Back To School: Crafted Needs

One of the most excited adventures with "back to school" is the shopping trip.

You know what I'm talking about.

The one were you squeeze yourself into the crammed isles reaching and stretching to get those mechanical pencils, and that turquoise glitter notebook you just have for class? 

I can remember going shopping with Mom and seeing families pushing around carts full of erasers, glue sticks, and  markers. The stores were jelly jam packed with people and screaming kids.

Ahh...but now that we're creative crafters, we can make our own school supplies.

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Let's start off with a low budget and inspiring tutorial from Omiyage.

I love how you can transform your typical orange pencil into something cute and pretty.

Wouldn't you wanna pull one of these babies out for quiz time?

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And how adorable are these felt pencil toppers made by Melissa?

Soooo cute, every girl in your class with want one! 

(i heart felt crafts)

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There are lots and lots of ways to personalize a notebook. 

You can glue on buttons, flowers, glitter, or follow this tutorial by Paisley Wallpaper who uses paper to jazz up a  daily planner. 

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Again with the felt?

Yes.I really do love felt.

Family Fun came up with this simple tutorial for their "Book Blankets" last year.

I'm definitively going to give this one a shot!

(*hint hint*)

(a subscription to their magazine would be a great birthday/wedding/I just love you gift)

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I find this last one to be super creative.

Packagery posted a tutorial on how to turn vintage library cards into little pocket sized notebooks. 

Not gonna lie...This makes me want to run through the library shelves, stealing all the cards that I can get my hands on before getting kicked out.

(insert mischievous grin here)

Oh! Don't go yet!

I made a pretty little August calendar for you to take home!

(featuring the back to school girl)

Just right click and save.

Back To School: Hairdos

Yikes!

Can you believe that it's already the end of July? It feels like we just got started with parades and fireworks!

I'm sure September will be here before we all know it so let's just get a heads up on the "Back to School" fever.

We all need a good hairstyle for that very important "first day of school" but I'm really looking for something that I can whip up every morning and not get the "I'm tired of this" feeling. 

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I am so so thankful that messy hair is in style. Most mornings you can find me rushing off to class, with an elastic in hand, trying desperately to tame the mess living on top of my head.  Keiko Lynn made a cute little tutorial for a messy bun that you just have to check out. 

I'll be using this one quite often.

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Now that my hair is long enough, I can't wait to give this 'braided do' tutorial a spin.

I'm sure that more time and effort will have to be put into this hairstyle, but look at oh how pretty it is!

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As if you crafty bloggers already didn't know, Skunkboy Creatures has made a sweet 'rag roll' tutorial that's become a big hit.

To be perfectly honest, this hairstyle takes a lot of practice to get just right. 

With enough time and patience, you're locks could look like this too!

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Slightly more complicated, but well worth the effort is this 'side-french-updo' by Maegan.

Again, this hairstyle will steal more time away from my morning routine but totally beats the every day pony tail by a long-shot!

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Lastly...

If you've got the guts,

 and a cooperative school's rule book,

then check out this 'Tipped Out' hair tutorial by The Beauty Department. 

IF my school would allow it

and IF I wasn't getting married soon

I would tried this one out weeks ago.

If you want more pretty hairstyles for school then click here to see another hairstyle post I made a while back.

How to: Beat Monday Morning "Ugh!"

* Notice *

I interrupt this Monday blog post to announce that "Miss Yellow Shoes" will not be posting every day until further notice.

I'm being pulled in all directions of my life by love, blogs, studies, work, crafts, and my excuse for a social life.

I want to make every post amazing and worth reading. So a new post will be published if the time and energy is available to make it worth your while.

*I now return you to your regular blogging program*

Monday...

Let's be totally honest. Monday is the day we all dread the most and hate with a passion.

Monday marks the end of crafty (or lazy) weekends and the beginning of "the real world" work week.

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How can you make your Mondays better?

Well here's what I do.

1. I wake up and think of something that make me really really happy right away.

Tackling a Monday is 90% attitude and 10% how much sleep you got last night.

2. I make myself feel good from the outside in.

Picking out a really cute outfit or trying a favorite hairstyle can boost my mood throughout the day.

3. Plan a treat for yourself.

This get's me through my day more than anything. If it's a planned phone call with my sweet fiancee or a thrifting trip after work, giving myself something to look forward to keeps me working hard. 

That's all for now Dear Readers.

I hope you can take this advice and boost your dreaded Mondays up to a Tuesday feeling.

:-)

Look at what I made!

Sad sad little me caught a cold yesterday...

but a few sniffles and a froggy voice won't keep me from making something happy!

I've been wanting to try a crocheted mug cozie for some time now.

My cousins have been encouraging me and sending me pictures of mug cozies on facebook.

I finally got the hint guys!

I'm off to get some rest.

Night night!

Update: Mini

Hello Everyone,

So it' been a few days since I've excused myself but I was able to get much accomplished! Who's up for a mini update?

1. Everyone, cross your fingers because I took my before last Psychology Exam. Yikes!

2. I finished and mailed my latest Handmade Happys order to a good friend.

She asked me to make a Bible cover so this is what I came up with.

