The Breathtaking Tales of Dragons

Almost every child grows up reading books or hearing about the tales of dragons. They are probably the most legendary creatures that we have come to know about this world. In the world of fantasy creatures, dragons are considered to be the coolest among other legendary animals like griffins, unicorns and trolls. Despite their giant sizes and aggressive traits, they do have some great qualities that make them appealing.

You might have noticed the way how dragons are illustrated in various children's books. They look like massive reptiles with huge wings and can breathe fire. They are also portrayed in the water world as well where they look like giant snakes. Today, children go crazy to click some photos posing near the statues of dragons in any park or museum.

Just because they look like beasts or reptiles, some people have misinterpreted this living creature as cold or evil-blooded. If you do a thorough study about them then it will prove your assumption to be wrong. Actually, dragons are known for their intelligence. There are different types of dragons around including brass dragons, bronze dragons, gold dragons, black dragons and red dragons.

They are actually warm-blooded creatures who are capable of controlling their internal body temperatures. They can resist pressures water as well as in land. Some of them are known for their flying abilities. They have the talent to breathe either fire or ice by balancing their body temperatures. Most of them like to live alone. The exception is noticed during breeding seasons, when they stay inside caves. The moment the baby dragons start going out, the adult dragon comes out of the caves.

If you study different fantasy tales then you will find that they are very skilled in magical arts. They used to apply such magic arts only for protection or survival purposes. They are also depicted as speaking different languages including Latin. They were supposed to be greedy towards attractive and sparkly objects like jewels. Their weakness towards attractive things often caused them to get into traps. They enjoy decorating themselves and they are fond of music, art and poetry.

Dragons are presented in terrible ways as well. In such tales they are described as scary creatures that terrorize villagers. They used to steal livestock in order to meet their hunger. They are also pictured in many movies where they were shown under the control of evil wizards. Such evil wizards used to imprison them for their wrongdoings.

Dragons are also used as symbols in many mythological and magical illustrations. In the European Middle Ages, the dragon is often symbolized as a strong creature. Thus, over periods of time they can be depicted as a monster or sometimes as helpful beast.

It is also believed that earthquakes used to happen due to the jumping and flying activities of dragons on the land and air. It is noticed in history that there are two traditions of dragons. One is the European dragon and the other is the Chinese dragon. If you visit different temples or parks in China you will see lots of carved imperial Chinese dragons. The tale of this wonderful creature is never ending. This is why children never want to miss a show or tale on dragons.

What Are The Most Popular Ideas For Themed Nights?

Do you know what is more exciting than a party? A themed party. That's right; people just love having themed nights for a wide variety of reasons. Let's explain. A party is a party. There's food, there's entertainment, there's mingling... these elements are enough to ensure a good time, but add the element of a theme and your shindig will absolutely pop. Nothing makes an affair more happening than a chance to be silly. The best part is that you can get away with it all because you have the excuse of the theme.
Theme parties are also extra fun to plan and organise. Your run-of-the-mill party may be standard, but you've got your work cut out for you trying to make it different and memorable without getting carried away and deviating from the atmosphere you want. With themed parties, you're free to get carried away. You have a unifying element that makes the entire setup cohesive, that dictates requirements, that inspires out-of-the-box thinking, and that generally gets people more excited because a theme simply makes for greater interest. It is for this reason that proms and dances usually carry themes. A theme just makes the affair more special.
Now, there are traditional themes and there are trendy themes. The following are just some of the themes that are really popular right now.
Casino Nights. Most people would probably dress like high rolling gamblers. Others would take things a step further and connect casino to the biggest and grandest casinos in the world, so you might also see a couple showgirls. Definitely, there would be casino table hires to lend authenticity to the affair.
Murder Mysteries. Everybody loves a good whodunit, so people can come dressed up as their favourite sleuth or garden variety dinner murder suspect. Organisers can even create a real mystery for teams to solve.
Sports and Fitness. People can come in their favourite team's jersey. They can also come dressed as sports equipment. They can show up in funny vintage sports uniforms. They can even don 1980s aerobics attires. For entertainment, the host can do a batak hire to check out who's really fit.
Quiz Bee. Everybody can come as a nerd! Lots of people would love the chance to deliberately look geeky. Of course, entertainment can come in the form of trivia quizzes and experiments. You can do a buzz wire hire to adopt that science fair atmosphere.

Starting Art

Many people want to start art, but don't know how or where to begin.

Let me tell you about how I started producing my own watercolour paintings, as my experiences can be applied to other forms of art too.

I have always loved colour and shape, and I had a home - so I began with home decorating; choosing and mixing colours and trying out different paint techniques that were currently in vogue. I have rag-rolled, stenciled and used colour-blocks along with the best of them. This drew on my admittedly already strong imagination and my ability to visualize the results.

It is impossible not to be influenced by the work of others - whose style do you most admire? An important skill is to be able to identify why you like something, so you can begin to build a proper understanding of what works. However, I don't advocate going too far down that route, as over analyzing anything can tie you up in minute details that prevent you getting anything done.

An ability to be self-critical is essential. I mean critical in the true sense; not looking only for faults, but taking a step back so you look at what you have produced as if it belonged to someone else. What works, and what could be done better? You gradually refine your ideas and your skill to produce more satisfying results every time. So perhaps reflective would be a better word than self-critical.

I had drawn and painted as a child - who doesn't? I had also joined in when my own children were small and we got the paints and pencils out. However it's difficult to produce good results when you use cheap materials.

Cheap brushes don't hold paint or make a good line, and cheap paint can give a pale and unsatisfactory result, so I made little progress at that stage. It is also true that my motivation for painting was completely wrong for my own personal development. I was simply occupying my children's time and allowing them to experiment.

Things changed when I trained to become a primary school teacher. I needed to teach drawing, painting and three-dimensional art and so I had to properly focus on how children - people - with vastly different starting points of skill and interest can create something worthwhile. In my experience, children learn best by example, so I had to demonstrate the techniques I wanted them to use. I wanted them to succeed, so I had motivation. I had to find something that would work for me and for them so I developed focus and commitment. The projects I set them were things that would give good results even when executed at a simple level, but which could be embellished by those who were ready.

On leaving teaching I shelved my painting until my husband and I reviewed our lives, and downsized to a life style which enabled us to work part-time. We wanted to spend more time doing the things we enjoyed. This step brought with it lots more motivation, as we needed to start to bring in some extra income to be able to live as we wished to. As Alec began to buy paintings to frame and sell on, I began to look at the art he was buying and to assess my ability to produce something of a similar standard and quality. I had the time and energy to start painting with a vision of the type of work I wanted to produce. These would be simple paintings, drawing on my love of colour and shape, which you recall is where I started my story.

I bought the best brushes, paints and paper I could afford. I also bought a book that I could refer to for advice. I have looked at the book, but I have learned most by having a go. Mixing paint, exploring ideas, practicing brush control.

My advice is to spend a little time every day until you find your direction. You may be drawn to landscapes, or detailed work, or like me you may find satisfaction in bold, simple pictures. Find out what feeds your passion for art.