Hourglass Dresses, Tartan and Skirts

Want an hourglass figure but don't have the willpower or the genetics to make it happen? Then fashion has a solution for you.The new optical illusion dresses literally redraw a woman's silhouette -- whether she's naturally curvy or looking to add some curves -- and they're among this fall's fashion trends making the leap from the runway.Kate Winslet wowed the crowd at the Venice Film Festival last week in a black and cream Stella McCartney dress. With a sleeveless cutout on top and cunning black panels on each side, the dress whittled away inches from Winslet's waistline while accentuating her voluptous bustline.Earlier this year, Liv Tyler wore a similar Stella McCartney in electric blue with black panels.

But McCartney is not the only designer cashing in on this trend. Victoria Beckham and Kim Kardashian have been photographed wearing an Alexander McQueen design that uses black lines on a white dress to create the impression of an hourglass. And popular stores like Topshop sell a knock-off version that's thousands cheaper.For so long that waifish boyfish figure was celebrated," Wang said. "Now, a lot of strong women who are icons, Beyonce, Michelle Obama, have volutputous beautiful figures. Fashion is playing into that. And for those of us who might need a little help, the optical iullusion gives you an hourglass figure.

Wang calls the look sexy with a little humor. "It's doing sexy with a little bit of wink," she said.As for the rest of fall's fashion trends, Wang says there's something for everyone. "There's a lot more practical sense of dressing on the runways that's relatable to the average consumer. There's skirts, pants and mid-level heels for women of all ages, shapes and styles." When New York fashion week opens tomorrow with a preview for spring 2012, Wang expects to see a continuation of the practical, as well as more "playful dressing," including playsuits and fun, clashing patterns.

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Manufacturer in Tasmania Denies Using Old-Growth Wood

Contrary to allegations from the Australian NGO Markets for Change and Greenpeace, forest products manufacturer Ta Ann Tasmania (TAT) has denied supplying eucalyptus flooring procured from "old-growth or primary forests" for the 2012 London Olympics.Alan Ashbarry, media/external relations for TAT, clarified that his company produces its eucalyptus flooring using "re-growth billets" that are between 8 inches and 28 inches in diameter; some of the company's material is procured from plantations, as well. The company receives its source materials from Forestry Tasmania, a state-sponsored logging company.

Further, Ashbarry said his company's rotary peeling equipment—located in Tasmania's Huon Valley and the town of Smithton—are not equipped to handle larger-diameter logs from old-growth timber. After the veneer is peeled, it is exported to Malaysia where it is made into plywood, wood flooring and a range of other products."Ta Ann Tasmania holds a long-term wood supply contract with Forestry Tasmania that specifies the billets in terms of length, diameter and quality," Ashbarry said. "Billets received are inspected and those not meeting specification are rejected."

Massachusetts reports that large retailers like Walmart, Whole Foods and BJ's Wholesale Club are bypassing the possibility of a concrete moisture problem (and the cost that comes with it) by choosing a polished concrete floor, which breathes and therefore doesn't trap moisture, instead of one with a floorcovering. This is not good news for the floorcovering industry because it represents hundreds of thousands of square feet of lost sales in every location, and it makes it imperative that the industry find a way to fix concrete moisture issues, regain the trust of these major retailers and win back this business.


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36pc people live in insecure houses

A large number of people living in urban and rural areas of the country, have no access to basic civic amenities, reveals National Nutrition Survey (NNS) 2011, a copy of which is available with Daily Times.survey reveals that over 36 percent people in the country are living in poorly constructed houses – surprisingly this recent data did not differ from a survey conducted in 2001-02.The facilities available also differed significantly between urban and rural areas. The survey found that 64.2 percent families were living in bricked and cemented houses while NNS’s findings in 2001-02 revealed that 62.3 percent people were living in cemented houses.

At least 20.7 percent families possess houses where walls are made only with bricks. In urban area, 86.9 percent houses are made of bricks, a slight rise from 84.7 percent in 2001. The ratio of houses with brick walls in rural area was 48.7 percent in NNS 2001 and 25.6 percent in 2011, showing an improvement in rural housing.The use of tiles for flooring was negligible in NNS 2001 whereas in the NNS 2011 the use of tiles was 9.8 percent and use of other material was on decline from 12.2 percent to 3.4 percent. In urban areas majority of houses, 64.7 percent, had cemented flooring. This was almost double to those of rural areas where only 37.5 percent houses had cemented flooring.

The NNS 2011 showed that 53.6 percent of the household heads were labourer, workers or farmers of which 35.9 percent belonged to urban and 61.6 percent to rural areas, respectively. In comparison to the previous findings of NNS 2001-02, 16.6 percent household heads belonged to the laborur, worker or farmer class.The government and private service employees were the next major group of employment, 16.4 percent were engaged with either public or private sector. The proportion of unemployed heads of households showed figures that had apparently doubled since 2001, when the percentage was merely 6 percent.

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