DIY Sharpie Mug

After seeing several projects on Pinterest, I decided to try the sharpie method of customizing coffee mugs! I am using my mugs in my dorm room this fall {more posts about my dorm decor to come!} but you can make a simple dollar store mug into a great gift or party favor or just a cute present for yourself! Here is the super easy way to make your own DIY Sharpie Mug!

Things you'll need... a coffee mug, sharpies {any color works but they must be OIL BASED} and an oven set to 425F.

** Note: I have done quite a bit of research on these Sharpie Mugs and a lot of people suggest using DecoArt glass paint markers which are specific for this type of DIY, but if you don't mind hand washing sharpies work just as well and are a lot cheaper!**

If you are really good at free handing just simply, draw on the surface of your mug and bake it for 30 minutes at 425 degrees. Once the 30 minutes is up turn off your oven BUT leave the mugs inside to cool down {this will reduce the risk of cracking!}. Allow them to cool completely before washing or using.

If free handing is not your thing then here are some simple ways to make printable transfers without all the extra cost. Print out a pattern, letter, shape whatever you want and take a pencil and shade the back of it.

{I used eyeliner because some posts I've seen say to use it but eyeliner or a pencil both work}

Tape your pattern, letter shape etc. to the mug and trace around the edges.

This is what your mug will look like with stencil transfer

Then take your Sharpies and go to town with the coloring in!

Pop them into the oven for 30 mins and let your creation finalize!

 

As you can see the colors changed quite a lot! The blue color changed to an olive green tone but the others stayed pretty similar. I did not know the colors would change as I was doing this DIY so I guess its a kind of guess and see what you get!

After completing my super cute mugs I decided to toss them into the dishwasher for a thorough cleaning... and thankfully the design held up! But just to be 100% on the safe side I would recommend hand washing your mugs!

Darby Smart

While scrolling through Pinterest one day I came across an extremely fun and simple craft by Lovely Indeed. It was a leather key chain tassel! Being the avid pinterester that I am, I immediately repined the pin to my ".:Crafts:." board and clicked on the link. I was then redirected to Chelsea's adorable blog, Lovely Indeed, where I learned how to make a simple leather key chain tassel. While reading through the post, I kept seeing references to another website called "Darby Smart". So I decided to investigate and thank goodness I did!

Darby Smart has quickly turned into my favorite website! For those of you who have yet to discover the magical world of Darby please continue reading....

Darby Smart puts "today's fashion and home trends at your fingertips." They achieve this by turning DIY projects into DIY kits. "With a Darby Smart kit, you can make and share your own style." 

So basically you can log onto the website, search for pretty much any craft you want and have the DIY instructions and materials send to your doorstep in a few days! Pretty much the best thing to ever happen to crafting.

So on my first trip to the Darby Smart website I purchased the Leather Tassel Keychain a 30 minute Do-It-Yourself Project for only $17.00 with free shipping and free returns. With your first visit to the website you receive a $10.00 coupon on any purchase, so this craft turned into a $7.00 one! 

The project included: Genuine Leather in Camel, E6000 Glue, 2 Gold Key Rings, 2 Mini Binder Clips, and DIY Instructions.

The keychain was quick and easy to make and a great accessory for my boring keys! I loved recieving my "Internet Rehab" in the mail and the package made me smile! 

I am now obsessed with Darby Smart and we hope to be {someday! fingers crossed} featured on Darby Smart as designers ....So go check it out!

Not-So-Common Products For Your Skin

If you are anything like me, this crazy polar vortex {huh?} that has been encompassing the country has left your skin and lips very dry. I have been researching many different kinds of natural exfoliants that can help with acne as well {two birds, one stone}!

The first not-so-common products that I have discovered is baking soda it has TONS of uses beyond what you expect in the kitchen.

• Baking soda can be used as a face wash when combined with warm water, it will create a thick paste that is perfect as a gentle cleanser. 
• When rubbed into your skin in gentle circular strokes it also acts as an exfoliant. If you have dry skin at the moment this is the perfect way to help rid your skin of dead cells and dry skin. If you already have a cleanser that you love {or you need a little more strength than just water}, add a little baking soda to the cleanser before washing your face. 
• Last but not least I have found that if you leave the thick paste {of water and baking soda} on your face for 5 to 10 minutes it acts as a face mask; helping fight acne and remove black heads!

Next up, lemon juice! The acidity in lemon juice is perfect as a natural astringent to help unclog pores.

• Use lemon juice as or in your cleanser. Consuming lemon juice orally hasn't been proven to be as effective as direct application to the skin. 
• The acidity in lemon juice also acts as a natural exfoliant as it helps remove dead skin cells and unclog pores. This is the perfect exfoliant for someone whose skin is too raw to use any kind of exfoliator with texture.

My new favorite is Vitamin E. Vitamin E is a fat soluble vitamin which means it can easily cross the cell membrane and and absorb locally. I bought pure Vitamin E oil at CVS or Walgreens for less than $8.00 and it will last me FOREVER. I have been using it for about 3 months now and you can barely tell I have used any at all.

• Vitamin E {like many other vitamins} is great not only just for acne but for your body in general. Vitamin E is associated with healthy skin and reduced inflammation.
• Vitamin E has also been proven to help reduce scarring {including acne scarring}.

Using these products can leave your skin red or irritated for an hour or so after using them. I recommend doing these things at night which will allow your skin time to recover before applying makeup.

