A partnership between Christchurch City Council and Community Energy Action Trust (CEA) is helping to provide healthier, more energy-efficient homes for a number of the citys social housing tenants.

More than 220 housing units have had free insulation or thermal curtains installed through the Council-CEA partnership, with that number expected to increase to 500 units before end of June next year.

Communities, Housing and Economic Development Committee Chair Andrew Turner says the Council is committed to working alongside its partners to provide better social housing in Christchurch.

"Earlier this year, the Council signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Lifemark, signalling its commitment to building adaptable, accessible and healthy new social housing units in Christchurch.

"At the same time, through a close partnership with CEA, the Council is improving a number of its existing units by making them warmer and more energy-efficient - homes that are healthier for tenants to live in.

"By working with CEA to a targeted and prioritised programme, were making excellent progress on the number of housing units scheduled to be upgraded by mid-2015."

CEA upgrades insulation and provides thermal curtains for tenants who have a current Community Services Card and are either 65 or over, have a health condition or a child under 17 living in the unit.

About 720 of the Councils social housing tenants are currently eligible for the upgrades.

For each tenant, CEA completes a comprehensive check for ceiling insulation, under-floor insulation and energy use in the home. Where insulation is required and able to be installed, CEA meets the costs of both materials and installation.

Georgina House recently received new insulation at her Council unit in Halswell and says she is looking forward to lower power bills next winter.

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Chch partnership providing healthier social housing

Drywall Ceiling Installation In Hollis, Queens
This Old Tile Ceiling Was Falling Down, So We Replaced It With 3/8 Drywall, Taped And Plastered, With A New Coat Of Ceiling Paint. All Work Performed By 96 P...

By: 96 pro contractors

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Flowers drying at National Trusts Cornish property Cotehele STEVEN HAYWOOD

On an equally gargantuan scale is the National Trusts Cornish property Coteheles annual Christmas celebration a fabulous 60ft garland of dried flowers grown in their gardens. This year more than 36,000 everlasting sand flowers, straw flowers, paper daisies, roses, statice and ornamental grasses have been grown, picked, dried and fashioned into this unique display:

Its a testament to this years garden harvest at Cotehele, says head gardener David Bouch. Each years garland is different, depending on which flowers have done well.

If you too have memories of dried arrangements that disintegrated each time you passed, creativity on this scale might inspire you to try again. You can dry almost any flower, seedhead or grass, by stripping off the leaves, tying them in a bunch and leaving to dry upside down for two to four weeks, then spraying with hairspray. Single blooms do better dried in a container half-filled with two parts borax, one part sand, then covered and sealed until dry; or immerse your flowers in silica gel until it turns pink.

If you need them in a hurry, flowers can be oven-dried (with door ajar) on a tray at 150F (65C) for several hours, removing them once the petals seem stiff. Let them cool on a rack. Both lavender and chamomile do well using this method. Roses can be hung separately upside down on string tied to a curtain rail to dry. You can keep bridal bouquets in this way and preserve happy memories.

For rose, hydrangea and delphinium petals for confetti, pick them from their stems, spread them on a tea towel and leave to dry for three or four days. Place in a sealed container until the Big Day.

You can use dried flowers around the home in all sorts of ways: hang individual stems on wire from pendant lights; wrap bunches of dried flowers in pretty paper wraps and hang from coat hooks; press dried flower heads into an Oasis wreath or pop them into a large glass container; string stems together to make a garland or frame a mirror; or display them in small bunches packed into terracotta flower pots.

I have a large, 2ft-square basket of garden lavender in the loo - although I know I should have picked it earlier for a deeper colour.

Coteheles Christmas celebration a 60ft garland of dried flowers STEVE HAYWOOD

If drying your own doesnt appeal, then try the professionals. Drying techniques have improved and colours are stronger.

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How to grow and dry your own flowers

From Inception to Completion

From Inception to Completion

From Inception to Completion

From Inception to Completion

Install (Ceilings & Partitions) Limited was established in 2001. We specialise in installing suspended ceilings and partitions, as well as carrying out associated works involved in office refurbishment, including carpentry, joinery, painting, decorating, flooring, plumbing and electrics. We fit kitchens into your work place environment, and create modern washroom facilities/ wc cubicles.

