One area not covered yet is the beauty and skin care products offered by each store. We have left this out so far as most of the stores offer a very similar selection in this sense, except for Marks & Spencer who stock their own range of products. For example, each of the three other stores stocks Clarins, Clinique and Lancôme. Other products such as Yves Saint Laurent, Dior and Benefit are stocked by two out of three of the stores. The brands which are unique to each of the stores include labels such as Givenchy, L’Occitane and CHANEL for Debenhams, Aqua di Parma and Bobbi Brown for John Lewis and La Prairie for House of Fraser.

In terms of the relative ‘exclusivity’ of the stores, House of Fraser and John Lewis come out on top. Marks & Spencer offer more of their own branded products, possibly giving a more affordable solution or at least a more unique product to the other department stores. Marks & Spencer also offers in-house dining, making it more of a full experience rather than simply another store. Debenhams falls somewhere in between, offering some better known brands as well as its own range of quality featured designers that they have brought on board.
It is important to consider these differences when deciding where to shop as it can play a significant role in saving time. Consider checking out their websites also in order to figure out if they have what you are looking for.

Here’s a quick guide on how to properly hang a wall paper and secure proper adhesion. This will make your life easier.

What You Need:

• Wallpaper and Paste
• Large Flat Work Surface
• Tape Measure and Level
• Ladder
• Drop Cloth
• Putty Knife
• Utility Knife or Straight Edge Razor
• Smoothing Brush
• Seam Roller

Wall Preparation
- When hanging a wallpaper to a drywall, a wallpaper primer should be applied to seal it and to ensure the paper’s adherence to the wall.
- Remove any dirt,dust or chipped paint from the wall. If the wall has been previously hanged with wallpaper, remove the old wallpaper with a wallpaper remover.
- Always check the electrical plates. Be sure to remove them.

Establishing A Starting Point
- Choose a starting point. The starting point will also serve as the end point when papering. It is recommended that you start papering at the corners so mismatches may be less              obvious.

- Measure out a width of the wallpaper minus half an inch from the edge of the wall and mark it lightly with a pencil.
- Using a level, draw a vertical straight line from the starting point to the edge of the wall. Make a light mark which will serve as a guide to where the first strip of wallpaper should       be placed.
Cutting and Pasting
- With a utility knife or sharp pair of scissors, cut the first strip. Make sure to keep an extra 2 inches at the top and bottom of the paper for trimming.
- Measure 4 inches longer than the size of your wallpaper – from ceiling to the baseboard.
- Apply the adhesive paste to the wallpaper using a pasting brush or roller. Fold the wallpaper towards the middle with the paste side in. DO NOT CREASE THE FOLDS.
Hanging, Smoothing And Trimming
- Place the wallpaper on the wall. Start from the ceiling, aligning it with the plumb line you have previously drawn. Gently press the strip against the wall.
- GENTLY smooth out the bubbles form the entire strip with a smoothing brush. Use the seam roller to remove excess adhesive. BE CAREFUL not to tear the paper.

- Trim the excess paper using the putty knife. Do it SLOWLY.

- Leave it for 10 – 15 minutes, allowing it to dry up before continuing to the next strip.

Identifying The Scam
A scam like this involves someone to call you with an offer in hand for shares in a company – by which likely you never knew existed. Do not be fooled into buying them – more often than not these shares are worthless. You will be caught in a big problem once you bought them. Eventually, you will find out that you don’t have the rights to claim compensation or file a complaint on the company since these kinds of scams are normally operated outside the UK.

Often times, prior to receiving a call, you may notice the ads of these scammers on the Internet or may receive a post or email from them. The typical scenario is you get an offer from them for a free research report on the company which you hold shares with – receive an discount offer on dealing fees or a free gift. They may even convince you to think that you got nothing to lose. You will then tend to respond to an agreement – assuring that you will allow them to contact you in the future. The trick likely is that such an agreement will be written in small print – in a format not easily comprehensible to the reader.

This kind of scam has another facet in which you will be receive a great offer. They will tell you that there are interested buyers of your shares. The offer will even sound more tempting as they will present to you a higher price offer than the current market value. Once you agree with the offer, you will then be required for an upfront payment, which serves as the bond or security in the event that the sale will not push through. Also, you will be provided with another agreement form requiring you not to disclose any details about the offer.

You may wonder how they are able to get away with this kind of pursuit. The key factor they apply is their persistence on calling you over and over again. When they successfully have you fall victim to the offer and have you agree to their demands, these scammers will suddenly disappear – bringing along your money.

