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While the outcome could have been better for No. 2 overall pick Mitch Trubisky and the Chicago Bears, the young rookie quarterback's play will leave Bears fan anxious to see more.
Trubisky fielded the Bears second-highest game grade and fielded great accuracy numbers. Oh, and the Broncos got some pretty decent defensive performances in there to hold off the Bears for the 24-17 victory. With that, we give you our PFF exclusive takeaways from the contest for each team.
Top 5 Grades
DI Shelby Harris, 88.8 overall grade
S Orion Stewart, 88.0 overall grade
HB De'Angelo Henderson, 81.7 overall grade
EDGE Danny Mason, 80.1 overall grade
DI Shakir Soto, 79.0 overall grade
Performances of note:
HB De'Angelo Henderson, 81.7 overall grade
The sixth-round rookie from Coastal Carolina provided a spark for the Broncos' ground game. He gained 4.7 yards after contact per attempt and forced a missed tackle on his 41-yard touchdown run on his way to an 81.7 overall grade.
QB Trevor Siemian, 73.0 overall grade
Siemian finished with the best overall grade (73.0) of the Broncos' quarterbacks. He completed both of his intermediate passes (targeted 10-19 yards downfield) for 25 yards.
S Orion Stewart, 88.0 overall grade
Stewart had a solid outing all-around, but especially in coverage. He was targeted four times on 15 snaps in coverage, and allowed two catches for just a combined four yards, both of which resulted in defensive stops. He also added another stop in run defense.
DI Shelby Harris, 88.8 overall grade
Even though Harris finished with only two run stops, he was a force that distrupted several other run plays as well that led to stops by other defenders. Harris was also tied with a team-high two pressures as a pass-rusher, both being hurries.
Top 5 Grades
G Tom Compton, 86.0 overall grade
QB Mitch Trubisky, 85.1 overall grade
LB Nick Kwiatoski, 80.2 overall grade
G Taylor Boggs, 79.0 overall grade
DI Jonathan Bullard, 78.0 overall grade
Performances of note:
QB Mitch Trubisky, 85.1 overall grade
If the rookie quarterback continues to play like he did on Thursday night, he's going to make it much more difficult for the Bears' front office and coach staff to stick to their plan of having him sit as a rookie. Although it was just one half of a preseason game against backups, he still played well when many rookie quarterbacks struggle in the preseason. When accounting for batted passes. drops, throwaways, and spikes, Trubisky's adjusted completion percentage was 90.9 percent.
RBs Ka'Deem Carey, 76.1 overall grade; Tarik Cohen, 72.1 overall grade
The Bears' backups to Jordan Howard had a few impressive runs, despite many of the reserve offensive linemen not performing that well in the run game. Carey and Cohen combined for three runs over ten yards, while Benny Cunningham rattled off the longest run of the game for the Bears at 26 yards, and led the way with his 52.4 elusive rating.
DI Jonathan Bullard, 78.0 overall grade
Bullard was a disruptive force on the line of scrimmage for the Bears' defense. He had two stops in the run game and provided one quarterback pressure on his 13 pass-rush snaps. .
LB Nick Kwiatkoski, 80.2 overall grade
Impressive in coverage, Kwiatkoski only allowed one reception for six yards in and yet was more impressive as a run defender with three run stops and a 81.0 run defense grade.
PFF Game Ball: Mitch Trubisky, QB
*Grades subject to change

subset: commoncrawl


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Opponents speak against bill to limit absentee voting
A coalition of voter-rights advocates, including Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, Ald. Milele Coggs and community leaders, expressed opposition Tuesday to a proposed Assembly bill that would trim hours for in-person absentee voting.
The group also urged city voters to turn out on April 2 and vote yes on an advisory referendum in favor of same-day voter registration. The referendum asks voters: "Should the State of Wisconsin continue to permit citizens to register to vote at the polls on election day?"
Barrett and others said Wisconsin has a long and rich tradition of open and accessible voting laws. The Assembly bill threatens that, he and others said.
The bill would limit in-person absentee voting hours to Monday through Friday between 7:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., between the third Monday before an election and the Friday before an election. The bill also states that absentee voting sites would not be allowed to remain open more than 40 hours per week.
"We should be making the right to vote easier," Coggs said.
Barrett noted that Reince Priebus, the head of the Republican National Committee, said this week that the party was committed to reaching out to minority voters. But Barrett said it was ironic that, in Wisconsin, Republicans were trying to enact legislation that "makes it more difficult to vote," especially for people of color.
Rep. Duey Stroebel (R-Saukville) said he introduced the bill because he wanted to bring "equality and fairness to voting for all."
He said he wanted "equal rules that everybody has to live by."
He disputed Democratic claims that it was an attempt to limit voting, saying he wanted to give all people the same opportunities to vote.
Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin), chairwoman of the Senate Education Committee, said Stroebel's bill is worthy of discussion but she has concerns about aspects of it.
"I don't think the bill is ready for prime time," she said.
She said his bill might be premature and she would like to determine what voting issues to take up by first auditing the state Government Accountability Board, which oversees voting.
"I don't want the Legislature to get ahead of itself," she said.
Pastor Greg Lewis of St. Gabriel's Church of God in Christ said that poor people need to maintain their right to vote.
Spokeswomen for Wisconsin Election Protection and the League of Women Voters also expressed opposition to Stroebel's bill and are in favor of same-day voter registration.


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We would love a few volunteers to help launder some of the the Wrinkle in Time costumes over the weekend...or over break. Can you help?
Who: FIVE Parent/Guardian Households
Hours of work: A few loads of laundry, a dry, and a fold
Needs to be done: By Jan 2 (or sooner)
Time: You pick them up when you can and deliver back to us when you can.
Please email us at firstname.lastname@example.com if you can help.
Include your name, job name, and pickup times that work for you. We will confirm.
Thank you!