We are renowned for our top quality workmanship and reliability, and have retained clients for many years.

Install (Ceilings & Partitions) Limitedhave the experience, capacity and capability to liaise with all parties. We are a small-to-medium size business that draws upon knowledge and contacts within the industry, allowing us to exceed our clients expectations.

Recent projects include high street names - training facilities for Debenhams, Jaguar Landrover (Gaydon), Tesco, Asda, Spar, Sainsbury, Netto, KFC, McDonalds, Max Spielman, Timpson, SnappySnaps, Goldsmiths and TK Maxx. We have also fitted acoustic ceilings in car showrooms, universities and NHS Trusts, as well as working in government offices, leisure facilities, airports, schools and exhibition stands. We recently completed the installation of a mezzanine floor and office fit outwithin a local industrial unit.

We are fully conversant with Rigitone and Gyptone, M/F concealed and lay-in grid, Gypwall and demountable partitions.

All operatives possess an NVQ 2 in Interior Systems and undertake associated certified training including Powered Access Licence, PASMA, IPAFand British Gypsum Speedtape (Mechanical Jointing) and Rigitone Ceilings. They are CRB and security cleared to allow them to work in all environments. All carry CSCS cards.

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Install Ceilings & Partitions Ltd, Demountable Suspended ...

Galveston Historical Foundation will open the doors to the 1859 St. Josephs Church for a special exhibition of artist Ann Woods TOWER installation.

The exhibit will open on Saturday, Nov. 15 from 6-9 p.m. for a special History on Tap wine tasting. Tickets are $15 per person and available at http://www.galvestonhistory.org. The installation will also be open, free of charge, Nov. 29 during the Galveston Artwalk from 6-9 p.m.

Woods work generally incorporates two and three-dimensional pieces into dramatic installations.

These environments have a Rococo visual appeal that vividly reference topiaries, bouquets, and desserts, while also acknowledging historical paintings and sculptures.

The large-scale work twist the idea of the traditionally male-made monument into a feminine, animal-shaped super-cake that simultaneously reminds the viewer of the discordant ideas of nurture and humiliation.

Tower is an installation created specifically for St. Josephs Church in Galveston, explains Ann. Being site-specific, it is first and foremost inspired by the churchs impressive Gothic revival altar and other decorations. Secondary inspiration includes Byzantine mosaics of Jesus as a shepherd surrounded by his flock and monumental Baroque sculptures commonly found in Cathedrals.

Tower is created out of manipulated taxidermy sheep forms, frosting-like poured foam, and craft store items such as artificial flowers, glitter, pom-poms, and push pins. It mimics wooden hunting towers that historically were hastily built on-site by hunters in need of a birds-eye view of their prey, while simultaneously referencing a tiered cake stand.

Conceptually, Tower plays loosely with the story of the Tower of Babel as well as the Gothic ideal of tall buildings and spires meant to direct your eyes up to heaven. Also important is the religious idea of sheep and lambs as the symbol of innocence and sacrifice (the sacrificial lamb) and the obvious association of Jesus as the Lamb of God.

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Galveston Historical Foundation opens the doors of 1859 St. Josephs Church for art exhibit

Galveston Historical Foundation will open the doors to the 1859 St. Josephs Church for a special exhibition of artist Ann Woods TOWER installation.

The exhibit will open on Saturday, Nov. 15 from 6-9 p.m. for a special History on Tap wine tasting. Tickets are $15 per person and available at http://www.galvestonhistory.org. The installation will also be open, free of charge, Nov. 29 during the Galveston Artwalk from 6-9 p.m.

Woods work generally incorporates two and three-dimensional pieces into dramatic installations.

These environments have a Rococo visual appeal that vividly reference topiaries, bouquets, and desserts, while also acknowledging historical paintings and sculptures.

The large-scale work twist the idea of the traditionally male-made monument into a feminine, animal-shaped super-cake that simultaneously reminds the viewer of the discordant ideas of nurture and humiliation.

