Why Art Deco Jewelery is Great

What is Art Deco? Art Deco is a direction in art and architecture referring to the sleek and highly stylized designs in fashion between the two world wars. The term Art Deco itself has been drawn from the French group of artists who made their debut at the Universal Exposition of 1900 with new and elegant home furnishing shapes. This group was called Société des artistes décorateurs, hence the name, Art Deco.

Since then buildings, cars, clothes and jewellery both in America and Europe were designed in the Art Deco style, whose main characteristics were geometric shapes, long and sweeping lines, and simple but intricate details. Elements of many cultures and arts were often blended together in this new style, including Mayan, Egyptian, Asian and Aztec.

Kittens Cats

The style permeated every pore of the society, and many great examples can be found to this day. For instance, the Chrysler Building in New York, Ocean Drive in Miami, are classic examples of Art Deco architecture. Jewelery was created using the same shapes and patterns, adding long lines and curves, imitating the design present in buildings and cars. Women demonstrated their new equality by baring their arms, wearing make-up and hairdos, and showing their new Art Deco jewellery, which included long dangling necklaces and earrings, multiple bracelets, and bold rings.

Why Art Deco Jewelery is Great

Art Deco Jewellery

Jewelery was characterized by dramatic, unusual combination of materials with Platinum being the most fashionable precious metal. This was decorated with stones like marcasite, jade, coral, and onyx. For the first time modern materials like plastics, chrome and aluminum were introduced to jewelery.

The motifs included cute animals, like cats/kittens, for instance, fruit, and flowers in many colors. The shapes mirrored those used in Architecture and art such as geometric circles, squares, rectangles, arcs and triangles.

Earrings and pendants

Long and dangling necklaces and earrings usually in white gold or silver adorned with Marcasite and Onyx were extremely popular. These called attention to the bare neck and shoulders of the wearer. Long earrings would swing free when dancing, and this revealed the woman's style and wealth. Diamonds were not uncommon especially for the wealthy part of the society. For the middle classes and the less well off, Marcasite and Onyx was a perfect gemstone.

Rings

Plain-band rings were very much in, but these were decorated with metal work or stones. Again, silver, white gold and platinum were more popular than yellow gold, with the main stones used being made of diamonds or Marcasite.

Bracelets

These were usually cuffs made of Bakelite (an early plastic material), and adorned with Marcasite stones.

Present days

Nowadays Art Deco jewelery is perceived as a unique accessory for many special occasions, such as weddings, proms, etc. Its antique aspect make it very desirable, unique, and timeless.

Why Art Deco Jewelery is Great

Tips For Giving Your Cat a Bath

If you are a cat owner, you are probably fully aware of the fact that most cats absolutely hate water. Nonetheless, there may be times when bathing your cat is necessary. Not only do baths keep your cat clean, they may also be needed to remove fleas from your furry friend. While bathing a cat isn't always easy, it is possible with most cats if you follow these tips.

Tip #1: Start Young

Kittens Cats

If you got your cat while it was still a kitten, you should start giving it baths on a regular basis. Ideally, you should bathe your kitten about once per week. By starting when your cat is young, it will be more accustomed to the water. In addition, a younger cat is much easier to handle than an adult. So, by starting young, you can make bath time much simpler after your cat grows and becomes stronger.

Tips For Giving Your Cat a Bath

Tip #2: Remain Calm

Cats can usually sense when their owners are nervous or anxious. So, remain calm when picking up your cat and throughout the bathing process. The more calm you are, the less anxiety your cat will experience. You can also get your cat relaxed and prep it for its bath by coming through its fur before heading to the bathroom.

Tip #3: Get Items Prepared Ahead of Time

Even if you started getting baths to your cat when it was still a kitten, it still probably will not enjoy taking a bath. Therefore, you should try to get the bath over as quickly as possible. One way to do this is to make certain you have your kitty shampoo, towels, and any other items you will need gathered beforehand. You should also make certain the temperature in the bathroom is at a comfortable level so your feline friend doesn't get too cold.

Tip #4: Prepare the Cat and The Water

You can keep your kitty more comfortable by applying eye ointment before putting it in the water. This will help keep soap out of its eyes. If your cat is particularly problematic during bath time, you might also want to consider trimming its claws first. This way, you won't have to worry as much about getting scratched in the process.

You can also expedite the bathing process by adding a non-toxic wetting agent such as Shaklee's Basic H to the water beforehand. With this agent, the water will soak into the coat more quickly, which means you can work up a lather sooner and complete the bathing process as quickly as possible.

Tip #5: Try Again Later if Necessary

With your cat and the bathroom properly prepared, you can now submerge your cat, get its fur wet, and lather the shampoo. You may need to hold your cat down firmly in order to prevent it from jumping away if this is its first bath. If your cat seems to be extremely upset by the process, however, it is best to stop the bath and try again later. By slowly introducing the bathing process and by speaking in a gentle way throughout the entire process, however, you should ultimately be able to get your cat to accept bath time without much trouble.

Tips For Giving Your Cat a Bath

A Birth Control Pill For Cats?

Apparently not many people know this, but oral contraception for cats has been around for as long as 30 years, according to some veterinarians who don't want to be quoted. However, there is a good deal of information at the web site for FeralStat, a company that produces the drug. But it's not really a pill. Anyone who has ever tried to give a tame cat a pill knows how impossible that would be with a wild one. Instead, the drug is mixed into canned food and set out at feeding stations to be sure it's ingested by all the cats.

Though not specifically used for birth control in the past, the drug has been used by vets for years to treat feline disorders. It contains progestogen, a hormone group that's been approved by the FDA for humans, according to the web site, and has more recently been found to be effective enough to provide good population control for feral cat colonies that are being properly managed. Management is key. You can't just give it to them and walk away. It has to be given repeatedly, just as people must take birth control pills on a schedule.

Kittens Cats

It's not the best option, but it's less costly and easier to administer than capturing every stray that needs it. Anyone who manages a feral colony can attest to the sometimes losing battle of getting all the cats "fixed" before the next batch of kittens is born.

A Birth Control Pill For Cats?

The best option, of course, is surgical sterilization, but that's not always possible, or affordable by the volunteer groups and individuals who come forward to help these animals. Seldom does a community ever provide this degree of humane animal control, which is why it's more a citizen-driven effort.

The idea of an oral contraceptive for wild animals is not new, either. For years, wildlife experts have used drugs to control populations such as horses and raccoons. Why not cats?

Those who have been using FeralStat for a while are pleased to note that there have been no new litters of kittens, the cats look healthier, are less aggressive, and no side effects have been reported, even for the male cats and kittens who have ingested the drug.

The biggest drawback to oral contraception for these cats is that they are not as likely to be captured and vaccinated or checked for medical problems at the same time. Still, it's a very big step in the right direction for feral population control.

A Birth Control Pill For Cats?