How To Avoid The Similar Situation

- The firm should be registered on the Financial Service Authority (FSA). If you make any transaction with an unregistered firm, you will not have the privilege to take advantage on FSA’s compensation and complaints procedures.

- When you are offered shares through calls – be suspicious always. Do not easily believe the claims of the caller.

- The firm’s contact details is available on the FSA register. So it is better for you to get the contact details of the ones calling you and confirm it on the firm they claimed to work for.

- You can read about the FSA advice on share scams available on their website and their leaflet entitled ’Warning to shareholders – boiler-room scams’ – to guide you better.

Leather is a durable and stylish material used in different items. For you to enjoy its quality for a longer time, it must be cared for properly by cleaning it often. However, you must determine the different types of leather which need specific cleaning methods accordingly.
You Will Need The Following
- Saddle Soaps
- Leather Conditioners
- Leather Protection Sprays
- Leather Cleaning Kits
- Sponges
- Dry Towels
- Damp Cloths

Procedures:

For Finished Leather used in items such as clothes, furniture and luggage

Step 1: Form lather with moisturising soap applied on a damp cloth.

Step 2: Gently rub the cloth on the leather and remember not to put much water on the leather.

Step 3: Wipe the lather using a new damp cloth. Never rinse the leather directly with water.

Step 4: Using a dry towel, gently polish the leather.

Step 5: After the leather has completely dried up, you can now treat it with a leather conditioner.

For Unfinished Leather used in items such as boots, jackets and wallets

Step 1: Make the soap produce light lather, then use sponge or a damp cloth and rub it into the leather.

Step 2: Wipe away the excess lather and leave it to dry.

Step 3: Use mink oil , a leather preservative, to oil the leather for protection.

Remember:
- Water is the basic leather cleaner to use, though a moisturising agent may also be helpful.
- To prevent cracks to appear on leather, never use baby wipes.
- For the best possible leather cleaning methods, professional assistance is a good choice.
- Different leather types require washing off before applying leather cleaner. Be sure to check the label.

Suede is a very luxurious material used for purses and shoes. Cleaning it would be very costly since this is made out of an animal’s underside skin and a high quality stain repellent should be used. Professionals normally do the cleaning if you want to ensure that your fabric will not be destroyed. However, if you are low on budget and wants to do it on your own, here is a guide on How to Clean Suede.

Materials Needed:

- Eraser
- Suede brush
- White vinegar
- Paper towel
- Microfiber cloth
- Leather protection spray
- Washcloths

Steps on How to Clean Suede:

1. Gently rub the suede with a clean cloth to remove loose dirt and dust and to restore its natural nap.

2. With the use of a pencil eraser, gently rub the areas with dry stains and marks. On the other hand, use paper towels to absorb wet stains. In order to prevent interference with the cleaning process when you opt to have it professionally cleaned in the future, avoid using stain removers.

3. Use the suede brush to ensure that no dry stains and dust are left behind.

4. If the stain remains, use a small amount of vinegar using a lightly dampened cloth and clean the suede. Always remember that unless necessary this method should always be considered as the last option when cleaning suede.

5. Gently rub the suede’s surface with a cloth and leave it to dry. While waiting for it to dry, find a storage where you can place your clean suede.

Reminders:

- Cleaning your own suede is taking a risk. Cleaning suede should be done by professionals to be assured that it won’t be damaged.
- Avoid using stain removers as much as possible. Chemicals such as bleach could significantly damage the suede.
- Always use a protective spray prior to cleaning the suede.
- A mild odour may be noticed after cleaning the suede with the use of a white vinegar.

Use this How to Clean Suede guide and this tips to ensure that your suede will not be damaged. Now, you know how to clean suede on your own.

Have you ever tried dying your hair? Even you do not want to dye your hair in a salon – which can be very costly. Then why not in the comforts of your own home.

You Will Need The Following
- Hair dye (look for a safe formulation)
- 2 plastic gloves
- Towel

Step-By-Step Procedure

Step 1: Mix the dye formulation. Be sure to follow the instructions and see to it that you do it correctly.

Step 2: Put on the gloves, then from the dye developer. (Wait for about 15-30 minutes before applying it)

Step 3: Apply it in your hair. Make sure that you spread it along the area which you want the colour to appear.

Step 4: Wait until the time indicated on the instruction, then rinse it in the shower.

Step 5: Use the conditioner which goes with the box of the hair dye. It will bring back the moisture of your hair after applying the chemical.

Step 6: Allow your hair to dry naturally instead of using a blow dryer.

