*o*

*dies*  Seriously mind blowing cuteness…  

See?   ‘Nuff said…..  > U <

xox,

bonita

How to ~ Vintage Style Hair Bow Holder Tutorial

Sorry it has taken so long to get this up ~ unfortunately I am having a bit of passport drama at the moment; trying to lodge my form before Monday and I keep forgetting important details like, oh, I don’t know ~ the copies of the birth certificate, marriage certificate, previous passport, driver’s licence and Medicare card!!  {I.e.  ~ Everything you need except the form itself….  *facepalm* Doh!}

Anyway, it is all good now.  On to the tutorial!  I was inspired to have a go this DIY craft by two amazing bloggers.  Jill from Baby Rabies and Violet from Tales of an Ingénue.  They both did gorgeous bow holder tutorials that you can find here & here. 

However, as much as I admired the work they did, I decided that I’d like to try another style which is why I came up with my own version of a hair bow holder!  > ω <

Prequel to the Tutorial ~

At first I had the idea to use a vintage doily for my project, but I only had one the right size and I didn’t want to use it because once I did, that was it.  Instead I decided to use this lace top I bought and have never worn.  

The only problem was that it was too white for a vintage look!  So I decided to dye both the top and the hoop darker to make them look more ‘old’.

To create the dye, all I did was grab eight tea bags, a hot kettle of water and a container!  Make your “tea” in the container, stir and place object under water.  Because the hoops kept trying to float I weighed them down with some jars and left it over night.

Next morning I put the top in the same brew.  I tried tying it up for a mottle effect but that didn’t work {it probably would on cotton or something, but this was made out of a weird material.}.  I still liked the results after I rinsed it out and hung it to dry, so I was ready to start. 

 

How to make a vintage styled hair bow holder ~

 

Gather your supplies:

~  Material

~  Embroidery hoop {can be bought at any craft supplies store.  I got mine for under $10.00 at Spotlight.}

~  Ribbons  {you’ll need at least two rolls of ribbon in whatever colour/s you choose.  I decided on two different widths and shades of pink.}

~   Hot glue gun  {also found at craft shops}

~  Scissors

~  Small roses  {I used Vivaldi 25mm Foam Rose Head in White ~ I think they were $7.00 from Spotlight}

     Step 1:  Stretch your material over the smallest hoop and place the large one over the top and tighten.  I did this so that it would be easier to cut it out.  You can measure a circle if you want, but this is the cheat’s way out!   ; p

    Step 2:  Cut the excess material off leaving a 1 1/2 ~ 2 cm allowance all around.

    Step 3:  See the allowance?  You don’t want too much or you will see the leftovers from the front.  {That’s the trouble with see through materials}

    Step 4:  Hot glue the allowance down to the inside of the hoop.  Only do a small bit at one time and please don’t forget to wait a few seconds before pushing the material down onto the glue.   The glue is hot and it will burn you if you touch it straight away!  {Like I learnt the first time around…  >.>’}

     Step 5:  You should end up with something like this ~ see across for the close up.

 

     Step 6:  Lay your ribbon over the front of the hoop as you like and cut to size, leaving a few centimetres on either side so that you can glue the ribbon down.   I just eyeballed the distances apart, but you can measure it if you like.  : )

   Step 7:  Starting with the middle ribbon, put a small dot of hot glue near the top of the strip and then attach it to the top outside of the hoop. 

Do the same with all of the ribbons, then repeat on the bottom.   When you are doing the bottom, make sure to pull the ribbon taunt {but don’t pull it off!} and straight.

    Step 8:  Turn the hoop over ~ you should have a bunch of ribbon tails that you want to glue down for extra security.

    Step 9:  Once you have glued down all the tails, make sure you cut off the excess, because again, you’ll see it from the front if you don’t.

    Step 10:  Place the outside hoop on again and tighten.   Make sure the screw is up the top and in the centre because the next step is to cover it up!

    Step 11:  Get your roses.   You could use any other type of fake flower head if you liked.  Or maybe even a bow.  Really, it’s entirely up to you.  

     Step 12:  Decide on the arrangement before you glue in place.

     Step 13:  I put a healthy {read as huge} glob of glue all over the back of the roses and over the screw to make sure they wouldn’t fall off.

     Step 14:  Cut a length of ribbon and attach it to the top of the frame in a loop shape ~ this is what you’ll use to hang the bow holder up with.  And you are finished!!

