wedding DIY nights.

we just completed DIY night 2 / 3 for angela & nick's upcoming nuptials. 

i hosted the first one and alicia the second, but the recipe is the same each time:

girlfriends + wine + cheese + scissors + glue guns + lace + programs + sore backs + the clock strikes midnight

almost everything is crossed off the list. we're so close. 

and good thing, because we're just 15 days and counting. 

snip and clip and repeat.

it's gonna be a fiesta of grand proportions! 

fantastic helper. making sure the stack of 200 program sheets didn't go anywhere.

angela had the DIY a-team. a wedding planner, a professional apron maker & crafting crazed ting.

two tasks totally completed! 36 aisle chair decor tassel thingies and a sweetheart table sign.

excuse me? there's no resting.

(i'm a) sewing machine.

that's right. a few weeks ago i finally pulled my christmas gift out of it's box and set her up in the dining room.

i was pleasantly surprised how it all came flooding back to me from both my youth and "first stitch" sewing class... winding and threading the bobbin, adjusting stitch lengths & all that jazz. such a great creative outlet. it's kind of addicting. i'd tell you what i've been making, but it's pretty much a bunch of gifts, soooo i can't.

i can tell you that danny was pretty impressed that instead of sending one of my coachella looks off to the tailor (i'm hell bent on wearing this romper, but there were some major fit issues - just ask colby), i decided to tackle the project myself. just me & my sewing machine along with some measuring & pining help from ting. and after becoming an expert with the old stitch ripper, things finally look great. done and done.

career congrats package.

during my first week on the new job, i came home to find the sweetest and most unexpected package on my doorstep.

thoughtful and crafty rachel put together this "congrats on your next chapter" pack just for me. take a look. 

pens & notebook: "she's a dreamer, a doer & thinker. she sees possibilities everywhere." 

complete with a handwritten note: for all those big ideas.

natural bath treats: to relax after a long and hectic first week.

a sweet card & bottle of bubbly.

it came at the perfect time - the end of my good, but totally overwhelming, first week. as it is, advertising/public relations is fast-paced, and this was baptism by fire. i'm in a new role with a whole new set of responsibilities. there are new names to learn. different protocols. unfamiliar clients and businesses to learn about. hours of meetings and reading strategy documents and plans. and the thing that threw me for the biggest loop was working professionally on a Mac operating system. i've an Apple girl at home, but iMail, iCal, iContacts, etc... i kinda wanted to pull my hair out a few times, but now just two weeks in, i'm loving it and totally off to the races (phew!

you're a great friend, rachel. 

thanks so much for your support and thoughtful gesture.

---

p.s. if you're ever looking for an awesome event planner - rachel's your gal.
check her out here.

diy bedroom makeover.

it was one of those rare - but awesome - weekends when we didn't have anything on the calendar. not a single obligation. we woke up on saturday morning and brainstormed things to do and landed on an overdue diy project to spruce up our bedroom.

we've loathed our bedroom set for years. first of all, it's a set. it was danny's from back in the day and just didn't suit us at all. i changed the bedside hardware to try to help it, but that bed. ugh. it was time for something new. a neutral fabric headboard + new crisp white sheets. all light, bright and hotel like.

ting did some online research (he liked this tutorial the best), made a list of supplies and we were off to the races. in just 3+ hours we tackled this project and i'm in love with our new bed. it's a world of difference and we're obsessed.

breakdown of our costs:

$19 -- plywood cut to size (74" x 46") at Home Depot 

$46 -- 2" foam at Hobby Lobby (we found a 40% off coupon online)

$23 -- 2.5 yards of upholstery fabric + batting 

$.60 -- 20 buttons for covering in fabric
$.99 -- two decorative needles + thread

-----------

= $89.59 for a Cal King tufted fabric headboard
a little less expensive than some of the ones we looked at like this and these and these.
plus, we had leftover foam which we cut up to add some fresh fluff to huntie's bed.  

this was honestly a pretty simple DIY project that didn't require crazy tools - just some spray adhesive, a bit drill (to make the holes for the tufting), a staple gun, needle and thread. 