Christmas Candle Craft

So here we go…. with another mason jar craft! This Christmas craft is perfect for a table centerpiece, a gift, or as a holiday decoration. All the supplies you need for this project you may have laying around the house {if you are crafty} or you can buy them and reuse them for a TON of seasonal projects. Once Christmas is over remove the candle, ribbon, and cranberries and create something new for the next season.

This adorable craft came to only $8.00 and took only about 5 minutes to create!

Materials you will need:

• Mason Jar
• To fill: Cranberries, glass beads, small christmas ornaments, pine cones, nuts {the options are endless}
• A candle
• To decorate with: ribbon, garland, twine {anything!}

To create the jar you need to place a few of your filler decorations {we used cranberries} to slightly raise your candle. 

Then, place the candle and add a few more filler pieces around the candle! 

Next, add your ribbon or garland to the top of the jar and add the spin top to finish it off! 

This is another cute way to do the Christmas candle mason jar! Show us your mason jars:)

Black Friday Crafting Coupons

For any of you craaazzzzzyyyy black friday shoppers, we found some great deals for you! If any of you want to try some of our DIY's for EVEN CHEAPER than we did them, tomorrow is the day to hit up these deals!!

World Market

Starting TODAY {online} & TOMORROW World Market has a great Buy 1 Get 1 Free Sale. Stores open at 7am Friday and 8am Saturday and Sunday. I would recommend purchasing - MASON JARS {$0.99-$19} and ornaments are 25% off {incase you want to use ornaments for snow globes}. Also if you want to give away some of your diy creations, all holiday wrap and baskets are Buy 1 Get 1 Free.

*literally every craft we do uses mason jars, they would be a fantastic investment at this low price if your planning on trying any of our ideas*

 

JOANNs

Incase you readers haven't noticed my craft store of choice is JOANNs. I lahhhhvvvvv it! JOANNs usually has great deals and they are always updating their apple/android app with new coupons for use. But this black Friday JOANNs has decided to bring it up a notch. Literally everything is on sale! Stores open Friday at 6am and Saturday at 7am. JOANNs has 60% off any one regular-priced item {valid till Dec. 1st} 25% off your total purchase {from 6am-Noon on Fri. and another for Sat.}, 50% off any one regular-priced item {valid all day Fri. and another for Sat.} In addition to al these great coupons {available here!} there are also great discounts on fabrics, tule, ribbon, fabric quarters, and organizational items. 

*a majority of craft materials have come from JOANNs, so if you have a store nearby and you want to try a diy.... jump on this!*

 

Michaels

Although Michaels is not my favorite craft store {no reason, I just personally love JOANNS} they still have fantastic deals for Black Friday. Stores open 7am Friday and 8am Saturday. Michaels has 30% off entire purchase including sales {7am-noon}, 40% off entire regular purchase {noon-10... excludes sale} 25% off entire purchase including sales {8am-noon), 50% off any one regular price item {noon-10}. For any of you post turkey dinner shoppers, Michaels is open 4pm-2am and has 30% off entire purchase including sale items.

*Michaels has great deals and great items for purchase.... check it out and go get your craft on!*

 

Let us know how you do on your Black Friday crafting purchases! We hope you all had a very happy Thanksgiving & enjoy your shopping tonight and tomorrow.

xo

Photo Light Box

While doing some blogosphere research this weekend I was overwhelmed by the fantastic quality images other blogs have. At first I was jealous of the all white look of their pictures. White floor, white walls, with everything. And I tried everything I could think of in an attempt to copy the whiteness. But nothing worked. After doing some more research I stumbled upon a DIY-Light Box for better quality photos and I just HAD to try it. So this is what I did this weekend:)

Anthro Inspired Snow Globes

With the holiday season is quickly approaching it is time to begin jumping into the holiday crafting spirit. Walking through Target and the malls we have been overwhelmed by the many christmas trees, ornaments, and music playing. So as a way to jump right into the holiday spirit, we decided to make Mason Jar Snow Globes. For any of you avid Anthropologie shoppers you may see a similarity in Five Times the Fun's snow globes and Anthro's.We were inspired by their cute and quirky style and decided to try it ourselves.

{Anthro's Mason Jar Snow Globe}

We made a Mason Jar Snow Globe for less than $7 compared to the Anthro jars which were $20. It was a fun holiday craft, super easy to make, festive and it is usable as Christmas decoration or a gift. So without further a-due here is our tutorial on how to make your very own Anthropologie Inspired Mason Jar Snow Globes.

Materials

-Mason Jar

-Hot Glue Gun

-Glitter

-Fake Snow

-Mini Trees

I found the Mason Jar at JoAnns craft store for $1.00 and the mini trees were $2.00 each {I made more jars so I bought a bulk pack for trees for $10}. The glitter and fake snow was from JoAnns and both added up to $5.00. So all together the snow globes were only $7!!

 

Hot glue your mini tree to the mason jar lid. Make sure it is stuck on really well!

Add your fake snow and glitter to the bottom of the jar. Make sure there is not too much snow and glitter. If you have to much it will cover the tree too high.

Place the tops onto the mason jar and flip over. Let the snow settle at the bottom of the jar.

If you want the sides of your jar to be frosted with glitter, take a paint brush, dip it in water and "paint" the sides of the jar. Put the glitter and snow into the jar, add the lid and shake. The glitter will stay attached to the side of the jar.

Don't be afraid to experiment! Add other things to your jar besides the mini trees and add ribbon or lace around the bottom! 

Perfect way to jump into the holiday spirit with a simplistic southern charm. 

XO