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(NAPSA)—With its exotic cock-tails, irresistible food and festivemusic, the Latin culture providesendless fodder for creating partyatmospheres around the world.Out of all the Latin-Americancountries, however, Cuba is oftenoverlooked when pondering Latin-themed get-togethers. Home ofsalsa dancing, iconic Latin musi-cians, handcrafted cigars andsome of the hottest nightlife in theCaribbean, this island offers avast amount of inspiration forparty planners. However, youdon’t have to travel there to cap-ture the essence of Little Havana.Follow these simple steps to kickoff your next Cuban-style party toa lively start.

Say Salud! Nothing sets themood better than serving a light,refreshing mojito to greet guestswhen they arrive. However, whowants to spend time muddlingmint leaves during the party? Tosave time and yet still deliver aterrific taste of South Beach inevery glass, try making batches inadvance using Rose’s Mojito Cock-tail Mix. Available in traditional,mango and passion fruit flavors,Rose’s makes mixing cocktailseasy, while providing guests witha flavorful and colorful variety tochoose from.

Create a hip Little Havanalounge. To create an inviting andloungelike atmosphere, candlesand couches are a must. Opt fortropical-scented glass votivesover pillar candles to ward offfire hazards. Additionally, ifcouch space is limited, placethrow pillows on the floor to adda comfortable yet chic dimensionto your party environment.

Serve small plates for bigappetites. For a little “comidaauténtica,” serve guests tapas-style small bites instead of main-course meals. Cured olives, grilledsausage, stuffed mushrooms andcubes of aromatic manchegocheese wash down great withmojitos and are easy to prepare inadvance and refill throughout the

evening. For a festive presenta-tion, serve on colorful dishes andgarnish with slices of freshpineapple or mango.

Inspire a Latin ambiencewith sultry sounds. Don’t forgeta music selection of Tito Puente orperhaps some Celia Cruz to keepyour night hot. Latin compilationsets are available for download atonline music stores to help encour-age guests to hit the dance floor.

For more party -p lanningtips and cocktail recipes, visitwww.MixUpTheParty.com.

Rose’s Cocktail Mojito Splash

3 oz. Rose’s TraditionalMojito Cocktail Mix

1 oz. light rum Sprig of mintSlice of lime

Mix and pour over a glass ofice. Top the glass with a splashof Schweppes Club Soda. Gar-nish with a sprig of fresh mintand lime to give your mojitoan authentic look. Serve yourmojitos in tall highball glasses(that fill about 10-12 oz.).

For a nonalcoholic mojito, sub-stitute Schweppes Club Soda orGinger Ale for rum.

Infuse Your Next Party with a Bit of Latin Flavor

Nothing sets the Latin mood bet-ter than serving a light, refresh-ing mojito to greet guests whenthey arrive.

(NAPSA)—Since its introduc-tion in the early ’90s, laminatehas evolved into a dynamic floor-ing option.

Homeowners who choose lami-nate are less concerned aboutdenting, nicking and stains thanwith other types of flooring. Inaddition, laminate won’t collectdust like carpet, leaving allergysufferers with one less symptomtrigger. Remember to considerthe following when shopping forflooring:

Appearance—Whether youwant a hardwood, ceramic orstone look, the laminate youchoose should resemble the realthing as much as possible.

For example, Mohawk Floor-ing’s new Earthworks and Hemi-spheres Collections offer realisticsurface textures and finishes in avariety of colors and styles. For acoordinating look, consider accentmoldings to finish the room.

Location—Let your retailerknow about the environment inwhich you plan to install yournew laminate. Many laminatesare not warranted for use inbathrooms and some are onlywarranted if it is a square-edgeproduct.

Room location is also a key fac-tor when it comes to noise levels,so you’ll want to consider theproper underlayment that willbest contain noise.

“We of fer a Si lentGU A R Dunderlayment to decrease soundwithin a particular room and aMoistureGUARD underlayment todecrease sound from travelingto rooms below,” said RogerFarabee of Mohawk Industries.“Both also serve as a moisturebarrier between the subfloorand the laminate.”

Maintenance—Think aboutthe maintenance involved withany new floor. An aluminum oxidetop coat will not only protect thefloor from everyday wear due topets and foot traffic, but alsoagainst extremes such as cigaretteburns and household chemicalspills. Choose laminate with wear,impact, scratch and stain resis-tance built into the floor.

Warranty—Most reputableflooring manufacturers offer a 20-to 25-year wear warranty and a25-year water resistance warrantyif the flooring is installed with itsunderlayment. Be sure to askwhat the warranty does and doesnot include.

Consumers should make suretheir floor is manufactured by amember of the North AmericanLaminate Flooring Association(NALFA). These companies’ prod-ucts meet or exceed industry stan-dards for manufacturing.

To find a dealer in your area orto learn more, visit www.mohawkflooring.com or call (800)2MOHAWK.

