Crafty Superstar!

Back this summer, I was approached by Cat, of Cut Out + Keep, asking if I would like to be featured as one of their Crafty Superstars. I immediately said YES. I have been using Cut Out + Keep since I was in Junior/Senior high for crafting inspiration.

I am so excited to be featured on the main page and at the lead of the Superstars tab for an entire week! Every day, for a week, a new crafting tutorial will be revealed for those who visit Cut Out + Keep.

Past Crafty Superstars include Erica Domesek (PS I made this) and Mark Montano (TLC). Check out the Can Can Dancer tutorials and an interview here: Link.

(Look its MEEEEEE! on the footer of every page this week. :) )

Happy almost New Year! And happy crafting!

~Crafty Superstar #109 (aka Can Can Dancer)

Christmas Tree Decorating

Here is another post courtesy of my mom. My parents have multiple Christmas trees in their house each with a different theme- purple/girly, angels/pastel, santas/red and sometimes a cowboy tree. My mom took step-by-step pictures of how she decorates her red tree.

Check out below to see how:

Here is a naked 9 ft pre-lit tree.

This is a tree skirt that my mom has had for over 20 years. My aunt made it. It even is reversible with green on the other side.

Find some large ribbon to decorate the tree with. (I have sparkly purple on my own tree and I got it on clearance at Michael's after Christmas last year- leftover from the custom floral department.)

This year my mom decided to use candy-cane looking ribbon. She gathered 12 loops and left the two tail ends free. She secured the 12 loops with thin wire. (She bought her ribbon from Costco for $7ish)

Wire the bow to the top of your tree and cascade more ribbon down the body of your tree. (6-8 rows of cascading ribbon depending on the thickness of your wire.)

My mom bought red Christmas ornaments at Kmart.

She also gathered personal ornaments that matched the tree. (I made some of them a LONG time ago. lol)

Here is the tree with ribbon, red balls and homemade ornaments.

She also bought simple metallic bows at Kmart to fill in any gaps.

She also added a star to the top of the tree (It's hiding behind the ribbon. lol)

Here are their new custom cabinets- with the shelves all filled. Check out how they built them here: link.

Cinemagraphs

Hello World,

I currently am in a Digital Imaging class and our latest project was to revise an icon. I have always adored Dorothy, and I made cinema-graphs for the first time!

And now that I have used an expensive digital SLR, I am hooked. I am now saving up for one, along with a less expensive lens.  The only problems I came across with my cinemagraphs was I could not get the file size small enough with CS6. I compressed these puppies multiple times and they still are not small enough.

I only used the last three for my project, but I had them arranged in a different formation and the title is "Waiting to __________."

Enjoy! And have a great Thanksgiving! 

'

Influenster Beauty Blogger VoxBox

Hello World!

I was chosen again to receive a VoxBox complimentary of Influenster. My previous VoxBox featured natural products, check out the review here: link.  This new VoxBox was for Beauty Bloggers and had a lot of great products!

For those of you unfamiliar with Influenster,  it is program for social-media driven trendsetters.  You have to earn badges to show how active you are in different online communities, and if you qualify, they send you a VoxBox full of free goodies to try, review, and share. The more influential you are, the more likely you are to receive free goodies in the future.

On top of receiving a VoxBox full of free goodies, you also have the opportunity to participate in brand challenges to win great goodies! (Like baskets full of size products, ect.) I am really excited because as you can see from the Influenster link above, they have over 50,000 Facebook fans.  2,000 Influensters were chosen to receive the Naturals VoxBox, and I actually won a Brand Challenge!  I won the Nectresse Challenge for being one of the top 20 Badge Holders! My prize is automatic qualification in the next Naturals VoxBox. More goodies!

Back on subject, here is a picture of my Beauty Blogger VoxBox. The goodies included in it were:

• NYC New York Color, Individual Eyes Custom Compact

• Kiss Ever Pro Lashes Starter Kit

• Bath & Body Works Mini Candle

• EBOOST Daily Energy Booster

• Goody Simple Styles Spin Pin

• Not Your Mother's, Smooth 'Moves Frizz' Control Hair Cream

In the picture above, you can see full descriptions of each product and the price of each one. I did not qualify for the bonus items, but I still was happy with the VoxBox.

Kiss Ever Pro Lashes Starter Kit

I have never purchased a starter kit for false eyelashes- but I am no stranger to false eyelashes. I have been a fan of makeup since I was first allowed to wear it when I turned 16. I usually buy falsies at the drugstore when they are on sale for Halloween or for dances/parties.

