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six favorite valentines diys
while i’m not super into pink and red under normal circumstances, valentines day is the one exception i’ll make. here are six of my favorite valentines projects that are beautiful, simple & way girly.
printable donut boxes by sugar and charm / mylar treat bags by paper & stitch
XO gift wrap by sugar & cloth / heart cake – source unknown
heart garland by 52 weeks project / conversation heart donuts by studio diy -
diy valentines treat bags / with free printables
who doesn’t like a last minute and FREE way to give out valentines treats?! well i’ve got one for you. all it takes is a printer and maybe a little patience.
it took me a few tries to print directly onto these glassine bags, but don’t worry — it’s totally doable! it’s the same method i used for printing onto the shipping tags. and you can buy a pack of glassine bags at any craft store.
now — to print onto the bags, download this guide. you’ll then want to print the guide onto a piece of paper. tape your bag onto the box as straight and tightly as you can, and gently feed the paper into your printer. you might be wondering why i didn’t put two bags on at once and i will now tell you. that shit don’t work. every time i tried two it jammed the paper. so the trick is to have your bag on the top side of your paper, not the bottom. otherwise it might jam right away (unless my printer is just dumber than yours).
once your paper and bag are loaded, simply print one design at a time onto your bags — and let dry! mine came out inky.
once dry, fill with cookies, chocolates or sweethearts! use a cute piece of washi tape and seal your bag. give out to all your loved ones!
and happy almost valentines day! you guys have fun plans? we’re seeing bill cosby live! (not sure that’s the most romantic activity, but it’ll be fun.)
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i link you
maybe it makes me a huge dork – but i still love full house. yes i know it’s bad. but it’s the best bad. and fallon always targets my generation — it’s like he knows me. and now he got my full house boyfriends together. (for the record – joey is no boyfriend of mine)
we’ve been wanting to get surround sound for years – but it’s either crazy expensive or hideous. these diy speaker covers make me think it’s totally possible. (via a beautiful mess)
every few months, i am obsessed with a new house tour and all i want to do is live in that house. well i’ve found my new favorite. (via sfgirlbybay)
brittany has been killing it (per ushe) with valentines DIYs. this heart chain would make a perfect photo backdrop (via the house that lars built)
any no-sew DIY is exciting for me – how cute is this no-sew leather and wood clutch? (via always rooney)
peter smart redesigned the standard boarding pass using the same amount of ink, the same information, and the same paper. how much easier would it be to read your ticket at the airport?! this really shows the power of the design. (via npr)
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diy leather ipad case
i’ve been meaning to update my ipad case forever… and on a whim a few months ago, i bought a yard of this soft white faux leather. so expect to see it used in a few more projects because i have a huge ass roll of it now.
i can barely sew — as i’ve said before, so if you’re a great sewer, this will be a cinch for you. for me, not so easy.
L E A T H E R I P A D C A S E
materials
soft leather
elastic band
upholstery scissors (or a rotary cutter if you get down)
suede cord
pins
needle
thread
xacto
glue (optional)
directions
step one . cut down your leather using your ipad as a guide. leave it long on top and bottom.
step two . cut out four strips of the elastic, making sure they’re long enough to essentially loop around the corners of the ipad.
step three . again, using your ipad as a guide, measure and mark where your elastic pieces will go to securely fit. if they’re too loose, un pin and pin again. you want to make sure they’re as tight as possible so it won’t fall out. pin the elastic down into place.
step four . sew the elastic bands into the leather. it’s ok if it looks whack — it really won’t be visible once your ipad is in place. also if your elastic is not perfectly straight like mine, as long as you have enough leather to trim off on top and bottom – you can make it straight afterwards.
* step five . now if you’re not an advanced sewer, you might notice the back looks wonky once the elastic is sewn in. mine pinched all over the place which i knew would bother me. so in order to hide this (and add more protection to the ipad) i cut out another piece of leather and glued them together.
step six . once the leathers dry, measure, mark and cut out the shape you want. you can do a much straighter line with a rotary cutter, but my scissors worked fine. i cut it long enough so there would be a flap on the right side of the ipad.
step seven . using an xacto, cut a slit onto your flap and make sure it’s wide enough for your cord to thread through. knot it on the inside, and trim it to where you can wrap the cord around the case a couple of times.
and there you have it! a very minimal and simple ipad case that’s soft enough to cuddle with. (i cuddle my ipad a lot.)
i remembered right when i finished the case that i really want to swap out my ipad for an ipad mini, so i might be making another case someday.
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palm springs pt 2
we went to palm springs last weekend to scout wedding venues – and i’m just now finding the time to post photos… better late than never right? you may have noticed i’ve been really bad about posting for the past few weeks. i promise i’m going to get better. but life things are really pretty chaotic right now. so it’s just a matter of balance.
we stayed at the ace for the weekend, and besides going around to scout venues, we mostly hung around the room and the pool.
we had brunch at cheeky’s, which always has a line, but it’s one of the best brunches in palm springs in my opinion. their bloody marys are super spicy in the best way.
we never go to palm springs and miss out on eating at las casuelas terazza, which is a cute authentic mexican restaurant with al fresco dining, margaritas, and a lot of times on weekends – live music.
pretty sure everyone stays at the ace for the design, not for the luxury aspect. it’s just an old super 8 motel with a hip facelift, but i can’t help but be inspired when i’m there (or the parker). i’ve been in this lobby a dozen times, but was really inspired this time, thinking that we need to DIY a macrame chuppah for the wedding.
we did find our venue – and we set our date! but my anxiety is getting the best of me, and i’m seriously wishing it wasn’t so soon… this is a normal reaction to an engagement right?!
