I worked in a jewelry store for several years and the sonic cleaner was great. Happyladi was right, you shouldn't put pearls in a sonic cleaner, and not opals either. But it works great on just about everything else. Be sure and double check the instructions for other restrictions, but I remember using a sonic cleaner all the time for great results. One of my favortie things to do at the jewelry store was to clean people's jewelry. Everyone was so happy when they got their clean jewelry back. Wedding bands were the best - I'd buff them and then clean them in the sonic and could make a ten year old gold band look brand new. And I got to do it for free. :) A sonic cleaner shouldn't affect settings. If a setting is already quite loose, then maybe it would shake the stone out, but if the stone is actually that loose, better it come out in a cleaner where the stone can be found. I've never bought off HSN, and I'm suspicious of buying things I haven't seen. If I were you, I'd go to a professional jewelry store and see what they recommend or sell. If you end up getting a sonic cleaner, I think you'll be glad you did.

I think you are on the right track using the baking soda but need to use a micro-fiber cloth because it will hold on to the baking soda better. Vinegar is good for hard-water stains but will not remove the oils. Also, a solution with washing soda can work if the baking soda is not strong enough. Baking soda is sodium bi-carbonate, washing soda is sodium carbonate, and Oxy-clean is sodium per-carbonate. They are all related and safe for the environment. Oxy-clean is a non-chlorine bleach and eliminates the use of any chlorine bleach products. I use it with my Soap-it Nuts and also sprinkle it in the bottom of my sink to whiten it. Cheers!

Well .... I'ld say you need to do the old fashioned "try me out" challenge. You simply go into a vacuum cleaner retailer's business and ask to try out their various models .... If they agree to your trial, you proceed to put a line of dirt and other trash on the floor that you would expect to find in your worst cleanup nightmare, and then test each vacuum he presents on a different part of the line. Make sure you step and scrub it into the test carpet well, because you know kids will do that with the dog and cat hair day in and day out before you can get to the mess ... Whichever vacuum does the job is the one you'll want to get! :) Now ... if only the world really worked that way .... (side anecdote ... read about this in reader's digest) A door to door salesman came up to our house one day and managed to force his way into my living room. He was talking a mile a minute about how fabulous his brand new vacuum machine was and how it would clean up any mess, small or large, and then he opened his briefcase and dump a huge pile of dust and dirt in the middle of my carpet. He then proclaimed that if his vacuum didn't clean up every speck of that mess, he would EAT IT... I handed him a spoon off of the dining room table, and then started to calmly tell the man who was turning red and beginning to panic, that my house doesn't have electricity.

thank you for the responces. The "Making hanji" video looks very interesting. Now I have another question in the same field...I have been wanting to get my family crest watermarked into what I will be making. I like being creative and am hoping to give this as a gift to a family member I havent seen in many years. I have a friend that owns and operates a machine shop and I have researched watermarks, and I have no doubt he can make a male and female mold of my familys crest. My understanding is that it would be them pressed into the screen that the pulp will be sitting on??? If this is the case, im worried while squeezing the water out through rollers and what not that it will distort the image? What would you recomend for this? I know its getting a bit advanced but this has been something I have wanted to try for a while so all the input is much appreciated.