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How to Avoid W-2 Errors
Mistakes happen to the best of us. When a mistake happens on an employee's Form W-2, it's important to correct it immediately and avoid any potential fines. But wouldn't it be even better to avoid W-2 errors altogether? Let's discuss the top ten most common Form W-2 errors and how to avoid them.
Common Form W-2 Errors
1. Excess Contributions to HSA
If excess contributions are made to an employee's Health Savings Account (HSA) that exceed the 2018 maximum annual contribution amount of $3,450 for self-only coverage or $6,900 for family coverage, the employer may correct this one of two ways:
- The employer request a return of excess funds from the financial institution and this amount is then refunded to the employee. The employer then issues a Form W-2c showing the reduction in the amount reported in box 12, Code W.
- The employer chooses not to recover the excess contributions and those funds must then be included as taxable wages on Form W-2, boxes 1, 3, and 5. The Social Security and Medicare tax owed on the excess amount is shown in boxes 4 and 6. If this is not properly recorded on the Form W-2, a Form W-2c must be issued.
2. Excess Contributions to Qualified Retirement Plan
Qualified retirement plans include 401(k)s and 403(b)s. Excess contributions are not reported on a Form W-2 but on a Form 1099-R.
3. Excess Pretax Contributions to FSA
If an employee's annual pretax contribution exceeded the 2018 FSA contribution limit of $2,650, the excess should be refunded to the employee and the amount recorded as taxable wages in Form W-2c, boxes 1, 2, and 5.
Keep in mind, the employer is liable for any Social Security and Medicare tax not withheld and must pay this amount. The employer is also responsible for any federal income tax and Additional Medicare Tax not withheld. The federal income and Additional Medicare Tax liability, less any penalties, can be abated by obtaining Form 4469 from the employee.
4. Incorrect Amount Reported in Box 12, Code DD
This is where the aggregate value of employer-sponsored health coverage is reported. A form W-2c is required to be filled out to correct the amount in box 12, Code DD. Failure to do so can result in a penalty assessed of $270 per Form W-2.
5. Missing/Incorrect Name or SSN
Employers are required by the IRS to correct errors made in an employee's name or Social Security number (SSN). Errors can include leaving an employee name or SSN blank or showing the SSN as "000 00 0000" or "applied for" after a valid SSN is obtained from the employee.
If any employee has changed their name due to a marriage or divorce, they are required to furnish a new Form W-4. If the employee last name on the Form W-4 differs from what is on their Social Security card, they will need to check box 4 on the Form W-4.
The method for correcting these errors depends on the circumstances:
|Nature of Error
|Correction to Form W-2c
|Correction to Form W-3c
|Employee name or SSN was incorrectly reported on Form W-2.
|Complete boxes d-i for up to the statute of limitations. Tell employee to correct the Form W-2 attached to Form 1040.
|Complete boxes d-j for at least up to the statute of limitations.
|Employee obtains new or reissued Social Security card.
|Complete boxes d-i only for the most current year.
|Complete boxes d-j only for the most current year.
|Name and SSN were blank on Form W-2.
|Call the Social Security Administration for instructions.
|Call the Social Security Administration for instructions.
6. Incorrect Employer Name or Address
The employer's name and address should be the same across Forms W-2, 941, 941-SS, 943, 944, CT-1 or Schedule H (Form 1040). If a change of employer address is required, a Form 8822-B should be filed. Form W-3c cannot be used to correct this type of information.
7. Incorrect Employee Address
An employer has three options if the Form W-2 has an error related to the employee's address:
- Furnish the employee with a corrected Form W-2 with "reissued statement" printed on it.
- Mail the original Form W-2 to the employee's correct address.
- Complete a Form W-2c showing the correct address and all other correct information, if applicable.
8. Incorrect EIN or Tax Year
Employer Identification Number (EIN) or tax year errors on Form W-2 can create several time-consuming problems for employers, including issues with Forms 941. As a result, there is a penalty assessed for EIN and tax year reporting errors. Correcting the EIN or tax year is a two-step process.
Step 1: Prepare Forms W-2c and W-3c with the Previously Reported Information
- Provide the incorrect EIN in box b and/or the incorrect tax year in box c.
- Show the money amounts originally reported in the previously reported column.
- Show zeros in the corrected amounts column.
Step 2: Prepare Forms W-2c and W-3c with the Correct Information
- Show zero in the money amounts of the previously reported column.
- Show the money amounts originally reported in the corrected amounts column.
Make sure to give employees a copy of Forms W-2c and file Forms W-2c and W-3c with the SSA.
9. Error Withholding Federal Income Tax/Additional Medicare Tax
Corrections in the reporting of federal income tax or Additional Medicare Tax withheld on a Form W-2 is not allowed by the IRS unless it deemed "administrative". Meaning, if the amounts shown on Form 941 do not match with the amounts actually withheld, the error may be corrected.
The IRS does not allow for an employee to have federal income tax or Additional Medicare Tax withheld from current wages for the purpose of correcting under- or overwithholding in a previous tax year.
10. Box 13 "Retirement Plan" Checked in Error
It is important to fix this error as soon as it's discovered. If box 13 for "retirement plan" is checked in error, this could lead to the employee receiving notices from the IRS for additional tax assessments.
Use Form W-3c to correct this error by checking box 13 "retirement plan" in the previously reported column and leaving it blank in the corrected amounts column.
When Should You Check Box 13?
|Type of Retirement Plan
|Employee Conditions
|Should You Check the "Retirement Plan" Box?
|Defined benefit plan (i.e. traditional pension plan)
|Employee qualifies for employer funding into the plan because of age or years of service — even though the employee may not be vested or ever collect benefits.
|Defined contribution plan (401(k) or 403(b) plan, Roth 401(k) or 403(b) account, but not a 457 plan)
|Employee is eligible to contribute
but does not elect to contribute
any money in this tax year.
|Defined contribution plan (401(k) or 403(b) plan, Roth 401(k) or 403(b) account, but not a 457 plan)
|Employee is eligible to contribute
and elects to contribute money
in this tax year.
|Defined contribution plan (401(k) or 403(b) plan, a Roth 401(k) or 403(b) account, but not a 457 plan)
|Employee is eligible to
contribute but does not elect
to contribute any money in this
tax year, but the employer does
contribute funds.
|Defined contribution plan (401(k) or 403(b) plan, a Roth 401(k) or 403(b) account, but not a 457 plan)
|Employee has contributed in
past years but not during the
current tax year under report.
|No (even if the account value grows due to gains in the investments)
|Profit-sharing plan
|Plan includes a grace period
after the close of the plan
year when profit sharing can
be added to the participant's
Avoiding W-2 Errors Entirely
Year-end processing is always overwhelming and time-consuming, so the last thing you need to worry about is correcting W-2 errors. A great way is to be proactive about W-2 errors is to partner with a payroll provider that offers a unified, cloud-based solution. Using a unified database is beneficial in three ways:
- Information is entered only once, eliminating the potential for errors.
- All data is synced between payroll, HR, attendance, and more so information is always accurate and up-to-date.
- A cloud-based solution provides a secure, centralized database to store and protect sensitive data.
Also, check to see if your current payroll provider offers a W-2 error checking algorithm. This tool can be a major timesaver, especially during year-end processing. It provides a powerful and intuitive engine that checks your W-2 information against the federal database, alerting you to potential errors before they are in your employees' hands. A proactive approach is always better than a reactive one.
Error Alert!
The IRS requires that employee Form W-2s and Form 1095-Cs must match what is printed on their social security cards. For example, if an employee has a hyphenated last name on their social security card but it is not hyphenated on their Form W-2 or Form 1095-C, this will be viewed as an error.
Form W-2 Penalties
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) may impose a penalty for each Form W-2 with a missing or incorrect Social Security number or employee name. If there are errors, you would then be subject to the following penalties:
- $50 per Form W-2 if you correctly file within 30 days of the due date, with a maximum penalty of $545,500 ($191,000 for small businesses).
- $100 per Form W-2 if you correctly file more than 30 days after the due date but by August 1, 2019; a maximum penalty of $1,637,500 per year ($545,000 for small businesses).
- $270 per Form W-2 if you correctly file after August 1, or you do not file required Forms W-2; a maximum penalty of $3,275,000 per year ($1,091,500 for small businesses).
Bottom Line
Now is the time to address any gaps you have in your W-2 or year-end processing instead of dealing with penalties later. The right tools and resources can help you better manage all the tasks this time of year and avoid W-2 errors entirely. If your current payroll provider doesn't offer tools like an error-checking algorithm for accurate W-2 processing, it may be time for something better.
Are you ready for year-end processing?
Use our handy monthly year-end guide and resources to tackle year-end processing with confidence.
How APS Can Help
The APS Payroll solution has a built-in Form W-2 error-checking algorithm that reviews all of your W-2s and identifies any potential errors based on current IRS error codes and allows you to correct errors distributing W-2s to employees. Call us today at 855.945.7921 to learn more or request a customized demo.
Ernst & Young: When, why and how to correct 2017 Form W-2 errors
General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-2 (2018)
Employer-Provided Health Coverage Informational Reporting Requirements: Questions and Answers
About Form 941-X, Adjusted Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return or Claim for Refund
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Data-Driven Decisions for Restaurants: How to Collect, Analyze, and Profit
With technological advances, most restaurants have access to huge amounts of real-time data from multiple systems. With the right strategic approach and processes in place, this data can be used to reveal many insights into every aspect of a restaurant's business. However, when it comes to implementation of data-driven strategies to bolster sales and improve operational efficiency, most restaurant owners do not know where to begin. This article will help you understand how to get started with a data-driven approach, what data to look at, and what sources will generate the data.
1. Inventory Data
When coming up with menu options it is imperative that a restaurateur knows the ingredients of each dish, what quantities are required in order to prepare a dish, and thereby the profitability of each dish. Collecting data around inventory enables a restaurateur to:
- Keep track of profit margins and hence have the ability to push more profitable items
- Keep costs low by ordering the required amount as and when needed
- Minimize pilferages and food wastes
What do you need
Some of the data points you should be looking at include:
- Food inventory
- Suppliers
- Unit prices
Why do you need it
- Food cost is one of the most important costs (can run as high as 38 percent).
- You need to know the cost per plate for each recipe on your menu to determine its profitability.
- By comparing your actual inventory to your theoretical inventory you can have a clear idea about the reason for discrepancies—waste, theft, burned food—and start improving on those processes.
- Tracking food costs helps restaurants have a correct estimate of future expenditures on inventory.
With the help of this data you can analyze your best-selling menu items and your most profitable menu items to get an idea about which items are contributing to your bottom line and engineer your menu accordingly.
How do you get it?
Although, conventionally, most restaurant owners keep a track of their inventory manually, the process is usually time consuming and can be subject to human errors. Operators can their use point-of-sale system to keep track of inventory, saving a lot of time and effort. Food suppliers help restaurateurs walk through the inventory controls and menu mixes.
2. Financial Data
The viability of a business depends on its ability to sustain financially—the ability of a restaurant to keep track of profit and loss, cash flow and cost (actual & projections)—all these fall within the financial data collection and insights part.
What do you need
Some of the data points you should be looking at include:
- Recurring items like your rent, utilities
- Wages
- Revenues (per time period)
- Cost of raw material
- Total number of items sold
- Average cost per item
- Total food cost
- Cash flow projections
- Profit
Why do you need it
This data determines whether or not your business is successful and affects almost every other aspect of your restaurant. The primary purpose of monthly financial statements is to enable you to assess the effectiveness of decisions and strategies.
How do you get it?
- You can get a detailed report from your POS—based on order type, based on time, based on item etc.
- Take a look at your credit card processor and figure out if there are any trends that you can predict
- Online ordering sales from your system as well as third parties like GrubHub, UberEats, etc.
3. Kitchen Data
How efficient is your kitchen staff? What is the turnaround time for a dish to be cooked? Are there any patterns that you can see from kitchen?
What You Need
Some of the data points you should be looking at include:
- It is important to have a correct estimate of cook time or how long it takes a menu item to go from the initial order stage to completion.
- You would need to calculate and track the difference in cooking time of two food items on the same order, to ensure that food is fresh and at the right temperature when it arrives at the customer's table.
- Every successful restaurant owner has an accurate measure of the time it takes an order that has been prepared to leave the kitchen and reach the table.
Why do you need it?
- Tracking of orders
- Improved inventory management and waste control
- Increased service speed and efficiency
- Better customer service
How do you get it?
You could obviously manually measure and track such data for your restaurant, however, an automated kitchen display system could take care of collecting and reporting this data for you.
4. Guest Management
To improve efficiency and customer service, a restaurant needs to keep track of data on guest management.
What do you need?
Some of the data points you should be looking at include:
- How long customers have to wait before they can be seated at a table or wait times.
- How many guests or parties can you serve within a given period or turnaround time?
- What is the average size of parties of guests visiting your restaurants: for instance, couples, families of three or four or more?
- How many guests do you have in your restaurant at a given time or average guest counts.
- How efficiently you're using your seating capacity at any given time or seating efficiency.
Why You Need It:
Guest management data will help you identify bottlenecks and give you an indicator of where to you could improve.
How to get It?
- Wait times can be calculated manually. While you can get the turnaround time from your POS by deducting the time a table has been assigned to the time a check has been cut out. Your POS could also provide you data on party size and guest count.
- Seating efficiency is related to your wait times. Are you seating a party of four in a table that can accommodate six guests and so on? This would be obtained from comparing your party size against your seating chart and then compared to your wait times.
- You can also get analytics, such as do you have a large number of couples or singles, and that means your seating should accommodate couples with tables allocated for four. Also, you might want to have some kind of a plan B to accommodate larger groups so that you do not disturb other customers in the restaurant.
All of these data points require some time and energy to organize and calculate manually, but improvement in efficiency are definitely worth the effort. On the other hand you could get an automated guest management system tied up to your POS to make your life easier.
5. Customer Data
Most businesses collect some data on their customers. Most of them have basic contact info, like a name and a means to contact via email, phone number or street address. However, it is equally important to have guest-specific data food allergies, their favorite dishes from their purchase history, and their birthdays or anniversaries, at least for your regular customers.
What do you need?
Some of the data points you should be looking at include:
- Name
- Address
- Phone numbers
- Emails
- Birthdays
- Anniversaries
- Favorite menu items
- Purchasing habits
- Food allergies
Why You Need It?
Your customers are the most important aspect of your business and targeted marketing efforts show much better results as compared to a cookie-cutter approach.
Optimize your menu: Restaurants have a significant amount of data on their customers that can reveal which menu items are more popular than others. With this data in hand, you can manage your restaurant inventory better, avoid food waste, and decide which menu items to promote. This information also helps ensure that you are comfortably stocked for busy nights or decide which items should be replaced with more profitable choices.
Build better relationship with customers: Information like purchasing habits, preferences, demographics, and personal information can be used to build long-lasting customer relationships which in turn drives sales. For instance, sending out gift coupons on birthdays or anniversaries, or keeping in mind food allergies while sending out a promo offer to a guest.
Offer rewards: You can send discounts or special offers to your customers, encouraging them to return. Personalization is the key to building long-term customer loyalty. With data in hand, you can create personalized offers on the basis of previous purchase history.
Give preference to your regular customers: It is a great idea to build a bond with your regulars by offering special privileges in the form of unique discounts or promotional offers.
Encourage slow-hour visits: You can create targeted offers to lure your regular visitors to visit you during the slow hours.
Determine busy and slow days to create restaurant promotions around your slow nights.
Create a better marketing strategy: Data from these sources can help you to frame an informed marketing strategy.
How to Get It?
There are several ways of collecting customer data. You can obviously collect contact information, email ids, birthdays or feedbacks manually or train your staff to do it. You can also collate data collected through loyalty programs or any other programs that you may be offering to your customers. Several of these third-party apps, including loyalty programs, can be integrated with your POS to give you a more comprehensive set of data. You can even go for a full-fledged customer relationship management software that takes care of all your marketing requirements automatically.
6. Social Media Data
Although there is a lot of varied opinions on the importance of social media for your restaurant business, it can't be argued that you would miss out on a large segment of your potential audience if you totally ignore your social media presence.
What You Need
Some of the data points you should be looking at include:
- Number of followers
- Average reach
- Average engagement rate
Why You Need It?
Most of your current and potential customers spend a significant part of their day interacting on social media platforms. It becomes pertinent to harness this valuable resource to understand how your target audience perceives your brand and engage with potential customers.
How to Get It
Most of this data is built directly into the social media platforms you use via "insights."
Once you have all the relevant data sets from multiple sources, the next step is to collect the data in one place in order to get a comprehensive view of the data. Analyze each data set in relation to the other in order to draw meaningful insights and actionable strategies. With strong restaurant data systems in place, you can preserve your energies for what's truly important—running your restaurant.
Seshu Madabush is a serial entrepreneur with a focus on restaurant marketing, working on the latest venture mKonnekt. mKonnekt is a customer engagement platform that mines customer data to create personalized and unique dining experiences.