~ Enjoy Your New Vintage Style Bow Holder ~

    

I am really happy with how it turned out ~ the only problem is that I need to make another one as I still have half a box of bows to hang!  

I have to say, I laughed when I had finished hanging all of these up.  I didn’t realize that I had such a theme going!  I mean, black, red and white are great colours, but do you think I should get some other shades?  I kind of do…  >o<

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial, and I hope you all have a great Friday. 

xox,

bonita

Into the Sunset ~ Outfit Twenty One

The DH and I had a little road trip to Wagga Wagga over the weekend {three hours away from Canberra or 250kms distance if you are into that kind of measurement}.  It was chiefly for DH’s work ~ a code camp for developers {or a numeral collection of nerds as my husband aptly described it}.  However, I think it was myself that ended up benefiting the most from the trip.

One, because DH has excellent taste in accommodation and booked us into the cutest little cottage called “Forget Me Not” ~ it was so lovely and in a beautiful location with lemon trees and roses rambling absolutely everywhere!

Plus, the equine friends over the fence helped to make an even better impression on me ~ especially a darling foal that was over the road.  I went up to say hi and he was most inquisitive….  We made friends very quickly!

Two, because while DH was at the camp, I got to wander around Wagga and check out the scenery.   Lots of photographs were taken and because there was a fantastic antique junk~esque type shop and a spring fete, lots of shopping was done too!

I had such a relaxing time, which was really great.  I had been feeling quite ill the last week thanks to hay fever and a mild cold; I wasn’t even sure if I should go.  But I did, and I am very glad that I did.

With the help of DH, I also happened to snap the best outfit shoot I have ever done, and with one of the best outfits I think I have pulled together recently.

I have been feeling totally uninspired with my wardrobe recently ~ not because I don’t have enough clothes to work with, but rather a complete lack of energy and less than average creativity.

I felt that this outfit came together perfectly and felt so me.  I love it.  It’s not a usual style that I wear, I tend to avoid empire waist dresses/tops like the plague, because I always felt that they did nothing for my figure and made me look pregnant. 

But now that a baby is actually on the way, and I don’t have a waist any more ~ it’s the perfect thing.  The baby~doll look is really reflecting the stage of life that I feel that I am at ~ soft, feminine and a mother to be. 

 

It’s funny how sometimes things just fall into place perfectly and you can look back and say ~ yes, at that point I knew where I was, who I am and where I was going.  It’s nice to be able to feel the comfort of that moment ~ where God is in His heaven, and all is right in the world.

   

Of course, the moment does not always last as long as you would like it too ~ sometimes that feeling can stretch over days, weeks or months.   And sometimes it as fleeting as a breath of wind or a heartbeat. 

Whatever the case may be, we need to hold onto those moments, because in those seconds, you know that everything is going to be alright ~ no matter what the future holds.

We are all here for a reason, and we all are given the strength to make it through each day.  Every day we have is gift…   I believe it is a gift from God, although I know there are others who might not feel the same way.  I also know that we all can still agree that each day is a gift of life.

And for that gift of life that is me, and growing inside of me, I am so very thankful.   

Accessories  ~  Hair Ribbon {Recycled from goodness knows where}   Hat  {Thrifted ~ it’s an old school hat but I love it!}

Blue Floral Dress  ~  La Pearls    White Eyelet Dress  ~  {Florence, Italy.  Worn underneath for a more suitable more length!} 

Flats  ~  Tightrope {yes, they are the same pair that were in the last outfit post.  Terrible of me I know, but I love them so much atm.}

 

I hope you had a great weekend like I did, and please keep an eye out for a tutorial/DIY I aim to share with you later this week.  It’s going to be fun.  ^ w ^

xox,

bonita

sassyNpunk feature ~ cuteness overload!

Okay, I would like to do a post featuring sassyNpunk.   Yes, I talking about how awesome I find the shop.  No, I haven’t bought anything from there yet, so I can’t give you a full review.   I am however, writing a disclosure so that you know that a}.  While I might receive a gift from sassyNpunk for doing this, I am writing out of my own experiences and opinions.   That being said, I haven’t had the full experience yet, so I can’t tell you if it is good or bad. 

And b}. If I do happen to receive something for my work I will do a review on it and let you know what the products are like in real life, not just internet land.  So I hope you don’t mind the topic, and hey, you might find a new favourite store too. 

