DIY Christmas Drink Stirrers

ok, I know I'm a little ahead of the game here, but I'm just too dang excited. IT'S ALMOST CHRISTMASSSSSSSS. I've been waiting all year for the holiday season to roll around again, partly because I have all these great Christmas DIY projects I've been wanting to show you. I figured we'd start it off easy with these Christmas drink stirrers so that we can start swizzling those Christmas cocktails and get in the holiday spirit, amiright? 

These Christmas stirrers are super easy and super affordable. You can make them in your choice of colors, but I'm always a fan of pink so I chose a more modern color palette. I had actually made these last year for the blog, but the photos came out SO BAD that I couldn't bring myself to post them (see them here). So, I knew they had to be my first project this year. I gave them a slight makeover and a new color scheme, and voila! Ready to go.

You will need:

Wooden stirrers (here)
Assorted rhinestones (similar here and here)
Assorted sparkly pom poms (from Michaels, similar here)
Glue gun (similar here)
Toothpick

Rhinestone Stirrers:

Directions: Take your wooden stirrer and put a dab of glue on the end. If your glue gun puts out a thick dollop, use a toothpick to put a small amount of glue on the back of the rhinestone or onto the stirrer. Place your large rhinestone at the top. Then, put 2 more of the small rhinestones underneath it. If you want it to look less home made, flip it over and repeat for the other side.

Mini PomPom Stirrers:

Directions: Put a dab of glue on one end of the stirrer, and pop on your pompom. Hold in place until it dries, then repeat for the other 2 pom poms. Easy peasy!

Snowman Stirrers:

Directions: Glue the pompoms onto the stirrer in size order from smallest to largest. You can also glue your pompoms in the other direction if you want it to be festive instead of snowman.

And there you have it! 3 easy ways to get festive with your drink stirrers for coffee, hot cocoa, and cocktails. These are perfect for any age, and they're disposable! You could even use them as drink markers, depending on how many people you have since each one can be different. And, since you can mix and match the colors, you can make these to match any holiday or event.

I'm SO excited for all the posts coming to the blog in the next few weeks. There are some really good ones headed your way!!

So, which drink stirrer would you grab for your drink? And what drink would it be? Let me know in the comments below!

The Truth About Planning a Wedding

Wedding planning seems quite glamorous. You get to try on gorgeous wedding dresses, you get to pick flowers, look at beautiful venues, create a stellar guest list, be the center of attention. There are so many little, amazing details, and as an added bonus, you get to tell the person you love that you want to be with them forever and ever. It's going to be the greatest day of your life. No pressure. 

However, no one expects how unbelievably stressful wedding planning can be. I sure as heck didn't expect it. I love planning parties. A wedding is basically just the biggest, greatest party ever, right? Riiiiight. 

The truth is that there's a reason why so many couples say they're happy it's over. While most engaged couples start out with a dream in their heart and a twinkle in their eyes, they quickly realize they are in over their heads. And guess what- it's ok! So whether you are currently planning, already had your wedding, or still willing your boyfriend to ask, here's the truth about wedding planning. 

Your budget will double and it'll make you want to cry.

They always say, take your budget and double it. And people scoff. I know I did. "No way," I thought. "I can't even afford to double my budget." Next thing you know, you're eating ramen and walking 5 miles to work because you had to invite your college friends, wanted the better photographer, or just underestimated how much everything would cost. Hint: it's probably almost double what you think it'll cost. 

Your family members will have their own expectations for the day.

Although it's your wedding, everyone thinks it's their wedding. But remember this: unless they're willing to pay for it, they don't have a say. That means that if your parents think you should get a nicer venue for your rehearsal dinner, they need to pay for it. If your grandmother wants a church wedding in addition to your outdoor ceremony, she needs to fund it. Or, if your mother in law thinks that each person needs an invitation with hand calligraphy instead of printed, she needs to pony up the cash. If you did what everyone wanted, you'd go crazy, broke, or both. So choose your battles and what you'll allow other people to dictate for you. Chances are, when you ask them for for the $1k or $7k to fulfill their request, it won't be quite so important to them. 

Your partner might not care about the little details and it'll make you want to cry.