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What's better: giving corporate gifts or receiving them? Believe it or not, research actually shows that the joy of giving lasts longer . When we receive a personalized gift, we're more likely to compare it to other gifts. But when we give a gift, we focus less on comparison and ...
The Sendoso team is back with another edition of Unboxed! This time, we've got a sweet and savory treat from our vendor partners at Garrett Popcorn Shops. Their team sent us a delightful snow-themed tin during the holiday season with a thoughtful note. Inside the tin was a mix of caramel and cheddar popcorn (which was quickly devoured in our office).
In the digital age, direct mail marketing might be more powerful than it's ever been. Sure, this channel can be difficult to automate, scale, and measure ROI for without a Sending Platform. But research shows that direct mail is more enjoyable, memorable, and persuasive than digital messages. While people will ...
Did you know half of your best customers also shop with your competitors? So in order to keep them as customers, you must ensure that they regularly engage with your product (and enjoy the experience). That's why it's time for product teams to think about corporate gift ideas. Here are three ways to increase adoption, engagement, and customer experience.
Today, we celebrate love—customer love. And irect mail campaigns are a fantastic strategy for nurturing customers and keeping them engaged. Here are seven ways to use direct mail for showing customers how much you appreciate them all year long.
One of the most popular direct mail touches we see people sending is the coffee bundle: a fun box with a custom coffee blend, branded mugs, and handwritten note. This is a great touch that can be sent to a recipient's company as a special treat for the whole company to enjoy! In our latest episode of Unboxed, we look at a custom coffee bundle from our vendor partners at Trapdoor Coffee Roasters.
What do corporate gifting ideas have to do with survey responses? We're glad you asked. We recently launched an integration with SurveyMonkey so that you can incentivize survey responses with eGifts, swag, physical gifts, and more. Here are three different ways to incorporate gifting into your surveys.
The holidays are quickly approaching and you hardly have time to think about corporate gift ideas for your customers, clients, prospects, and recruits—let alone plan an entire campaign. Well, fear not, savvy business leader. Sendoso has got your back. We put together this easy-to-reference infographic just for you.
What's the difference between personalization and customization? In a world where we have more access to data about our buyers than we ever have in our past, this question comes up a lot. After all, 96% of marketers say personalization advances customer relationships and 58% of consumers, themselves, say they ...
Engaged customers are a result of successful onboarding experiences. Ahead of our Advocamp 2018 session, we're going to share some creative direct mail campaigns you can use during onboarding to keep your customers engaged.
What is the main building block of brand loyalty? Having excellent customer experience with a brand is the leading influencer for brand loyalty. Your prospects and customers feel your level of customer experience spanning from your website chat to your marketing emails. In an age where every business is trying to excel at customer experience, why wouldn't you try direct mail to help with this goal? Let's see 3 simple ways to use direct mail to help you excel at Customer Experience:


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Is Male Grooming Beauty's Final Frontier?
As long as I've been researching the male grooming market, it's been on the cusp of a revolution.
But in 30 years, it's never happened.
Every few years, there's been a new moniker to describe enlightened men and their grooming habits.
In the early 1990s, there was New Man, followed by Metrosexuals (forever associated with David Beckham).
These men, we were told, were starting to take grooming seriously and were incorporating a whole host of shaving, personal hygiene and skincare products into their routine.
The reality was that relatively few, mainly young, men did, and that their routines were still pretty limited when compared to women's.
More recently, a whole new vocabulary has emerged, such as Spornosexual and Lumbersexual, settling on Hipsters in 2016. Yes, these men's choice of products still revolved mainly around a fairly basic shaving/personal hygiene routine, sometimes borrowing from their partner's stash.
Frankly, the idea of putting men into such rigid categories has done little to help the evolution of the category.
Yet, for all the excitement over men's grooming, most men haven't really changed their grooming habits that much, even though awareness and attitudes towards personal appearance have.
So what's really going on?It's a question I've been exploring with brand design consultancy, Two by Two, and we've collaborated on a report entitled: Male Grooming: Beauty's Final Frontier?*
The idea came from a conversation Two by Two had with a client on the concept of how "male vanity" is changing amongst consumers.
Louise Barfield, head of marketing at Two by Two, comments: "This got us thinking about what's missing and the untapped opportunities for men in skincare, grooming and beyond."
In addition, Ashwin Shaw, director, Two by Two, said: "We were really surprised that the clichés associated with male grooming are still there.
"We're interested in breaking down some of the barriers and creating new thinking for brands."
What the Experts Think about the Men's Grooming Category
Two by Two ran an online consumer survey amongst beauty industry experts, influencers and marketing professionals (Feb-April 2017) to find out the direction they think men's grooming is taking.
Skincare is the category that has received the greatest investment in terms of new product development, but few brands have ventured beyond skincare into new territories.Here are some stats:
When considering skincare products other than moisturisers, 35% of respondents believe men ask friends and family and 27% say they turn to their partner. This suggests that men rely on people they know for new product recommendations, rather than searching for information online or turning to bloggers or vloggers.
Facial enhancement and cosmetics is deemed to be the category most lacking in products, but has the potential for growth, believe 54% of respondents.
By 2020, tinted moisturisers and concealers will be bathroom staples, according to 39% and 31% of respondents. However, none of those surveyed thought that the use of brow gel will be widespread - yet this is an area that has been receiving a lot of attention in terms of new product development.
Before change can happen, men's brands need to break away from hackneyed category language and "for men" clichés. It will require a new mindset…is the industry prepared for it?
Examining New Ways to Engage Men
The research showed us that it's not just about men's attitudes towards their looks, but other issues: masculinity, emotional and physical wellbeing and identity.
Louise maintains that the sheet diversity of millennials and mature execs to bikers and gym "palestrati" calls for fresh thinking and clearer insight. "You can't just assume that each group has the same needs," she claims.
Men's grooming, or however it will end up being described, is a work-in-progress.Join in the conversation below and on twitter to be part of the change.
* To receive a summary of the report (full report available at the end of June), contact Louise Barfield at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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The Definition of idiocy: Trying to make Converts on a Blog
The Definition of idiocy: Trying to make Converts on a Blog.
Here is a cool idea.
"I blog therefore I am God"
Join a call centre and make calls to sell long distance saving on your mobile phone. We have not heard of that before, have we? Better still, adapt that same model to sell a new religion. You can't fail.
Now whilst everyone is practising their phone slamming technique let's take a second to think this through. Why would it fail? Call centres have to turn profit and if they did not catch a few customers then they would cease to exist.
Then again why should religions and timeshare have all the fun? Why not use the same model to sell a bunch of wacky political ideologies mixed with wonky logic and philosophical ambiguities. You are sure to start a whole new movement in one day.
Still not convinced? I'll even throw in steak knives.
Of course, if no one likes what you are peddling then it is all 'their' fault. No way could it be the product or the call centre operator. No way.
So you lack the budget for a call centre campaign. What can you do?
I know. Blogs cost nothing and have a captive audience. You can peddle your vapourware to those sheep and wait for the followers to flock in. The plan is perfect, the plan cannot fail, the plan relies upon, your intelligence and therefore anyone who does not agree is obviously stupid.
Reality check
How many converts do you have so far? Did they convert or were they already in agreement and you discovered them on line. Birds of a feather do flock together. Chances are the people who agree with you do so because they have read similar books, attended similar meetings, watched the same film, enjoy the same music or subscribe to the same conspiracy sites. Your loyal converts may not actually be converts but people with similar interests.
Here is another problem:
Why would you expect everyone to agree with this little self-congratulating microcosm?
That is just plain silly. Can you imagine a conversation going this way on Stormfront (KKK's chat site).
KKK Dude: So what you are really saying it that I have been misjudging my fellow human beings.
Enlightened One: It is not your fault that you were so misguided. You haven't had the benefit of my teachings.
KKK Dude: Thank you Enlightened One. I will dedicate my life to your teachings.
Hands up those that just cannot see this happening.
Yet in a blog environment, this is precisely what convert driven blogs expect. They start with an agenda and assume that people need conversion to their way of thinking. They assume that their list of enemies is everyone's list of enemies. They assume that their school of thought is the one that everyone will automatically adopt in just a few lessons. They assume that anyone who does not agree does so because a: they are stupid or b: they are an agent for the enemy sent to destroy them.
There is much to be said for self-delusion and grandstanding. It can act as a good buffer against cold hard reality. It also helps people sleep with clear conscience at their lack of actions to back up their empty words. It also means that inconsistencies and poor reasoning can be ignored with a single word or slogan.
I have no problem with people deluding themselves that one day everyone will convert to their way of thinking. Half the world already thinks that. Just go to Pub or a Bohemian Coffee Shop and mention any controversial subject. If you are lucky you may get a word in after two hours of preaching, hen pecking and nagging. Yet after all that time few people ask where they can sign up. Rather they look for a great excuse to leave or they hit back with their preaching, hen pecking and nagging. Funny how neither side will be convinced by such diatribes.
On a blog people blog (which is code for: 'crap on endlessly'). They commit to the disposable environment their disposable thoughts. Then they try to defend those disposable thoughts to the death. Eventually, the disposable thoughts are no longer disposable and become the key element of some convoluted ideology that they have invented over a weekend of Facebook and emails. The manifesto works because it was checked in their own heads and they are never wrong.
So as I watch all these sites come and go I do so with a small grin. I count my converts, which number exactly zero, and scratch my head wondering why people bother. As if controlling all of this a reflection of the real world. It is at best a bunch of self-promoting tossers trying to tell everyone else how to run the planet. The irony is that the rest of the planet could not care less. The half drunk nut in their local Pub often makes more sense.


