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Soap Making as a Hobby is a Great New Skill

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Soaps are so taken for granted that we hardly pause to think more about how they are made. The general feeling is that the entire process is far too complicated, industrial, and way out of being made a hobby. In reality, soap making is a simple process, and there are ready-made melt and pour type of kits available that allow us to make soaps with our own chosen colours, fragrances, herbal ingredients, and shapes.

Soap making can be pursued as a hobby and can even be turned into a small home based business. All it takes is an interest in the making of soaps, and some diligence in the whole process.

Soap is a simple mixture of oils and caustic soda (lye.) The resultant liquid when left to solidify forms soap with a lot of glycerine, hence also called glycerine soap. The industrial soap manufacturers remove excess amounts of glycerine and use other ways to make the soap soft and mellow.

The oils used in soap making are common oils like palm oil, coconut oil, olive oil, grape seed oil etc. The caustic soda used should be of industrial quality.

There is some amount of heating involved in soap making, and this therefore requires caution. The exact proportions of mixing oil and lye should also be known beforehand.

A melt and pour soap making kit can introduce a novice into soap making. Simply buy the kit and follow the instructions that come along. Once you are familiar with this process, you may consult other sources and can try making soap oneself.

Everyone of us wants to have a herbal soap, one filled with natural oils and fragrances. Children are delighted with soaps of various shapes such as animal figurines. Pursuing soap making as a hobby can allow you to make soaps as exactly as you want them to look and smell!

U:Bee Online is a licensed AAP (Approved Activity Provider) for The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.  Achieve your Bronze Duke of Edinburgh’s Award or Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award by completing the Volunteering, Physical, Expedition and Skills Section of your DofE Programme.    

Looking for DofE skills section activities?  Choose one of the U:Bee Online DofE skills section ideas, to complete your 3 month or 6 month skills section, for your Bronze Award or Silver Award and receive your Certificate and Assessor’s Report. 
Find Skills Section Courses at www.ubee.org.uk

Pocket Watch Appreciation- A Skill and a Hobby

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The history of the pocket watch is often overlooked in significance because of the many other inventions that were taking place. However, the pocket watch provided us with the first portable clocks giving us the power to know what time it was wherever we were. The pocket watch was a device that was very rich in the 16th century and only the high class could possess.

In the 16th century clocks were produced using springs instead of weights, signifying the transfer from clocks to watches. These old pocket watches were the first timepieces that could be owned by the public. Owning a pocket watch signified the status, wealth and power of an individual.

The 17th century made pocket watches even more desirable with a new look to the figure. The watch had changed from its original box-like look to a new rounded and slimmer case. Craftsmen began working ever so hard to create designs on every pocket watch made.

In 1675 some watchmakers discovered the importance of a spiral spring. By attaching the spiral spring to the balance, the accuracy of the pocket watch increased greatly. It was now possible to tell time by the minute as oppose to being off by a few hours. With this new discovery, the minute hand was born on the pocket watch.

The 18th century saw added improvement to the pocket watch with further development and more added features to drive up the price. Oil had become a popular method to lubricate and smoothen the movement of the hands of the watch. Jewels had begun to be used for the bearings in watches while diamonds were used on the high-priced watches. This shot the cost up to again give the rich the power to show their wealth and status.

In the middle of the 18th century another hand was introduced to show the increased precision in time. It was only a matter of time that a third hand would be added seeing that we were aware of time down to the second now. This allowed people to know the exact time of day it was through their pocket watch.

The 19th century brought several famous pocket watch makers that increased the value of the watch. Having multiple watchmakers added the competition to the quality of watch they sold, including how much they sold their watches for. The quality of watches sold was now better than ever with much more reasonable prices. The 19th century signified the peak of the old pocket watch.

As time passed further inventions were taking place and the invention of the wristwatch soon took the place of the pocket watch. While some old pocket watches are still around today, the wristwatch is the dominant choice of time now. Today old pocket watches are more of an antique collection than anything. While the pocket watch has served as a useful tool throughout the years, it now rests as solely a collection item that helped lead to the development of the wristwatch.

