Arabian Nights - A Dinner Party Idea

By Randa Magdi

One of the most fun dinner parties I have ever been invited to had a Middle Eastern theme and it was sensational. The reason it was so fabulous is that the hostess went to a lot of trouble to make the experience authentic.

The reason it was so fabulous is that the hostess went to a lot of trouble to make the experience authentic.

When my partner and I arrived, the living room had been transformed - the room was lit only with candle light and a variety of cushions had been spread around the room. There was a lovely scent in the air - not too powerful. It must have been some sort of incense. The room looked totally different to the way it normally looked. I almost forgot I was actually at my friend's house.

The background music was gentle but had that Middle Eastern beat to it - it was like Arabic chill-out music - very smooth indeed.

She'd also hung some rugs or material over the walls. It almost felt like being inside an Arabian tent - I have a warm feeling just reminiscing about it... because it had this really mystical feel to it.

I can barely remember what we ate because the atmosphere and what we had in store way over took and made the lasting impression

I do recall that on arrival we were given a glass of bubbly and could select appetizers from trays laid out with tempting dips like baba ghanoush (eggplant dip) and hummos (chick pea dip) and pitta and Lebanese breads that had been cut into smaller pieces, sprayed with olive oil and then lightly baked until crisp. There were also stuffed vine leaves along with a selection of pickled vegetables. I know my friend bought these rather than made them herself - recipes are available on the Internet for free if you want to do something similar and cook the food yourself.

We of course were all given small plates and serviettes and sat comfortably on the cushions mingling, eating and chatting. The experience had an incredibly soft and laid back feel. We'd all brought a bottle of wine so enjoyed a glass with the food.

Once we'd got through the starters my friend brought out some more dishes - felafels, lentils with spinach and some stuffed eggplant and tomatoes. Again, these were bought from a Lebanese take away restaurant and heated just prior to being served.

By this stage we were all feeling very full and content.

Then something magical happened - gradually we heard the music getting louder and louder - the beat was getting faster and then out of another room a belly dancer appeared and came dancing into the room.

She looked stunning - she had the full belly dancing costume on and her make-up was amazing - and her moves made me feel very envious (in the nicest possible way). She put on quite a performance, even producing a sword and doing the "sword' dance.

Toward the end of her show, guests were invited to join her but we were not put under any pressure. A couple got up and it was fun to see people having such a good time. Can you believe we got to see this sort of entertainment at a friend's house during a dinner party?

After the show, my friend served Turkish coffee and Turkish Delights which proved a lovely light way to finish off the meal.

It was such a great night that I'd highly recommend this idea to anyone who wants to make their dinner party memorable - just as this dinner party was for me. Afterwards, my friend told me she'd been taking belly dancing lessons and had found out who could do a show - it didn't cost her much but she said it was well worth every cent to see the delight on the faces of her guests.

I love good food and good wine and I love to socialize. Dinner parties give me the opportunity to indulge both my passions. I love dinner parties so much that I host a blog which provides ideas for your next dinner party. They provide such a great way to catch up with the important people in your life.

People love to be invited to dinner parties because they can enjoy an excellent event of great food and company and all it costs usually is a bottle of wine - and maybe a taxi fare home. But it's not about the money - it's just great to be spoiled by your hosts.

If you'd like to look at a range of ideas and themes for your next dinner party feel free to visit my blog at http://dinnerpartyideas.blogspot.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Randa_Magdi

Advice on Financing your Own Business Idea

By Tl Kleban

Any and all business owners are faced with an uphill battle when it comes to starting their own business. The amount of hurdles you need to jump to find start up capital is almost frightening which is why less entrepreneurs take the chance on their dream start up. They face problems such as little or no customers, low profits, and basically no revenue. No one realizes the amount of energy and creativity it takes to locate the necessary funds. It's this access to startup capital which determines whether a startup succeeds or fails.

The most important step in starting up a new business is getting the necessary amount of funds and that means you will need to deal with your bank. Right from the start, you better have a good credit history since you will be submitting a personal financial statement. You may even be required to make an equity investment in your business. Here are just a few more pieces of advice you should be aware of for finding start up cash for your business:

• The first thing you are going to need is a comprehensive business plan. This comprehensive plan outlines everything about your business idea from how you plan on developing it, how you will run it and how plan in doing financially. There are a large number of books and websites on the subject that can help you get started creating one.
• Put together a well thought out and credible business model for your company. The business model should include detailed financial descriptions which include every aspect of your business.
• Make sure it includes costs for sourcing or manufacturing the product, projected sales, and any marketing expenses to go along with general and administrative overhead.
• You should have an idea of how much money you will need up front. This number should include expenses such as start-up funds and enough capital to keep your business up and running until you make enough to cover expenses. In the beginning you should try to have a small list of expenses until your revenue increases. The less expenses you need to pay out, the lower your chances are of running out of money.
• Do you know what kind of investors you want associated with your business? There are a lot of companies which like to have powerful executives or financiers as investors, and then turn around and find them to be more aggravation than they are worth. Other business owners look to friends and family as a source of start up money. However, investing in start-ups can be risky, and relationships can become strained if they start to lose money.
• If you have any savings, you will need to use it. Lenders and investors expect you to fund your business to the best of your ability. Nothing shows that more than financing part if not all of the business on your own and is the best way to retain control of it.
• Ask your bank or credit union about a business loan. It is better to go to one that you are already established with than a new one since you already have a proven history with them.

Merit Capital Advance looks at the big picture by offering a financing program that provides small businesses with fast business cash It is the most convenient way to get a small business cash advance when you need it most. Visit Merit Capital Advance at www.meritcapitaladvance.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tl_Kleban

A Great Gift Giving Idea - The Timeless Gift Of Flowers

By Gin Wilburn

A great gift-giving idea is without doubt flowers. Flowers are a timeless gift and a wonderful gift for almost any occasion. Beauty, warmth and love are captured by the essence of flowers. A bouquet of flowers will frequently evoke a radiant smile and warm feelings of appreciation and love from the recipient.