The main reason I decided to do this feature post is that I heard rumours that sassyNpunk were doing a special offer where you can blog about their store and they’ll send you a package of freebies…   And who doesn’t love freebies?

For myself, I actually found this one pretty amazing.  I don’t know many shops that will give away items in return for a bit of publicity.   Most of the time you have to be famous in blog land before any company will look your way twice. 

I am glad that sassyNpunk are doing this offer though, because I have been drawn to their website on numerous occasions, and I think I leave a little piece of my heart with them every time I go there… 

I love, love, love their products.  Like this Happy Mushroom Cameo for AUD $10.13 ~

Or this gorgeous Cherries Necklace {which would look great with my new dress btw!}

Or the Cherry Cameo Necklace ~ which I love even more.  Cherry obsessed much?  Why yes!

Then there’s the Hello Kitty stuff {Hello Kitty in a tea pot?  Love it!!}, the hair stuff, the cute stationary stuff ~ all of which could pretty much be on my wish list at any point.

However, let’s not forget the other side of sassyNpunk.  The shop does not just cater to the cute and cuddly ~ there is a wide variety of goth/emo/punk type items for sale too.

I am not so fond of the punk stuff…  Too many zombies and guns and knives.   Not up my ally, but sure to appeal to anyone looking for a lot less cute and a lot more punk.   {Actually, that would be my sister!  >o<} 

In my mind, it’s a good shop for online cute and you can find a range of stuff for almost any girl.   Sorry, guys, but it is pretty gender specified!   sassyNpunk would be great at providing Christmas gifts ~ for you or some else you know. 

Check it out if you like, and let me know what you think.   > ω <

xox,

bonita

 

P.S.  ~  All images are from the sassyNpunk website and are copyright to sassyNpunk.

Baby Talk Part II ~ The Trials and Tribulations of Being the First Mommy in your Circle.

So you’ve done it.   Out of your artsy, singleton, cool hipster circle you are the first to settle for the Husband, House and 2.5 Children.

You’ve crossed the line to official adulthood, even if you still feel like you’ve got a long ways to go until you get there.  {When I grow up, I’d like get a novel published!}

Now what do you do?  

I’ve read quite a few stories about Moms who are the last of their circle to get with the baby program, and how awkward they found it.

“Little Jimmy has pink eye…”  

“Oh, um, that’s not good.”

*silence*

“And Chelsea is getting to be such an excellent ballet dancer, I am sure she’ll get a part in the end of year production.”

“How wonderful.”

*more silence*

“……”

“I think I’ll go get another drink.”

*escapes*

Just like that invisible lines are drawn in the metaphoric sand.   You vs. Them.   Married vs. Single.  Children vs. The Goldfish. 

Want to know why?   Baby Talk.   That’s why.  Being the last ~ being the first, it seems to be much the same boat.   The one christened “The Only Equals So Lonely”.  Because when you are the only one in your circle to be that stage of life you are pretty much stuffed when it comes to conversation.

Yeah, my girlfriends are so not dying to hear about my indigestion issues {These days I am relying heavily on Mylanta which is an Antacid.  ‘Nother words ~ OLD people medicine!}, or that I had to buy a bra TWO sizes bigger than my regular size and it’s only been three months!!

And all this new found knowledge that I have on the female body during this time?  Oh, you can definitely keep THAT to yourself!!  When Sister number Two, who is studying human biology, and I got into a friendly discussion about *mumble*  cervixes *cough* and their nature all I heard from Sister number Four was “EEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!   Can you NOT!???” 

Mind you it turned out I was right {Google is good for something!} but in the meantime I found out that Sisters Two, Three and Four pretty much do not want to know all the scintillating facts that I have uncovered through hours of trawling the Wide Webs for information.   {Well, my doctor wasn’t coughing up the goods ~ I had to find out this stuff somehow!}

So what do we talk about? 

The topics that they know.  Single boy dramas, runs in with the local Lady Loves to Make You Miserable, uni trouble, travel, work ~ all the things that used to be the centre of my conversations oh, about a year ago?

It’s not like I have forgotten what life was like at that stage, and of course I love hearing about all the things that are important and even the not so important to them.  Basically because if they didn’t share this stuff then I’d be really upset because we don’t talk anymore!  Ugh.  Don’t want to even go there.  It is not a happy place to be.

But it’s also hard because the things that are important to me now, like babies and houses and housekeeping ~ not so much on the conversation role.