Even though it's so important to you that you decide between satin or linen napkins, your partner might not care, at all. Same goes for picking individual flowers for the centerpieces, whether the women should get corsages or pins, and if the bridal party should wear open or closed toe shoes. And at some point, the unreasonable bridezilla in you will rear her ugly head and make you want to cry. You might even actually cry, and say things like "do you even care about this wedding?!" The truth is that with all the tiny decisions you're faced with (that seem monumental to you) there's a great chance you'll get overwhelmed. And your partner may get overstimulated and give up on decisions. It's all normal, it's all ok, and it'll all get figured out. 

You won't be able to find your dream dress, or be able afford it, and that'll make you want to cry.

There are so many gorgeous dresses out there. There's one for you. And that's what makes it even harder. There are SO MANY dresses and you can only choose one. It's ok. Try on as many as you want, but create a deadline for making a decision. The only thing worse than wearing the "wrong" dress is wearing no dress, or wearing the only last-minute choice you could find. Don't do that to yourself. You might be in the bridal salon, or watching Say Yes To the Dress, near tears. It's a stressful thing, and those gorgeous dresses change from something so fun to those mean biotches in high school that made you second guess yourself. Don't give the dresses that power. You'll find the right one for you. Finding a great guy you want to spend your life with is even harder, and you found that, right? And I bet he thinks you're beautiful no matter what.  

Did I mention you'll want to cry?

Because you will. Over napkins, over your dress, over your mom hurting your feelings. You name it, it'll make you want to cry. Movies, touching photos, videos of a puppy getting rescued. It'll all bring you to tears. So go ahead and cry. Or eat a bowl of ice cream. You'll get over it. And it's ok to cry. Wedding planning is emotional! 

Your wedding isn't as important to everyone else as it is to you.

There will be people that you really thought would be there. And they won't. And you'll definitely be mad, and you'll definitely judge them. But that's ok, you can decide whether or not to go to their wedding. Kidding! Kinda... Just know that just because people don't make it doesn't mean they don't care about you, no matter how much it'll feel that way. And the truth is that you'll be so busy on that day, you probably won't realize. Plus they'll see photos of what they missed out on and they'll have serious FOMO from then on. 

Time is a tricky little thing.

It's constant, and yet it seems like it can go quicker or slower. Waiting for your fiancé to ask you to marry him for 12 months? Brutal. Planning your wedding in 12 months? Where did the time go! You'll think you have so much time to plan, until you suddenly realize you don't have nearly enough time. Print out one of those timelines and check things off as you go. And also know that there will be things you do in an opposite order. That's ok too. We picked out our rings before we picked out our wedding song. So be it. As long as it gets done, that's all that matters. 

The little details will kill your budget.

Favors, wedding programs, calligraphy, tips for the staff. These are all things that'll throw your budget off track. Create a list of things you need to pay (like tips) and the things you want to add on (like wedding programs) in order of cost and/or importance. Then, add them in as you go along and see what budget you have left. Or, just throw caution to the wind and keep buying until you empty your bank account. That's an option too. 

Everyone and their mother will ask how the planning is going.

And they don't really care that much, so don't start ranting to them about the florist picking lilies when you told her how much you hate them, and did you mention how the venue changed their carpeting and now it doesn't match the table linens anymore? How could they do such a terrible thing to you on this most important of days?! Instead, be prepared to answer with some generic cheerful but funny stuff, like"it's going well. Luckily we can agree on what to watch on tv even though we can't agree on which color linens to get." This way, people aren't afraid to get married, or to ever ask you anything again. 

Don't sweat the small stuff.

"What do you mean blush pink and carnation pink look the same," you'll wail. But your partner won't know what to say. And your mom might not, or your sister, or your friends. And that can get stressful when you're trying to make a decision. So, if you find that everyone is baffled and doesn't know which pink to go with, or they all say "I don't know, it looks the same to me," chances are your guests will feel exactly the same way. So, seriously... don't sweat the small stuff. There are so many parts to a wedding and in the end it'll all fit together beautifully. No one will notice and if they do notice and have the gall to point it out to you, eff em. Someday they'll get married, or their kids will, and they'll see how hard it is. With so many big decions to make, don't make yourself crazy (or broke) over the small ones. 