How To Select Flooring That’s Right For You

Laminate is durable, attractiveand collects less dust, which canbenefit allergy sufferers.

(NAPSA)—Few pool ownersrealize that their pool pump maybe using more electricity than allother household features andappliances combined—often cost-ing more than $100 per month.

That’s because most poolpumps are inefficient, single-speed or two-speed models withinduction motors and unchange-able speed settings.

Fortunately, far better optionsare now available. The most dra-matic energy savings come fromdigitally controlled, variable-speedpumps using today’s most energy-efficient motors—permanent mag-net motors—the same motorsused in hybrid cars.

According to Pentair WaterPool and Spa, their IntelliFlo®

variable-speed pumps can reduceenergy use by 30 percent to 90percent or more, depending on theapplication circumstances.

This is good news for the 5 mil-lion in-ground residential swim-ming pool owners in the UnitedStates as well as the environment.If every pool owner in the countryused a more energy-efficientpump, the total energy savingscould equal more than $3 billion,or the output of sixteen 500-mega-watt power plants burning morethan 16.3 billion pounds of coal.

The pump can be programmedto exact water flow requirementsfor different jobs. You can set theflow at the lowest level needed toaccomplish a task (filtering, spaoperation, etc.).

Single-speed and two-speedpumps only operate at set speeds,so they are almost always over-powering an application, whichwastes energy, or underpoweringan operation, which can damagepool equipment. Variable-speedpumps move only the exact waterrequired for a specific aquatic task.

Besides cost savings, there areadditional advantages:

• Pumps with permanent mag-net motors make much less noiseand are often barely noticeablewhen operating.

• Since variable-speed pumpscan be set at optimum (usuallyslower) speeds, they keep watermoving longer, which also helps toreduce the formation of algae thatoccurs more easily when water isallowed to rest for long periods.

• Longer run times at lowerflow rates also help make filtersmore effective because contami-nants are more easily trappedwhen pressure is low.

• Longer run times also makeautomatic chemical dispensersand chlorinators more effective.

• Permanent magnet motors innew variable-speed pumps runcooler and with less vibration, too.This translates into far longer ser-vice life for the pump and other poolequipment, according to Pentair.

• Variable-speed pumps alsoallow pool owners to vary theoperation of water features withthe touch of a button, such as theheight of jets and fountains or theflow rates for waterfalls.

Rebates available in states likeCalifornia, coupled with thepump’s dramatic energy savings,quiet operation and longer servicelife, have prompted many poolowners to switch to variable-speedpumps. Even those with relativelynew pumps have elected to makethe change—because they will bequickly paid back in energy sav-ings and longer pump service life.

Variable-speed pumps offermany environmental benefits andusing them could result in the fol-lowing emission reductions:

• 938 million lbs. of carbondioxide

• 131 million lbs. of sulfurdioxide

• 53 million lbs. of nitrogenoxides.

The annual carbon dioxideemission reduction is equivalentto 3.2 billion trees planted and 51billion auto miles not driven.

Innovative new pool pumps canbenefit pool owners, communities,the environment, and the countryas a whole.

For more information, visitwww.pentairpool.com.

New Pool-Pump Technology Cutting Energy Costs By Hundreds Per Year

Variable-speed pumps use energy-efficient motors that can be pro-grammed so they don’t overpower or underpower different water-moving tasks.

(NAPSA)—There’s good newsfor those who desire one-of-a-kinditems for their home but don’twant to travel halfway around theworld to find them.

Increasingly, designers are tak-ing their cues from exotic localesto create furniture and designs forthe home.

For example, the most recentcollection from a manufacturerknown for high-quality residentialfurniture features shapes, tex-tures, colors and finishes influ-enced by the recent travels of themembers of its design team.

Said Pasquale Natuzzi, de-signer and CEO of Natuzzi S.p.A.,“I’ve traveled most of my life fromDubai to St. Petersburg and stopseast and west. Because of thesetravels, I meet interesting people.I discover new foods. I want toshare my experiences and bringthem to life. These collections area reflection of some of my recentexperiences.”

He believes these discoveriesare reflected in the silks fromIndia, Parisian pink leather andItalian linens used to create thefirm’s sensual sofas.

There are also spicy colorsinspired from South America andthe south of Spain, such as pump-kin, ginger and nutmeg, that findtheir way into fabrics, leathersand accessories.

Rubies, turquoise, platinum, sil-ver and gold are used to makemany new complementary textilesshimmer, recalling Egyptian trea-sures and the romantic MiddleEast.

Even British pop has foundits way into the collection, withwhimsical daisies straight out ofPortobello Road making a homefor themselves in the casualspace of the designer’s galleries.

Founded in 1959, the companyis considered the leader in leatherupholstered furniture, exporting itscutting-edge sofas and armchairs to123 markets on five continents.

To learn more, visit the Website at www.natuzzi.com.

World Travels Inspire Furniture Line’s Designs

Increasingly, designers are tak-ing their cues from exotic localesto create furniture and designsfor the home.