Annie Sloan wax is meant to give an extra sheen to furniture that has already been painted with chalk paint. Read through the painting instructions and apply several coats to your furniture before you begin waxing it. Aim for even coverage when using your chalk paint. Thin, level coats will make applying the wax easier. Scoop the wax onto a knife and put it on a paper plate. This will give you open access to the wax while you're using it and allow you to mix it with other products as needed. Although you can keep the wax in its packaging, you may not be able to mix the amount you need with mineral spirits. Mineral spirits are a type of paint thinner that can help make the wax more pliable. The ratio of wax to mineral spirits should be about 9:1. Add a small amount of mineral spirits to your wax and mix it in with your knife if is difficult to spread. When working with mineral spirits, read the label carefully and take all safety precautions that are directed on the label. The wax should lightly coat the tip of your brush. If you do not have a wax brush, you can use a lint-free cloth as an alternative. Wax brushes, however, will provide more even coats. Wax brushes can be purchased at most craft or hardware stores.
++++++++++
One-sentence summary -- Allow the chalk paint to dry before applying the wax. Smear the wax onto a paper plate. Mix your wax with mineral spirits if it is hard to work with. Dab a wax brush into the wax.


For this version of the project, you will need small styrofoam balls, a needle and thread, paint, and toothpicks. Choose 6 different colors to represent the sugar and phosphate groups, and the 4 nitrogenous bases. They can be any 6 colors of your choice.  You will need to paint 16 sugar balls, 14 phosphate balls, and 4 different colors for each of the nitrogenous bases (cytosine, guanine, thymine, and adenine). You could choose to have one of the colors be white, so that you don't have to paint some of the styrofoam. This might be easiest for the sugar balls, as it will greatly reduce your total amount of work. Once the paint has dried, designate 1 color for each of the nitrogenous bases, and then pair them with their matching base. Cytosine always goes with guanine, and thymine always goes with adenine.  The order of the colors does not matter, as long as they are in the correct pairs. Stick a toothpick between each of the pairs, leaving a little extra space at the sharp ends of the toothpicks. Using the needle and string, cut a piece that is long enough to go the length of 15 styrofoam balls. Tie a knot at one end of the string, and thread the needle on the other.  Line up the styrofoam sugar and phosphate balls, so that they alternate in sets of 15. There should be more sugar balls than phosphate balls. Make sure that the 2 strands of sugar and phosphate are in the same order, so that they line up when placed next to each other. Thread through the centers of each alternating string of styrofoam sugar and phosphate balls. Tie the string off at the end of each strand, to prevent the balls from sliding off. Take the toothpicks with your pairs of nitrogenous bases, and stick the sharp end to the matching sugar balls on each long strand.  Only attach the pairs to the styrofoam balls representing sugar, as this is how DNA is attached in real life. Make sure that enough of the toothpick is attached to the strands that the pairs of bases will not fall off easily. Once all the pairs of toothpick bases have been attached to the sugar, twist the double strands in a counter-clockwise direction to mimic the appearance of a true double helix. Your model is now complete!
++++++++++
One-sentence summary -- Gather your supplies. Paint your styrofoam balls. Pair off the nitrogenous bases. Make the double helix. Attach the nitrogenous bases to the double helix strands. Twist the double helix.


Items advertised as silver and sold internationally should be stamped based on its silver content. If there is no stamp, be leery. It may be still be pure silver, but created in a country that doesn't require stamping. Look at the silver piece with a magnifying glass. International sellers of silver will stamp silver as 925, 900 or 800. These numbers indicate the percentage of fine silver in the piece. 925 means that the piece is 92.5 percent silver. A stamp of 900 or 800 means the piece is 90 percent or 80 percent silver, and is often called "coin" silver.
++++++++++
One-sentence summary -- Look for a stamp. Evaluate the international silver stamp rating.


An inventory control system should accomplish three key goals. Knowing these goals are helpful in letting you know if your current system is effective, if it can be improved, as well as how it can be improved.  Your system should let you know what is in your inventory at all times. Your system should have a means of detecting and updating changes in your inventory. Your system should involve a plan for how much inventory to order and keep, as well as when to re-order. The first step to inventory control is being deeply aware of how much inventory you have on hand at any given time, what type of inventory you have available, where the inventory is located, and how it changes over time. Today, there are plenty of software applications that can assist in this process.  Be sure to spend some time searching the software market. There are extensive online reviews and analysis on all the available packages, and these reviews can let you know if the software meets your specific needs. If you are just starting, getting inventory management software that is built into accounting software. This allows you to keep all your financial information in one program, as well as coordinate it. Consider using Quickbooks or Peachtree. These are accounting software programs, but they also have inventory management features that can help you keep track of your inventory, and they come with a central database that can make sure all staff have coordinated information. POS Maid is a free inventory management software program that can be very helpful for small retail businesses. Each item in your inventory should have an item number, a quantity, and a basic description which includes the vendor name and any other important details. This makes it easy to identify precisely what the item is. For example, if you order shirts in boxes that contain 12 shirts, the box should have a label that includes the item number for the shirt, the quantity (12), and a description.  This makes tracking easier by ensuring you know what each box contains and how much it contains. If you have extensive amounts of inventory, look into a barcode tracking system. This will allow you to place a barcode on each item, which allows staff to quickly scan, identify, and transfer inventory information into whatever software you are using. This is an alternative to manual labels. Even if you are using software, it is important to a physical inventory occasionally. This begins by performing an initial count of your inventory stock. You will want to begin by creating a spreadsheet that has each item number, followed by columns that indicate the quantity.  You will then simply count all the available items you have, as well as their quantities. If you are using software, you will want to add your starting inventory to the software. You will need to add the item number, purchase information, as well as vendor. This will add the item to the software, and when you purchase inventory from now on, the software will automatically update the inventory. It will deduct from the inventory when sales are made. Doing physical counts are important to ensure your software is accurate. A physical count also protects against unknown shrinkage and obsolescence. inventory should be counted regularly, but can rely on statistical process or counting those items that move the most or the most valuable.
++++++++++
One-sentence summary --
Understand the goals of any inventory control system. Invest in inventory management software. Create clear labels. Perform an initial count of your inventory stock.