You'll want to elope about 17 times.

You'll joke at first like, "wow, we could have eloped and gone to Europe for a month with all this money." Then you'll get stressed and say, "if we had eloped we wouldn't have had to deal with this stress." Then it'll turn into "hey if we elope now this will all be over and we don't need to worry about Aunt Tricia arguing with Uncle Hank and if grandad's allergies will act up in our outdoor ceremony or if it's ok that your mom wants to wear off-white. Let's just run away, ok?!" Somehow you'll power through it all and enjoy your wedding day. And you'll agree that it was all worth it. 

Pinterest is a trap.

I love Pinterest just as much (or more) than the next gal. It's great for finding ideas and inspiration. However, it's also a perfect way to feel inadequate with your wedding choices, find unnecessary ideas that'll blow your budget, and cause you to pick out trends that you actually don't even like. So, use Pinterest wth caution. Remember that most events you see on there were done by a professional, and even though something might not look expensive, it very well could be. So do your best, use it for inspiration, and don't let Pinterest bully you. 

Phew, that's a lot! I hope you're all laughing and nodding in agreement right now. Or, thanking your lucky stars that you're still single or that your wedding planning nightmare is over. The truth is that although it's stressful, you've got to find the fun in it. This is your wedding. Make the planning process fun. You'll (hopefully) only do it once. And if you have to do it twice? That's ok too. You're better prepared the next time around ;)

What's one thing you didn't realize about wedding planning until you were too far into it? Was there anything you'd do differently? Any advice for couples in the midst of wedding planning? Let me know in the comments below!

Appreciate Where You Are

Appreciate where you are, because it's going to take you where you need to be. Yea, I know. I'm gonna get a little but woo woo on you today, but I am consistently amazed by the way life plays out. The small coincidences and seemingly insignificant moments that somehow add up to the magic of your life. Sometimes you're in a shitty spot, and you're like "why me? Why here, why now?" Sometimes there's no answer. Other times, it's a really crappy answer. Usually, it's something that doesn't even matter, a small little drop in the bucket of your life. But sometimes, things work out and you're like, oh ok. That's why.

Let me tell you a little example about that. Let's go back to like, 25 years ago. I was a little kid, and my parents had been looking for a new house for years. They needed it to have a separate apartment for my grandparents to live in, which was proving to be difficult. They finally found a decent one and were mulling it over. As we were looking at it, a little neighbor girl asked me where I live. I pointed at the house and said, "I live here!" My parents decided that was a sign and bought the house. That's right... my parents took housing advice from a three year old. What can I say? I've always been wise.

Let's fast forward 16 years. I was in college and took an accounting class. I went down to the bookstore armed with $200 to buy this giant encyclopedia of a book. Seriously... it was huge! A girl approaches me and tells me how she didn't realize the book was so expensive! She has to come back and buy it another day, but she can't do the homework in time for class. Before I can even stop myself, I'm offering to let her (a complete stranger) borrow my $200 textbook to do her homework. I immediately panic, like, what did I just do? In an effort to reel it back in, I tell her she has to come to the Science building with me (where my class was) to borrow it. She thanks me profusely and we go over to where my class is. She sits at a table in the common area to do the homework. I'm worried the entire time, but when I come out of class, she's sitting there waving at me with my textbook in hand. 

We became really good friends, and we had a few college parties we co-hosted together. They were almost always held at her house, and we got to meet a lot of really cool people that way. One time, we had a party at my house, in the upstairs apartment my grandparents had lived in. She brought a longtime friend, and he immediately liked the apartment and was asking a whole bunch of questions about it. I wrote it off, because we were about 21 and although we all wanted to move out, no one had money for an apartment. It turned out, he did. He texted a few weeks later and asked about renting it with a friend. We arranged a date, and he came out to see the apartment. 

He arrived alone, and I introduced him to my dad and brought him upstairs. As we're all looking at this apartment at my parents' house, the doorbell rings. I go down to answer and let his potential roommate in. I nonchalantly skip down the stairs, swing open the door, and come face to face with his roommate.

