Mani Monday: Daenerys Targaryen Inspired

With season three of Game of Thrones ending, my boyfriend jokingly told me to do a Khaleesi manicure. Little did he know that I would take it seriously because she is my favorite character in the series and not to mention Emilia Clarke is an absolutely beautiful actress, totally my lady crush.

Anyway, I'm not going to discuss this season or what happened because lots of things happened and I don't want to spoil anything for anyone. If you've watched this past season, you know what Dany has been wearing but for those of you who don't, here is a picture:

Throughout the season, she has been wearing lots of blues with gold accents so that's what I took as my inspiration for color. I've seen a lot watercolor manicures and figured this would be a good chance to give it a try. If you are curious about how to do this technique, check some of the videos out on YouTube, there are lots of great tutorials.

The colors I used from left to right: Urban Outfitters Doll, Sally Hansen Golden Rule, China Glaze For Audrey, Urban Outfitters Bermuda, Revlon Surf, and Sephora by OPI Blue Grotto.

Can we just take a minute to talk about how gorgeous Golden Rule. Oh. My. Gosh. When I saw this in the store, it had to be mine and I am so glad it is. Also, how fitting is the name for this manicure? Perfection.

Hope you guys have enjoyed this look! I'm already itching to try out other color combinations with this water color technique. Happy Monday!

My Favorite...

POLKA DOTS!

I've always loved polka dots but lately I've been drawn to them more and more. They're so versatile and can be super casual or really sophisticated depending on how you dress them. Maybe I'm drawn to them because they're showing up more and more in fashion? I'm totally on board with this trend, it's definitely a timeless one. Here are just a few of my recent polka dot purchases that have been added to my wardrobe.

Blouse | Sweater | Shoes

What are some of your favorite patterns to wear? Stripes, houndstooth, or just plain colors?
Hope you've had a great week so far :) I can hear the weekend knocking....
Lindsey

Mani Monday

Welcome to the first installment of Mani Monday!!

But before we get into the mani, let me tell you a little about my love for nail polish. About two years ago now, my best friend and I started a blog to showcase our nail polish and our deeeeeep obsession with it. We kept it going for about a year, give or take but slowly life began to get in the way of taking pictures and writing posts for both of us. If you want to check out that blog, click here. Just because we didn't keep up the blogging, didn't mean that either of us lost our love or lust for lacquers. If I had the time, I would paint my nails everyday but I don't have that time. When my nails look nice, I feel better about myself and feel so much more put together. It really is a great way to accessorize and it's obviously my favorite way to.

Anyway, on to the polish! I used three colors to create this look. The base color is Bermuda from Urban Outfitters, the glitter gradient on my pinky and ring fingers is Laugh My Art Off from Finger Paints, and the crackle pointer finger is Fractured Foil Crackle Overcoat from Sally Hansen.

I know crackle polish is getting a little dated but I still love it with the right color combinations. Also, my favorite go-to nail design is a glitter gradient. Whether it's just on an accent nail or on all of them, I just love it! Glitter can gaudy, I know this but it doesn't stop me! I've been known to spend all day layering glitter coat after coat to get just the right amount on my nails.

Happy Monday everyone! Hope your week is great :)
Lindsey

Umba Box

I came across Umba Box a few weeks ago while looking through different blogs. I can't remember where I saw it originally but I decided to head over to their website to see what exactly an Umba Box was. Umba Box is a company that sells handmade goods and sends out a box once a month with two to three handmade items from various artists. Being a graphic designer, a maker of handmade goods, a lover or handmade goods and just about anything pretty I was very, very intrigued. I told my boyfriend all about it that night and he didn't really understand the concept. I think he got confused because I also told him about Birchbox which also sends out things monthly but they send out different beauty and lifestyle products. Anyway, after talking to him and trying to explain these two companies, I wasn't sure if I wanted to subscribe to either of them, mainly because of the money. Umba Box costs $25 a month, plus shipping, and Birchbox costs $10 a month. After really thinking it through and talking to a friend, I decided to sign up for both services and so far, I am really happy with this decision.

So what came in my Umba Box this month? Check it out!!

