Do it yourself – The Rachel Whatever…

February 17, 2015February 18, 2015

#DIY: The Easiest, Best, Most Thoughtful Present Ever.

When Valentine’s Day was rolling around and I was scrambling for a present idea (as usual) I had thought of this and went back to my Pinterest to find the original pin, when I realized I had not re-pinned! I hadn’t even LIKED the friggen thing. So, this present was thrown together from memory, but I’m pretty sure it’s spot on, and if it isn’t, it’s a pretty amazing gift idea anyway so it’s cool.

The idea: one ‘love note’ for every day of the year. 365 little notes that are memories, quotes and lyrics, or things you love about the person you’re giving the gift to.

What you need: a container large enough to hold 365 pieces of scrap paper – I bought a big container of cheese balls (a decision I really, truly regret. I. ATE. THEM. ALL.) emptied them out into a big bowl, and cleaned out the container. || 3 different colors of construction paper. And that is really pretty much it.

What you do: Separate the construction paper by categories: I used white for quotes and lyrics, pink for memories, and red for things I love about him. Write a little note for each thing.

TIP: START EARLY!!!! I took on this endeavor a few days before Valentine’s Day and I grossly underestimated how long it would take me. Nevermind the fact that you have to think of 365 things, you have to write them all down (or type them, but I wanted the personal touch of handwriting them) AND cutting them out, THEN folding them! My god guys, I had carpal tunnel by the time I was done, seriously. Bottom line, plan ahead. And any time you think of something that could work as a ‘love note,’ write it down, put it in your phone, do whatever you have to do to remember it because you will be scrambling for things by the time you reach the 300 mark.

This is perfect for: Birthdays, anniversaries, any holiday! This is a pretty romantic gift, so it was perfect for Valentine’s Day, but it would also be the ultimate anniversary present.

This was the cheapest gift I’ve ever given, save for a macaroni picture frame from my pre-school days, but it was the most thoughtful present my husband has ever received. Now he just needs the patience to go through this one day at a time because every time he looks at it he wants to go through every single one note in one sitting.

Side note: I’ll be back with outfit posts soon, but this arctic tundra I’m living in has sucked all motivation out of me to stand outside for even 10 seconds longer than I have to, to take outfit pics. Also, I haven’t really worn anything other than sweat pants in a week sooooo, there’s that.

December 21, 2014December 22, 2014

Last Minute Gift Idea: DIY Sugar Body Scrub

I am legitimately the worst with Christmas gifts… I always have some pretty amazing and thoughtful ideas but I wait until the last minute and then I’m scrambling to throw things together. Case and point: I made these DIY sugar body scrubs last night at 9:30pm for my kids to bring to school for their teachers this morning. I’M THE WORST! But they’re so easy to make and you can literally throw them together with stuff you most likely already have laying around so if you’re like me…. you’re welcome.

All you need (makes 4 batches)

8 cups granulated sugar

1-1 1/2 cup coconut or almond oil (more or less depending on desired consistency)

red food coloring

extract of your choice: peppermint, vanilla, almond, etc.

small mason jars (I’ve also seen people use recylced Starbucks frappucino bottles – SO cute!)

STEP 1: Split 2 cups of sugar between two medium mixing bowls. Little by little add the melted oil to each bowl and combine with sugar until most of the oil is absorbed.

STEP 2: Add a couple of drops of extract to each bowl of sugar. In each batch I created a different scent combination so in one I added 2-3 drops of peppermint extract and in another batch I added vanilla extract to one bowl and almond extract to the other to create a warmer aroma.

STEP 3: Add red food coloring to one of the bowls of sugar. I made a few batches and switched up the consistency in each. I made a darker batch and lighter pink batch. ** TIP: I add the food coloring to the sugar I’ve mixed with vanilla extract to mask the yellowish color.

