What is the history of tobacco?

The tobacco plant grows in North and Central America. The Indians already used tobacco. The oldest depiction of its use dates from 300 AD. Tobacco may have been discovered when Indians used tobacco leaves to light fires. The smoke was pleasant and had a strong smell. Indians dried the leaves, made a roll of it and lit it. It was also chewed or smoked as a pipe. Such a pipe was called Tabacco. Tobacco was used by the Indians as a stimulant, as a way to get in touch with the gods and as a medicine.

Columbus
Columbus discovered the Indians with America. They offered him the tobacco leaves. However, he was more interested in gold. Columbus brought the tobacco to Spain. People were against the use of smoking tobacco. The church said that the plant came from heathens and therefore from the devil. Initially it was thought that the tobacco leaves could help against ailments. The Frenchman Jean Nicot, who was France’s envoy to Lisbon at the time, sent the medicinal plant to Queen Catherine Medici in 1560 to help her get rid of her headaches. All she had to do was hold the leaf against her forehead. The tobacco plant (Nicotiana Tabacum) is named after Jean Nicot. cuvie

Tobacco becomes popular
After the Spaniards, the English also came into contact with tobacco in North America. After that, the use of tobacco gradually became popular in Northern Europe. It was chewed, sniffed or smoked as a pipe. The first pipes were made of white clay. Later on also pipes in porcelain and wood were introduced. In the beginning pipe smoking was mainly for the rich. In the course of the 17th century it became known in the rest of the world. In 1614 in London alone there were 7000 tobacco shops. King James 1 of England wanted to prevent the use of tobacco. He denied the medicinal effects, arguing that smoking was a barbaric habit which would undermine the fortitude of English men. His son Charles I was less negative and levied tobacco tax, thus becoming the inventor of the national tobacco tax. In paintings from the Golden Age, you can see that smoking was also commonplace in the Netherlands at that time.

Cigars
In 1800 the cigar made its appearance in Europe. Smoking became very popular. In the beginning the cigar was mainly made by home workers. Gradually cigar factories were established.

Nicotine discovery
In 1828 chemists discovered the substance in plants that causes the effects of tobacco. The substance was named Nicotine after the Frenchman Jean Nicot. In 1881 the cigarette machine was invented. This made smoking even more popular.

The beginning of the end
At the end of the 1950s, 60% of the Dutch population smoked. For men it was almost 90% and for women 30%. At the end of the 1950s, information about the harmful effects of smoking slowly began to get through. In the 60s/70s, Doctor Meinsma started to warn against smoking. Initially, he received little support. Not even from doctors. This changed in 1971. Four scientific associations of medical specialists sent a memorandum on the harmful effects of smoking to the then State Secretary of Health, Roelof Kruisinga. The latter appointed a committee of the Health Council to advise on restrictive measures. This was the beginning of the anti-smoking policy.

In the years that followed, tobacco use declined sharply. In 1990, 1/3 of the population still smoked. In 2006, 28% of the Dutch population smoked, 31% men and 26% women.

Watch the following video to see how differently people used to deal with smoking.

Choosing a rug? These are the 6 most important tips!

During my consultations, I often ask: “Would you like a rug?” Actually, it’s not a question, because whether the client wants it or not, I always draw them in. A rug is a unifying factor in a room and I always advise it in an interior. What do you look for when choosing a rug, how important are materials, colours and especially the size? I give you 6 tips to make choosing your rug a success.

Tip 1: What size rug do you choose?
It’s not for nothing that this is the first choice I want to make. The size of a rug is the most important factor and also the most common mistake when choosing one. It happens all too often that rugs are placed in living rooms that are too small. What a shame! A rug that is too small makes your living room look smaller than it really is. My advice is: go for a nice big rug and put all your furniture that belongs to the seating area on it. By doing this you create a ‘zone’, everything on this rug belongs to the zone ‘sitting area’. So if you go for a large size, you also create a larger sitting area. Do you go for a square variant, rectangular or round; everything is possible. The examples below show what the size of a rug does to the seating area.

