Bangin'

According to all the style emails I'm getting, bangs are "in" this fall.  Whatever that means.

Daily Makover Bangs

I got some bangs cut to add some jazz to my look while I'm growing my hair out.

Here's a lady that looks good with or without bangs.  I love her sweet style.

photo: Who What Wear Daily

Don't forget that next week will be Giveaway Week here!

GIVEAWAY WEEK! Announcement

Next week I will have some fabulous giveaways!

Starting Monday I will have a giveaway a day through Friday (that's FIVE giveaways!)!

Since Christmas is coming up, I know we're all strapped for cash but are still looking for some sweet presents for friends and family.  This is your chance to snag a present for FREE!  Or you can keep it for yourself :).

Entering will be easy peasy (no complicated rules here!).

There might also be a few other surprises in store!

So don't forget to come visit!

I love Christmas puppies!

DIY Bib Necklace

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!  I spent my weekend decorating for Christmas.  I'm hoping to finish up tonight so I can share some Christmas projects with you this week.

The project I want to share today is a DIY Bib Necklace.  I love the blingy bib necklaces, but I don't love the $40 price tags.  Here's an easy way to make your own!

I bought some decorative collars at Hancock Fabrics.  I used a 40% off coupon, so I got them for less than $10.  Sometimes they run them on sale too.

Here's the decorative collar I used:

I laid the collar on some black fleece and cut the fleece to the size of the collar.

I pinned the collar to the fleece

I measured out two pieces of black ribbon (16 inches each).

I tucked the ribbon in between the collar and the fleece.  Put just enough to catch the ribbon where it will have a good hold.

I sewed the collar to the fleece, keeping as close as possible to the edge of the beading.

When it came to the ribbons, I did back and forth stitches to make a strong seam.

Next cut the extra netting away (making sure not to cut into your sewing).

Voila!  A bib necklace in no time!

I'm waiting for a date night or party to wear it.  Or maybe I'll use it to dress up a casual outfit for work.  I'll let you know how it wears.

*No sew option: use fabric glue or a hot glue gun to attach the fleece and ribbon to the collar.

Linking Up:

Bathroom Remodel (before & after)

We moved in our house the beginning of 2009 and remodeled the bathroom a year later.  I've just now put the finishing touches on it and am ready for the big reveal!
(Click pictures to enlarge)

Before:

If you look in the left of the picture, you see something white.  That was a cabinet that we never used, so it was wasted space for us.  Colin and I always fought over the sink when we were getting ready in the morning.  I wish I had more pictures to show, but I can't find them.  The floor had a slight slant to it (given the age of the house), so we couldn't get the water in the tub to drain.  We also needed more lighting.  There were just a few things that didn't work for us once we started using it daily.

We took a year to save money and to plan our dream bathroom.

Then demo time came! 

There were several layers of paneling and faux tile and wallpaper to pull off to get down to the studs.

We donated the tub and threw out the shower wall panels.

When we moved in, the bathroom had a dropped ceiling.  We took that out and it revealed a much higher ceiling.

Besides being completely gutted, the bathroom floor was leveled.

Ready for the big transformation?!?!

After:

New sheetrock and paint, new flooring, new vanities, new lighting, new tub and shower and toilet.  Everything is new. 

Wall sconces: Lowe's

Wall color: Moon River

Hand towel/towel/toilet paper holders: TJMaxx

Bird mirror stickers: TJMaxx

Wall vinyl wording: Kohl's

Mirrors: Target online

Vanities: Lowe's

Toilet: Lowe's

Vanity and bath/shower fixtures: builder supply store

Middle cabinet (in between vanities): Fred's

Raised the ceiling and painted the highest part mocha brown to make it seem like it disappears.  Part of the ceiling (the blue portion) had to be left lowered a bit to make room for the upstairs plumbing, so we added lights into the box.

Added crown molding it make it look schmancy.

Added a light/vent/heater over the shower: Ace Hardware

Lights over vanity: Lowe's

Shower curtain: Bed Bath & Beyond
Towels: Target
Shower Mat: Bed Bath & Beyond

Floor and shower tiles: Lowe's
The floor and shower tiles are different, but coordinate well.  The floor tiles have a hint of blue streaks in them to tie into the walls.  The shower tiles are just tans.

Tub: Lowe's

Shower accent tiles and tile shelves: Home Depot
The accent tiles add a little pop of interest.  The shelves are tiles that are specifically made to be shelves.  They aren't like normal tiles, because they are cut already into the right shape and are tile all around (unlike a floor tile that is tile on top but the bottom is for glue).

Floor tiles ^

There is a closet behind the bathroom door.  My mom made a curtain for it.  I painted the inside of the closet the same color as the ceiling, hoping it had the same disappearing act.

We LOVE our new bathroom!  We couldn't be happier!

My advice:

Save as much money as you can to pay for it with cash

When shopping, see how your items go together.  We took tiles over to the vanities and laid down paint chips...all in the store!

Know what you're doing or hire someone who does.  My dad did the majority of the work, and we couldn't have done it without him.  He did electrical, plumbing, construction.  You will be disappointed and discouraged if you attempt something you know you can't do alone.

Wait for sales, discounts, coupons!

FREE Owl Calendar

I just made my own free owl calendar!

Go make yours here!

Tutorial: Sweatshirt to Cardigan

I bought this sweater for 70 cents from TJMaxx.  Yep, 70 cents!

I'm pretty sure it was so cheap because there were two holes in the front.  It also fit very oddly.

I decided to convert it to an oversized cardigan, because I couldn't wear it as-is.
First I cut down the middle of the front of the sweatshirt.

Then I measured two inches all the way down on both sides.  That was enough for the holes to be hidden and the V at the top of the sweatshirt to be hidden.

I folded over the two inches and pinned all the way down.

Then I folded that under itself in half so it would make a nice, clean hem.

Then I sewed the hem with a straight stitch.

Nice, clean hem!

Here's the final product:

My husband said it looked like something from Urban Outfitters......so that pretty much means it still looks 80s.  But I like it!  I've thought about sewing some chunky buttons on it or some other type of frill. What do you think?