Shopping Safely Online: Day 1

Posted on January 27, 2014 by admin

This week we will be looking at the safety measures that go hand-in-hand with online shopping. It’s extremely important to make sure that you are dealing with a safe and secure website when purchasing items online, whilst you also need to become aware of suspicious behaviour during online sales if you want to avoid a bad online experience. Today we are focusing on how to identify a secure site to shop online with.

Many websites from fast food restaurants to major electrical outlets make use of the efficiency and practicality of online credit. However, it’s vital that you know how to identify a secure website before providing your credit card details. A site is secure if they possess a small padlock in the address bar, whilst the ‘s’ at the end of ‘https’ stands for the word ‘secure’.

Never jump at offers that seem unrealistic. Most sites that let you trade over the internet with other people struggle to identify scammers, so think twice before purchasing what looks like a 50 inch plasma TV for £50. You can back up your knowledge of the site you’ve encountered by using Google or asking friends and family about it but if you’ve got your suspicions, don’t take the risk.

Need to send a parcel internationally? RAND can provide you with a safe and secure service that gets your parcel from A to B in good time. Contact us today for more information about the services we offer.

Uses for Junk Mail; Paper Crafts

Posted on January 24, 2014 by admin

The final day of our environmentally friendly way of reusing all that junk mail we sometimes get piling up focuses on tasks for those more creatively minded. If you were looking for a new challenge, or wanted a nice activity to do with the kids, why not try these two uses for old junk mail or newspapers?

Paper Baskets

Traditionally made in Ancient Egypt, wicker baskets were woven together using reeds. Nowadays wicker baskets are still used for plant pots and even coffee tables and sun chairs. A plain paper home made basket can be used to hold pens, paper-clips or other bits like sewing bobbins and spools of thread. Paper wicker baskets can seem daunting, but in reality it is a lot easier than it looks. There are plenty of guides online, and the end result looks fantastic.

Homemade Paper

Rip up your junk mail or shred it, then add water and put it all in a blender. Blend it to pulp and then you have all the ingredients to make your own paper! Use a guide online, and remember that most methods work for un-waxed paper, so make sure not to use any junk mail that is glossy or shiny.

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Uses for Junk Mail; Luau Celebrations

Posted on January 22, 2014 by admin

Continuing with our week of informative and imaginative ways to use all that unwanted junk mail, we can now start getting crafty with the junk mail. These uses are great for kids and birthday parties, so give them a go.

Paper Macher

This can be a little messy so make sure to lay a cloth or a bin bag down. For the best paper macher results, mix glue with a bit of water and use that as the adhesive to stick the layers of junk mail together. The possibilities are endless with paper macher. You can make a helmet, a plant pot, a pen holder and even little animal figurines. Let your imagination run wild.

Hula Skirts and Flowers

paper-flowers Every child needs to have at least one tropically themed birthday party. With a barbeque, cheese and pineapple sticks and giant inflatable palm trees floating in the pool, your kids will look great with these homemade hula skirts. And they can be as colourful as you like!

For the flowers, simply cut a few leaf and petal shapes from the leaflets, then stick them all to a second piece of junk mail that has been slightly crumpled. Thread some string through them for a flower necklace.

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It’s OFFICIALLY 2014

Posted on January 13, 2014 by admin

Its January 13^th so Happy New Year! Whilst it may seem a bit late to offer best wishes to 2014 in actual fact, this is the day that the old Gregorian calendar would celebrate the coming of the New Year. Many religions still treat today as the official turn of the year, so there’s an excuse to consider opening a bottle of champagne this evening! If you’re one of the few who may be celebrating New Year’s today instead, make sure you ship your gifts internationally using RAND!

Speaking of gifts, there may be many of you out there who have sorted your Christmas gifts and decided that a few of them just aren’t worth keeping. They might not be your thing or maybe you’ve got two of them already. Either way, you probably don’t want to let the person who gave it to you to know you’re selling them online. Take advantage of RAND Logistics services if your gift was something a bit more heavy-duty. We can pick items up from you and send them on their way, so you don’t have to sneak off to the post office!

If you’ve got any unwanted Christmas gifts lying around, get a quote from RAND today and ship your unwanted gifts internationally with us!

Did You Know? Postal Facts Final Day

Posted on January 10, 2014 by admin

The first pillar boxes designed by the Royal Mail were in fact green, not red, to blend in with the landscape so as not to be an eyesore. However they blended in a little too well and the Royal Mail office was flooded with complaints from people who couldn’t actually find their local post box. The decision was then made to paint them red in 1874, which took around ten years for the repainting of all the post boxes to actually take place, so the iconic red post box was not actually fully recognised until the late 19^th century. Although their design has not changed one iota since.

It is actually possible to send dead animals as well as live ones, so long as the packaging or animal itself does not violate local postal laws about shipping biohazard materials. If the animal has been cleaned and preserved properly, and is kept in an air tight container then it is perfectly legal to be allowed to ship it.

If you absolutely have to ship your brothers dead hamster to his home address by sending a parcel to Peru, find out how RAND Logistics can provide you with excellent service by using our Quick Quote function.