A super cute necklace, a doe on a wooden pendant from Figs and Ginger. Beautiful letterpress stationary from Shortgrass Designs. A simple, cute watercolor doodle made by Laura of Bright, Bold, & Beautiful.

To be honest, I was really worried about subscribing to Umba Box because you don't know what you're getting and I was worried that the quality of the items I was going to get, wouldn't be worth the money I spent. If you check out their website, it explains that the goods you get will be equal to or exceed the money you spend but I was still wary. I was pleasantly surprised to see how wonderful everything really was in my first box. So far, this is something I think I'll keep up with for a while. I signed up for three months so we'll see how those go but as of right now, as long as I can afford it, I'm probably going to keep my Umba Box subscription. 

Anyone else out there get this? Do you like it? Interested in checking out Umba Box? Head on over to their site! It's super cute! 

Lindsey 

My Etsy!

I've been wanting to make an Etsy site for quiet a while now and I've finally gotten around to making things and posting them and making my "I should do this" into an "I did it!"

As of tonight, I've only got a few things posted but I will be posting more things in the days to come. I plan on posting hair bows and other hair accessories, clutches and purses, crocheted scarves and cowls, crocheted hats, possibly crocheted blankets, crocheted amigurumi animals, and anything else I feel like making! Click here to check it out!

I'm also hoping this will jump start my blogging a little bit more as well. You can obviously tell that I don't post much on here and I want to change that. It's a new year and by the looks of it, a crafty-er me.


Happy New Year!
Lindsey

Valentine's Day Gift

As Valentine's Day got closer; I wondered, like I'm sure many of you, as to what to get that special man in my life. Valentine's Day is not a huge deal to me but at the same time it can't be ignored. I love to give and receive gifts so any excuse to is always great in my mind! Valentine's Day is easy for guys...chocolate, flowers, a nice dinner but what about us girls? What should we get guys without it being covered in pink, red, and hearts? Well I found a great DIY solution! At home date ideas, one for each month of the year.

I saw this idea online but it was displayed differently than mine is. The idea I originally saw was in a scrapbook format. I changed it to fit my style and my boyfriend's style a bit and used different envelopes as you'll see. This can be displayed in many different ways and it could be used as a gift for many different occasions from Valentine's Day to Christmas to a birthday gift.

Materials:

• large envelope 
• small vellum envelopes
• paper
• glue

 Instructions:

1. Come up with date ideas that you can easily do at home like movie nights or game nights, whatever you and your special someone like to do. 

2. Decide how you want the gift to be presented (envelopes, scrapbook, etc.)

3. Assemble your months and put them together and you're done!

It's pretty simple but here are pictures to show how mine came along.

 I made small cards to write each monthly date on and had printed a distressed lace pattern on the front that can be seen through the vellum envelope and it turned out just as I had hoped!

 All of the small envelopes went into the bottom of the large envelope and above it I posted a little message for my Valentine :)

 

I wanted to make something that was still masculine but still romantic, along with making sure my boyfriend still likes the design of everything and I know he will love this!

Pinecone Inspired Holiday Ornaments

Trying to get into the swing of posting on here, not that I ever really have been; there is no time better than the present to start!

Simple and cute holiday ornaments to decorate with or give away as gifts!

Supplies:
Scrapbooking paper
String

Beads

Something to make circles with

Pen or pencil Some sort of adhesive (glue or mod podge) Scissors (not pictured) Needle (not pictured) Something to make holes with (not pictured) Directions:
Step 1: Cut out different size circles and paste them onto the same designed paper and cut again so that the design is on both sides.
Step 2: Make holes in the center of the circles so that the needle and string will easily go through and you don't poke your finger (like I did the first time!). You could also use a thimble instead, using the needle to poke the holes.
Step 3: Lay out the circles and beads (I used two beads between each circle) and begin threading the string through the beads and paper circles as shown below. Note: When you get to the end and need to turn around, loop around the last bead and up into the second bead to move back up to the top.
Step 4: After you have made your way back to the top, make a knot at the end of the left over string and you're done!
These little guys aren't the easiest things to take pictures of! If you give this a shot, don't get discouraged after the first one because it took me a few to really get the hang of it.