Tower is an installation created specifically for St. Josephs Church in Galveston, explains Ann. Being site-specific, it is first and foremost inspired by the churchs impressive Gothic revival altar and other decorations. Secondary inspiration includes Byzantine mosaics of Jesus as a shepherd surrounded by his flock and monumental Baroque sculptures commonly found in Cathedrals.

Tower is created out of manipulated taxidermy sheep forms, frosting-like poured foam, and craft store items such as artificial flowers, glitter, pom-poms, and push pins. It mimics wooden hunting towers that historically were hastily built on-site by hunters in need of a birds-eye view of their prey, while simultaneously referencing a tiered cake stand.

Conceptually, Tower plays loosely with the story of the Tower of Babel as well as the Gothic ideal of tall buildings and spires meant to direct your eyes up to heaven. Also important is the religious idea of sheep and lambs as the symbol of innocence and sacrifice (the sacrificial lamb) and the obvious association of Jesus as the Lamb of God.

The oldest German Catholic Church in Texas and the oldest wooden church building in Galveston, St. Josephs was built by German immigrants in 1859-60.

The building is a simple wooden gothic revival structure, rectangular with a square bell tower with trefoil window. The softly painted interior features a coffered ceiling with painted quatrefoils and other gothic symbols, plaster of Paris Stations of the Cross with German inscriptions dating from the early years of the 20th century and the original, elaborate main and side altars with reredos as well as many of the original statues and altar furnishings.

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Galveston Historical Foundation opens the doors of 1859 St. Josephs Church for art exhibition

Confections of pleated rope and metal. Helmets in the shape of snarling dragons, toothy eels and a flaming jewel. Plus warriors on horseback charging through an exhibtion hall adorned with a blood-red ceiling. The exhibition"Samurai: Japanese Armor from the Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller Collection"at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is not some dusty arms-and-armor show.

For one, there's the cinematic design installation (by Kulapat Yantrasast of WHY Architecture). Plus, there's the nature of the works themselves pieces of primarily ceremonial armor from the 19th century, when the samurai phenomenon was at the end of its roughly 700-year run. It's a show with a lot of drama.

One piece, however, is a standout: a suit crafted in the middle of the 19th century with an elaborate feathered helmet in the shape of a ferocious-looking mythical bird demon known as a tengu, a creature that is often associated with the art of warfare. This half-man/half-bird figure is a common motif in Japanese art. LACMA, in fact, has various pieces in its permanent collection that depict the creature in various guises. These include an exquisite turn-of-the-19th century mask, as well as a hilariously cartoonish Kitagawa Hidemaro block print from the early 1800s, which shows a tengu being born.

"It's one of the most visually striking pieces in the show," curator Robert T. Singer, who also oversees LACMA's Japanese art department, says of the armor. "You're not looking at a human face. It's an animal face."

There are the other details, too: the hemp skirt that dangles like a bird's tail, the elaborately stiched leather apron and the rope tassles that hang from the armor's chest. Then there is the way the armor reflects the outline of a rippling warrior body (hubba hubba).

"I particularly love the articulation of the muscles and the ribs in the breastplate," Singer says. "You see the sinews in the arm. It makes it really unusual, really powerful."

The suit would have been used for ceremonial purposes, for the long processions that warriors made from their home towns to Edo (what is now Tokyo). As they rode through the countryside, this elaborate gear would have been intended as the ultimate tough guy fashion statement. Explains Singer: "Essentially, they're showing off."

"Samurai: Japanese Armor from the Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller Collection"is on view through Feb. 1 at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, lacma.org.

Find me on Twitter @cmonstah.

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Object lesson: A menacing, muscled samurai suit at LACMA

Acoustic panels or other ceiling treatments can be replaced easily by a drywall ceiling, giving your room a more streamlined look.

drywall lift straightedge ladders power drill utility knife hammer five-in-one painter's tool mud masher scrubber nail puller mud tray drywall knife carpenter's pencil gloves mask safety glasses sheets of drywall drywall mud drywall tape drywall screws