STEP 4: Layer the different sugars in a small mason jar until you reach the top, and boom. You’re done.

diy sugar scrub

These make amazing gifts for teachers, extended family, friends for a girl’s night gift exchange, your boyfriend’s mama, really anyone. I’d be quite thrilled to get one of these myself, to be honest. A few things worth noting: you can use extract OR essential oils, they serve the same purpose. If you use almond oil or coconut oil it is safe to use on your face as this particular type of oil does not clog your pores. Welp that’s it guys! Hope everyone you give these to LOVES them! Happy holidays! :]

January 27, 2014

DIY CRAY.

If you’re a Pinterest addict like myself, it’s easy to pin 1,000 great ideas that just sit there in the cyber space of your Pinterest boards. I do successfully make most of the recipes I pin, but that’s usually it. For whatever reason I woke up this weekend feeling extremely motivated to tackle my Pinterest boards and bring them to life. I’ve always wanted a coffee bar in my kitchen ever since I saw them on the site and after my husband gave me the go ahead to make our own, I headed right for Home Goods, in the middle of a snow storm no less. I even went as far as to bake chocolate chip meringue cookies this weekend… like, who am I? Anyway, take a look at my new coffee bar that I love, love, LOVE!

The mugs pictured here are so easy to make! Just preheat your oven to 425 degrees (You’ll see a lot of people on Pinterest put 350, but after doing my research I’ve found that the higher temps help the ink last longer, who knew?) Decorate your mugs while the oven is preheating, then pop them in there for about a half hour. Let them cool before handling, obviously. Then they’ll look super cute like this!

I’m obsessed with my little coffee corner and having all that extra space on our counter tops again is amazing! Literally everything here is from Home Goods. I think it’s time I finally admit that I have a sick addiction to that place. It may in fact be becoming a problem. :\ But it could be worse, right?!

I also made another DIY paint chip calendar this weekend. I made one last year that was super cute, but rushed (I made it while Charlotte was crawling around the floor getting stuck to all of my modge podged paint chips, it was a disaster) so I took a little more time to create a pretty one!

I wonder if the people at Lowes, Home Depot, and all other stores that carry these samples get annoyed when girls like me stroll in there and clean them out of half their supply. They must know as soon as we start grabbing handfulls of paint chips at a time that we’re creating one of these calendars. I was the worst because I wasn’t quite sure which color scheme I wanted to do, so I stocked up on enough to make 3 or 4 calendars. Sorry Lowes….for real.

Anyway! That was my fun DIY filled weekend since it was a little too cold to really do anything else. Hope your weekend was lovely! And don’t forget there is still plenty of time to enter our Valentine’s Day giveaway! Myself and 11 other fabulous fashion bloggers have teamed up to give you the chance to win $410 CASH for the upcoming holiday so you do not want to miss out! Enter by clicking the rafflecopter link below. Good luck!

Stilettos & Sequins / Lil Bits of Chic / Visions of Vogue The Rachel Ross / Karly Kim / Try It On Me

Ashley Brooke / They’ll Never Know / The Feisty House Chioma’s Evolution of Style / The Luxury Rehab / Beauty Style Growth

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July 24, 2013

DIY No Sew Turban Headband

I posted this video a few months ago, but I figured since it’s summer and these headbands are huge right now, I’d repost it for you guys. This is the eeeeeeaaaasiest DIY headband tutorial out there! And trust me, I’ve watched a ton just to compare, hah! Side note… this video makes me miss my dark hair. & that sweater! It was my favorite until my husband shrunk it :[ womp womp. Anyway… Enjoy! xo

January 30, 2013

Pushing 60, Not Daisies.

Folks, we’ve been seeing each other long enough… it’s time you met my mother! No but seriously, my mom just started a blog and I think it’s going to be pretty fabulous. She is looking 60 in the face, and her blog is all about how she is going to embrace it. My mom is one badass chick. Previously first in the world in karate, owner of her own newspaper, tattoos makeup on her own face… badass. So anyway, there’s a link to her blog below, she has one introductory blog post so far, but there’s much more to come. If you’re into fun DIY projects, cosmetic surgery, tattooing your own makeup, and turning any age you’re not sure you’re ready to cope with, her blog is for you! She’s known to be quite quirky, never disappoints. There’s a couple pictures of us below too. [Me & mom in Aruba a few years ago, and the two of us with Char this past Christmas time]. Enjoy!