If we didn't buy that house... if my friend had enough money for her textbook... if I wasn't nice enough to lend my book to a total stranger, my life could have been completely different. The roommate at the door? Well, he turned out to be my future husband. I didn't know it then, but all these seemingly insignificant moments in my life had added up to the perfect love story. 

So, back to the topic at hand- appreciate where you are. Every single moment, every heartbreak, and every ordinary experience adds up to your life. You don't know if that random person you met will turn out to be a lifelong friend, a funny story you tell people someday, or help you meet your true love. All those shitty days in a bad relationship will make you bask in the glow of single life. And all those lonely nights crying about how you're alone (...or, was that just me?) will make you cherish a good relationship when you find it. Just get through today, and find something really fun tomorrow. It'll all be worth it in the end.

DIY Brightest Crayon Costume

Back in high school, my sister, my friend and me had matching screen names on AOL Instant Messenger. Remember AIM? RIP.... Anyway, we used to always get BFF necklaces and stuff, which always came with 3 colors- blue, pink and purple. We all had our colors that we usually wore, so we matched them on our screen names. Unfortunately, PURPLECRAYONS182 was too long, so I had to switch it up. I was going through a punk rock phase (insert laughing emoji here) so I went with black crayons. After that, we were known in our high school as The Crayons by pretty much everyone. If someone didn't know who we were they would say "she's one of the crayons" and then people would know. I realize this makes us sound popular or something, but I guarantee you, we were not. People actually hated us, for no good reason, but that's a story for another day....

To commemorate my time as a crayon in high school, I knew I had to make a crayon costume for the blog. And, since I was a black crayon in high school, I knew I now had to change my look and be the BRIGHTEST crayon in the box. Because let's face it, I'm usually wearing the brightest colors of everyone I know, a la Kimmy Schmidt. This is sadly my last T-shirt costume of the year, but I'm so excited to show it to you! Plus, unlike most costumes, this is not "one size fits most". I've got the printable in a whole BUNCH of sizes, so you can make one for each member of the family!

You will need:

For the outfit:

Cotton t-shirt (Gildan recommended)
Matching pants (mine are from H&M)
Iron-on transfer paper (here)
Black felt (1 sheet)
Chalk (here)
Printable (FREE! See below for more info)
Printer (I have this one and love it!)
Needle & thread
Iron
Glue gun
Scissors (here)

For the hat:

Matching cardstock (mine was double sided pink & light pink)
Glue gun
Pencil
Ruler
Scissors (here)
Large bowl (optional)

The printable is available in my resource library, which you can get totally FREE access to, just by signing up. What exactly do you get? Access to all my printables, including party planning guides, checklists, and my projects. By signing up, you'll have access to all projects- past, present and future! 

 

For the Shirt & Pants:

1. It's recommended to prewash your fabric. Run a lint roller over the part where the logo will go. I learned from last time any stray hairs or lint will get permanently embedded under your iron-on transfer.

2. Print out your iron on transfer in the appropriate size (it comes in 5 sizes!) and cut it out as close to the edge as you can. This iron-on paper is intended for light fabrics, but I wanted one that was clear so that the shirt color would peek through on the font.

3. Plan out where on your shirt you want to place the logo. Following the instructions, iron it on and let fully cool before peeling.

4. Take your felt and fold in half the long way, then half again the long way. If your shirt is on the larger side or it's for a man, it might work better to fold it in thirds instead.

5. With chalk, draw a squiggle pattern & cut it out.

6. Using your glue gun, secure your felt onto your shirt. I advise putting the seam of the felt (where the 2 ends meet) along the seam of your shirt sleeve. If it's a little short, it'll be covered under your armpit.

7. For the pants, you can also glue it on but I stitched mine with a needle and thread. I used large, simple stitches so that I can remove the felt and wear the pants again :)

For the Hat

1. Create a template for your hat onto white paper. As a hack, you can use a large bowl or round object and trace it onto the white paper, but I found that drawing a sweeping line did the trick for me.

2. Trace your template onto the back side of your colored paper. Mine was double sided pink and light pink, which was helpful for the crayon base.

