TULLE TOPIARY TUTORIAL

Here is a tutorial for the tulle topiary I posted earlier. Like I had mentioned on that post, this was inspired by a picture I saw on pinterest which unfortunately did not come with any kind of tutorial . What you will see here is just something I came up with and may not necessarily be the right way of making it but this is what worked for me.

Materials:
-flower pot (got this one at the dollar store)
-4" styrofoam ball
-floral styrofoam (the one I used which I also got from the dollar store was an exact fit to my pot although I'm sure you can use any other kind of styro just not the econofoam which tends to crumble and just make a mess)
-5/16 wooden dowel - I bought a 36" and cut in half making it 18"
-1 roll of light pink tulle
-1 roll of bright pink tulle
-ball pins
-1 sheet of tissue paper
-ribbon for the bow

1. Place the floral styrofoam in the pot, stick one end of the dowel through the styrofoam ball, about half way and stick the other side in the center of the foam.

2. Cut the tulle into 8 inch strips. You will need about 65 strips of each color.

3. Grab one of each color, put them together, twist it in the center a few times, fold it in half and stick the pin in the center.

4. Stick it on the styrofoam ball. I usually start on the top although I dont think it really matters where you start. Repeat step 3 and place pins about an inch apart. I didn't follow any kind of pattern and just stuck the pins anywhere I felt  it should go.

5. Cover styrofoam in the pot with tissue paper.

6. Latly, tie your ribbon around the dowel and make a bow.

and you're done!

PINTEREST INSPIRED PROJECTS

I know I haven't been able to do a lot of posts lately and that's because I've been busy creating all kinds of stuff that have been inspired by a new website called Pinterest. For those of you who are not familiar with it, Pinterest is the hottest craze online right now. It's basically a site where you can create different boards and pin ideas and products to it. It's like looking through a magazine except it has everything you can think of like style, home decor, crafts, etc. all in one site and the best part is....it's FREE! If you would like to join, just click on that red button on the top right  of my page that says "follow me on pinterest".

The first things I made were these bracelets.

When I saw these on Pinterest I absolutely loved 'em but I found out that you can only get them on Etsy and they were selling for about $35 to $40. I really cannot justify spending that much on a bracelet made out of plastic and gold links so I decided to make them. I could not find any tutorials for this so I just had to figure it out on my own. (Please leave a comment below if you would like me to post a tutorial.)

Another type of bracelet I made was this one. This is made out of two chains that I connected with a braiding cord.

After making jewelry, I turned my attention to making decorations for our Easter party. I made wreaths to hang on my door, some paper flowers to hang above the dining room and some topiaries to put on my candy bar.

If you have any questions or if you would like me to do a tutorial on any of these, please let me know. Thanks for stopping by!

DIY Candy Jar

This candy jar idea is perfect for Easter and other occasions like birthday parties and the best part....it will only cost you about $5. Below are the list of materials you will need to make it.

-flower pot
-flower pot base/plate
-round glass vase (you can probably find at the dollar store)
-wooden knob (Wal-mart or any craft store)
-glue like E6000 (should be waterproof)
-paint (acrylic, spray, ceramic....)
-clear coat (in my case I used Mod Podge)

All you need to do is paint the pot, base and knob with the desired color. Apply the clear coat. Glue the glass vase to the pot and then glue the knob to the bottom side of the plate and Viola! You have a cute candy jar.

Fierce & Tangy but Very Springy

This is a look I've been doing a lot using the Maybelline Color Tattoo Shadow in Fierce and Tangy. I really like that it's colorful but still very wearable. Here is how I did it...

1. Place Maybelline Color Tattoo's Fierce & Tangy all over the lid .

2. Use a burgundy or dark pink shadow for the outer corner. I used Ulta's Baked Shadow in Covet. (right side of pan)

3. Place a light pink shadow on the center of the lid like L'oreal Hip Shadow in Dashing

4. With a blending brush, sweep a shadow that's close to your skin tone on the crease. In my case it was L'oreal Hip Shadow in Shady.

5. Line the eyes and smudge the same burgundy/dk pink color used on the corner of the lid on the lower lash line.
6. Apply mascara and done!

Thanks for visiting! Please feel free to leave a comment or ask questions.

DUST FREE BRUSHES - Makeup Brush Holder Ideas

When I first started collecting makeup brushes, I would just put them in a jar and leave them sitting out. I noticed that they would get so dusty especially ones that I don't use every day. I spend a lot of time washing my makeup brushes so the last thing I want is for them to get dusty before I even use them. I dont know, but the idea of using a brush full of dust on my face just doesn't sit well with me so this is what I came up with.

