Do It Yourself Coffin Jewelry Box // Hinged Box Jewelry Holder

Hi everyone! In case you missed it (because you all know that I'm such a bad blogger!) this is my new tutorial video. It is a jewelry box. For this craft you can use any type of hinged box or box in general. It's really easy and makes a great jewelry storage solution for cheap!

What I Love Wednesday 5.21.13

I think I'm starting to get back on track here. Now all I have to do is keep up with Twitter and Tumblr and I can take over the world!

I don't actually know which other stores carry these aloe drinks, but I know that Target has them. These are not only tasty but if you are a texture-eater/drinker and you like pulp, this comes in many flavors (I believe Target carries 4 of them) then I do suggest you try one of these!

I saw these on Etsy and really just wanted to slap myself. I have a set of these sitting around doing nothing and this is the perfect thing to do with them! I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep them, upcycle them or give them away. I was hoping to upcycle them by painting them, but it's usually windy where I live and I didn't want to try to spray paint in the wind. So I'm going to be trying this again.

This is the book I am currently reading and have just found out will be a Tim Burton Film shortly. I'm so excited for it. I love it so much already. I love odd and mysterious and it has been a fun and easy read so far.

My YouTube recommendation for the month has got to be Good Mythical Morning by Rhett and Link. It's fun, entertaining, informative and if you leave before the Wheel of Mythicality we cannot be friends. I would recommend this to anyone who's looking to watch news that's not really news or anyone who's just looking for a laugh or a smile.

The art of Valfre. Need I say more? Go. Go right now to her website and look at all hear beautiful pieces. I found her on instagram and have been seeing her all over storenvy and tumblr lately. I cannot pick a favorite piece. She really does just get me.

See you next week! Stay weird.

Cupcake Burlap and DecoMesh Wreath

So, this is the wreath that I had made for the Spring / Summer season at work. I am usually asked to make wreaths around different seasons and I had been thinking about a cupcake concept for a while. I was somewhat worried at first, but once I drew it out, I knew how I was going to make it. Sadly, I did not take pictures of it's process, but I would like to make one for September around my boyfriend's and my birthday.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

xx 20 inch box style wreath frame

xx 5.5 inch roll of burlap ribbon

xx 1 roll of 21 inch roll of decomesh ribbon in your choice of color

xx bag of assorted pom pom balls

xx lg fuzzy metallic pom pom balls

xx glitter spiral picks, flowers, or anything else you'd like to include

xx wire ribbon to tie a bow in a corresponding color

xx wire or chinelle stems in corresponding icing colors

xx scissors and wire cutters

xx glue gun

xx first xx on a flat surface, lay out your wreath frame and your decomesh. open your chinelle stems and take a few and cut them into thirds. tie them randomly over about 1/2 of the wreath frame and start tying down about 6 inches of decomesh at a time running back and forth over the same part of the top half of the wreath you are working on.

xx second xx once half of the wreath frame is nice and full like icing and you are happy with how it looks, trim off or secure any of the excess mesh. unroll your burlap ribbon and while laying it over the wreath frame, measure off pieces of it that measure just a little longer than your frame. cut 4-5 of these sections and begin laying them down, tying them, then overlapping them. it should start looking like a plain cupcake at this point.

xx third xx plug in your hot glue gun and once it is ready to glue, get out your pom pom balls of all sizes / colors and place them randomly around your wreath. glue them down when you are happy with the placing of them. these will mimic sprinkles. do the same with any other pompoms you are using. i used a big metallic red one to mimic a cherry on top.

xx fourth xx take any wire picks (check stores around christmas time too for fun looking picks!) and tie their wires through the deco mesh and to the back of the frame. glue if unstable but that is unnecessary.

xx fifth xx take your wire ribbon and tie any kind of bow to your choosing with it around the center. i chose red to bring out the red in the 'cherry'. make sure everything is secure then your wreath is ready to hang and enjoy!

I hope that was easy to understand as I didn't have any pictures of my process this time around. If I do end up making another one, I will be sure to take pictures of do a video tutorial of it. Just study my picture and try to copy it if you need any pointers or leave me a comment! 

What I Love Wednesday 5/7/13

Yes, we are going to completely ignore the fact that I keep disappearing for extended periods of time. Here are my weekly favorites instead.

