diy inspo

MARIO TESTINO for MATE Necklace, Earrings, Ring

Brooches with the Mostest

Last year my Nana came for the holidays and brought me a box of her vintage costume jewelry, which included a handful of brooches. I was going through my closet packing for a trip last night and discovered that I had left almost all of them on one dress. I wore it to a brunch recently and I guess since I managed to not spill a Mimosa all over myself, I just hung it back up. I'm a big Loser McDooser and almost never have a raging arm fiesta like everyone else, so this is my little cluster of jewelry. I've been seeing brooches popping up in stores (they were even spotlighted on WhoWhatWear) but I like that mine are special and from someone I love. However, I'm loving these to accessorize a collar as well.

Emerald, Pearl & Chain, Mixed Jewels

If you want to test this look before making any purchases, try one of my favorite ways too make your collar funky fresh. Poke a fun pair of stud earrings through the tips (like this). Shit, if you want to, just hang a little gold chain between the two posts and you've got your own damn designer jewelry.

 My Nana said she reads my blog everyday...so Hi, Nana! Thank you for the sparkles, sorry for my potty mouth.

DIY Turquoise & Gold Earrings

I'll be making a duplicate pair for a giveaway if you're interested. They're heavy as hell but nothing looks better with a tan than turquoise.

Button buzz

Watching my husband button his plain white or blue collared shirts every morning always makes me pity the lackluster business suit. Homeboy needs some flair up in here! I suggested he replace his tiny collar buttons with some fun funky ones that I collect from assorted clothing articles and he was like, "What in God's name is wrong with you, woman??" Jkjk, he doesn't call me woman, he calls me nut job. Well fine then, I'll do it myself. Watch and learn, buddy! I didn't want to permanently change or ruin any of my collared shirts by sewing or hot gluing buttons on them, and I don't think I even own two matching loose buttons so....lightbulb! I thought of my sets of stud earrings. I could easily change them out, and they are perfect because they're temporary like pins. One of my favorite pair of studs are these rhinestone bees I got from ASOS a couple years ago.

I just poked them through the tips of the collar , and voila! Instant glitz. Like instant grits, except with jeweled insects instead of ground corn. If you know me and me feelings for collars than you must understand this was a W in my book, because the possibilities are endless! One button up...dozens of collars, without buying anything new.

Heart on My Sleeve

I mentioned before that I'm all about some Poms right now. The round fluffy balls, not the yappy dogs. Wait, Pomeranians are round fluffy balls. And I am all about some Pomeranians too. Nevermind, just watch me turn this shirt from plain to poppy.

DIY Decor

I'm still amidst the closet update, but definitely making progress. In addition to the wall to wall shelf/desk we just installed, I've started to compile a few somethings that will find their home on it.

But like usual, I want MORE, MORE, MORE! So I got out the glue gun & made a couple of decorations. Alas, I've finally moved on from plastering sequins and glitter all over everything. My new favorite embellishments are POM POMS. I've added them to a few articles of clothing, but I want them hanging from the freaking rafters. So I put some on a frame. Instantly it becomes....well, Pommier. GOOOO TEAM!

The second project is inspired by these brass spiked wall tchochkes from a home decor website I adore called Zhush (if you click this link, I guarantee you'll spend the next half hour on the site). 

They're not at all unreasonably priced- they range from only $35-$55, but I figured I could make something similar myself.

closet overhaul y'all

On a seemingly normal Thursay afteroon, the organizational insruments in my closet became so heavy laden with sequins and stripes, that the screws which held them to the wall decided they were too great a burden to bear and parted ways for good. AKA I have so much #$%! in my closet that my clothing racks crashed on the floor while I wasn't even home. And I may or may not have found my black Lab totally unphased, still sleeping underneath all of it when I made the discovery. I'm not gonna lie, I was excited to see this disaster, because it meant one thing and one thing only! Well, actually it didn't mean anything aside from ..shit happens, but I was thinking more along the lines of MAKEOVER! Yayayayayay. Think: Clueless with a cast of me as Cher and my closet as Ty. Minus the curly red hair and Brooklyn accent.

Okay so,  Step #1: Call husband and explain that shit has hit the fan! Or in this case, the floor.

Step #2: Laugh hysterically when he says, "just pick it up." Then tell him to start Googling "chevron."

Step #3: Make a big a$$ mess and throw every forseeable article of clothing on your bed.

Step #4: Ask that sweet little prince to measure, plot, and tape off a makeshift Missoni print.

Step #5: Spend the better part of a weekend, priming and painting pink zig zags.

Step #6: Gauge what types, lengths, and categories of clothing will fit where, and brainstorm wall decor.

Step #7: Bang your head against a wall and ask God why you thought you could pull something like this off in a 48 hour window.

Step #8: umm, I'll let you know when I get there....
This is where I'm at right now, much more to be done. I see crossed fingers and more head on wall banging in my future. Stay tuned!

"Fascination is one step beyong interest. Interested people want to know if it works. Fascinated people want to know how it works." - Jim Rohn

DIY Watercolor iPhone Case

Cases by Jacqueline Maldonado $35

As aforementioned, here are are the embarrassingly easy steps to DIYing a watercolor (or any other kind of print) iPhone case. In a nutshell- you print a picture, cut it out in the shape of a cell phone, and then put it in a clear case. And while that truly is the long and short of it, I will elaborate in an attempt to make it look like I did something intricate and time consuming. The whole project took me less than 20 minutes and cost  about $1.

All you'll need:

Clear iPhone case (I got this one on ebay for less than $1!), print/fabric of your choice, scissors, and a pen or pencil.

 1:Choose picture (these are from my Pinterest collection of wall art), scale to 5x7 or 4x6 and print.

 *move your case around to choose which segment of the picture you'd like to be displayed.

 2: Trace an outline of the case

 3. Cut it out. Make sure yours is slightly less jacked up than mine.

 4. Put paper in case and trace a whole around the camera eye.

I will explain in a moment that there is an alternate/better way to do this step.

 5. Remove paper from the case, fold oval in half for an easier cut.

6. Put the print in the case and wah lah!

 Okay, so here's the better alternative (it takes me a time or two to figure out the best way to do things) for cutting a hole for the camera, which I used on my second print. Lay the case face side down on the back of the print and trace and cut so you can't see the ink or pencil marks.

 Love it.

Obviously you can use any paper or fabric in the case. The possibilities are infinite- ikat, quatrefoil, a note from your boyfriend...whatevs babe.

I also ordered this better quality case with a white bumper for more protection. Only $6, max!

Because God knows Apple is not going to replace my phone if it cracks, even though...ya know, I pay insurance on it and everything.

"Not appreciating what we have now, robs us of our abundance even when it exists." - Marshall Sylver