Step 7: Follow the instructions about the usage of the conditioner.It may be every after a week or after 2 weeks.

Remember
- If your scalp is sensitive. Be sure not to use those strong formulation.
- Be careful in choosing hair dyes. Some are safe and some might be harmful for your scalp.
- Condition your hair after dyeing, because the chemicals might dry your scalp and result from flakes and itch.
- Do not freak out when you see the colour run through your shower.
- If your hair became so itchy and dry, then see a doctor to check it out.

Here’s a quick guide on how to properly hang a wall paper and secure proper adhesion. This will make your life easier.

Things You Need:
- Utility knife or scissors
- Wall paper
- Adhesive
- Towel / rag
- Carpenter’s pencil
- Seam roller
- Measuring tape

How To Clean The Wall:

1. First, you must make sure that the wall is clean and free from cracks, nail holes and loose paints.
2. Also, keep the wall dry before you proceed with pasting the wallpaper. You want to make sure that the wallpaper is pasted securely.
3. After making sure that the wall is clean, check if there are electrical plates. Be sure there are none.
4. Do wall sizing beginning at the corner or the doorway. In measuring the horizontal width, make it at least two inches shorter than the width of your wallpaper then make a very light mark.
5. From the mark you made, draw a vertical line from the floor up to the ceiling using a carpenter’s pencil. Again, draw the line as light as possible.

How To Paste The Wall Paper:

1. With a utility knife or sharp pair of scissors, measure 4 inches longer than size of the wall you need to cover – from ceiling to the baseboard.
2. Then, apply the adhesive to the wall paper.
3. Place the wall paper on the wall. Make sure to start from the ceiling and align it with the plumb line which you have drawn on the wall.
4. Gently smooth out the bubbles beneath the paper on the wall using a smoothing brush. This will also help remove all the wrinkles.
5. Use the seam roller to remove the excess adhesive, but be careful not to tear the paper while doing it.
6. After pasting it, trim the excess paper using a wide putty knife.
7. Leave it for 10 to 15 minutes, allowing it to dry up before you continue placing the next wall paper to further cover the wall.

Remember:
- After the electrical cover plates are removed, make sure to turn off the electricity for your safety. Once done, you may then start covering these over with the paper.
- For the outlets and switches, cover them with paper and seal with tape. This will protect them from being exposed to adhesive.

Grease stains may not be that easy to remove from your clothing. Fresh grease stains are, of course, much easier to remove compared to an already set-in stain, left uncleaned for a long period. The best to do is pre-treating the grease, avoiding permanent stains.
Materials Needed:

- All-purpose cleaner
- Dish washing liquid
- Laundry Detergent
- Oven cleaner
- Sponge

Steps In Getting Grease Off Your Clothes:

1. Using a dish washing liquid, place a few drops on the stain. It is advisable to use a dish washing liquid which emphasises on its grease removing formula. Then, to distribute the liquid evenly, gently rub the fabric together.

2. Rub a sponge – dampened in warm water – onto the stain. Do this a gentle and circular motion so as not to damage the fabric. You will notice that the grease slowly are removed and pushed through to the other side (back portion) of the fabric.

3. To make sure that the grease will completely come off, let the clothing sit overnight. Pre-treating it long enough works best. This is especially applicable to those hard stains which can’t be simply removed.

4. The next day, you may wash your clothing using a washer. Choose the warm temperature settings to safely remove stain from the fabric. Also, setting it on the small-sized load option will help. Once the washer is filled with water, add one fourth (1/4) cup of all-purpose cleaner. Then add the clothing and wash it separately to prevent damage on the fabric.

5. When done, use a laundry detergent to wash the clothing again – making sure that any stain residue or even soap residue are not left on it.

Reminder:

Do not dry the clothing unless the stain is completely removed or no stain is left. Dried stains are harder to remove.

Carpet stains can be an eye-sore. Maintain your carpet clean and stainless, especially if it has light colour, by following these simple steps:
Materials Needed:

- Cleaning machine for carpets
- Carpet cleaner for your specific cleaning machine
- Spot treatment carpet cleaning solution
- Vacuum cleaner

Steps In Cleaning Your Carpet:

1. If you have a carpet cleaning machine available, then that would be an advantage. Otherwise, you may want to just rent a machine to clean your carpet. You may find this kind of machine in most super stores and grocery stores. Check the instructions label on the machine and find out what kind of carpet cleaning solution is required. For other carpet stain cases, purchasing a spot treatment carpet cleaner may also come in handy.