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i link you
i’ve always found mirror ads on craigslist so weird — you can almost always see something weird in the reflection. well now there’s a tumblr page full of them (via craigslist mirrors)
how beautiful are all three of these DIY valentines day wrapping ideas? (via the house that lars built)
these printable super bowl bingo cards are the easiest way to get the kids and women interested… i usually just eat and drink the whole time (via studio diy)
old people reenacting images from movies – it’s obviously adorable (via reddit)
loving this brilliant jewelry box diy made from two acrylic frames so much… i don’t usually bother copying DIYs for my house but i totally would want to make this (via house of earnest)
pretty funny truthful posters of this years oscar nominated movies (via college humor)
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netflix gems pt 2
well – i’ve been watching some netflix as usual, and i thought it was time to share some more favorites!
frances ha ok. i love this movie. it’s about a lost 20 something who’s struggling with her career path and her best friend moving on without her. but gideon didn’t like as much as me. maybe it’s a girl thing.
house of the devil if you like horror movies, but especially if you like 80s horror movies – this throwback is really well done. stylized super well, the plot is not my absolute favorite, but if you’ve been meaning to watch it – then watch it. sound advice.
ramen girl don’t hate. this looked so cheesy and i kind of turned it on just to see how bad it was. an hour later and gideon and i are both ridiculously into it. if you give it a chance, this movie will make you want to move to japan and make ramen so fast.
robot & frank a super sweet movie about a senile old man and his robot. i’m a sucker for friendship movies.
once bitten you may have watched this as a kid on cable, but as i’ve shared before – i have a serious love of 80s movies. especially sex comedies. (i’ve mentioned before but HARDBODIES is our absolute favorite) this one stars jim carrey as a vampire. there’s an amazing dance scene. i mean. it’s good.
walking and talking yet another friendship movie – i was super bored and not into it when i put this on, but ended up liking it. you might too.
hunk omg another 80s sex comedy? yep. that’s what netflix is for. this one was surprisingly entertaining – and watch out for brad pitt as an extra on the beach!
a bag of hammers a kind of sweet drama about two deadbeat guys who end up raising a kid. i cried. therefore i share.
blackfish a really sad documentary about seaworld. another crying movie. super well done and seriously makes you want to go free all the whales.
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diy vintage rose jewelry box
i know what you might be thinking. whoa. that’s a girly jewelry box and totally not what you normally see on almost makes perfect. i think you’re right — it turned out QUITE feminine looking. but it’s almost valentines day, so i think that allows me to girl it up. this simple little jewelry box would make the perfect valentines gift for your mom or sister or niece or … a girl. that’s in your life. you get it.
materials
wooden craft box
gel medium
a paintbrush
a brayer tool
white craft paint
felt
liquid stitch
scissors
sponge
a print out of your choice
directions 01. sand and paint your craft box if you choose and let dry overnight. paint the inside edges but don’t worry about the inside of the box which will be covered by your felt.
02. find an image you like, measure your box, and print it to fit. many internet sources say inkjet prints don’t work with gel medium, but they actually do.
03. cut out your image as best as you can, and keep in mind that it will reverse once it’s adhered to your box, so if you’re using text, print backwards.
04. brush your image liberally with your gel medium, once saturated, lay down on top of your box.
05. make sure all the sides are covered and it’s sitting tightly on top with no loose corners.
06. using your brayer (if you don’t have one, you can just use a book or credit card), burnish your image for a couple minutes.
07. let dry for about three hours. then, using a bowl of water and a sponge, gently wet your sponge and dampen your entire image. you’ll begin to see the image coming through. keep patiently wetting and removing the paper backing.
08. wet your fingers and keep rubbing more paper off. it will become messy but the darker detail of your image will start showing through even more.
09. once you’re happy with your image, brush away the paper and let dry for an hour.
10. measure your box width and cut your felt to the same width. as tightly as you can, roll up pieces and wedge them into your box. add glue to the bottom of the box and secure them into place. my box fit eight rolled pieces (eight pieces of felt).
and there you have it. the girliest diy jewelry box i’ll ever make that i’m really not even sure i like that much. but if you like it – i’ll be happy.
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getting me some bridesmaids
i have three girlfriends that i knew i wanted to be my bridesmaids right away. so the other night when we went out for champagne to celebrate the engagement, i made each one of them a simple little card with my favorite photo of the two of us, a personalized “trait” that i need for the wedding — and gifted them each a simple little brass ring.
they loved the cards, the rings, me asking so officially — and saying YES. and now i have my three adorable bridesmaids.
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getting organized
like i said, being sick when the new year starts really makes you feel like you’re behind on all aspects of life. we were wanting to move pretty badly, but now that we’re engaged, we’re going to hold off on moving. and because i’ve been in the “i’m moving at some point” mindset, our apartment is just littered with trash, empty boxes, craft supplies… it’s time to try to get organized around here. also thinking of hiring a cleaning lady to bring me some sanity. that works for most people, right?