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Category Archives: Jesus
Jesus' Counter-Cultural Message
Jesus' Counter-Cultural Message Today we can feel around us the criticism that comes from teaching a counter-cultural message. Christ was first; he taught a countercultural message and it eventually got him crucified because the people simply didn't want to hear it; … Continue reading
News of Great Joy!
News of Great Joy! There is a tendency, at this time of year, for many to go on about the absence of Christ during the Christmas season. Of course, it is important to draw this distinction so that we … Continue reading
Lumen Fidei — The Light of Faith – A Commentary Part IV
Lumen Fidei — The Light of Faith Pope Francis' First Encyclical – A Commentary Part IV Faith The Holy Father shows how faith should be the very foundation of our society in this final chapter – chapter 4 of Lumen … Continue reading
Lumen Fidei — The Light of Faith – A Commentary Part II
Lumen Fidei — The Light of Faith Pope Francis' First Encyclical – A Commentary Part II Chapter Two is an incredible section. The Holy Father points out that there is a necessary and important link between faith and truth and … Continue reading
Promises of Our Lord to those devoted to His Sacred Heart
As a spiritual devotion during this Year of Faith, our Pastor, Father Jan has instituted adoration and prayer in the presence of the Images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. These are the promises … Continue reading
Why are you looking at the Heavens?
Why are you Looking to the Heavens? Christianity, especially Catholic Christianity, is not a 'spectator sport' or, more precisely, not a 'spectator religion.' Ours is a religion of 'action' — a religion of a people called to active discipleship and … Continue reading
Sunday Scripture Notes – The Word of the Lord is Good Enough for Me
Sunday Scripture Notes The Word of the Lord is Good Enough for Me John 12:44-50 For Peter, the word of Jesus was different from the word of anyone else. Had anyone but Jesus told Peter to 'Launch out into the … Continue reading


