Water damage can happen without any warning, and it is important to get assistance right away before the problem gets worse. There are many water damage remediation companies out there. You want to choose the right one for your unique situation. The safety of your home or business depends on fast action, so always turn to a professional and experienced company that can start working on your water damage problems right away.
Find Out What Type of Water You are Dealing with
Water issues can be classified into three different groups. It is important for professionals to figure out what type of water you have damaging your home so that it can be cleaned up safely and quickly.
Category One
A category one water problem usually deals with sanitary water. You can often get this from a leaky appliance or certain types of broken pipes. It can be dealt with easily, but needs to be removed and dried quickly to avoid mold growth.
Category Two
This water category may have household chemicals in it. It could come from your bathroom and have soaps, shampoos, or other products mixed into it. It could also come from a room like your kitchen where it may be contaminated with cleaners, fats, oils, or many other things. This type of water is often called gray water, and professionals will have the right tools and equipment needed to clean it up safely.
Category Three
If you have a water problem involving a category three water group, you will definitely need professional assistance. This type of water is also known as black water. It could contain bacteria, pathogens that could make you sick, and could be extremely dangerous. A category three water problem could be caused by a sewage issue or from a severe storm or flood in your area.
Fast Assistance
You can count on a professional water damage restoration team to come to your home or business and inspect your property thoroughly. It is imperative to find where the problem is starting from. A burst pipe can flood your home, or a leaky roof can cause all sorts of issues inside of your property. Overflowing toilets will need to be taken care of, and leaky pipes will need to be resolved. Once your problem has been found and fixed, the water removal process can begin. Then the drying process will come next. If anything can be salvaged from a flood or extremely wet conditions, it will be. If not, severally damaged items will need to be disposed of. A good restoration company will be able to help your home or business look as good as new after the emergency has occurred.
Your water damage restoration needs should always be taken seriously. Work with a company that will send out experienced professionals to take care of your restoration as fast as possible. The longer that your flooring and other belongings are covered in water, the more damage you may be dealing with. You can feel confident about hiring a reputable team to make sure that your home or business gets back to looking the way that it did before it was damaged by water.
I have always painted flowers. Recently, I started painting landscape photos for practice. I believe in continuous learning.
These are some of my recent work.
Notice that I always paint from a photo reference. I think it is a good way to practice.
I also believe in sharing knowledge so I am showing you how I paint sunset.
For the sunset painting practice, I am using a photo I took years ago. It was a sunset in San Agustin, Surigao del Sur.
I start with a sketch. I am not really good at sketching so what I do is add grid lines to the photo. I use Photoshop to fill the photo with square patterns.
I have the same square patterns on my paper. Then I start sketching grid by grid. After I finish sketching, I erase the grid lines.
I can start painting. I start with Sennelier yellow. I am using a flat 3/4 synthetic brush. I lightly brush over the areas with yellow. Then I use ivory black. With a wet brush, I blend the color.
I paint an outline around this area with yellow and blend the color.
I always look at the reference photo and try to see where the yellow glow of the sun hits the water because once I start painting with black, there is no turning back.
I lightly put another layer of ivory black.
I am now painting the dark areas. I use burnt sienna and ivory black. I also changed my brush into a Kolinksky round brush size 0. Every now and then, I switch from a round brush size 0 and round brush size 4.
From here, I am going to start filling the sketch with black. I hope you will be able to follow what I am doing.
This is the completed artwork.
You can also follow the painting process on my Youtube channel. Don’t forget to like and subscribe!
Let know if you were able to paint the same scene. If you want more tutorials, please let me know what you want me to paint next.
Late last year, my college blockmate messaged me about painting a custom artwork for her. She recently moved to the US for work and she wanted to spruce up her apartment walls with art. I am happy that she thought of me to do this for her! She is a repeat client for my artwork. She ordered watercolor artworks with motivational quotes from me before which she gave as gifts to her friends for Christmas. I really appreciate her for trusting me again with this task.
She wanted 6 or 9 pieces of A4-sized artworks that she can display side by side and everything would look like a continuous piece. I love her idea. It was quite clever. Shipping one large artwork would be expensive. Having small pieces is easier to pack and move should she need to transfer residence. She hoped I would be able to send the artwork to her family in Manila before they leave for the US to visit her.
I asked for pegs so I have an idea of what she wants. She gave me free rein over the art work so I just bounced off ideas to her. I told her I thought of painting something tropical to remind her of home. She said tend to like green and orange colors and she preferred the mountains over the beach. I remembered the photos on Facebook of all the climbs she did. She also sent me a poem that she loved. I told her I will find a way to incorporate the poem into the painting.
So I looked for photos of Philippine mountains. I picked Mt. Batulao for its lovely ridges. I thought about painting from a vantage point similar to Katy Perry’s Roar video where she looked over Taal Volcano.
Katy Perry’s Roar Video
For the artwork, I decided to make 6 pieces. Mt Batulao would be at the center.
It was framed by trees and tropical plants and flowers. So I picked the following flowers to paint:
Angel’s trumpet and Hibiscus (Gumamela)
Lobster claw (Heliconia) and Taro leaves (Gabi)
Wild orchid
Plumeria (Kalachuchi)
Birds of paradise and Tahitian Ginger
I filled the blank areas with palm leaves and green vegetation.