So I guess I kind of feel like it ends up being one sided sharing….   What do I do?  Wait until they catch up to my stage of life and then share all the stories? 

Or just start another blog so I can share all that stuff there without totally disgusting you guys?

Of course I talk to my Mom a lot more these days, and it’s great because One: she’s interested in that stuff being a Mom herself {even to three adults and one teen} Two: she’s a first time grandmother, just like I am a first time Mom so that definitely exciting!

It’s just that I miss being able to connect with my friends.  I miss feeling like they get it.   I miss sharing what’s up with me and having them relate with stories of their own.   And that, everyone, is one of the downsides to being the eldest and being the first to doing almost everything.   It not always that fun.  In fact, sometimes it is down right lonely.

xox,

bonita

Cherry on Top ~ Outfit Twenty

Wow, I have already posted twenty outfits?   For someone who didn’t really find her calling as a lifestyle blogger until July this year, that seems a lot to me.   Of course, it would be more if I was only posting fashion, but we all know that my scatter brain could never cope with concentrating on a single subject!

One thing at a time….

  

 

Accessories  ~  Lace hair band {Diva}    Lace Bow  {Diva}  Silver Hoops  {2007 Christmas Present}

Dress  {Jay Jays}   Underskirt  {Thrifted}    Shoes  {Tightrope}

As you might be able to tell Spring is out in full force down under, and we are experiencing really hot days mixed with LOTS of rain!  Still, it is definitely the season for pretty dresses and I am happy that I can finally ditch all of the layers so necessary in winter.

Speaking of pretty dresses ~ this one is new and I was so excited to find it.  I love cherry print and when I saw this dress in Jay Jays last week I had to have it.   Plus, the vintage styled buttons down the front are such a nice touch for something so mass produced….

And do you like my new glasses?   I actually really love them.  I wasn’t sure about the style, because I ordered them online and couldn’t try them out first, but when they came they were just perfect!  I surprisingly don’t mind having these on for photos, where as I used to hate it and would always whip my specs off when the camera came out.

I don’t think I’ll wear them all the time for photographs, as the flash reflection is annoying, but if I forget to take them off at least I don’t need to insist on taking the photos again.   Not that I ever did that before…  > >’

Not me!

xox,

bonita

Baby Talk

Ultrasounds.  EDDs {Estimated Due Date}.   OBGYN.  Stirrups {NOT the horse kind >. > }.  Fatigue.  Stretch marks.  Indigestion.  BHs {Braxton Hicks Contractions}.  Round ligament pain.  Head aches.  

……………….

It’s inevitable.   A life changing event sneaks up on you and before you know it, anything that previously occupied your brain space has been completely erased for the time being and replaced with brand new concepts.   Before you know it you are spouting all kinds of babble that not everyone will understand.

And this is where things get tricky….

I have tried to keep the baby talk to a minimum, but seriously, do you know how hard it is to hide the fact that you’ve lost your singleton student cool?  Even worse, that that cool has been substituted for a stuffed toy, pastel bubble baby mom, well ~ not cool.

You would never know, but slowly my blog reader has morphed from fashion/vintage/creative type blogs only to include *gaspshockHORROR* mommy blogs. 

No longer am I voraciously devouring and back reading blogs such as Keiko Lynn ~ who’s chic doll like style I adore, or Lulu Letty ~  with Maria’s lovely whimsical dreamlike vintage inspiration that is ever a favourite. 

As much as I still love all these blogs and more{and their amazing authoresses!} and still read them regularly, I find myself drawn more and more to mommy style stories.    And boy, they are just as endless as the fashion blogs! 

There is Suburban Turmoil ~ the authoress Lindsey writes about everything from soccer games and bad coaches/parents to the heavy pressures and expectations that all moms face to Be The Perfect Mother to the maggot/ant infestations she wages war with.

Or Baby Rabies ~ where wrestling with ruffles is just another obstacle on the road to the perfect nursery, or the gnawing ache of an empty womb is just part of the baby rabies disease.

There are stories about pregnancy, birth, newborns, babies, toddlers, children, teens ~ there are stories about the perfect dreams come true, and the world’s worst nightmares ~ sometimes all in one hit.  

And I must admit, I find the realness of living day to day with these Moms a great inspiration to me.    I found the fashion blogs to inspire my creativity, which is a gift I am really grateful for, but these mommy blogs inspire me to think about who I am and how I am going to raise the child that DH and I are expecting.

