PopSugar

Roundup: Map Skills

CasaSugar — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:00:51 -0700

Even if you served your time in geography class years (or decades!) ago, there's no reason to let your map skills get rusty. While I'm a big fan of the Ork Neighborhood Posters, there are plenty of other ways to get your map on around the house. Take for instance this cool Uganda Painting from Etsy seller noahwoods. Created for National Geographic Traveler magazine, this piece will add vibrant color to any wall in your home.

To see how you can add map skills to your bathroom, living room, or kitchen, read more.

See Locations on a Map Without Leaving the Page

GeekSugar — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:05:12 -0700

My new favorite online tool comes from Bookmaplet and it has revolutionized my life (OK, maybe not to that extreme, but it brings a smile to my face every time I use it!). I love to travel, and hate not knowing exactly where a place is when it's mentioned on a website. All you have to do is drag and drop Map That Address into your toolbar, and then whenever you're on a site that names a city name, an address, or even a country, just highlight it (like I did with Reading, PA, in the pic below) and click "Map That Address." You'll instantly see a Google map pop up on the right-hand side of the page with the location!

Kidlandia Brings Kids' Fantasy Worlds to Life

LilSugar — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 05:00:00 -0700

A land of spaghetti mountains, ice cream ponds and broccoli forests could move beyond your child's fantasies and right to their bedroom wall. Using Kidlandia, kids and their parents can create personalized maps featuring their names, as well as those of their family, friends, pets, and favorite foods. Once the people and items have been input into the system, the site automatically populates the map with towns, characters, mountain ranges and more. Founded by a former Disney Interactive producer, the site is hands-on and allows users to move characters around the map and providies them with the opportunity to add in back stories. The creations can be stored and shared for free, but the printed versions – that could be the basis for many bedtime stories – start at $40.

DIY: Découpaged Walls

CasaSugar — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 09:00:33 -0700

Découpaging your walls with pages from an old book, antique maps, or magazine covers can instantly transform a boring wall into a conversation piece. Your wallcovering will be one of a kind, a quality that even the most glam wallpaper can't give you. Some of you might think that tearing up a book for any project is sacrilegious. If you fall into this category, use a book that's already falling apart, or that has a damaged cover. To learn the steps for this project, read more.

First things first. Carefully pull the individual pages out of your book or magazine. Running an X-acto knife across the inside of the spine helps to make this step swift.
Now, neaten up the edges with a ruler and a craft knife, making sure they're relatively straight. Do the same if you're using old maps, or even use a paper cutter if you have one. You can leave the edges as is if you're going for raw look, though.
Lay down a drop cloth or newspaper on the floor below the wall you're covering.
Open up your windows, and make sure the room is well-ventilated.
Using a sponge brush, apply wheat paste to a small portion of the wall.
Now, line up one page flush with the wall, and apply it, burnishing out any bubbles with your hands as you press it onto the wall.
Continue to apply wheat paste and press your pages onto the wall, lining them up neatly until the wall is covered. If you want a more raw look, you can overlap the pages and even stagger them a bit.
Make sure you've burnished out any bubbles. Sometimes using a credit card here will help.
Now, allow the wall to dry.
Using a synthetic bristle brush, apply a coat of Polycrylic Protective Finish, which will protect the pages from peeling, scuffing, and other damage.
If your adjacent walls get messy from applying the Polycrylic, you can easily clean it up with a sponge and some warm, soapy water.

Source

Do You Decorate With Maps?

CasaSugar — Fri, 29 May 2009 06:15:07 -0700

Growing up, I always enjoyed gazing at the map in my father's office and dreaming of all the places I'd one day visit. Like in this home, he also had a habit of pinpointing the locations he'd traveled to. While it certainly served as a logbook of sorts, it also had a beautiful visual effect - and also an ever-changing one. Do you decorate with maps?
Source

DIY: Map Coasters

CasaSugar — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 04:30:45 -0800

I've shown you a map lamp, so now's the time to match up that luminary with something for your tabletop: coasters, to be exact.

What You'll Need

Coasters
Map or other decorative paper
File folder or cardboard for template
Scissors
Mod Podge
Foam brush

To find out how to make them, read more.

