Well, I am delighted to see the interest on this subject! I looked at those stucco pics, nmgirl, but they don't resemble them. The closest thing I think I could drum up was a close-up pic of a shearling coat. HARD TO FIND TOO!!! I am posting a link to boots/slippers pic that shows the 'mounded wool' appearance of the Shuba. Fleur, I think you are right about stencils or masking off for that beautiful design. I think that they apply a smoothed coating of stucco and let it cure before they mask ... the stencilled parts look so smooth. Glad you saw that article too. That tufa wall we did was at my girlfriend's place. I don't think she and her husband want to part with the fossilized shell look! lol But that WOULD have been a great project to try this on. I think that gun applicator would work for this although I kinda like the idea of going back in time and beating a broom against a rod! lol Ciao for now! Marly PS - the "shuba" refers to the end result. Shuba means 'fur coat' and the end result looks like the shearling fur/wool. Here is a link that might be useful: Shearling texture

Greencure is basically a commercial Cornell Formula and potassium bicarbonate-based fungicide. While some have had really good results with the Cornell formula, more have not. If you're looking for a reliable effective fungicide, you'll have to stick with the chemical products. There are less expensive but effective fungicides available. Many report good results with the Bayer advanced Disease Control and Rosemania sells a cheaper version of Banner Maxx. When figuring out how expensive a product is you must consider how much you have to use and how often for it to be effective. Greencure requires 1 tbsp/gal every 7-10 days for prevention. I found it on-line for $19.95 for an 8 ounce container. Dilute at 1-2 tablespoons per gallon every 7 days BannerMaxx usage is 1/3 - 2/3 teaspoons per gallon every 14 days. It's $69.99 pint at Rosemania. The generic Honor Guard PPZ (pint) is $57.99. The Bayer product uses 1 1/2 TBS per gallon every 7-14 days. It's $14.97 qt at Lowes.

Gibby, I think they made the right decision for themselves due to the health concern. Sometimes the long anticipation of the misery is almost as bad as the misery when it hits. And you would have been no less comfortable in light of your concerns for them. I am a cat lover and I was always on meds to tolerate cats. Thirteen years ago I discovered Maine Coons and their cousins, Norweigian Forest Cats & Russian Siberians. Much to my surprise, I am totally not allergic to Maine Coons, but still react to other breeds and mixed breeds. It is a pleasure to be able to have cats in our home and I never have complaints from visitors with allergies since I acquired my Maine Coons. A close friend bought a MC after I discovered this, because a family member has severe allergies and stopped visiting her when she previously had a cat. The sister-in-law resumed her visits without a problem. I don't know if it works for everyone, but it certainly has for us.

What goes in, must come out and usually it's not a problem. Sometimes it may be. It's probably, technically an 'irritation' or contact dermatitis rather than an 'allergy.' Painful red rashes anywhere produce even more sensitive skin. Pain relievers in general can help (tylenol, ibuprofen) some. Drinking lots of fluids might help dilute at least certain excretions which may help a bit. Air drying, as little touching as possile except to rinse and maintain hygeine, and possibly something like lanacaine (look in the pharmacy section for products designed for that part of the body, and which are designed to be soothing and pain relieving). When in doubt though, as little touching as possible is likely best. Drinking lots of fluids is going to be a hard sell usually in situations where urination hurts a lot. There are different ways to explain how this works. One visual would be to add food colouring to water, and imagine that colour is what causes the hurt. Double or triple the amount of water and it's easy to see how much less colour there is. Dilution as a concept can work too, if she understands that. Just be very supportive because that first time she might try this, it will require a little leap of faith and trust on her part (and it will probably help and it won't hurt; but it probably will still be painful for her compared to 'normal'). do consider a consultation with the doctor though because sometimes antibiotics are not effective against certain infections and it's hard to know sometimes if that's the case; or if maybe more were required or something