Happy Valentine's Day!

Today I sent out some valentines to my very closest friends. I purchased them up at The Paper Source in downtown Naperville and could hardly wait to give them out. My friend Katie took me to this store one evening during a little girl time we had together over Christmas break (see also: hazelnut chocolate mochas, playing with makeup at Benefit, smelling loose leaf teas, and enjoying eye candy at the paper store). I loved the store so much that I went back with my family the day before I flew back to Florida. While I was there, I spotted them! My valentines. 

Perfectly pink and red with cutesy florals on the front and back. The paper is really sturdy and soft, too. Simple and cute. 

I really love them. I bought small inserts to place in each card so I could take the time to tell each person exactly what I love most about them. I also sent out a bunch of dinosaur valentines this year, because 10 cards are simply not enough to tell all your friends that you care about them. 

Right now I'm just snuggled up on my couch, doing some homework for the week. Later today, Jaclyn and I will get together to exchange gifts and have a Dunkin Donuts iced coffee date together. <3 I love this holiday so much. 

Hope your Valentine's Day is really sweet, and that it's a special time for you to love all of the friends around you. Enjoy your day!

K

DIY: Make a bow belt!

Happy Saturday!

I'm sitting in Starbucks with one of my roommates, Allie, listening to the new Iron & Wine, enjoying an iced hazelnut white mocha (2 pumps WM, 1 pump hazelnut, nonfat, no whip -- if you're curious) and looking for cute Valentine's Day cards for my friends. I'm pretty close to narrowing down the perfect set... and I'm way excited. Let's just say they involve cats, fun colors, and fuzzy stuff. No more clues, though. :)

In other news:

I've been daydreaming about bow belts for weeks now, and I've yet to purchase one. If you've got a few bucks on hand, I highly recommend heading over to Darlingtonia Moccasins and purchasing one of Katie's gorgeous belts. They're so well-made and look adorable.

However, a Darlingtonia belt isn't in my budget this month, so I've gotta get crafty if I want one.

Here's a helpful DIY I considered trying this afternoon. Looks pretty easy, right? My only concern is that I'm super short-waisted, so I wonder if they'll work on me. I can only try, right?

Have you guys found any cute bow belts online this season? Have you made one? I'd love to see photos of your creations.

K

Looks like it's time to make a clock! lolz

Get it? Time... to make a... clock?

I hope the title of this post made you laugh or roll your eyes, or both. I got back from a work trip to Austin, and I'm taking the rest of the afternoon and evening to catch up on sleep and unwind. As soon as I looked in the Project ReStyle Flickr group, I almost screamed out loud... I found this clock and I couldn't even wait another minute to share.

Seems simple enough to make. Find a yucky old clock from a thrift or secondhand store, remove the inner-workings, and mount the pieces to a new face. Learn how Brittany made her clock.

Before

After

I seriously love the clock mixed in with all her other cute items on the wall. I have a wall of pretty things too, and a brand new handmade clock would be a perfect addition. Her clock reminds me of my trip to Chicago last month. I fell in love with the wall of clocks in Renegade Handmade.  

If you're really crafty/handy/imaginative, then Project ReStyle is something you'd love too. I really want to participate, but I find myself over-thinking everything I want to try, then getting way too inspired when I look at what other talented ladies are making, and want to try and make projects like theirs. I think the goal I need to set for myself is to just find something I already own and don't like anymore, and dream about what it can become. Which I suppose is the entire point of this project, isn't it? :)

Any suggestions for a project I should tackle first?

K