Here's how, from The San Francisco Chronicle:

Turn coaster upside down on file folder and trace. Cut out template.
Trace template onto decorative paper and cut out.
Apply a thin layer of Mod Podge to coaster and back of paper. Adhere paper to coaster and press out bubbles, starting at the center and working outward.
Apply a thin layer of Mod Podge to top of papered coaster. Let dry.
Serve your new coasters with your favorite drink!

Source

DIY: Map Lamp

CasaSugar — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 11:00:47 -0800

If you have an armchair explorer in your house (you know the type, they have a whole drawer in a cabinet stuffed with maps and atlases), then I have a perfect project for that special wanderer. Chez Larsson came up with this easy and fun lampshade project that will add some topography to your living room, without putting a dent in your pocketbook.

What You'll Need

White lampshade
Map
Cutting surface, such as cutting board
Spray adhesive
Scissors or Exacto knife

To find out how to make it, read more.

Here's how to do it, from Chez Larsson:

Measure between the edges of the lampshade and cut a long strip that covers the shade and then some.
Spray permanent spray adhesive onto the back of the map in a well-ventilated area and affix to the outside of the shade, smoothing out any air bubbles with your hands.
Let dry, and enjoy!

Source

Where I'm Clicking Now: Global Electoral College

LibertySugar — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 11:00:15 -0700

The Economist polled the world to find out who would win the US election if the result depended on a global electoral college. The results so far: Obama would win 9,103 votes to McCain's 163. The poll gives every country a minimum of three votes, and then allocates additional votes based on the proportion of the world's 6.5 billion voting population located in each country.

The methodology becomes less than scientific after that, as those visiting the website to vote make up the sample. Once a country has more than 10 votes, the results get added to the map. As of now, Afghanistan and Iran are strong Obama countries, while Iraq's 43 electoral votes seem secure in the McCain column. Macedonia is the only country in Europe leaning McCain right now, in addition to a few countries in Africa.

The fact that the world is painted solid blue hints that the international media must have painted Obama in a positive light. It also provides evidence that a President Obama could help make the American brand internationally popular again.

Source

Voting by the Book: Amazon Maps US's Political Reading List

CitizenSugar — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 10:00:13 -0700

If our electoral map were as red as Amazon's map of our political book-buying habits, things would be looking up for John McCain. Yet while Americans are buying up conservative books, our electoral map is getting bluer and bluer each day.

I initially chalked up this discrepancy to how unscientific Amazon's map is. After all, so many variables could affect this. Like how book publishers began feverishly launching conservative imprints five years ago to keep up with an increasing public demand. Could there just be a lot of conservative books to buy right now? Maybe they are better? Republicans tend to be older and older people read print over websites. Or maybe Democrats are at the library, or just buying all their books at indie stores. Who knows?

However, I became more convinced of a real connection when I compared the 2008 map to the 2004. I couldn't help but concoct a few theories about what we're ~~reading~~ buying. To see what I found, read more.

The map this year is much redder than it was four years ago; however, we elected a Republican president then and, if polls can be believed, we're about to elect a Democratic president. It could be possible that people read more when they're looking for answers, or an alternative to a reality they don't like. Did Democrats fear Republican control in 2004? Are Republicans worried about a Democratic president, Senate, and Congress today? Or is this just a meaningless map to help Amazon sell books?

Source

The Atlas of the Real World Maps Out Demographic Importance

LibertySugar — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 14:30:32 -0700

The Telegraph recently featured The Atlas of the Real World: Mapping the Way We Live, which uses software to illustrate countries around the world, not by their land size, but by their demographic rank on a range of subjects. The size of each country represents its land mass in proportion to that of the others.

The atlas depicts a whole assortment of topics - from tourist destinations, alcohol consumption, wealth in the year one versus wealth in 1990. I was intrigued by the images above, which show (1) the increase in emissions of carbon dioxide and (2) the decrease in emissions of carbon dioxide. Between 1980 and 2000, nearly three-quarters of all territories saw an increase in carbon dioxide emissions with China, the United States, and India leading the pack. Between 1980 and 2000, 28 percent of countries reduced their emissions. Almost half of reductions were made in territories of the former Soviet Union, while Germany, Poland, and France also made substantial cuts.

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