1. Remove the old ceiling tiles and pull out any old nails. Scrape off any bumps of old adhesive using a utility knife and hammer. Make sure to wear safety goggles. 2. Remove any ceiling-mounted light fixtures. Turn the power off first, and check the fixture with a voltage detector to make sure it's off. 3. Use the straightedge to mark rows on the drywall for the screws. Fit the first piece of drywall in the drywall lift and hoist it into place. Start in the corner and work your way out. 4. Attach the drywall using drywall screws and a power drill. Space the screws about six to eight inches apart. If it's a shiplap ceiling (smooth wood panels), the screws can be attached anywhere. Otherwise, they would have to go into the center of the ceiling joists. Continue until all the drywall is installed. 5. Load up a tray with mud, whip it with the drywall knife until it's nice and soft. Start filling in the screw holes first. 6. Next start on the seams. Place a thick layer of mud on a seam, then center a piece of drywall tape along the seam. Cover the tape with a little more mud and smooth it out with your drywall knife. 7. Wait until the drywall mud is completely dry, then come back and work down rough areas using sponges, scrubbers and drywall knives. 8. The amount of sanding you'll need to do depends on the type of ceiling treatment you're using. You'll need to sand less if you're going to apply a textured treatment.

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How to Install a Drywall Ceiling | Interior Design Styles ...

By SYLVIE CORBET Associated Press

PARIS (AP) - Europe marked Armistice Day Tuesday with ceremonies and moments of silence as France opened an international memorial on a former battlefield.

This year's events had special significance because 2014 is the centenary of the start of World War I. Tuesday is the 96th anniversary of the armistice that ended the war on Nov. 11, 1918.

French President Francois Hollande laid a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier under Paris' Arc de Triomphe.

Later, he inaugurated an international war memorial at Notre-Dame-de-Lorette, in northern France, in the presence of German, British and Belgian officials. The Ring of Memory carries the names of 600,000 soldiers from over 40 countries who died in the region during the war. Names are listed alphabetically without their nationalities.

"Yesterday's enemies, these men are now re-united in death as if they belong to the same family," said Hollande -whose grand-father was a soldier during the First World War.

Commemorations are made to "pass this memory on to future generations" and "remind the world's leaders of their duties toward peace, security, human rights and democracy," he said.

A few hours before the ceremony, a military helicopter forced a plane dragging a banner calling for Hollande's resignation over the memorial to land.

In Britain, thousands gathered at the Tower of London, where a blood-red sea of ceramic poppies spilled into the moat as part of an art installation paying tribute to soldiers killed in the fighting.

A 13-year-old army cadet, Harry Hayes, planted the final poppy - the last of the 888,246 glass flowers - one for each of the British and Commonwealth soldiers killed in the war. Among the dead was Hayes' great-great-great uncle, Pvt. Patrick Kelly of the 1st Battalion, Irish Guards.

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Europe remembers Armistice Day with ceremonies

The outbound Fort Pitt Tunnel will close this weekend as the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation begins a $14.2 million project to remove the deteriorated ceiling.

The tunnel will close at 10 p.m. Friday and reopen by 6 a.m. Monday. The posted detour uses West Carson Street to the West End Bypass. PennDOT is warning drivers of likely significant traffic delays.

The inbound tunnel will be open, but traffic may be stopped briefly at times during equipment movement and debris removal.

The closure is the first of eight weekend shutdowns planned as part of the project. The dates of the remaining closures have not been announced.

The additional closures will be scheduled to minimize impacts on Downtown events when possible, the department said in its announcement.

The project also will cause four overnight closures on weekends and lane restrictions during off-peak hours and on weekends. Overnight lane closures will begin in both directions in January.

In addition to removing the ceiling, the project calls for repairs to the walls, drainage improvements, relocating closed-circuit TV cameras, and milling and resurfacing the roadways.

In a related development, nightly closures of the Parkway West may be over for the year.

This weeks schedule for restrictions in the work zone between Green Tree and Interstate 79 calls for single-lane traffic in both directions in the area of the Carnegie interchange starting at 10 p.m. daily through Saturday. Restrictions will be lifted by 6 a.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Spokesman Steve Cowan said the department is hoping to avoid any additional full closures in the work zone until the $72.8 million reconstruction project goes on winter hiatus in mid-December. If the traffic pattern is shown to pose a danger to drivers or workers, full overnight closures will be reinstated, he said.

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Outbound Fort Pitt Tunnel to close for weekend as ceiling removal begins