3. Trace a small round object to be the bottom of your hat. I used the top from my fruit container, which was a great size. You want an item that is slightly larger than your cone.

4. Draw a long rectangle, about 2-3 inches wide for your crayon hat base. I made mine as wide as the space that was left after drawing my cone.

5. Cut out your parts, then cut the small tip off your flattened cone. You want it to have a flat pointed edge, like a crayon.

6. Roll your hat into a cone and glue it shut. Trim off any excess paper that prevents it from being flat at the bottom.

7. Glue the cone onto your base, and trim off the excess.

8. Glue your rectangle ends together to make a "bracelet", then slip it onto your hat. Glue in place.

9. Add a clip or headband to secure the hat onto your head. Be sure to add a piece of felt to hold it together, since the paper won't glue onto the headband well. (Check out the crown in this DIY for more info)

T-shirt: $4
Headband/Hair Clip: $1
Felt: $1
Caardstock Paper: $2
Iron-ons: $9

Total cost: $17

I'd say that's a pretty good cost for a Halloween costume! If you already have a pair of colored jeans, I recommend starting there so that you can save some moolah overall. I actually had these pants already, and the shirt was the exact perfect color to match! I borrowed the crayon box bucket from my neighbor, who was super sweet and let me take some pics in front of her nice white garage door. She got it at a Halloween store, but I bet you could even make a similar one with a picture from online! Overall I'm pretty darn happy with this crayon costume, and I hope you guys are too!

DIY Tooth Fairy Costume

Do you ever have a weird accident that turns into something pretty awesome? Well, I did. I was writing out my schedule for the day, and I wrote how long each task would take. For one task, I wrote 2 plus hours- "2+H". When I read the list back over, I thought I wrote 2th. And that's when I realized 2th=tooth!! This really silly idea came after, and I kinda love how cheesy it is. You can be either a tooth with a crown, or a tooth fairy. The choice is yours!

This costume is the second one in my easy t-shirt costume series. For this one, I went with a tried and trusted t-shirt made for customizing- Gildan! They're the ones you find at craft stores in pretty much any color you want. They're 100% cotton and really comfy. No, this post wasn't sponsored by them. I genuinely think they're awesome! Plus this t-shirt cost like $4. Can't beat that! It's a great last-minute costume for that Halloween party you've got coming up!

You will need:

White T-shirt (Gildan recommended)
Gold paper (you can use glitter paper or metallic, the choice is yours!)
Small piece of felt
Hair clip or headband
Scissors
Ruler
Printer (I have this one and love it)
Tape
Pencil

Directions:

Shirt:

1. Print out 2th as a template. I used the font Abadi MT condensed super bold, size 200.

2. Place your template printed side down on your gold paper and tape it in place. You'll want to use a few small pieces of tape in different places so it doesn't fly off while you're cutting.

3. Cut out your 2th, being careful to stay within the lines. You can also use an x-acto knife if that's easier, but I found the scissors worked just fine.

4. Try on your shirt and mark lightly with a pencil where you want the letters to go.

5. Using a gluegun, glue the letters onto your shirt. For a more temporary option, use double stick tape, but it might not adhere as well.

Crown:

1. Cut a rectangle measuring 3 inches by 6 inches

2. Draw small lines going 1.5 inches from the top, and make dashes every 1 inch.

3. Connect the lines to the top in a triangle shape.

4. Cut out the triangles

5. Roll the crown into a circle and glue the seam shut. Trim any excess from where the two ends meet

6. Glue your crown onto a piece of felt. Trim the excess.

7. Cut a small piece of felt and glue it onto your hair clip or headband, then glue the felt to your crown.

Fun fact: I am the queen of making weird and unattractive faces in photos. My sister and friends have a folder labeled "ugly Cathy photos", where I try to be silly but end up looking plain hideous. My sister, on the other hand, is great at looking silly but AMAZING. So... there's that haha. 

You can wear this costume with a pair of white jeans, or a tutu. The choice is yours! Add a pair of wings if you want, and you're ready to go!

T-shirt: $4
Gold Paper: $2
Headband/Hair Clip: $1
Felt: $1

Total cost: $8

Now you're ready for Halloween! It's in just a few days!!!