New Video Up: Making a Miniature Fairy Bed! Fairy Garden Furniture

Tiny fairy garden furniture is so whimsical and sweet. I just couldn't resist trying to make some. It's a very inexpensive project since most of the materials can be found during a little outdoor walk or even in your own backyard.

I made this little bed a quite a while ago, but it took so long to upload the actual video because it felt so intimidating to me. It's my first attempt at filming/editing. My poor old laptop can't handle the large video files either, so I had to borrow my brother's and that isn't so easy. I finally got it though!

Then 8 hours later..

I got this!

It took me longer to edit than it did for me to make the actual piece of fairy furniture, hehe.

I really hope somebody enjoys this though. My ultimate goal is to inspire someone through one of my projects. :)

I would really like to do more videos, so keep an eye out and subscribe if you enjoy it. My youtube channel can be found here, My Youtube Channel

My first car!!!

I have been a pretty busy girl lately. Spent the last few weeks getting my etsy shop back in order, working, cleaning, and I got my first car!!! I loooooove it.

Here is Chococat strapped in the backseat. So cute.

I have always been extremely timid about driving. It took me years to work up the courage to learn how to drive and get my license, and several more to buy my own car. I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing, if I didn't feel at least a little comfortable, it wasn't safe.

I'm a little proud that I went down and took care of the whole car-buying process myself and feel blessed that I got exactly what I wanted. I even talked the salesman into lowering the price a little (okay, it wasn't much, but this is a HUGE deal for someone like me lol). I'm totally having a big kid moment.

I was able to qualify for a small loan without a cosigner and got a very decent interest rate. This really surprised me at first. It helped that I'm older and have been very diligent about building up a credit history, though (also wage helps too). 

Anywhos, this is the biggest thing that I've been up too! I went a little crazy with purging my closet (tried the Konmari method) and went shopping for things that have been on my clothing wishlist. I might do a "haul" post next time!

Spring Cleaning: Makeup and Toiletries

 Today I am decluttering my makeup and toiletries! 

My makeup "collection" is very small, but I feel like this method will work for almost any size collection. I have gone through it recently but it really needs another go-through. This is how everything was kept before:

I hate that drawer. Finding stuff is a pain.

First I took some old tupperware containers with missing lids and then labeled them like so,

Favorite, Replace, Use up, and Toss.

Then I went through everything and filled them,

Yay!

I took care of the "toss" container right away. Everything in there was either thrown or given away. I took note of the lone shedding kabuki brush and got rid of the "replace" container also. The "use up" container was put back on my shelf and I am forcing myself to reach for that container first- before touching my "Favorites".

I have been searching for makeup displays/organizers for a while but haven't really found the *perfect* one and they are also generally expensive. I decided to DIY it and currently have some ideas floating around. I'll post that once it's done. At least now I know how much space I need to fit my "favorites", plus a little extra for future growth. ;D

Pier1 Shopping Day!!

I was bad.

There is a Pier1 store about 15 minutes from my house- danger danger!

I love it though. Most of it is overpriced for me, but I like to peruse around for decorating inspiration and then head over to Ross and Marshalls where I might find something similar. BUT I do find some gems there that I absolutely love and are priced well enough (and on sale). In some cases I also know I probably won't find the exact same thing anywhere else and if it is absolutely 100% perfect and affordable it has to be the EXACT same thing, or very close to it.

So here is the loot!

The loot

It is also worth noting that when I went, there was this other customer shopping with some of the most unruly misbehaved children I have ever seen. As common in these instances, the mother ignored them completely and let them run free yelling/screaming/messing with things and everyone was waiting for the huge crash. I have to hand it to the clerk who swooped in and addressed the issue, appropriately controlling the kids while the mother clearly didn't care. Go staff!

Anywhoodles

Blue glass pitcher 

I really couldn't pass up this pitcher. I received a set of those matching goblets for my birthday last month and it goes together so perfectly. I picture them displayed in a kitchen cabinet with a glass door someday. So beautiful! Now I am on a quest to find dinnerware that matches well enough. (Glasses first, plates later, backwards?)

Charger with shallow bowl I'm using as a humidity tray

I have been eyeballing those chargers for months but really, a full table setting is expensive and not very practical with the way we eat. Then my boyfriend gave me a beautiful braided Azalea, which will need a humidity bowl, and it clicked! 

Azalea from my boyfriend

I got two chargers on sale, one for the Azalea and another for the orchid he got me last year. I think the special plants should have a special display. There are also felt circles on the bottom of the chargers to protect the table surface which is GREAT because the bowl would otherwise scratch the table up. Now I need to get some stones and find a second humidity bowl. I got a single round placemat ($3) to play around with layering, but I think that is making the bottom too busy and it's detracting from the plant itself. I'll find another use for it.

Stoneware berry basket

I originally saw these at Anthropologie for $14. They are ADORABLE and I wanted to get one for part of a mother's day gift and one for myself (maybe plant a little orchid in it if I can get the drainage right?). I was contemplating it. Then I found some at Pier1 for $5 and it's basically the exact same thing. Had to have!

I really can't wait to incorporate everything into the decor. I'll totally share a picture once I get the plant display set up!

Spring Cleaning: Photo Prints

This spring I am all about organizing and cleaning!

Well trying to be.

I decided to start with something small: my little photograph box. I don't have gobs of photo prints but they needed a go-through. I came home from work, put on some comfy clothes and good music, and then began sorting.