2. Before you begin cleaning, remove first all the furniture from the carpet.

3. Using the vacuum cleaner, clean the carpet from excess dirt, especially from the surface. Other hidden stains will then be revealed.

4. Spray the carpet stains with a spot treatment carpet cleaning solution – this will make hard stains easily be removed. If the solution will be left for a longer time, the more it is easy for you to remove the stain.

5. For the ratio in combining the carpet cleaning solution and water, make sure that you follow the specified instructions. In handling the machine, only turn it on once it is on the carpet. Go in a back and forth motion when using the machine over the carpet. Also, do clean the whole carpet and not just those with the stains on – as this will result to having cleaner patches – most evident when the carpet dries up. For those stains, run the carpet cleaning machine over for a couple of time to effectively remove them. To best achieve a completely clean carpet, constantly change the water and carpet cleaner solution. Normally, there are specified instructions on the machine as to knowing if it is time to change the water already.

6. Do not step on the carpet unless it has already dried up. A good alternative to have the carpet dry quickly, turn on an electric fan.

7. Once the carpet has dried, see if you missed stained spots or if the stains are not removed completely. If so, you then need to re-do the cleaning. This is commonly happens when there is hard stain. If not, then you can return the carpet cleaning machine to the store.

Reminders:

In making sure that your carpet’s colour will not fade out, initially use the water and carpet cleaning solution onto the parts of the carpet which are not easily seen.

Identifying the Scam

A scam like this is usually found on local newspaper ads, in the shop windows or posted on a lamppost. You will know that there is something fishy going on when you are offered a paid work at your home – which promises to generate you fast money with not much effort. The work offered may be craft assembly, envelope-stuffing or any other less strenuous work. They will then ask you for an upfront fee to pay for the materials that you need for the job or for them to reveal to you their fast and easy money-making scheme.

Problems arise when they take your money and refuse to pay you for the certain work that you have done. The scammers would usually reason-out that your work is far from the standards. There are also instances when work is not actually offered, what you will only get is a commission for every individual whom you have convinced to sign-up. A legitimate work-from-home schemes would normally tell you what kind of work you will be doing, how much you will be getting, and when and how will you get your payment.

What to do When Faced with the Similar Situation

- Do not entertain job offers which would require you to pay money in advance.
- Applying at local companies is the best thing to do to take advantage of a legitimate work-at-home job.
- Do a background check on the company offering you the work. It is much more helpful that you ask current workers in the company.

Identifying The Scam
A scam like this normally starts out with a scratch card handed over to you after being contacted on the phone or while you are on vacation. As you scratch the card, it will then reveal that a “free” holiday is awaiting you. You will then be instructed to go to a presentation to take advantage of the prize. In the presentation, you will be encouraged to know more about great places to spend your holidays, commonly using the holiday club membership.

You are going to be asked to join an exclusive club which will offer you premier accommodation and valuable holidays in many parts of the world – given that you will pay for an annual subscription charge. The brochures which will be offered to you are compelling, made more believable by the venue of the presentation as it is commonly set in a lavish hotel. Sales representatives will then force you to sign up right on the spot, with the assurance that it has nothing to do with timeshare.

The scammers’ common tactics are as follow:

- giving you a one day only special discounted offer
- offering you limited time to take a look at the contract
- giving out free alcohol to set things on the mood for you
- conducting a very long presentation so that you will get to sign in desperation to leave
- preventing you and your partner from discussing in the private

Once you sign up, you will then find out that the discounts which were promised have no guarantees at all, contrary to what were previously claimed. The club won’t be held responsible to whatsoever promises which will be handed to you by their sales representatives. You will likely be spending much more from the high street price and the holidays may not be available to you wherever and whenever you need them.

If you refuse to sign up with the holiday club, the ‘free’ holiday – which they were promising you – will suddenly require you to pay for extras, for flights’ cost and other additional fees. There is also a high chance that you will be forced to go to a place that you don’t like going to and spend it in a time that does not fit for you. A legitimate holiday club must allow you to bring home the contract for you to think about it more clearly and come up with a decision. Everything promised to you at the presentation are written down in a contract, and you can even have a written cancellation rights, if possible. You should keep in mind, however, that any legitimate holiday club provider is not actually required by law to let you cancel later when you feel that you are not sure about it.

What To Do When Faced With The Similar Situation

- See to it that everything promised at the presentation is written on a contract.
- You should assert your right to bring home the contract with you.
- Compose yourself and do not allow yourself to be pressured, make sure that you get what you really want before signing the contract.
- Take some time before making a decision, a few days of pondering really helps a lot.