Pushing 60, not Daisies.

January 28, 2013

DIY: Turban Headband

Happy Monday loves! I’ve always been obsessed with the turban headband look but could never find them in stores (without spending an arm and a leg.. for a little fabric, geez!) SO I found this really great tutorial on Pinterest, BUT, it was only pictures. It could get a little confusing. I figured I’d do one better and make it a quick little video. This headband involves NO sewing OR glue! Easiest thing out there. Enjoy!

October 4, 2012October 4, 2012

HOW TO: Make your own clip in hair extensions

Hello loves! Below is a (not so quick) video all about how to make your own clip in hair extensions at home. Like I explain in the video, clip-in’s are SUPER easy (but a little time consuming) to make and they will last you FOR-EV-ERRRR (said like the kid from the Sandlot, OF COURSE). SO! This is a relatively easy step-by-step video on how to make your own hair extensions. Hope it helps! Feel free to fast forward through any of the boring parts. :] If you have ANY questions please feel free to ask! Ciao babes.

April 24, 2012

DIY: Glittery Shoes

Hey guys! So this post may seem a little out of place… perhaps it should have been posted closer to New Year’s Eve or something, but it’s not, so get over it. I have been on a serious DIY kick lately. The weather for the past few days has been less than beautiful and I’ve been stuck inside with lack of better things to do, so I figured I’d get all of these little projects out of my system now. I always wanted to try DIY glittery shoes, and I think they came out pretty sexy. Check it.

Now I just want to throw this out there… I didn’t choose red so that I would wear them and people would think they were Louboutins. A. I already have a few pairs and B. No one would buy it anyway, the coveted red bottoms are never glittery… hah. I picked red because I thought the glitter in the bottle looked the best. It was between this and silver glitter, but the red won out. Ok so! This project was literally laughably easy and took like all of 5 minutes, so let’s get started!

Here’s whatcha need:

A pair of high heels – (I used a pair that I rarely ever wear, just to test the waters first). I didn’t want to try this project on like a really pair of expensive shoes I wear all the time only to have it turn out like a disaster.
Mod Podge – This is a water base sealer & glue that you can use for almost any craft project. I’m kind of obsessed with this stuff. It’s fun for making memory boxes and stuff too which maybe I will do a DIY for in the future! hah ok, moving on… You can find it at pretty much any craft store, I grabbed mine at AC Moore.
Glitter – I picked up “Ultra Fine Premium Glitter” in red. I chose a finer glitter rather than a thicker glitter so the finish on the shoes would look a little more sleek.
Paint Brush – You can use pretty much any paint brush. I like to use these disposable ones from craft stores that cost about 38 cents because they get really messy working with mod podge and you really can’t do anything with it after.

I recommend doing this project in a well ventilated area, perhaps somewhere where you can open the windows because the glue can smell a little strong from time to time. I did this in the kitchen with all the widows open.

So! Here are the steps:

Step 1: In a paper plate or paper bowl (something you can throw out after) mix together some of the glitter and the glue. – *Note: It will make a creamy appearance and change the color of the glitter, but only until it dries. Once the glue dries there is no trace of it, so don’t be alarmed!

Step 2: Using your paint brush, dip it in the glue and glitter mixture and begin spreading it along the bottom of your shoes. Depending on how much of each material you use, you may have to spread a little more or a little less. It doesn’t have to go on super thick, just enough to evenly coat the bottom of your shoes.

Step 3: After you’re satisfied with the amount of glitter on there, let it dry. And that’s that. I let my shoes sit for about an hour or two, but they dried much quicker than that. And this is the final look!