I love the fact that this isn't just a brush holder but it also serves as a beautiful decorative piece for my counter. I got these at TJMaxx for $9.99 each but if you don't have any of the discount stores by you, you can also find jars similar to this one at your local craft store. I know Joanns and Michaels have them and they are about $25-$30 but you can use a 40 or 50% off coupon to make them more affordable.

There is also a jar that you can get at Walmart (Houseware section) for $7.44 which I think is a good alternative. Here is what it looks like.

Now for those of you who have a smaller brush colletion, here is another idea.

This case came with a microdermabrasion kit I had bought so I can't really tell you exactly where to get one but I'm sure you can find something similar to this somewhere.

I hope you enjoyed this post. Pls. feel free to leave a comment or ask questions. Thanks!

URBAN DECAY NAIL & SHADOW KITS - Review and Swatches

It looks like Urban Decay will be having a big sale some time soon (details have not been released yet) so I thought of doing a quick review on two of their items that I have been recently loving. The first one is their Holiday Nail Kit that was given to me by my awesome cousin Kathrine.

This set includes 6 mini bottles of really cool shades of nail polish. It's on sale on their site for $19.00 (reg. $28) and might even be cheaper with the upcoming sale. I love all the colors and I do think that the size of the bottle is just right since I don't recall finishing a regular sized bottle of nail polish ever. The picture below shows 3 coats of each color.

Barlust (deep shimmery brown); Hot Mess (sparkling fuchsia); Mars (shimmery emerald green); Gunmetal (shimmery deep grey),  Wrecked (deep burgundy), Ziggy (gold w/iridescent sparkle)

 I decided to combine two of the colors from the kit and this is what I came up with. This is 2 coats of gunmetal and a coat of ziggy on top.

Now moving on to the 24/7 Shadow Pencil Stash. I had mentioned this on a recent post and said that this kit is on sale right now on their site for $12

(reg $34).

 Delinquent (dark purple w/bright purple sparkle), Rehab (taupe), Juju (frosted taupe),  Sin (shimmering champagne), Clash (bright turquoise w/silver sparkle)

These pencils are highly pigmented and the staying power is just unbelievable. The application on the other hand is not as great. It's not bad by any means but it just doesn't glide as smoothly compared to other cream shadows. There is a very slight tug when you apply it directly on the lid but you can always warm the product up with your fingers before applying. I also find myself using these on my lower lash line a lot. I dont get any smudging and it saves me the trouble of having to put a liner and setting it with a shadow after.

 Rehab (taupe), Juju (frosted taupe),  Sin (shimmering champagne), Clash (bright turquoise w/silver sparkle),  Delinquent (dark purple w/bright purple sparkle)

All in all I think these are two really good kits and are both worth the money. Pls. feel free to leave comments or ask questions. Thanks!

T.J.MAXX is TheBalm (Deal & Swatches)

I just had to share these amazing finds . I was at T.J.Maxx last week when I stumbled upon these sets by TheBalm. If you're familiar with this brand then you would know that they

make good cosmetics but that they tend to be on the pricier side. You can check out their products and prices on their website http://www.thebalm.com/ or at http://www.sephora.com/. A blush or a bronzer would normally cost you about $19 so imagine the look on my face when I found a set of 3 for .....TANTADADAN.....$9.99.  That's 83% off!!! Ok enough talk, here are the pictures and swatches.

 

Hot Mama is a beautiful pinky-peach shadow/blush with a hint of gold shimmer in it. This reminds me of Milani Luminous Blush which a lot of people say is similar to NARS Orgasm.

 

 Bahama Mama is a matte bronzer that has no orange undertones.  I love this because it won't make you look like an Oompa Loompa.

Sexy Mama is a translucent powder perfect for setting your foundation. It has tiny, oil-absorbing spheres that remove shine

Hot Mama, Bahama Mama 

The second set I got is called "Fake It Don't Bake It". It includes 4 different TheBalm products and also cost $9.99.

Betty-Lou Manizer is an all-in-one bronzer, shimmer and eyeshadow.



Frat Boy is a smooth peachy-apricot  shadow/blush. This looks matte in the pan but when swatched you will notice a pearly sheen to it.

The Balm Shelter tinted lip gloss in Valley girl  with SPF 17. This is the only product in the set that did not impress me.

Baby Buki is a mini kabuki brush that comes in a plastic case. I really thought this was going to go straight to the trash but I was pleasantly surprised to find that this brush is soft and perfectly sized for my makeup bag.

Frat Boy, Betty-Lou Manizer, Balm Shelter 

I hope you enjoyed this post. Please feel free to leave comments or ask questions. Thanks!