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Business TypeManufacturer
Main MarketsSoutheast Asia
Product/ServiceTea bag packaging machine, packing machines, tea bag pack
Business Owner
Employees11 - 50 People
Company TagsBeverage Manufacturer - Healthy Lifestyles - Packaging Machine - Packing Machines - Tea Bag
Company Introduction
Our company name is Healthy Lifestyles Manufacturing Corporation. We are a beverage manufacturer based in the Philippines. Because of our explansion plans, we are now looking for efficient and dependable machines
Contact Information
Contact PersonMr. Jeffrey Choi
Fax Number63-02-7232168
Post Code1109
Address13b 8th St. New Manila Q. C., Quezon City, Philippines


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The Clover-Lake Wylie Republican Women are hosting a meet & greet coffee Monday, August 17 in Lake Wylie for Heidi Cruz, wife of Texas Republican Senator and 2016 presidential candidate Ted Cruz. The 11:00AM coffee social will be held at the River Hills Marina Club on the lake in River Hills Plantation and is free of charge and open to the public.
Mrs. Cruz worked as a policy aide on George W. Bush's 2000 presidential campaign, then later worked for the Bush administration as economic director for the Western Hemisphere with the National Security Council and Condoleezza Rice. A Harvard Business School graduate, Mrs. Cruz joined investment firm Goldman Sachs in 2005 as a managing director running the Houston wealth management unit.
For more information, please contact Suzanne Krause at (803) 831-0689.


text: SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks Monday closed out a low-volume session with minor gains, supported by housing data and Apple Inc.'s AAPL, -4.62% plans for a dividend, but held back as investors bought cautiously after stock indexes gained 8%-18% this year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -2.37% rose 6.51 points, or 0.1%, to 13,239.13. The S&P 500 SPX, -2.59% added 5.58 points, or 0.4%, to 1,409.75. The Nasdaq Composite COMP, -3.00% rose 23.06 points, or 0.8%, to 3,078.32. "We're faced with a market that's just up a long way," said Ken Tower, senior analyst at Quantitative Analysis Service. "People are starting to be more choosy about when they're buying, and some short-term people are taking profits."


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Recent Posts
2016 marks Brentwood Veterinary Hospital's 40th anniversary and we couldn't be more excited! Dr. Duane Schnittker started Brentwood Veterinary Hospital way back in 1976, at the corner of Brentwood Blvd and Sycamore Ave. When Dr. Schnittker started the practice, BVH … Continue reading
Beam me up Scotty! Lasers are no longer something just out of Sci-Fi shows… Yes, lasers are being used by veterinarians in the treatment of your four-legged friends. Lasers are often considered to be something out of Sci-Fi shows, … Continue reading