What will my priorities be?  How will I deal with the day to day ins and outs of choreslaundrypukeandpoop as one mom put it?  Will I succumb to the pressure to Be The Perfect Mother only to find out {much to my chagrin} that I never can be that?  And of course, the most pressing question in my mind is ~ will I be able to keep my house neat and tidy??? 

xox,

bonita

P.S. ~  I have more to post about on the subject of Baby Talk.  Keep your eye out for Baby Talk Part II ~ The Trials and Tribulations of Being the First Mommy in your Circle.

Sparkly Sparkly! Nail Art

It has long been my ambition to get some serious sparkle on my nails.  I don’t mean of the glitter variety, but of the rhinestone sort. 

Yes, this is me not some mind eating alien spawn.  I still have a 70% black wardrobe and I still wear and adore vintage.  I did however warn you a while ago that the simple housewife who likes neatness and order also has a strange thirst for decoden and over the top, Japanese styled nails. 

Prime examples here and here:

    

I do not know where my elegant, refined, classic and simplicity loving self {*snort* elegant, refined, classic?  Yeah.  Right.} vanishes too when I see pictures like the ones above, but vanishes she does and I am left positively longing to do this:

to my iPhone.  

DH was not impressed when I told him about my awesome idea.  Mainly because he is super obsessive over his technology almost to the point of OCD ~ each piece of equipment must be kept in pristine original condition.  That’s what you get when you marry a software developer I guess!

He did give me his old iPhone when he got the new one, so he most likely won’t want it back, but still.  Deco?  On the iPhone?   Oh noes!  >o<

Thankfully, he did come around, but only if I deco a case for the phone and not the phone itself.  Which is fair enough and what I was planning to do in the first place just in case I ended up hating it.

But the fact of the matter is I haven’t even gotten around to starting the iPhone deco project as I do not have a case, nor that many supplies yet.  So I have to make do with blinging up my nails instead.   Mind you, I didn’t really go all out, simply because these are my first experiments.  I don’t know how long the nail sparkles will last, or how to do proper gel nails. 

Or if I even want to do gel nails because I am petrified of ruining my admittedly already decent nail bed.  I get even nails with a nice length to them on a regular basis.  How long the evenness lasts depends on how rough I am and what I doing.  

But that was a side track.  Let’s get on with the real stuff.  Photos!! 

I have basically created a step by step of how I do my nails for no particular reason.  Hope you like.

  

Gather your materials  ~ I have a Konad Stamping Kit and BYS Matte Aqua Polish.   Then prepare your nails by cleaning them, pushing back the cuticles and putting on a base coat.  I use Sally Hansen’s Miracle Cure as it is a treatment and it dries super fast.

Yes, this is how I put my nail polish on.  It’s good because the bottle is firmly wedged between your knees so that you can’t knock it over, but it’s also bad because you have to be careful not to get nail polish on your favourite jeans!  >.<

 

I found this BYS polish to be really good.  It was so thick that after one coat your nails were the same colour as the bottle.  The aqua colour is not really aqua though ~ more like a dark sky blue.  It’s a very intense colour and the matte makes it look very saturated.  Also, at $3.00 a bottle, you can’t go wrong!!

Next step is to Konad ~ I did a polka dot bow on my right thumb and both ring fingers, and a dotted love heart on my left pointer and right middle finger.

Normally I’d do a top coat at this stage, because I find it definitely helps your nail art to last longer, but as this polish was matte and I don’t have a matte top coat, so it seemed a waste of time to me.   I guess I’ll just have to see how well the nails will last now.

    

Then it was sparkle time!!  I bought this nail art wheel that was chockers with different coloured rhinestones from a local beauty supplies shop.  It was a about $5.00 and I think the brand is Oker Brand.  Never heard of it before, but the wheel works really well.   The only thing was that all the different colours got muddled up in the packaging.   I haven’t sorted them out yet, and the gems are so small I don’t know if I can be bothered!  

Each gem is 2mm and I got the square ones. I decided on light purple and used super glue to attach them.  The super glue worked really well  You just had to make sure you didn’t get any on your finger or the gem would pull off again and leave a mess in your nail polish. 

I stuck three on my left thumb, one on my middle finger and two on my pinkie.   I did one on my right pointer and two on my right pinkie.

   

TaDa!!   The finished result! 

xox,

bonita