Everything floats without a rug, too small creates ‘islands
Both very good options to create a ‘zone
Tip 2: So much more versatile than just the seating area
A rug has several functions. One of these functions is to add homeliness, it adds warmth and not least, it improves acoustics. As I already mentioned, you can create a zone with a rug, this does not only have to be in the seating area. It can also be that this ‘zone’ embraces a sitting room, but also the extra armchair next to the fireplace or elsewhere in the room suddenly gets a clear destination when you place a rug under it. And what about the dining area? A free-standing table can look beautiful in a room. But do you want to emphasise it even more or does it sound a bit hollow here too? Place a rug under the table, but make sure that it extends at least 60 cm from the edge of the table on both sides. This is to make it easy to slide your chairs in and out. Apart from the living room, a rug can also be used in other rooms. Think of bedrooms, bathrooms and even outside. A vinyl rug can easily be laid outside and gives your garden a cosy corner too.

 

Whatever the material or size, rugs add atmosphere to any space.
Tip 3: Add colour to your rug or not?
Making a statement with a rug is of course possible with a large size. But what about a cool print or striking pattern? Bring back the colour in your rug from your coloured walls or used accessories. Whether you go for a plain colour, a pattern or print; make your choice by looking at what your interior can use. What I actually always advise: choose your rug last. Do you have all the walls in the right colour, is all the furniture where you wanted it to be and are the window decorations hanging? If you wait for this moment, you can, by taking a good look at your interior, determine what you still miss in the whole. This could be a certain colour, for example. Or maybe you can see immediately that there is enough colour and that your carpet should be quiet. Of course, it could also be that you need an eye catcher. Once you have decided on this, you can start measuring exactly how far you want the rug to go and determine the right size.

Are you going for a pattern or colour?
Tip 4: Choose the material that suits you best
Wool, sisal, polyester, coconut, vinyl or cotton; there are so many possibilities when it comes to rug materials. But which one is right for a rug in your home? Each material has advantages and disadvantages. It is important to take into account the function and living style.
The most popular material among rugs is wool. The main reason for this is that wool fibres do not attract dirt and the rug is therefore easy to clean. As a result, a wool rug retains its colour for a very long time. A disadvantage of a wool rug is that it can become quite fluffy (especially after purchase) and depending on the pile.
Are you allergic to wool? Then look at a cotton variant. These are thinner rugs, easy to change and also lower priced than the wool variety.
Besides these two, there are many other materials that can be suitable as rugs. Think of jute, polyester or vinyl. The latter is certainly an option in case of dust allergy or outdoor use.

Tip 5: Underfloor heating under your carpet handy or not?
Well, I often get this question: “I have underfloor heating in my house, so an underfloor rug isn’t practical? Yes, the heat under your rug is less likely to spread, but because a rug only covers part of your living room, you still have enough space on your floor for your heating to be effective. One way to take underfloor heating into account is not to use an underlay and to make sure the rug does not have a closed back. A closed back blocks heat. Rugs that are knotted or woven and do not have a closed back have, in practice, enough space between the knots and weft to allow heat to pass through. Whether the rug is high-pile or low-pile makes a minimal difference. The combination of a rug and underfloor heating can sometimes cause dry air to build up between the two layers. The result of this is that you can become static. Not dangerous but very annoying. Do you suffer from this and do you want to get rid of it? Make sure that the humidity in the house is good. There are devices for this, but plants (that get moist potting soil by watering) also help enormously.

Whatever the material or size, rugs add atmosphere to any room.
Tip 6: How to best maintain your rug?
It sounds so obvious, but of course you vacuum with a flat brush head on your hoover. This really makes sure you don’t damage the material and the life of the rug is much longer. Also vacuum the underside regularly; dirt often falls through the rug. Another tip is to rotate the rug regularly. Turn it 180 degrees every quarter, this prevents wear of material and colour on one side of your rug. Wool rugs are easy to maintain because they do not attract dirt. However, in combination with underfloor heating I do recommend spraying it lightly with water every quarter. This will keep the wool in the right condition. As far as stains are concerned, it is always important to take action immediately. Never leave a stain for a few days in the hope that it will go away. Remove the worst of the moisture with kitchen paper or a white terry cloth (easily absorbs a lot of dust). Make sure that you never rub but always dab. Do not use any household products to clean the stain, this is far too chemical. Lukewarm water and/or sparkling (spa red) water work best for this. Do not make the rug too wet and make sure the underside of the rug is not too wet either. Once the rug is completely dry, you can walk on it again.