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Why Kroger's deal with Ocado is a strategic mistake
The most remarkable thing about Kroger's deal with the UK's Ocado to build up to 20 large Customer Fulfilment Centers (CFCs) across the US is not how many £billions have been suddenly added to Ocado's market value, nor the cutting-edge nature of the technology that will now be at Kroger's disposal. It is that virtually no-one appears to realize the negative aspects of this move for Kroger, and the US supermarket sector in general. Indeed, far from being a coup, it is a strategic mistake. One could even go so far as to say Kroger has bought an expensive shovel to dig its own grave deeper. There are three reasons for this:
1. Dedicated order fulfilment centres directly undermine store sales and profits
Picking from stores may not be the most efficient way to fulfil on line orders in terms of speed and accuracy, but it remains the most cost-effective method for brick and mortar operators as it leverages their existing fixed costs and minimises delivery distances. The efficiencies from large centralised automated facilities in terms of faster picking and lower wastage are far outweighed by the fact that the cost of building and operating them is largely incremental to that of the existing store business. Delivery is also more expensive and less timely.
The main arguments for centralised picking facilities (or "Customer Fulfilment Centres" as Ocado calls them) are scalability and superior service levels. However, even in the UK, where stores are much smaller and sales densities much higher than in the US, in-store picking remains the norm. This then leaves the question of whether the superior service metrics that automated picking facilities deliver compared to in-store picking, in terms of availability, picking accuracy, freshness and range, can generate sufficient market share gains to offset the extra capital and operating costs.
In markets where Kroger already has a significant presence, the answer is almost certainly no, due to cannibalisation of sales and profits at their existing stores, whose costs are mostly fixed.
It might be possible in markets where Kroger has minimal presence (such in the Northeast) and hence can go after largely new custom. However, the profitability of pure online grocers outside of very dense urban zones appears marginal, based on data from both Peapod in the US and Ocado in the UK. Furthermore, the competitive impact of Amazon's ambitions in grocery following its purchase of Whole Foods has yet to be felt.
2. Online grocery inevitably adds more cost and complexity than sales.
This applies even for first-movers, whose advantage is quickly eroded as competitors react to keep their higher-spending (i.e., loyal) customers. Kroger's deal with Ocado is set to accelerate the online space race in the US, which can only intensify margin pressure for all supermarket operators.
This has been demonstrated very clearly in the UK, where the online shift is relatively advanced - partly due to the very aggressive initial growth strategy pursued by market leader Tesco. However, the cost of subsidizing home delivery helped undermine Tesco's ability to invest pro-actively to stem the growth of German limited assortment discounters Aldi and Lidl in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. The result has been a 60% fall in Tesco's profits over the last six years. The negative impact of e-commerce growth on profits also explains why the UK's major brick and mortar supermarket chains have recently decided to raise fees and minimum order thresholds in order to slow their online growth, even if it means losing market share to Ocado and Amazon.
Kroger is already starting to feel the pain, warning last year that the expansion of Clicklist is a drain on store profitability that will likely worsen as the program gathers pace. That's despite charging $4.95 for a service which is free at Walmart, and before the acceleration of home delivery, which is even more negative for margins and is now free for Amazon Prime members.
As supply ramps up, competition will drive fees down - as happened in the UK's initial growth phase. Up to now, US grocers have been fortunate (smart?) enough to be able to share the financial burden of subsidising home delivery with the shareholders of the likes of Instacart and Shipt. The presence of these third parties has also helped maintain price discipline. Kroger's deal with Ocado now threatens to disrupt this as a result of the stimulus it gives to competitors as well as its own incentive to minimise start-up losses by ramping up capacity utilisation at these expensive warehouses as quickly as possible.
Kroger's most recent positive quarterly result should therefore be seen as the calm before the online storm hits.
3. Automation set to move to the store level
Of course, it could be argued that whatever the negative impact on near or medium-term profits, it is better to take the fight to Amazon pro-actively, instead of waiting for the e-commerce giant to unleash its full potential in grocery.
Leaving aside the danger of helping the genie out of the bottle before its true nature is known and potential impact can be contained, this brings us to the third and possibly most important reason why this deal is a bad move for Kroger. By the time its Ocado CFCs are up and running – i.e., in around three years' time – the picking technology is likely to be out-dated and even potentially obsolete.
This is because of a move towards automation at the store level, which an increasing number of major grocers in the US and Europe realise is the best way to a) leverage existing fixed assets; b) minimise last-mile costs; c) match capacity growth with demand more progressively; and d) create an integrated supply chain serving both stores and online. There are at least three start-ups and one existing provider of picking automation that are working on systems that are specifically designed to be used as micro-fulfilment centres either next to or inside grocery stores.
Furthermore it can be safely assumed that Amazon, with all the resources at its disposal and a superior innovation culture, is also working to develop a picking automation system that is better suited to grocery than Kiva (which was developed for general merchandise) and could be used to support Whole Foods. Indeed, an article in the New York Post published in February 2017 described how Amazon is looking to use robots inside the store to develop a hybrid cashier-less store whereby packaged goods are bought online and picked automatically in a micro-fulfillment centre located within the store, leaving customers the pleasure of choosing their own fresh food. Such a store concept would be far larger and more scalable than Amazon Go. In fact, by combining a superior customer experience with much lower operating (notably labour) costs and hence prices, it could go a long way towards displacing traditional supermarkets.
The future of automated grocery fulfilment is with stores, not huge centralised facilities - aka double-running cost centres.


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Sexual assault unfortunately often goes hand-in-hand with domestic violence. To better educate ourselves on domestic violence and to protect ourselves, our friends, sisters, and families here are some important things to know about sexual assault.
One in four female college students reported they had been the victims of attempted or completed rapes; 80% were victimized by boyfriends, friends or acquaintances. http://www.icasa.org/uploads/adult_victimss.pdf
Women ages 16 to 24 experience rape at rates four times higher than the assault rate of all women http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/mime/open.pdf?Item=269
There is no boundary for who might be raped. Almost 18%, or 17.7 million women, in the United States have been victims of rape or attempted rape sometime in their lives. http://www.icasa.org/uploads/adult_victimss.pdf
Being Date Smart http://www.teenpcar.com/girls/default.asp
- Don't use alcohol or drugs which can impair your ability to make smart decisions, lower your inhibitions, and render you unconscious, making it easy for someone to force you into a harmful situation. If you're going to drink, enlist the buddy system and NEVER leave your drink unattended.
- Be aware. If someone's drunk, aggressive, touching, or pinching you and won't stop, DON'T wind up alone with him.
- If you're in a relationship, it's time to get out when:
He doesn't listen, talks over you, ignores you. He doesn't respect you and might not listen when you say "NO."
He shows hostile feelings or has a demeaning attitude toward women.
He does what he wants, regardless of your opinions. If he always has to be in control, deciding where you go, what you wear and who you see, he may take control when it comes to sex - regardless of what you want.
He acts overly possessive or jealous, all signs of a bad temper, which can lead to violence.
Getting Involved
To find a Sexual Assault Awareness Month (typically April) event in your area http://nsvrc.groupfusion.net/modules/calendar/showCalendarMonth.phtml?oc_id%5B%5D=1417&month=4&day=01&year=2007
Decide to End Sexual Violence – Build Healthy, Respectful Relationships