U:Bee Online is a licensed AAP (Approved Activity Provider) for The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.  Achieve your Bronze Duke of Edinburgh’s Award or Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award by completing the Volunteering, Physical, Expedition and Skills Section of your DofE Programme.    

Looking for DofE skills section activities?  Choose one of the U:Bee Online DofE skills section ideas, to complete your 3 month or 6 month skills section, for your Bronze Award or Silver Award and receive your Certificate and Assessor’s Report. 
Find Skills Section Courses at www.ubee.org.uk

Learn More About Badge and Pin Collecting

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Pins are a hot collectible that offer an added advantage over other collections – they are small and do not take up much room. Pins are available in many motifs and themes. Some of the most collectible themes are Disney characters, sports teams, and Hard Rock Cafe. The first rule of pin collecting is to specialize. If you like the Manchester United Football Team for instance, you can start pin collecting with souvenir pins that celebrate this team. And just because these themes are popular doesn’t mean you have to collect them. Be original and collect what you like.

Many pins are centred around modern entertainments, but many pin collecting enthusiasts collect campaign pins from election campaigns. Buttons are a similar item and are collected by many of the same people who do pin collecting. Pins created to advertise businesses and services are also very collectible.

To display pins you have several options. When you wear a jacket with lapels, you can wear a few of your favourite small pins. The same goes for wearing a cowboy hat or a vest. Many pin collectors wear a few on the front of a cowboy hat. Tote bags, purses, and fanny packs are another place where some pins can be displayed.

Of course, as you get into pin collecting, you will soon find that you have too many to wear the entire collection at one time. A bulletin board, perhaps covered with a plain piece of fabric, like dark blue velvet, makes a nice backdrop for a pin collection. The pins can either be pinned into the cork of the bulletin board through the velvet or attached to the velvet first.

Another way to display and store pins is in a notebook. This method works well if you wish to take some of your pins to an event where you can do some trading with other pin collectors. To make the notebook, purchase sheets of hard felt or craft foam. Either punch holes in the side so they fit into a loose-leaf binder, or slip the pages into page protectors after attaching the pins to the pages. The type of loose-leaf binder that zips closed is the best to use for pin collecting.

Sometimes pins get scratched, especially if they are stored in a notebook arrangement such that they hit each other. The scratches can be smoothed over with a tiny bit of liquid car wax. Future scratching can be avoided by using page protectors in notebook collections.

Pin collecting is a very popular hobby. You can find groups of like minded people with which to trade pins, making pin collecting a hobby that helps people make friends.

U:Bee Online is a licensed AAP (Approved Activity Provider) for The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.  Achieve your Bronze Duke of Edinburgh’s Award or Silver Duke of Edinburgh’s Award by completing the Volunteering, Physical, Expedition and Skills Section of your DofE Programme.    

Looking for DofE skills section activities?  Choose one of the U:Bee Online DofE skills section ideas, to complete your 3 month or 6 month skills section, for your Bronze Award or Silver Award and receive your Certificate and Assessor’s Report. 
Find Skills Section Courses at www.ubee.org.uk

Collecting Orchids As A Hobby

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Phalaenopsis orchids are one of the easiest orchids to grow in the home. The name “phalaenopsis” comes from the Greek phalaina, meaning “moth” and opsis, meaning “like”. For this reason, this orchid goes by the nick name “Moth Orchid”.

These orchids are very easy to grow and flower as long as care is given to recreate their natural growing environment as much as possible.

Where should I buy my orchid?

Avoid buying cheap plants. Although you can find orchids for sale at many home centres for under £5, they are usually not in very good condition. They may have been forced to flower prematurely which weakens the plant. It’s also unlikely that they’ve been given proper care during their time in the store which can lead to root rot and other conditions.

Your best bet is to find a reputable grower in your area. Many local orchid societies have shows and exhibitions which are open to the public. This is a great opportunity to buy plants and find local dealers.

What potting medium is best for Phalaenopsis orchids? Orchid Bark? Sphagnum?

There is some debate on the subject of potting medium for phals orchids. Orchid bark is generally recommended as home growers may unintentionally over water, are less likely to rot the root system due to the better drainage of the bark mix.

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