3. I upload my Owl Bookmarks for you to enjoy :-)

I've already printed out a nice little supply for myself...

4. And I finished designing our "Save the Dates" postcards!!

(this is just a sneak peek)

I will be mailing these out right before school starts so stay tuned to see my final product.

I am super excited about this weekend because I'll get to see Mike for the first time in a month!

The trip to Vermont is more of a wedding planning/business trip but the highlight will be spending time with my fiancee and his family.

So that's a little peek into my busy life...how crazy was your weekend?

Leave a comment below telling me something that happened to you and I pinky promise to reply!

:-)

Printable Owl Bookmark!

Hey guys,

So I had a post up earlier today with the Owl Bookmarks but apparently then image was terrible in quality.

My solution to this problem was to upload the pdf file to google documents and share the link with you all here.

I'm sorry the the mess up earlier today, but the problem is now fixed and delt with. 

Click on the bookmarks above and print as many as you would like!

I'll be taking a quick break from blogging for just a couple of days.

I have some school work that I really have to get to.

See you very very soon!

Monday: Tutorial Review

Braided Headband Tutorial Review from Brittany Pelletier on Vimeo.

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Check out the headband tutorial here and make one for yourself!

Any more tips on this tutorial?

Feel free to share in the comments below.

And thank you Mayi Carles

(finally got your name right!)

for the inspiration of to-do bookmarks.

Check out my other freebies by clicking here or on the blog sidebar, and don't forget to come back tomorrow for your special treat!

Wedding Theme...Check

Hooray for another wedding post!

I wanted to share with you all how things where coming along so this post will be introducing our wedding theme.

I won't lie. Choosing a theme was very difficult.

We thought about a vintage theme, a picnic theme, a creative crafter theme, but when finally decided on a the garden wedding theme.

This may not be as original or creative as it could have been, but I feel that if we really knock the ball out of the park then our wedding day will be perfect.

My grandmother was kind enough to give me a beautiful bird cage for people to put their cards in, and this little guy here will be sure to bring a smile to our guest.

I was thrilled when I scored these miniature gardening tools at an antique shop!

I'll be using them to decorate our table centerpieces.

Now I'm on the hunt for miniature gnomes....

I've been inspired by Elycia to doodle pictures for cards and order of ceremony booklets.

This is the doodle that I will be using for the bridesmaid cards.

Should I draw a garden background to go along with the theme?

What do you think?

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As for the dress?

Well...that must remain top secret as you all know, but I do very much like the one of the right...

So there's a little sneak peekeroo and our wedding plans so far.

I will have more to share next week after a few wedding meetings and errands down in Vermont.

Until tomorrow...

Safety Pin...Not So Safe

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I know that I already made a post today, but I just had to tell somebody!

So my poor little Charlie has not been getting a lot of love or attention lately so I decided to play with him and his favorite toy.

We were running around, chasing each other, and having a blast when all of a sudden I felt a sharp pain in my stomach. I knew that it must be the safety pin that was replacing the missing button on my skirt. 

I started to straighten up when I felt more pain. I couldn't look down because I was already getting nauseous from the thought of a needle inside me 

(a fear that goes a long ways back)

so I used my finger to feel what was going on.

I ran my finger along the safety pin until I felt skin.

"Ok, it just poked me...I'll just pull it out"

After about a minute of slow breathing

(I really do have a fear of needles)

I pulled out the safety pin and looked down to see 3 holes in my stomach.

Oh yes...

The safety pin had gone into my stomach...

out...

and back in again.

I am now sewing on the missing button.

Weekend Crafts Roundup

I don't know about you,

but I've have had a couple of rough weeks and I am currently feeling an itch to curl up on my couch with some sort of craft project. The feeling of yarn or thread running through my fingers relaxes me so so much.

So lets grab some munchies, (salty or sweet) and make something beautiful!

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LU Loves Handmade has been hosting a blog party over here and made these super cute felt owls!

How awesome would these be as Christmas tree ornaments?

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Little Hope from Skunkboy Creatures made her very first diy tutorial featuring this pretty headband.

Hope, I will be waiting to see what else you come up with!

:-)

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Here's a simple way to jazz up that notebook buried in your desk drawer.

It's a budget happy way to make school notebooks cute, and a fun project for kids too.

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Say you're going to a birthday party or bridal shower this weekend.

How do you make your gift as pretty on the outside as it is on the inside?

Well you could 

A. look at my Christmas wrapping ideas here

or 

B. Check out this tutorial by my rival...Martha Stewart

(she doesn't know I'm her rival yet)

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I think that this is my favorite craft of the day!

And while you're at it... make some smaller "trunk slices" for a coaster set.

Just brainstorming here...

Pretty Apartment...

We have an apartment!

Well...not officially and I won't be moving in until a year from now, but we found a really cute place and the price is just right.

Mike will be moving in at the beginning of August while I'll be working on finishing school. Until we get married, the apartment will probably be a typical bachelor pad, but afterwards...

muwahahahaha

bring on the cuteness!

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Sigh...

I can't wait!