These eyelashes were great quality. I did not have to trim them to fit my eyes, and I loved how full they were. I did all my Sugar Skull makeup first, curled my lashes, applied basic mascara, and then put the lashes on. After the glue dried, I added more mascara to lock my real lashes to the Kiss lashes.

Check out my entire Sugar Skull makeup here: link.

The lashes lasted all Halloween night, and when I removed them, the glue did not leave any residue. Because I am used to applying falsies, the applicator did not really help me. I found it more cumbersome than traditional tweezers, but if you don't have a steady hand or are new to falsies, it would probably help you.

Like Kiss Nails on Facebook for coupons!

Goody Simple Styles Spin Pin

This is a product I actually had never seen before. I have used other Goody products though like bobbypins and elastics. It's pretty simple. You place your hair in a ponytail, (I used an elastic to catch all the broken hair at the base of my head) spin your hair into a bun shape, and then twist these two pins into your bun to hold it in place.

Due to my lovely elf ears, I never really wear my hair up, but I still gave these a try. It did hold my hair in place and was really easy to use.  These would work well for someone with thick hair. I have damaged hair which is thin at the bottom, so my bun wasn't too large.

Large buns seem like the hottest trend right now (with sock buns and such), and I wish I could pull them off. These pins are great for a lazy hair day, but if you want a large bun backcomb your hair first.

NYC New York Color, Individual Eyes Custom Compact

NYC cosmetics are available just about everywhere. They are really affordable and the quality isn't that bad for low price you pay.  This palette came with four eyeshadows, an illuminator, and a primer.

I have used the palette multiple times since I first opened my VoxBox. I tried the entire kit together, and have found the white and light grey eyeshadows to have the best color payoff.  When used with a primer, the white shows up really well.  The black does not show up very dark though. It might work better when applied wet.

The primer wasn't greasy, and you will run out of it way before you use up all the eyeshadows. The illuminator works well under the white eyeshadow to better hide your natural lid color.

It is a nice palette for beginners. I didn't follow the instructions on the back though entirely because I like to use a light color on the inner corner of my eye to brighten up my eyes and make me look more awake. The compact also seems very sturdy and the eyeshadows didn't have falloff inside the case when I threw it my makeup bag.

Bath & Body Works Mini Candle

I love just about everything from Bath & Body Works. I received a mini Cider Lane candle in my VoxBox and it smelled so yummy! I liked it so much I did a seperate blog post just on it. Read the full review here: link.

I also had a few more of these mini candles in my stash that were burned all the way down, and I found a fun way to repurpose the glass jars.  Check out a tutorial here: link.

Not Your Mother's, 'Smooth Moves' Frizz Control Hair Cream

This product was my favorite product in my VoxBox!  I never had heard of this company before, and next time I am at ULTA I am totally buying the full size bottle for $6!

My hair is really damaged. I maybe use hot tools too often and my hair has been just about every color. Right now it is blonde and my ends are not pretty.  This product did wonders for my hair. I applied it to towel dried hair, used a blow dryer and a flat paddle brush, and then used a straightener to finish styling it. It made my split ends lay flat and made my hair less prone to breakage.

It reduced the amount of flyaways, increased shine, and smelled amazing.  I used up almost this entire tube.  (The travel bottles are also available for sale too if you don't want to commit to a full-sized bottle right from the start.)

A little bit of this product goes a long way. The first time I tried it I used too much and it gave my hair a different texture. Use a dime sized amount first, and then use more if you need. Also, I would avoid using it on your roots-so you don't weight your hair down and lose your top volume.

EBOOST Daily Energy Booster

I also received EBOOST in my last VoxBox and my view on it hasn't changed.  I took a picture of the back this time though so you all can see the vitamins in it. 41,667% daily value of B12!!

See the full review for EBOOST here: link.



Overall, I was really happy about this VoxBox and I liked all the products included in it.  If anyone is interested in joining Influenster, contact me via the tab at the top of my blog. I have 3 more invites to give away! It's a great program!

(Note: All views are my own and I received the products complimentary of Influenster to test, review and share.)

DIY Built in Bookshelves

Hello World,

In a previous post, I blogged about how my parents installed custom cabinets in the dining room and saved themselves $5,000.  My parents also recently installed built-in bookshelves in the living room.

