A gardening trowel

Trowel used by the Hon. King O'Malley in laying one of the foundation stones of the commencement column of the Federal Capital city of Canberra in 1913.

Trowel - tool used for archaeological excavations

A trowel is one of several similar hand tools used for digging, smoothing, or otherwise moving around small amounts of viscous or particulate material.

Hand tools[link]

In gardening, a trowel is a tool with a pointed, scoop-shaped metal blade and a handle. It is used for breaking up earth, digging small holes, especially for planting and weeding, mixing in fertilizer or other additives, and transferring plants to pots.

A cathole trowel is similar to a gardening trowel, but it was specifically designed for digging catholes in the backcountry. Cathole trowels are used by backpackers, hikers and some kinds of campers, so they are often made of lighter weight materials than gardening trowels to make them easier to carry. Also, they may have features such as ruled sides to measure for proper cathole depth or jagged edges for cutting through roots or frozen soil. Some cathole trowels are also designed to fold-up or collapse into a smaller size for easier storage.

A bricklayer's trowel (also known as a pointing trowel) is a tool with a handle and flat metal blade, used by masons for leveling, spreading, or shaping substances such as cement, plaster, or mortar, as well as for breaking bricks to shape them or smoothing a mould. A tuck pointing trowel is longer and thinner, designed for packing mortar between bricks. Brick trowels are traditionally made of carbon steel, but some newer versions are made of cast stainless steel, which has longer wear and is rust-free.

In archaeology brick or pointing trowels (usually 4" or 5" steel trowels) are used to scratch the strata in an excavation and allow the colours of the soil to be clear, so that the different strata can be identified, processed and excavated. In the United States, there are several preferred brands of pointing trowels Marshalltown being one, but in the British Isles the WHS 4" pointing trowel is the traditional tool.

Several types of trowel are used in concrete construction. The float trowel or finishing trowel is usually rectangular, used to smooth, level, or texture the top layer of hardening concrete. A flooring trowel has one rectangular end and one pointed end, made to fit corners.

A gauging trowel has a rounded tip, used to mix measured proportions of the ingredients for quick set plaster.

A pool trowel is a flat-bladed tool with rounded ends used to apply coatings to concrete, especially on swimming pool decks.

Margin trowels and notched trowels are used to apply adhesive and grout when applying ceramic or stone tile to a surface.

A smaller but similarly shaped tool called the palette knife is used in oil painting.

Power tools[link]

A power trowel is a type of Light Construction Equipment, used by construction companies and contractors, serving as a finishing equipment for concrete works.

Significance[link]

The trowel is the nearest that the archaeological profession has to a uniform symbol. It is incorporated into the designs of many archaeological association logos and publications.

See also[link]

Pottiputki (tool)

Look up trowel in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

"Choose the right" is a saying or motto among members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) that is taught to children and used by members of the church as a reminder to act righteously. The phrase is taken from an LDS hymn which has that title.

History[link]

The letters CTR, a reference to this phrase, are incorporated into a shield logo designed by Helen Alldredge,^[1] a Primary General Board member in the 1960s. In 1970, a church committee headed by Naomi W. Randall recommended that the shield be incorporated into official church material. Since then, both the phrase and symbol have been used in religious educational materials for LDS youth of Primary age.^[2] The symbol is also used in LDS culture by members of all ages, both as a reminder of the motto, as well as an indicator of religious affiliation. The CTR initials, displayed on the shield and in other forms, can be seen mainly on CTR rings as well as other types of jewelry, tee shirts, bookmarks and stationery.

According to the US Patent and Trademark Office, the LDS Church's stylized "CTR" abbreviation and shield with the CTR symbol are trademarked for use on finger ring jewelry by Intellectual Reserve.^[3][4] The phrase "Choose the Right," however, is not trademarked in the United States and may be used by anyone for commercial purposes.^{[citation needed]}

CTR ring[link]

A CTR ring, showing the escutcheon design

A ring with the letters "CTR" on is often worn by members of the LDS Church as a reminder of the "Choose the Right" motto, and as a symbol of their religious affiliation.

CTR rings were introduced at the same time as the CTR shield in 1970 by Primary general president LaVern W. Parmley after being recommended by a committee chaired by Naomi W. Randall.^[2] In connection with the children's Sunday School program, each LDS child in this age group is given an adjustable ring with a green escutcheon bearing the letters "CTR" in silver.

Over the years CTR rings have become popular with both children and adults in the LDS Church. They are now available in a variety of designs in over 30 languages.

See also[link]

• Joseph L. Townsend, author of the words for Choose the Right, hymn 239 in the 1985 LDS Hymnal
• Henry A. Tuckett, author of the music for Choose the Right, hymn 239 in the 1985 LDS Hymnal

• Christian ichthys symbol
• Purity ring
• What would Jesus do? (WWJD)

Notes[link]

References[link]

Phrase

• Monson, Thomas S. (November 1994), "Choose You This Day", Ensign, http://www.lds.org/ensign/2004/11/choose-you-this-day?lang=eng 
• Perry, L. Tom (November 1993), "Choose the Right", Ensign, http://www.lds.org/ensign/1993/11/choose-the-right?lang=eng 

Symbol and ring

• Anderson, Vern (May 31, 1997). "CTR ring grows into symbol of LDS culture". Deseret News. (AP). http://www.deseretnews.com/article/563527/CTR-ring-grows-into-symbol-of-LDS-culture.html. 
• Johnston, Jerry (February 10, 2001), "Putting T in CTR was right choice", Deseret News, http://www.deseretnews.com/article/824411/Putting-T-in-CTR-was-right-choice.html 
• McCloud, Susan Evans (July 14, 2010), "Fads, facts and fiction of CTR rings", Deseret News, http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705385084/Susan-Evans-McCloud-Fads-facts-and-fiction-of-CTR-rings.html 
• Ravitz, Jessica (November 4, 2006), "A familiar ring: Choose The Right rings adorn the fingers of kids the world over - but the history of the famous Mormon symbol is a little fuzzy", The Salt Lake Tribune, http://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=4596390&itype=NGPSID 
• "Creator of CTR ring dies at 91", Deseret News, July 10, 2008, http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700242122/-Creator-of-CTR-ring-dies-at-91.html 
• "Mormon children's rings big hit with all ages". Telegraph Herald. (AP): p. 10B. July 12, 1997. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DZVSAAAAIBAJ&sjid=h80MAAAAIBAJ&pg=2774,2490226. 

External links[link]

Look up CTR in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Media related to CTR rings at Wikimedia Commons
• "239: Choose the Right" - wording to hymn as found in the Hymns of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1985)
• "CTR Ring Varieties" - a large variety of CTR Rings available from Deseret Book bookstores.