DIY Glitter Hair Clips

 

Since I've grown out my bangs I've been looking for a way to do a "fake bang swoop", so I came up with these cute little clips to help me achieve the hair style. You can follow the steps below to make them! They're super cheap, easy and only take about ten minutes to make.

 

1. Using Modge Podge paint glue on the top of your hair clips (I got my clips at Hobby Lobby)

2. Sprinkle glitter on the top of the hair clips

3. Let the clips dry over night.

Yeah I know it really is that easy. Ridiculous huh.

California In Black and White

Our trip to Cali was a bit bitter sweet this time around. Sweet because we got to spend our blissful days hanging out with all of the McCammons, playing football on the beach, eating the most delicious authentic Indonesian food, and of course long nights of games. But as we left it was a bit bitter because it will be the last time that the whole family will be together for three years. My brother and sister in law are headed to Japan. Japan you guys! So exciting! But even though it's a bit sad that they'll be gone for so long the pretty amazing thing about family is that no matter what they're always there for you in your life. Japan or not, I can't wait to watch their adventure from afar.

** On a not so melancholy note, I went to the fashion district and bought boat loads of fabric. Sweet glorious beautiful fabric and I cannot wait to get the sewing party started!!

My Sweet Cheeks and I

jeans: Target         top: c/o Sheinside (buy it here)           purse: Asos           shoes: Forever Young  

Sometimes I take the Indian out on dates. I realize that this is pathetic, nevertheless, it is still true. So the other day I took Indie on a date to PetSmart; we were roaming the aisles, flirting with all the other pups, and of course browsing through the generous selection of squeaky toys and then I snagged her one of those ridiculously fancy cans o' meat for the really hoity-toity dogs, because a girl needs to feel special you know, and we were off! I decided to take a quick gander in the store next door and left the Indian in the car with the sun roof rolled down and that delicious can of chicken right in front of her. Well...after my quick trip in the store I came back to a very strange sight that will not leave my mind. I got into the car, and there Indie was, just sitting on the full can of chicken, not even touched. Just sitting on it like she was trying to lay a can of chicken egg ya know. I was weirded out so I pulled her up, grabbed the can of chicken and she got a tid bit frightened and hopped into my lap in the driver seat. There we were playing this game of, "Do you want to drive home or should I???" in the front seat when she backed up and honked the horn with her butt. YOU GUYS. My dreams came true in that moment. It was a rare sight to see a dog honking a car horn with her rear. And so I just sat there and laughed over: A. Indie hatching a chicken can egg and B. My weird dog that honks horns with her sweet cheeks. Dog dates, they keep the heart healthy I tell ya what.

What I Wish Someone Would Have Told Me When I Started Blogging

I started reading blogs in 2010, I thought it was so fun to get a peak into people's lives and to find other people that blogged about my same interests and hobbies. I quickly got sucked into reading daily and found myself wondering if I could keep up a blog. To be honest, the thought of starting a blog seemed overwhelming. I mean what the heck would I write about? And why would anyone ever be interested in my life? And how would I even get started? And once I got started how would I stay inspired and creative? Guys I've got a million more questions that I was asking at the time. Anyways, I really wish there was someone that could've given me a few tips. So here are just a few things that I've learned along the way.

 Q: How do I even know what to blog about? Where do I start?
 A: As far as blogger goes, they have made it super easy and self explanatory to physically set up a blog. The much harder part, I think, is narrowing down what you'll be blogging about. This is going to be pretty contrary to what you'll hear a lot of people say, but as far as I'm concerned I think you should blog about whatever the heck you want! So often I hear people say that you have to specialize and blog about one specific thing (fashion/lifestyle/food) to make people interested in you. When it comes to blogging I've always been way more concerned with what really makes me happy. For a while I only did outfit posts, and guess what, that can get extremely boring. So I decided to write about my life, share with others do it yourself crafts I was making, show people how I love to revive old clothes and guess what? People love the variety, and it has been so fulfilling! One of the most important things that you should know as a blogger is that as you grow your blog should grow with you. Never feel like you have to be a certain person or do a certain thing just because you think readers will like it. Do what you do best, and you'll feel fulfilled and happy with the end result. So yes write about something that inspires you, something that you would love to know about and don't limit yourself to what you can blog about.