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I am delighted you want to check out my personal website, however
please talk to my agents about commissions as they handle all of that for me.
I look forward to working with you.
Currently based in Queens, New York, Mayuko Fujino grew up in a Tokyo suburb. She's a cutout and collage illustrator, who was inspired to take up art by the books of David Hockney, and the film Yellow Submarine by The Beatles, among other things. She started drawing posters in elementary school, and later on discovered traditional Japanese stencil dying. The latter prompted her move towards making similar images from cut out pieces of paper.
Her work has featured in advertising, music packaging, editorial projects, on garments and even in carpet designs.
Give us a few details and we'll get back
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Some time ago I bought a copy of People and Pearls which included a very large two page photo of Lillie reclining on a settee and I thought oh yes that dress.. nope. It's not the same dress as appears in in Victorian and Edwardian Fashion A Photographic Survey as I thought but is a later dress but also by Lafayette.
This gown is of the same type as the infamous ironwork dress by the House of Worth. Here though the velvet is in an open and stylised "palmette" (as opposed to another velvet used in house which was a densely filled palmette style.)
These gowns often have the pattern mirrored around diagonal seams from waist to side seam and often the front is likewise mirrored and cut on the diagonal.
The bodice appears to fasten up the front and the front overlaps to her right side (our left) and closes under her arm.
The skirt appears to close at the CF line with an inverted pleat below knee level.
An extreme close up reveals that the bodice shaping is carefully created by centering one of the motiffes at front waist and the fabric carefully cut away from the top of the motiffe allowing the design to be the means of shaping over the bust.
By this stage many of Lillie's bodices seem to be of a very similar shape, very conical and quite flat. This shape seems to also repeat in House of Worth bodices of the same sort of date range.
The pearl swags are repeated under her arm to the back of the bodice.
This gown was worn by Lillie as Mrs. Trevelyan in The Degenerates. Her gowns are described as:
Mrs. Langtry in flesh-colored satin with sapphires, Mrs, Langtry in pale-blue satin with diamonds in dazzling array, Mrs, Langtry in white v/ith pearls,…MRS. LILY LANGTRY'S COSTUMES FOR THE STAGE, by, ROSE LEE HEAD, B.A.
There are hand coloured photos of Lillie and one from this set has been tinted blue.
This fabric is also to be found in an extant House of Worth gown at the Metropolitan Museum of art:
Tassinari & Chatel supplied Worth with many velvets in different colourways and it is likely this is a different colourway as there are some differences in how the pattern is handled in each example.


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Art Space (for a 3 years old)
One year ago, when my daughter was about to turn two I have created our very first Montessori-inspired art space for her. I'm so happy we started so early to include art in our weekly rhythm and our art space served us well for one year.
But at the beginning of this year, when she was about to turn three, I knew that some change was needed. I usually see this when her interest in an activity decreases. So I understand that she somehow outgrows the space/ the setting and a change is needed. Usually it's not just about materials rotation, it's about rethinking the space according to her needs.
In our Art space, the art supplies are organized now in 4 areas, according to her interests at the moment:
- Drawing : on the top of the shelf
- Painting: on the first level of the shelf
- Modeling (clay and play dough) : now on a separate area, on the little stairs at the right of the art shelf. I put it here because she can see them better and she can access them easier (the tray was to heavy for her to carry it to her little table as the play dough is stored in glass jars)
- Loose-parts and supplies for modeling and crafting: on the second level (and sometimes on the top of the shelf too, when we bring new treasures from nature)
+ Notebooks, paper and portfolios: on the bottom left of the shelf
Art supplies: ecological and good quality
I think it's not easy to find good art supplies. And there are so many criteria to think about. But I believe that ecology and non-toxicity should come first because it's something that affects us all and especially our children. For this reason we mainly use the OKONORM products. Unfortunately it's very hard to have only environmental friendly art supplies, I know we can still make some progress.
What we currently have on each area:
pencils, non-toxic washable markers, watercolor pencils, wax pencils, oil pastels, charcoal and natural chalk
2/ Painting:
non-toxic watercolor, acrylic, tempera and non-toxic finger painting.
3/ Modeling (clay and play dough):
non-toxic play dough, clay, modeling tools, craft sticks, rolling pins and cookie cutters.
4/ Loose-parts and craft supplies:
This is one of the most important areas as it provides endless opportunities for creativity. They can be combined with drawing, painting, modeling or they can be used only by themselves
Here we have many things that we find in nature: leaves, flowers that we dry, sticks, pieces of wood, snail shells, stones and pebbles, pine cones, feathers etc.. We also have different types of glitter, pipe cleaners, pompoms, salt crystals. Also different kinds and sizes of paper (for watercolor, for sketches, colored ones, rice paper, silk paper, wrapping paper…). I usually recycle the silk paper and wrapping paper from presents and flowers and keep it in the big basket you see on the bottom left.
We also have biodegradable glue, transparent tape, white tape and washi tape, hole puncher, scissors, a rubber and different sizes of pencils sharpeners.
On the left side of our art shelf we keep our notebooks (from Canson)
The finished work is placed on the top of the shelf and then stored in portfolios, displayed on the walls or used for further creations.
How the space evolves organically, according to a child's development and needs
One of the major changes I've done is that some of the materials she used for crafts are now on her imaginative play/ loose-parts space, upstairs, in our playroom. We kept some in the art space but most of them are in the playroom: scissors, fabrics, washi tape, paper, ribbons, paper, yarn, etc..
The reason for this is that my daughter is very interested in the moment in creating her own materials for her imaginative play. She doesn't want to craft something for the sake of crafting. She wants to do something with a purpose and mostly with a purpose that she chooses and not one that I suggest. She now cuts the fabrics to create blankets for her animals and makes them little presents out of paper and washi tape.
Another major change in this space is that I have added a creativity space for myself, on the other corner of the same room. I believe that creativity needs to be modeled and creating things is important to me. So we have now our creative time and space where we can both work on our own projects.
We have added an easel last spring and it was a great thing to do as I realized that my daughter prefers drawing in a standing position. She can use the blackboard to draw with chalk on one side, or the white board to draw on with markers on the other side. She can also draw or paint on paper as a paint roller that is fixed on the upper side of the easel. So she can use all kinds of art supplies on it. Now she likes to work either standing or sitting at her table or on the floor.
.We used to have a washing station in this space but we moved it in the kitchen last year, where it was much more needed. This was a big change as my daughter can wash hands and dishes independently after meals. In the Art Space we have a little bottle of water and she uses to fill in her jars when she paints with aquarelle.
More than just materials rotation, rethinking a space brings fresh air
Reorganizing and rethinking this space made it look minimalistic and more practical at the same time. For us materials and toys rotation work for a while but then it's just not enough anymore. When I feel this moment approaching, I have to sit down and rethink the space. It's like when your child outgrows her clothes, you need to make or buy new ones. Rethinking a space is a similar process. A home grows with a child and her needs. I have made the changes on this space 3 months ago and I can see that it was a good thing to do. The creativity flows again.
I would love to hear how your spaces evolve with the age of your children and how your art shelves are organized.