Special occasions are great times for the gift giving of flowers or plants; however, any time can be a great time to give flowers. Frequently, one of the things overlooked when sending flowers is how good it makes the sender feel in knowing that they will be giving a gift that will be loved and that the recipient will be warmly thinking of them.

Here are a few great gift-giving ideas for the giving of flowers:

1. Your daughter didn't make the cheerleading squad. What a wonderful pick-me-up and a way to remind her of your love!

2. Your son just took his first step. What a great time to remember your spouse and celebrate the shared specialness of the occasion.

3. A neighbor just found out that her kids would not be able to make it home for the holidays. A beautiful boutique of flowers would be cherished by your neighbor and help ease the sadness by being reminded that others care. This great gift-giving idea will no doubt help build a lasting relationship for you and your neighbor.

4. A friend just lost her job. What a difference a beautiful arrangement of flowers can make. Maybe it can't solve the lost job problem, but the beauty and thoughtfulness will truly be appreciated and welcomed.

5. Send flowers to remind someone of a cherished memory you both shared. Perhaps you are flipping through some old photos and you find yourself going down memory lane. A beautiful arrangement of flowers or a lovely plant with a card attached describing the memory would be priceless.

6. Your son just got his long-anticipated acceptance letter to college. Send him a lovely plant to celebrate the occasion and to show him your love and how proud you are of his accomplishment. When he makes the move to the dorm he will have something to take with him as a reminder of that treasured time of celebration.

The giving of flowers is a way to make someone feel special and loved. These are only a small sample of great gift-giving ideas for when flowers can be used to create a cherished memory, brighten someone's day or remind someone they are loved.

Gin Wilburn is the author of "A Great Gift-Giving Idea: The Timeless Gift of Flowers". She is the owner of http://www.great-finds-for-you.com. The website provides helpful information on gift-giving ideas and great gift finds featuring flowers. A blog is provided featuring gift-giving recommendations and various holiday topic.

Interior Decoration Design Idea

By Stephen Ahlfeld

It is really hard sometimes to get the time to re-decorate your house with the quick pace of todays life. Home decorating is also something that is thought to take up a lot of time and effort, and that's why only a limited group of people actually get to do it. I'm sure that the majority of people are also quick to jump to the conclusion that interior design requires too much financial investment as you need to buy new carpets and lighting arrangements and other high priced household features to do attractive decoration. This is simply not the reality of the situation but is precisely why the majority of people end up hiring an expensive Interior decoration specialist to advise them. So lets attempt to lay down the fundamental concepts and common practices of interior design to help give you the most important tools which will ultimately show you how to re-arrange household features without making use of an expert, and also rid those worries of the supposed massive undertaking at hand.

Lets first start with the paining job. This is a major component in your home decoration project so the selected colours must be picked correctly. Also ensure that you get a latex paint or any high quality paint. Don't worry if the costs are very high as painting your walls only one time with a good paint is definitely less frustrating than having to paint two to three times with a cheaper paint. What you need to do is look around your rooms for features like rugs and carpets and come to an agreement on the type of colours which will complement those objects colours.

Another aspect I would like to talk about is shades. It is important to to use lighter shades for rooms as it ends up reflecting the light, therefore making he room look larger and using darker shades for larger rooms which will hopefully give them a more homely feeling.

If you would like to find out more information on how to effectively decorate your home or want to learn about interior design please visit the website below to find out about 2 top design guides.

Interior Decoration Design Guides

Internet Home Based Business Idea - The Only Idea You Will Ever Need

By Jack Lowry

Some of you will be disappointed with this article.

It is likely that you are the type of person looking for that quick fix; some hare-brained internet home based business idea that you can put to work immediately in order to pull in thousands of dollars overnight by implementing some secret possessed by only a select few successful internet home based business idea owners.

Unfortunately for you, those internet home based business ideas actually do exist.

The problem is that I could give you the easiest, cheapest, and quickest to implement internet home based business idea and you would likely fail to make it work. Now why is that?

Let's conduct a little experiment. I will give you a great, low-cost internet home based business idea that you can get started on right away, and let's see what happens.
1. Get a free blog set up on http://www.blogger.com.

2. Signup for a free account on http://www.clickbank.com and pick three products you are interested in promoting as an affiliate for your internet home based business idea (something you have knowledge about or would like to learn about).

3. Register for free on some forums targeted to your product's customer base, spend a few days helping other posters with their questions and direct them to your internet home based business idea blog, which has postings and helpful information about your chosen product's niche market topic, and include links to your affiliate and adsense advertising.

Now all of that can be done absolutely free, and would require maybe two hours a day at most, and one to two week's worth of work for your internet home based business idea. Many of you might fail to earn any money, some of you might succeed.

But there are actually many people that do this exact thing I have lined out for you that make full-time incomes, just by implementing their internet home based business ideas.

Now of course, things can get a lot more complicated, and there are specific techniques and systems you can employ to increase your internet home based business idea's success, and I and many others could help you with those things.

But the point is that those of you who fail will fail not because this internet home based business idea is a bad one, but because your thinking process is flawed. You don't have the necessary mindset required for online home based business success.

Once you discover the necessary mindset for successful internet home based business ideas and utilize that mindset in your daily life, you will have learned the only internet home based business idea you will ever need for success.

Jack Lowry is an online home business entrepreneur who recently developed a free 5-step course on learning how to start your own internet home business. If you are interested in learning more about his free 'Learn To Generate Cash From The Internet' course, please visit his website for more about an internet home based business idea.