Did You Know? Postal Facts Day 4

Posted on January 9, 2014 by admin

There are over 7500 different courier companies listed in the yellow pages for the UK alone. The US Postal service is thought to be the largest in the world, and every day it sorts through and attempts to deliver over 700 million packages of varying size and shape. In comparison to that, the Australian postal service delivers up to 94 million items a week, which is an intense difference. However it comes as no surprise as the entire population of Australia could fit within the densely populated city of Tokyo.

When sending parcels to America, although the direct delivery of mail to people’s homes was present from 1863, the actual mailbox or mail slot was not used until 1923 when it became commonplace. Plus, although the red pillar post box has become an iconic representation of Britain, it was not the first country to store letters in pillar boxes. In the early 50’s of the 19^th century, Anthony Trollope saw such pillar boxes in France and Belgium and proposed them to the UK Postal Service in 1852.

Make sure your package gets to where it needs to go by using RAND Logistics. Our rates are second to none for international shipping.

Did You Know? Postal Facts Day 1

Posted on January 6, 2014 by admin

Children used to be posted in parcels across the USA, to save on rail fares. Often rail fares were more expensive than posting children, and normally the limit to one package is 50 pounds, so younger children were ideal to send to visit relatives via post – luckily not often packaged, just with postal stamps attached to their clothing.

It was a rare occurrence, but before it was outlawed in June 1920, several children were posted across America so that their parents or guardians did not have to pay the extra rail fare. Post able livestock at the time was included as ‘bees and bugs’ and children were not legally considered to be either of those (surprise?). On the 13^th June 1920, the U.S Post Office ruled that it was illegal to send children via parcel post. Hopefully those few children that were packaged up and delivered had enough snacks to last them the journey!

Be sure to check that everything you are posting is able to be delivered in your recipient country, or you may find yourself facing some harsh fines. RAND Logistics can give you an idea of the types of things that are illegal to send via post.

New Year’s Across the World #5

Posted on January 3, 2014 by admin

It’s the last day of recognition for the New Year on our blog and we take a look at how New Year’s is celebrated in our last country, Greece. There are plenty of Greek traditions that are carried out on New Year’s which makes Greece a wonderful tourist destination at the change of the year. Here are a few notable events that take place on the New Year’s celebrations in Greece.

The most notable of traditions in Greece is the kremmida decoration, the process of hanging an onion on a door. This bizarre tradition is immensely popular in Greece with strict traditionalists and it represents the birth of a New Year. For the Christians that are preparing for church on New Year’s Day, parents will tap the heads of their children with the kremmida to wake them up. This is also regarded as a traditional act. To symbolise good fortune for the coming year, Greeks will place a pomegranate on the doorstep of their home before entering on the 1^st January.

Are you planning on shipping a gift to Greece in the New Year? If so, make sure you take full advantage of the services RAND have to offer. Get your quote here and discover our attractive shipping rates.

New Years Across the World #4

Posted on January 2, 2014 by admin

Our fourth day of this week commemorating the New Year focuses on celebrations in the Czech Republic. The Czechs are known for putting on gargantuan firework displays on New Year’s Eve. It is also an extremely popular tourist destination for times such as New Years Eve when the clubs and pubs are at their most jovial. Here’s what to expect from a New Year’s celebration in the Czech Republic.

In the capital city of Prague, the famous Charles Bridge hosts a wondrous fireworks display every year to celebrate the start of the New Year. Once the clock strikes midnight, the fireworks begin and they attract tourists from all over the world.

As is the case in the UK and in many other countries across the world, drinking, eating, partying and celebrating are all high on the list of priorities to locals in the Czech Republic. You can find all sorts of lively places once the night life kicks in and New Years proves to be a truly memorable experience. Some of the celebrations spill out to the city squares where there is likely to be evening entertainment to accompany the unforgettable atmosphere.

Are you planning on sending a parcel to the Czech Republic in 2014? If so, RAND Logistics has all the necessary services to get your shipment from A to B in no time! Make sure you check out our services in the near future.

New Year’s Across the World #3

Posted on January 1, 2014 by admin

Today we look at how New Years is celebrated in Spain and how it differs to other nations across the world. Many countries have their own distinct traditions and ways in which they celebrate New Year’s. Spain is no exception and they have a range of different traditional approaches to the big day. Here are a few notable traditions carried out in Spain to symbolise the start of the New Year.

The general Spanish approach to New Years is similar to that of many other countries. Late night partying and celebrating is promoted across the country with the main celebrations taking place after midnight and through to the early morning. Before this, there is a traditional dinner held amongst the family to represent the coming of the New Year.

A more traditional and bizarre approach to New Years is the consumption of twelve grapes which match the chimes of the twelfth hour. The eating of each individual grape corresponds with each chime and Spaniards are encouraged to make a wish in time for the New Year during this process. This tradition spans over 100 years and began when vineyard farmers needed a selling point for their left over grapes.

If you need to send a parcel to Spain in the New Year, be sure to make the most of RAND Logistics services throughout 2014. Take a look at our services for more of an insight into what we can offer you.

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