Q: How do I keep from burning out, how can I stay creative and inspired?
A: After blogging for almost three years (wait WOAH has it really been that long?) there are definitely times that you'll feel like you have nothing to say. There are a few tricks that I've learned along the way that have helped me stay inspired. 1. Always have something with you to write down your ideas. I personally love to keep a list on my I Pad or my phone because I know that it's always something I'll have with me. You never know what you're going to see during the day that you'll want to talk about later or what brilliant tutorial you'll think of when your sitting in the car humming to Bieber (yeah it's actually happened). Once that idea is sparked write it down, then when you're feeling uninspired later you can go look at your list and have lots of topics and content to choose from. A word to the wise though, if your toting around your I pad, which I do, make sure you have a good case to keep it protected from all of the jingly, sharp things in your purse/life. I swear by this case, it is lightweight, wipes down easy when I get scuffs on it and is very protective. You can buy it here. 2. Have somewhere you can go for inspiration. I think Pinterest is a great place to go for inspiration, I pin a lot of outfits/pictures that I can go look at when I'm feeling uninspired. I also love to physically go somewhere to get inspired! 3. If you absolutely have hit a wall, it never hurts to plan. When I started working and going to school full time I knew that blogging would slip through the cracks if I didn't plan for it. So I created a blogging calendar. I wrote down what kinds of posts I like to do on a weekly basis and then scheduled them for each day so that I could plan ahead and around my school and work schedule. Sometimes I follow it....sometimes I don't:( But if I'm ever out of ideas I can look up the day on the calendar and have an idea of what to post about.

 Q: What helps you grow your readership?
A: I truly believe that if you love what you're doing and you're good at it then the readers will find you. But there are also a few other things that can help too! Find other blogs that have a similar style and focus as you and comment on their blogs and become friends with them. I'm not talking about the comment that says, "Followed you, follow back??? XOXO Gossip Girl" but a real genuine comment of encouragement. Back before I started my blog I found the lovely Jentine's blog and she was the epitome of what I wanted to do. She writes well, you always want to know what she has to say and she also happens to have an awesome sense of style. So I just started commenting and relating with her stories. To this day she's still one of my favorite bloggers and we still continue to comment on each others ridiculous thrift finds and show support for one another! The second most important thing to growing your readership is your content. Is it interesting? Is it different from what most other bloggers are doing? Is it fun to look at? No matter how much networking and befriending you do, if you don't put quality content on your blog it will be very challenging to continue to grow your blog. I had terrible, I mean TERRIBLE pictures when I first started blogging, and I knew it! So I made it an effort to practice photography, I took a basic photography class in college and kept pushing myself to produce better images. By no means are my photos the crem de la crem, but I'm proud of how much I've grown! 

Whew. I could talk about this topic for hours. But I really hope that this has helped you! If you have any other questions at all feel free to ask in the comment section. I'd be happy to create more posts to answer your questions if you're interested!

We're Back and A Giveaway!

blouse: Forever 21      skirt: c/o Florence Adams (buy it here)      jacket: Apricot Lane      shoes: Forever 21      bow: c/o Stylish Stitchings (buy it here)

We had so much fun in California last week and I can't wait to tell you all about it, but maybe before I tell you about it I could give you the chance to win this awesome skirt. Okay? Okay! This skirt has been on repeat ever since we got back to the hot Utah summer days, it's got gorgeous crisp pleats but with the waistband there's no pleating bulk at the waist. And the mint, I just don't think I'll ever get tired of wearing mint. Basically what I'm saying is I really want you to win this skirt so that you'll know just how awesome it is! To enter all you have to do is like their Facebook page and then let me know in the comment section where you'd wear your pleated mint skirt! Good luck guys!

Cali Bound

via

Sir Matt and I are headed on a road trip to California this week! We're starting in San Diego and then making our way up the coast to Orange County. We'd love to know about any must see stops and delicious joints from all of you!!!