Previously they were all stored in a photo box and held up with plastic grocery bags for a good 8-10 years. I don't think the photo box was acid free and I could feel that the grocery bags were starting to deteriorate. I needed to organize and find another storage solution if only to protect my pictures.

Here is my sorting/purging before and after,

Before                                                After

I got rid of a good 2 inch stack of pictures and reorganized the remaining by year.

I have come to realize that the most important pictures were of the people I really care about. I don't really need tons of pictures of strangers in costume or pictures of objects (those are cool, but I don't really want a physical photograph of them- I can keep the digital copy).

Then it was time to find another way to store them. I contemplated photo albums but they really take up a lot of shelf space and I don't find myself going through pictures enough to justify the expense/space hog.

Then I found these little acid free plastic photo containers at the craft store in the scrap booking section,

Plastic photo boxes

They were on sale for 40% off and then I had a 20% off coupon I could stack with it. I got 5 of them total for about $10.

I'm currently on the hunt for a decorative box to put them in since they are just a little too high to fit in a standard photo box. Right now I have them in my big memorabilia box. Still, I think this will work for now! I figure if I ever change systems, these boxes will work great for small craft supplies.

First project done, way more to go!

Game of Thrones Inspired Khaleesi Dragon Clips: Collaboration with Mountain Musings!

I have done a couple pretty neat collaborations with Mountain Musings the past year or so. She incorporates my fairy wings into her beautiful kanzashi flower hair clips.

With the new Game of Thrones season coming up, she decided to make these Khaleesi inspired clips with my little dragon wings. Here I am showing off a set she made for me!

Each flower represents one of the three dragons, Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserion. The petals were folded in such a way to mimic their dragon eggs. They are all three individual clips so I can choose favorites and wear just one or two if I want something less flashy.

Quick action shots! I am being flashy.

I'm so excited. You know what I'm going to be wearing for season 5 right?! Her work is so stunning!

Organizing: Hair Pins

I'm going to organize all of the things!

Today's project is really small but feels so satisfying. Sometimes the little things make all the difference.

I don't have an extensive hair pin/tie hoard, but finding them was a pain and they previously didn't have a home. They were just scattered everywhere with my makeup and shower stuff. I went shopping at Joann Fabrics and found a little container for bobbin storage. They were with the regular storage containers on an end cap, then I found more hanging up front by the registers. 

Even though it was a tiny purchase, I still used a coupon (why not? hehe) and it was somewhere around $3 if I remember right.

They fit perfectly!

They stay in their compartments too!

I do have more hair elastics than that, but I keep them with the rest of my toiletry back-up (I buy extras when they go on sale). If I give myself access to too many elastics at once, I keep track of them less and them lose more. Oops. 

So this one was easy. Now I'm trying to find a system that works with all of my big fancy hair toys!

In Love with Marimo Moss Balls

I was sitting at the kitchen table while my boyfriend and brother were playing Magic the Gathering together. I was trying to be at least a little sociable. Soon my boyfriend looked over to see what I was working on, and then he appeared a little concerned with all the cups, green fuzzy stuff, and my silence. "What are you doing over there?!"

"Propagating moss balls!"

It is becoming increasingly hard for me not to keep getting these little cute fuzzy green Tribble things.

These are "Marimo Moss Balls" but they are not actually moss at all, they are a form of algae (Aegagropila linnaei). They grow naturally in only a few lakes throughout the world and it is assumed that they develop their ball-shape from being pushed around in the current.

I originally got my first one for my little betta fish tank. I read that they can help with water quality a little (it competes with other algae for nutrients), they are VERY low maintenance, some fish like to play with them, plus I think they are pretty cute!

Later I learned that some people keep them as "pets" in little cute jars. I envisioned a row of little jars sitting on my windowsill...

Oops.

They also grow very very slowly, only about 5mm a year according to most sources. I found that intriguing and a bit of a challenge. I would love a Tribble-like army in a shrimp tank someday, so how can I propagate them and encourage growth? 

I read in a couple places that in their natural environment, Marimo growth is strongest in brackish areas of the lakes. So I divided one of my balls up into many little mini balls. That is the most common method of propagation, minus waiting around for a ball to randomly spit a baby ball out, which is a rather rare occurrence. 

I then separated the balls into two difference jars, and am using marine salt water in just one and freshwater (from the tap) in the other. In a few years I'll see if I notice any difference in growth between the two. LOL so I'll get back to you then.

Do you have a Marimo ball (or two...billion)? Tell me about it!

Blog Makeover

Hello everyone!

This blog first began back in the summer of 2012. I have touched it on and off at the beginning, but then went on a super long hiatus, lacking any inspiration at all. I really didn't know what I wanted to do. The past couple months I have been thinking about it a lot though, and have finally figured out the general direction in which I want to go in. Yay!

In the spirit of the upcoming spring, I'm excited to give this a fresh start and commitment. 

Happy flower picture because I need spring now (my orchid bloom last spring)

A lot has happened the past few years, but one of the biggest changes was getting my first full time job. While I'm grateful and blessed for the work opportunities, my job is completely unrelated to my hobbies and several personal passions. I found myself in a huge creativity dump with fewer feelings of accomplishment.

I would like to look at this blog as an outlet and a record. A "hub" of sorts for things I do. I have stuff scattered all over the internet and would like to centralize my projects and thoughts. I want to also go back to see what I have done, and then go forward with motivation and encouragement! Not only that, I hope that one day it could inspire someone else too.

Thanks for checking it out! I hope to see you soon. :)