Check out below for pictures (thanks to my mom):

Here is the living room before. My mom thought the TV looked weird with the way the room looked. We also have a stove because we live in Idaho... and the winters can be rough! (The National Guard actually had to shovel snow off of my high school a few years ago because the roof was starting to cave- and the school was only 10 years old.)

My parents bought unfinished cabinets from Home Depot.  (4 upper kitchen cabinets were bought total)

They bought a discounted fireplace mantel. (Note from my mom: Double check the measurements you need for the fireplace- including cabinet spacing and trim.) 

They also bought a discounted gas fireplace insert. My dad sells stoves/BBQs here: www.stovesdirect.com.

They picked a fireplace that was narrow- so it wouldn't eat up too much space.

My dad build the top frame out of 2x4's and plywood.  His piece is sitting on top of the kitchen cabinets. He cut them to size and made the back panels with thin plywood sheets.

He installed the fireplace and added trim to finish the edges.

My mom painted all the trim in our garage on saw horses and over drop cloths.

My mom used one gallon of primer on the build-ins. She also would sand a little between paint coats.

My mom used 1.5 gallons of semi gloss paint- with 2 full coats of cream paint.

My dad also cut oak plywood to size for the shelves.

Because it is chilly in Idaho, they primed and painted the shelves inside.  This actually is our basement with drop cloths on our pool table.

Almost finished- still needs to be staged/put items on the shelves.

My mom doing final touchups.

My parents bought these hammered metal knobs at Habitat for Humanity for $0.50 each.

Check out how the living room looks now here: link.

Candle Jars to Succulent Garden

In a previous post, I blogged about the free Bath and Body Works mini candle I received complimentary of Influenster. Well, I actually had a few burnt up ones hiding in my junk drawer. (I already milked all the scent out of the wax by placing the candles on my candle warmer.) I didn't want to just throw the jars away, and I found a way to reuse the little glass jars.

My friend's grandmother gave me a small chunk of her succulent garden this summer, and since then it has been budding like crazy. I already have replanted some buds in old tea cups and such, but here is a new take on the succulent garden that is super easy and looks pretty modern!

Check out how to make your own below:

1.   Gather your jars, they can be any size. Here I chose the BBW mini candles.

2.   Peel off the labels. The new labels are way easier to remove than the ones from this summer. 

3.   Wipe.wash off any remaining sticky residue.

4.   Either melt the candle on a candle warmer or in a saucepan full of simmering water. You also could pop out the wax with a spoon. Pour the melted wax into an unwanted plastic/glass container. I poured all my wax into an empty 4 oz candle jar. (it ended up looking similar to sand art... but with wax.) 

5.   Fill your mini candle jar with moist soil.

6.   Evaluate your succulent garden, and determine where some 'breathing' room would be needed for your larger plants. 

7.  Gently, snap off a succulent bud, and trim the stem to have a clean break.

8.  Put the stem into the soil and in a few days your succulent will start to take root. It's that simple!

You also could use this same technique with a larger candle jar and plant multiple buds in it.

Does this candle jar look familiar? I removed and reused the wax in this tutorial: link.

I had quite a few mini candles in my stash.  These look cute lined up on a windowsill, and would be a REALLY easy gift to give someone. You also could decorate the jars with rhinestones, glitter, ribbon, ect to make them really unique! 

Such cute little succulents!  When they get too large for the mini candle jars, just replant them in a large container. (Oh, and water them periodically and let them get enough sunshine to be happy campers!)

IDEA: You totally could make a few of these and use them as PLACEHOLDERS for Thanksgiving! Each person would get to take a mini plant home with them!  I bet they would be thankful. :)

(Disclaimer: I was not paid in anyway to make this tutorial. I really do have a ton of burned-up candles.. lol)

New Display for Zipper Hair Pieces

I not only sell my zipper flowers online at Etsy, I also sell them at the Prichard Art Gallery here in my college town. Previously, they were displayed in a wooden jewelry box, but I think this new display will encourage more sales since they are all visible instead of flipping through them like a book.

I took an old window, broke the glass out, and then used a putty knife to remove the cracked/leftover glass and sealant.  I then scrubbed the chipped paint off where-ever it was loose (so it didn't shed all over the shelf).  I put 8 hooks in the window frame and strung wire between each set to hang my items on.

Look at my new professional tags! Fancy!

They are all so unique!  All made with vintage buttons and repurposed/vintage zippers.

And of course I had to include some of my Moo Minicards. I actually have to bring some more to the Prichard, my business cards are almost all gone!