{ting created a grid on the plywood to mark where our tufts would go and then drilled holes}

{spray adhesive the foam to the plywood and then batting on top to secure everything}

{ironing all the wrinkles out of our fabric}

{making fabric covered buttons. there's a much easier way to do this, but we couldn't find the kit anywhere}

{fabric on and ready for tufting!}

{danny would poke the needle through the holes marked in the back. i'd feed the button and send it back through}

{the finished product!}

{loving my new headboard and crisp white sheets. i feel like a queen in our new bed!}

DIY tutorial: clip-in hair extensions.

let's be real. when you see a celebrity or a girl walking down the street with a long luscious mane, there's a def a chance she's got some help in there. don't get me wrong, i have plenty of friends who have real manes (mentioned here), but even the Kardashians admit to wearing extensions.

it's never been a secret that i've wished for super long, naturally wavy hair. oh, how i dream. in 2005 i thought i'd make my wish a reality and went for "permanent" extensions... and that's when the hair torturing began. first flashpoint bond extensions (i'm so sorry hair) and then the toupee tape extensions (put double sided tape on your hair for six weeks, take it out and then get back to me on how your hair feels).

they all looked wonderful for the first couple weeks, but then the washing, the drying, the not washing and the tangling began. oh, and forget swimming. some people don't mind them, but i found perma extensions to be a huge pain in the rear. after my final round of head torture, i decided to use my leftover weft of hair to make clip-in extensions. i bought the supplies, YouTube'd a how-to video and was off the hair races. it's the best thing i've ever done (well, that may be an exaggeration, but not when it comes to my hair). they're so fun and so easy!

making them is cake. if you can thread a needle, you can sew your own clip-ins. the secret's out. i love them.

{both of my hair stylists have recommended the brand 909, it's real hair (vs. synthetic) and super high quality. it's about $150 for a 6-foot weft of hair that'll last you for a couple sets of extensions)

first stitch sewing class.

although i grew up sewing with my mom, i haven't touched a sewing machine in my adult life. a few years ago, my mother-in-law was going to get me a sewing machine for christmas, but at the time i just wasn't ready to dive into another project that required more tools, supplies and space around the house. however, over the past few years there have been more and more times when i see fabric, pillow covers, table runners or other projects and think "i could totally make that... if i knew how to sew" so i've been warming up to the idea.

well, while we were at this First Friday's Artwalk in Downtown Phoenix i saw 1st Stitch Sewing Lounge and immediately cruised in to inquire. the owner, Tina, explained that you can rent space ($10/hour) to sew your own projects or take a variety of sewing classes. consideirng i was in the midst of my nine-week sabatical, the timing was perfect so i signed up right away for the next beginners class.

the class was three weeks long, two hours each class. $10 for the first class and $20 for the following two classes for a total of $50 for a 6-hour basic sewing class. sounds good to me! me and my three classmates we went from stitching paper to making a full blown apron in just three weeks. we learned basic machine use, stitching, measuring, fabric pressing and how to follow a basic pattern. 

i'm thinking about signing up for the next intermediate class to learn more about pattern making, button holes, muslin useage, etc.

if you're in the Valley and looking to learn to sew (men or women), i totally recommend calling Tina at 1st Stitch Sewing Lounge. she's super sweet, patient, funny, encouraging and you'll walk away with some great basic sewing knowledge. oh, and she teaches kids 8-17 for free! how great is that? learn more about 1st Stitch here.

week one

{i just love this little downtown shop}

{first up: basic stitching exercises. no thread, just using the needle on paper}

{on the first night, we moved from paper to actually stitching patterns on fabric}

week two

{learning about patterns}

{following my apron pattern. learning proper cutting and measuring techniques}

{that's tina, helping me on my machine}

week three

{tina helping everyone with their finishing touches}

{i never realized how important an ironing board is in the sewing process}

{from pinning to sewing the apron}

{me and my classmates showing off our finished aprons!}