I have been collecting Disney Trading Pins for almost a year now and I'm still in love with them. They are a really fun collectible and I just keep them on a cork-board in our 'game/craft room'. I have won quite a few off of Ebay and even purchased a few from some Disney enthusiasts on Instagram. It's so magical every time I get to add a new pin to my collection.

I keep somehow finding this German Rapunzel Fairytale plate on Etsy and I think it is starting to become a 'want' for me. She's so beautiful and I love how it looks. I just need to figure out where to put it. This same shop also has a Hansel and Gretel plate but I'm not sure if I would snag that one up too as I don't want it to become a 'collection'. I already collect too much.

I purchased one of the mason jar mugs a few weeks ago at work (although mine has a mug handle on it) and it has become my preferred beverage container. For some reason these make drinks taste so cold on a hot day. I can't explain the wizardry behind them, but I'm really loving the look and purpose of them.

Nirvana has to be my third favorite band of all time (placing after Led Zeppelin and Coheed and Cambria) and I can listen to them all day. Their music still sounds modern and interesting even after all these years and I have been playing the heck out of them since Ryder Burgin (FootOfAFerret) included them (and Foo Fighters) in his 'A Brief History' series. I also think sometimes that if I were in the music industry (different time/ different place) that Dave Grohl would be my husband because I love his drive to make music, his inspiration, and his strength. Also his rugged look is a bonus.

Guys, guys! I got a tattoo this weekend. I'm both thrilled and in pain. I got this little beauty on my left shoulder and as cute as it is, it hurt like a b****. As I was expecting some pain, the outline didn't hurt at all, the shading hurt a little but by the time we got to the color, I was dying. I got this from a guy I've known since the 7th grade (Mikey Ortiz) and he's been back and forth between tattoo shops but now operates from home. That made me a little skeptical, but looking at his previous work and knowing that he worked under one of my co-workers/friend's cousin, I was confident with him. We were about halfway done with my outline and he asks how many tattoos I have... 'None'. He kind of stops, a little surprised, 'Why didn't you tell me?! Most people only get something small as their first tattoo!' We laughed about it and I told him that I wanted my first tattoo to be something I actually liked and not something silly like stars or an infinity symbol (not that there is anything wrong with those tattoos!) and how I have a very specific vision in my mind when it comes to tattoos.

That's all for this week, guys. How 'bout a little Nirvana-themed playlist with my favorite songs?

Lithium

In Bloom

All Apologies

Breed

Come as You Are

Dumb

The Baby Food Challenge

I did the baby food challenge with my brother and sister-in-law and the results are in! (Rather, the video is finally uploaded and edited!)

What I Love Wednesday 3.26.14

What? A WILW post? Your eyes do not deceive you! As I said, I wanted to bring this back and start blogging again at least once a week even if it is just this post (or even if it is Saturday...), so let's go!

I've been spouting some seeds and bulbs in my kitchen as we're still expecting one more snow fall and I'm really excited about these flowers! They look very similar to Orchids, but are called Mexican Shellflowers. With Orchids being my favorite flower, I'm hoping that these will be an easier to maintain substitute. (Note: I do have an orchid plant but they are so picky about watering and soil, that this may be easier. I have heard that they grow well in coconut shell enhanced soil. I fell as if I am one who does not have time for that.)

This is a find that I could not help but favorite on Etsy. This is a paper mache pink bat. The details on this are so beautifully done and all of the art from this shop is just so perfect and fitting to my taste.

Sit there and tell me that you DON'T love Lil' Bub. Because how could you not? She is so cute with that little tongue! I really want to get this super hipster-y sticker I found of her.

This is so realistic that I can almost feel this bengal kitten! This is made from wool roving done by needle felting. I don't have a lot of experience with needle felting, but I can tell you that it is one craft you can NOT do while watching TV or YouTube because you will stab yourself. I can tell there was so much work put into this and the details are purrfect.

My absolute favorite YouTuber this month has been BayleeCreations / Bumble Baylee. She's so creative and she's got the ideal job as an animator. She's just silly and I feel like I really relate to her after I watch any one of her vlogs or videos because we have the same personality types. She's fun and I'd truly like to meet her.

Knitting Knowledge Episode 1: Tools and Basic Knowledge

Hi friends. I am very excited to announce my new knitting series on YouTube! It's called Knitting Knowledge and the first episode is all about tools and other things that beginner knitters and knitter-wanna-bes should know. 

There should be a new episode out fairly soon. I'm thinking maybe around March 22 (next weekend) and it will be all about the next steps one would need to take to begin their knitting journey!