...Correction, red bodied.

...be back Monday!

Xx,
LS

The title was supposed to be some witty play on "corral" and "alligator" but I'm pretty sure I failed at making those two words come together as one. Bad wording aside, my DIY skills were able to combine the two. Presenting: an alligator print plate that functions as a place for me to place, and therefore corral, all my sh*t together.

Here's what you need: glass salad plate {I got one at World Market for less than $2}, Mod Podge, printed gift wrap, scissors, paint brush, and an un-pictured pen, paper plate, and credit card/ID.

Trace a round object that is close to if not the same size as the bottom of the plate onto the back of the gift wrap.

Slice n' dice.

On a paper plate or other disposable "I like to craft but don't want to ruin my counter top" saver, paint the front of the gift wrap.

Center and stick it to the bottom of the plate and let "dry" overnight. Now the reason I say "dry" and not dry, is because in the morning, the plate will look the same and you will see that indeed there is still wet glue between the gift wrap and the plate. Huh??? Yeah, this is where the credit card/ID comes in handy.

Pressing from the center of the circle out, squish the glue out from between the wrap and the plate. Wipe clean with a papertowel. Once this is done your plate will be all purrrrty and a quick wipe of nail polish remover can remove any and all excess mod podge that seems to have stuck {I wonder why} to the plate.

Corralligator away...

Some of you have asked how I take my DIY post pics. The white background, the great lighting; it's all an illusion. Seriously, this is my photo studio...

I know, super fancy. So, how do I get the above to look like the pic below? It's called white poster board, a good camera {this is the DSLR I have} and good old fashioned natural lighting.

Talk about a DIY project, ha!

One of my more genius "in-the-moment" moments happened a few weeks ago when I came up with this lil doodad: a wire hanger turned over-the-knob mail holder.

Seriously, I don't know how I got so smart {THANKS mom and dad!}. All I did was take a wire hanger, bend the hanger into a hook shape and there you have it. A full-proof method to the usual "I have to mail out my bills/thank you notes/holiday cards but I keep leaving them at home on my desk" dilemma. 

Easy-peasy don't leave your mail behind on your desk-y.

Well kidlets, it's officially 2013 and I'm officially starting off this new year with one of my favorite tips yet.

Way back when TLM was just a lil blog-bambino, I wrote about how I drink apple cider vinegar drinks as a means of keeping my adult acne at bay. For the record, I still have one of these drinks everyday, but with all of the wedding planning stress {seriously, I never believed the whole "wedding stress" thing until I became a bride to be -- it's real, it's a thang, it's stressful}, I've started to see an increase in facial and back acne. Now, I know that's not the prettiest visual, but I'm trying to keep it real with all of you so there you have it: I have back acne {also known in my household as "bacne"} and have struggled with it since I was a hormonal teen in middle school. In the past I've tried everything from Proactiv to Clearasil to prescription strength retinol cream, the likes of which haveall failed in the acne miracle worker department. 

So, what's a girl to do when there's only 2.5 months until her wedding {what?!} and her acne doesn't seem to go away? Get resourceful. 

After a little web perusing and some personal trial and error, it seems as if I've finally found my godsend of an acne treatment -- and I found it in the shampoo aisle.

Yup, good ole Head & Shoulders shampoo {NOTE: stay away from the 2-in-1 shampoo + conditioner Head & Shoulders and go with the classic shampoo...found that one out via trial and error}. Apparently it has something to do with the zinc or something but whatever it is, it's amazing. 

Here's how I use it: Whenever I shower, I use Head & Shoulders as my body wash and face wash. Simple as that. That said, if you want to see your acne go away faster, I recommend using the shampoo as a mask of sorts, applying 5 - 10 minutes before you get in the shower. Oh, and H&S also makes a great spot treatment for those darn pimples that seem to magically appear over the course of the day. I wouldn't, however, use H&S to remove makeup and all that jazz at the end of the day. For that I simply use one of those makeup removal wipe thingys. With all of this info in mind, let me also warn you that H&S can also be verrrrry drying if overused and don't moisturize so a). only use once a day, and b). if you don't moisturize already, start now! I'm currently loving on Clinique's "moisture surge intense" gel hydrator {c/o Sephora}. Amaze.

So there you have it, one of my best tips for ringing in what's likely to be one of the best years of my life {what up marriage?!!!}. Happy 2013!!

HAPPY {almost} 2013!!

The gem magnets mentioned in Monday's post are one of the easiest things to make. Seriously, the options are endless and the "cost to make" can't be beat. This is because a strip of magnet {magnetic strip?}, which can make 10-20 magnets, is only $0.75 at the craft store. 

Cost aside, I'm pretty sure you can figure out how to make these magnets just from the pic above. Cut magnet, glue gem {or button, scrabble letter, clothespin, chip clip, coins, etc...} onto magnet, put on fridge to hold up all those damn holiday cards.

Annnnd, that's it. Easy as pie...or in this case, a magnet.

So, where did we leave off? Oh right, statement necklaces. What you'll need: black ribbon {3/4 inch width}, black felt, gems, hot glue gun with all purpose glue refills, scissors, and a little sewing power...

Step one: arrange the gems in the design of your choosing. I gravitate more towards random arrangements that, while random still appear balanced. Hence the layout below. I really like how the cluster of colored jewels on the left are balanced out by the large blue gem and extra clear gems on the right. Kewl beans.

Step two: glue dem bitchezzz on.

Step three: cut out around the gems leaving an 1/8 inch border.

Step four: admire your work thus far.

Step five: now, this step is kind of optional in that, I chose to take the 3/4 inch wide ribbon, fold it in half, and sew it so that the ribbon would be thinner around the neck but twice as strong {those gems are somewhat weighty}. That said, I know most people don't have sewing machines and sewing all the ribbon by hand would be A LOT of work. So again, this step is optional {as in, if you choose to gloss over this step, I would recommend using a ribbon that's either 1/4 inch or 1/2 inch thick}.

Oh, but regardless of the size ribbon you use, here's a good little trick: use a flat iron to make all of the ribbon crease free. Not only is it a lot easier than a traditional iron, but I also think it does a better job.

Step six {or five if you skipped over that ribbon step} is all about attaching the ribbon to the gem piece. Now, I easily could have just used the hot glue gun and glued the ribbon on, but I wanted to make sure that the ribbon wasn't going to go anywhere. Soooooo, I did my best to, without ruining the other gems, pull off two gems that were perfectly placed where the ribbon was going to go {you can see what I'm talking about below}. Now, looking back I would have just not glued those babies on until this point but, my loss is now your gain. You're welcome.

Anyways, by hand, I sewed the ribbon onto the felt where the two gems had been removed. I also hot glued the remaining ribbon to the back of the felt piece cuz, let's face it, double the strength ain't a bad thing.

Step seven: re-glue the gems and wear with super sparkly pride.