*P.S. I'll be on a little blog hiatus while I'm vacationing but I'll be back mid next week! Don't do anything I wouldn't do while I'm away:)

Clothes and Oreos

dress: F21         necklace: DIY (tutorial here)        belt: thrifted            shoes: thrifted

Forever 21 has been good to me lately you guys...a little too good. I mean usually I spend at least an hour walking through rooms of chambray shirts and tribal mini skirts and singing to freakin' Demi Lovato, and I just get a little overwhelmed and also furious at Demi Lovato.Then I usually proceed to think about the delicious pretzel joint across the way and how a warm oh so soft pretzel just seems way more appetizing than sifting through hundreds of chiffon blouses so I just you know end up with one of those delicious cinnamon sugar pretzels and call it a day. But fah real, lately every time I go these beautiful things just fly into my arms and then I love at least oh...fifteen things and isn't that an amazing problem to have! Bravo to you F21, bravo.

One more thing. Today I was in the cookie section of the grocery store debating between Oreos and those fake Samoa's, you know the one that the little Keebler elves make and this guy came up to me and told me his favorite cookie and then proceeded to explain how he really shouldn't be in the cookie aisle because he recently lost 60 lbs, 60 LBS!! And then of course I needed convincing because I was like, NOOOOO!!! I DON'T BELIEVE YOU!!! So he whipped out his Facebook page and long story short he did indeed lose 60 lbs and we might be Facebook friends now....

There is no purpose to me telling you this. But I just thought, How great is this?! I wish I made cookie aisle friends every day at the grocery store!! We should all better support one another's sugar addictions! And so well, now you know. Also I chose Oreos, which I believe is a critical point in this story. The end. 

Pin Test: Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies

These are good you guys, so good that I could only make six cookies and had to freeze the rest of the cookie dough because I just knew that if I made the whole batch I would be in serious trouble. Consider yourself warned.

Ingredients:

2 1/4 c. flour

1/2 c. cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 3/4 c. butter

1 c. brown sugar

3/4 c. granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions: Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a smal bowl. Then in a separate bowl combine butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla. Beat eggs into the sugar mixture and then gradually add the flour mixture into the sugar and butter mixture. Drop the dough onto an ungreased baking sheet and cook for 81/2 minutes on 375 degrees F.

Get Out The Way

vest: thrifted      jeans: Windsor (buy them here)      shoes: F21      shirt: Target      watch: thrifted     bracelet: c/o Style Lately   bag: thrifted

Guys. My first semester of my Fashion Design program is officially complete. It felt a bit anticlimactic because in my last class of the semester I was showing my teacher my designs (which I'm so excited to show you!!) and I put both of them on and my crazy teacher just smacked me on the butt and said,"Yes nice fit now get out of here." For all of the work and time I put into this semester I was looking for something with a bit more umph! But instead I just scurried out of class and began my hour long drive back home.

As I drove in my car and watched the silhouette of the mountains run beside me I turned off my music and opened the sun roof and felt the cool night air rush into the car. I felt so alive. And just so....content. I couldn't stop thinking about how back in January the night before classes started I would not stop freaking out and told Sir Matt, "Maybe I shouldn't do this whole design thing, I mean who knows if it will even work out. The odds of me actually being a successful designer are ridiculous. Maybe I didn't think this all the way through..."

That night Sir Matt told me that whether or not I became a designer or did absolutely nothing in the fashion industry at all that it was important that I knew that I could make anything that I wanted to happen, that I was good enough and that I was the only person getting in the way of making my dreams come true.

I'm glad I listened. I'm glad that Matt has been so unbelievably supportive.I'm so glad that I finally got out of my own way.

Currently Reading...AGAIN

I read The Fault In Our Stars last year and this year when I kept thinking back on the book I was forgetting some of my favorite parts, and the story is just so freaking good that I was devastated at the thought of not being able to remember everything perfectly. So I read it again, and can I just say that never will you hope for, laugh with, adore and cry over people like Hazel Grace and Augustus. It's hilarious, and deep unto the ocean and I am tragically depressed that I'm already done with the book....again. You MUST put this book on your summer reading list. And then please e-mail me about it so that we can gush over the book!!!

**P.S. They're coming out with the movie version of The Fault In Our Stars and I could make a completely separate post about this but get this, Shailene Woodley, you know of Secret Life of An American Teenager is playing Hazel Grace, and I just vomited in my mouth a little bit. Your thoughts????