Identifying The Scam

You should be careful when you receive a pop-up message from a website or an email alerting you that it came from an organisation ready to make transaction with you. A common example of which are online payment services or banks. The scammer will sent out a message asking you to “validate”, “update” or “confirm” the information in your account. You will then be directed to a website which you may not find suspicious, at all.

This kind of scam is commonly known as phishing. The website is designed to trick you into disclosing your important passwords and personal information. These will then be used by the scammers to steal you identity, commit financial crimes and run up bills under your name.

What To Do When Faced With The Similar Situation
- Be more knowledgeable of online frauds.

Suspected phishing emails should be deleted after you have sent them to your bank.

Identifying The Scam

A scam like this involves you being offered tickets on a website for a certain popular music or sports event, even though the tickets were not on sale yet or already sold out. Once you fall for this and pay, no tickets will eventually arrive in your home. When you try to call or email, it is either left unanswered or tell you that a representative will address your concern at the venue but no one will actually turn up at the venue. In the end, you will realise that you have spent much more than the original price and worse is that you won’t even be getting the ticket you paid for to attend your much awaited event.

This kind of scam is also present on EBay and many social networking websites. There may be numerous legitimate ticketing websites, but scammers do find a clever way to fool you that their sites are legitimate. They can easily make compelling websites with names very much alike to a legitimate website.

What To Do To Avoid The Similar Situation

- Be wary of sites that sell tickets which haven’t yet officially been announced as for sale or those sites promising tickets which have long been sold out.
- By searching the name of the website in Google, you can verify if the site is genuine or not.
- A post box number is never enough. Even email addresses or phone numbers are useless. Valid and credible websites must provide the full physical address of their business.
- Give as many queries as possible. This is one way to check if they know everything about the event. Ask them the type of ticket are they selling you, the seat you may get, the cost of   the ticket, the terms and conditions they have, etc.
- You must also know that it is stated under the Consumer Credit Act that your card issuer is liable when goods or services are not successfully delivered or provided. That is, if the item    – or in this case the ticket – costs more than £100.
- Be aware and follow the basic guides for shopping online safely – this will help.Always follow some basic advice for safe shopping online.

Ways To Retrieve Your Money

It may be very difficult to get back the money that you have given to the scammer. You can make a claim, however, from your insurance company or card provider. Immediately contact your card issuer once your credit card payment becomes suspicious. It will helpful to know more about the Consumer Credit Act. Debit card payment is not included under the Consumer Credit Act, so your card provider will not have any legal obligations to reimburse your money.

Your money can be given back to you using the ‘charge-back’ procedure. This procedure is normally done by members of MasterCard and Visa schemes. Siimply ask your bank if such service is available. Another thing to keep in mind is to find out if your existing home insurance policy will cover you from any fraud.

Identifying The Scam

This scam comes in an email that promises a revolutionary cream, pill, patch or any related product – which can lose weight without having to exercise or take on a diet. It then tells you to visit a website which looks very convincing. Other products would claim that they can hinder the absorption of fat, calories and carbohydrates. While some would guarantee fast weight loss or even permanent lose of weight. To make things appear more convincing, testimonials of satisfied customers are provided.
You should be cautious with these kinds of claims. It is impossible to find over the Internet such a product which can help you lose weight by simply application of the product on you skin. The given costumer testimonials are most likely faked since no proven product is known to shed fat that instantly. The proven and recommended way to lose weight is to increase your physical activity and lessen the intake of calories. Even up to this day, there are still no weight loss products that works like a magic.
How To Avoid The Similar Situation

- You should always be suspicious on any health-related claims.
- It is best to consult an expert first before buying a slimming product.

Identifying The Scam

This scam is characterised by an unexpected letter or email which you will receive along with a list of names.You will then be asked to send some money to the person whose name appears on the top of the list, usually around £10. After that, you will be invited to write your name as well on the given list, with a guarantee that your £10 investment will get you £400,000 in return.

Chain letter scams work the same as free gift and pyramid selling scams, in which you are required to pay a certain fee in order to join. You need to recruit members who are willing to pay the same amount that you have paid for you to recover your money. The recruited members will then undergo the same process as you are, and the cycle goes on.

The truth is, only a few members would actually earn money but not as what it was earlier promised. In the long run, the scheme will collapse and many members will lose significant amount of money.
How To Avoid The Similar Situation

- Do not respond to any of the chain letters and throw them if you want to.

- The scammers are just taking advantage of your superstitious beliefs, so do not believe that bad lucks will befall you once you disregard the letters.