Individually, the artwork can be displayed on its own.
Collectively, it is one large artwork.
Oh, I did not forget the poem. The verses are hidden somewhere in the painting.
I am really happy with the result. The whole process took 25 days from the time she messaged me until she received the artwork. I had other work to do in between. I paint when I have enough time to enjoy the process. Painting is my happy pill. Every work of art from me comes from a happy place. I do not paint to express sadness.
I am glad the my friend loves the painting. She found acrylic frames being sold online so it appears like the artwork is floating on her wall. The paintings now hang in her bedroom wall. She posted this on Facebook.
This post can also be entitled as “How not to go crazy with the Philippine Post Office”.
I am always on a hunt for online stores where I can buy my art supplies. I live in the province and my sources for art supply are in the bigger cities. I bought my watercolor materials from Fullybooked in Manila, Art Friend and Straits Art Co in Singapore. There is Art Nebula which I have already ordered items twice before and the transactions were seamless. But I am hoping for a wider range of products to try. Shout out to Art Bar! Please open your online shop already.
So imagine my excitement when I learned from an artist I follow on Instagram that the art supplies she ordered from Jackson’s Art in UK arrived at her doorstep in just a few days; I wanted to try it for myself. Jackson’s Art has a droolworthy selection of products for artists. I have a limited budget so I picked only what I immediately needed- brushes! I needed brushes for oil painting. I got an oil paint set as a gift from a friend. I also got two blank canvases as Christmas gift from another friend. Yes, I am lucky to have friends who understood my love for art.
So I immediately found myself browsing for brushes and learned that they offer free shipping for brush orders worth more than £20. I availed of the free shipping by ordering 5 brushes. The package was sent via regular post. It was estimated to arrive in 2 to 3 weeks. This was ordered on December 2, 2017. When I did not receive any notice 2 weeks after, I went to the post office on December 20, 2017. The person assigned there tried to check their records and found nothing. She told me to ask for the tracking number so she can look for it in their system. I told them I do not have a tracking number. I did not want to bother Jackson’s Art. I went home empty-handed and decided to go back a week after.
I went back on December 29, 2017. I still did not get my package. The person there told me to get the tracking number because it is easier to look for a package with a tracking number. I decided to email Jackson’s Art to ask for a tracking number. They replied immediately. I was told there was no tracking number because it was sent using regular mail. They were reassuring. They told me that the package may be delayed due to the holidays.
I was patient and I was persistent, too. So I went to the post office again on January 5, 2018. The person there again told me about getting a tracking number. I told her that it was sent through regular mail. She said that they have not gotten through their regular mails. I asked her that if it would be easier if I have a picture of what the package looks like. She said yes. So I emailed Jackson’s Art again about the possibility of showing me a photo what the package looks. They replied that all they can tell me is that it is in a regular padded mailing envelope and they did not have a photo since the package was processed in their warehouse. Carla of Jackson’s Art also told me to inform them if I still do not have the package by January 12.
At that moment, I was too disappointed with the Philippine post that I just decided to wait it out because that is what they are supposed to do. They are supposed to deliver the package (or at least a notice) to my doorstep and not me going to the post office. That is why there is an address written on the parcel! So I went digital, I know there is a Facebook page of the Philippine Post so I sent a message on the possible timeline for regular mail packages because the person in our post office seemed to treat them as last priority. So I got this reply.
It is already the 4th week of January and more than 35 working days since December 2, 2018. No package.
I have accepted the idea that I cannot trust the Philippines Post Office anymore. This is not the first time I have issues with them. The first time happened some years ago, I was expecting a dress from China. It was a blogger mail in exchange for a blog post. A month after it was sent, the sender emailed me if I received the package since it was already sent a month before so I went to the post office to check. I was just lucky that when I went there the package on the table in front of me was my package. It was already marked that they were unable to deliver it twice. It baffles me why they were not able to locate my house when utility companies and LBC are able deliver bills and packages successfully. The second incident was in the early 2015 when I joined a mailing exchange to practice calligraphy. I was supposed to receive 10 to 12 mails every month and I only received 3. So when I went for a vacation in Bacolod that year, I sent myself a post card through a post office there. I never received that post card. My friend, Gail, who sent herself a postcard, too, received hers in Davao City. My city’s post office needs to step up.
This was the postcard I should have received through mail. This was my Instagram post in 2015.
I was sad but Jackson’s Art is awesome. Since Carla said that I should email them if I have not received my package, I sent them an email on January 18, 2018.
And this is what I got in reply!
They refunded my payment! No questions asked. In my country, if you want a refund, you need certification that the mail did not arrive and a lot more paperwork. Jackson’s Art is awesome, people!
This prompted me to just reorder my brushes and order the watercolor papers I wanted to try. I picked DHL for mail this time. And I got the package today! Just 5 working days after I ordered them.
Happy mail!! Good job, DHL!
I got my brushes and watercolor pads!
This made me realize how we crave good customer service when it should not be something we beg from businesses. It should be a standard. When their customers are treated well, businesses will surely get much better returns. I ordered more that what I planned to spend initially after I got the refund. Hurray for Jackson’s Art! You definitely gained one loyal customer.
Update:
I got the package from the post office on February 8, 2018.