I think they came out pretty neat! I have no idea where I’ll wear these any time soon, but they’re fun to just have around just in case, hah. What I really love about this project is that there are so many options! You can literally use any color glitter on any color shoe and it would come out kind of neat. It would probably be fun to play around with this for the neon trend. Find a neon color glitter and slap it on a black shoe… boom. Thank me later. ;]

So I hope you guys found this helpful! It’s a seriously easy project and like I said, only takes a few minutes at most. Try it out and send me pictures of what your shoes look like! I’d love to see.

ALSO! I will be posting a Tunesday Tune today!! It’s been weeks!!!! I have a very new song stuck in my head so I’ll probably be posting that later. Enjoy. Bye loves!! xo.

March 16, 2012

How To Curl Your Hair Tutorial – VIDEO!

Hello lovelies. So let’s just cut to the chase, I’ve done a how-to curl your hair tutorial before. But honestly, it’s so much easier to follow a tutorial when you can see it, pause it, rewind it, fast forward through the parts you already know, and whatever else you feel the need to do. So I have re-done my tutorial in a complete video. Just in time for the weekend and any St. Patrick’s Day festivities you may have! Enjoy. :]

Did you guys find this helpful? I hope so! Otherwise, what the hell am I doing it for right? hah – if you want to dress your curls up for this weekend’s festivities you can have some fun with them. Last year after I curled my hair, I did one of those frame-hugging french braids and tied it back with a little green bow. Totally festive – check it out.

Look at how much shorter my hair was a year ago! And darker… holy black or maroon hair. What color is that even? Yikes. But anyway, that’s just a cute little twist you can add to your curls to spice it up and make them more fun and festive.

Pair this with my St. Patrick’s Day makeup and you are good to go baby!

March 12, 2012

DIY: Earring Hangers

Last week when I posted the pictures of my new room someone had asked that I put up how to make these earring hangers that I made. They are super easy and quick to make. Let’s get started.

Here is all you need:

1. Picture frames (I found these at HomeGoods, they were between $7 and $12).
2. Lace eyelet ribbon (available at any craft store from between $3 and $10).
3. Hot Glue gun & glue sticks (I already had these, but you can find them at any craft store; the gun itself can go from $2 to $20 depending on how nice you want it.
4. Picture hangers (any hardware or craft store….. or even WalMart or Target, anywhere really).

Step One: Measure out the ribbon on the back of the frames. Hot Glue the end of the ribbon on each side of the frame.

For the top layer of ribbon that will rest along the top of the frame, I hot glued the whole ribbon so I could hang heavier earrings from there without fearing that they’ll pull the ribbon down.

Step two: This is the fun (or frustrating) part. After the glue dries (make sure it dries all the way so the earrings don’t pull on the ribbon) start hanging your earrings!

This is the end result:

Now the wonderful thing about these earring hangers is that they really allow for some amazing organizing. My jewelry box was the biggest disaster ever. Like I said before, I was housing half of my collection mini zip lock bags and kept all those in one big bag that I brought back and forth when I would go home for weekends or something. Now that I am all settled in one place (home!!) I can finally lay everything out and stop carrying my ish around in plastic bags. I wish I took some before pictures of my absurdly messy jewelry box so you guys could reaaaalllly get a feel for how well these earring hangers actually worked for me.Unfortunately, I did not, but you can kind of get the gist of it.

Check out how clean and organized my jewelry box is now! All three of these drawers were previously dedicated to earrings which meant all of my other jewelry was tangled together in the rest of the box. Now I have a ton of room open for my delicate necklaces to be by themselves, my watches, my bracelets. Everything has a place now and it makes accessorizing THAT much easier.

So making this jewelry hanger has literally like… 3 real steps; measuring out the ribbon, hot gluing, and hanging. Also, I feel like this is obvious but I should say it anyway just in case! I hung my earrings on this thing before I hung them on the wall. Just making sure we are all on the same page. hah

So this whole project took me like 15 minutes and it’s really easy and honestly just very beneficial for me! You should definitely make one of these and it will make your life so much easier. Do it up and let me know how it goes! Hope this tutorial was helpful for you guys!