Wordless Wednesday: New Hair!

Crafty Couture!

Summer's here, and I have oodles of free time on my hands, so I thought I'd share with you all my latest crafting endeavor:

Hairbows!

I made both the bow and wrapped the headband to match, and I'm really proud of how this turned out!

To make the bow, I cut three pieces of grosgrain in different lengthes, and sewed each one into a loop. Then I stacked them on top of each other, with the biggest at the bottom and the smallest on the top, and tacked them together. To create a more finished look, I took another piece of ribbon, wrapped it around the middle of the three loops, and sewed it in place underneath.

From there, I wrapped a skinny plastic headband in the same ribbon, hot gluing the ends in place.

To attach the bow, I put a dab of hot glue on the center of the bottom of the bow, as well as on either end, and put it where I wanted on the headband. To have even more control on how the bow sits, I glued the bottom of each of the two remaining loops on each side to the top of the one below it.

I am SO pleased with how this turned out, and I definitely plan on making more! 

I want to try different colors, sizes, etc., as well as making barrettes and clips!

Back to Blogging!

After all those "Why I've been absent" posts I'm proud to finally say I'm back to blogging! Phew, it's been awhile. With the school year coming to an end (and not slowing down much in the process), I just needed a break from all commitments! But now it is Summer, and I'm SO excited to get back to regular posts. So, without further adieu, here is the final installment in my (sad) string of "update" posts.

The weekend before I finished school, my dance studio held its annual June recitals. It's a weekend long event, with 3 shows and no time for much else. Normally, I absolutely love recitals. But this year, the venue's air conditioning conveniently conked out right before our first show! Needless to say, it was a sweaty weekend.

One of my favorite pieces that we performed was a ballet number en pointe to "Grease Lightning"!

The last week of school dragged by, but finally, Summer came!

My friend M and I met up after school on the last day for lunch, and ended up spending the afternoon with her family at her grandparents' house. She has a huge family with lots of little cousins running around, which is so fun for me, since my family is itty bitty, and I am the absolute youngest! That night, we went out for a movie and some shopping. We wanted to see "Bridesmaids" but, embarrisngly, even though I'm almost 18, I couldn't get in without ID! (I don't yet have my drivers' license, so an urgent trip was made to the DMV the next day for a state ID card.) In the end, we decided to see Green Lantern in 3D. While I'm not a big superhero/comic book person, the special effects pretty much made the movie for me. Oh yeah, and Ryan Reynolds didn't hurt either!

This Sunday, kind of on a whim, I took the plunge and colored my hair for the first time! I was SO nervous to do it, but I love love love how it turned out!

I used Clairol Nice 'n Easy in shade 111, Natural Medium Auburn.

In conjunction with my (joyous!) return to blogging, I've decided to set a goal for myself: to get to 100 followers by the end of the summer (roughly 2.5 months). I got this idea from Sundresses and Smiles' goal of 300 followers in 3 months (which she achieved- go congratulate her!).
It's not that I want a lot of followers just to have a lot. I feel like setting this goal for myself will help stay more focused on my blog (like I have NOT been lately!) and also encourage and help me to discover new blogs- which is always a good thing!

Have a fabulous week!

My Summer Essentials

I'm still in school for another couple months, and my spring break has just begun, so summer is still a long way off for me. But, I know a lot of people finish in May, so I thought it'd be fun to talk about just a few of my must-haves for summer. Also, with the back and forth, warm and cold weather, I think we all need a little something to remind us that summer WILL eventually come!

Flip Flops

From the first day of spring until the last possible day in autumn, I wear flip flops practically everyday. I love Old Navy's because they're super comfy and come in literally dozens of colors and styles. Plus, they're so inexpensive (think 2/$5.00, or $1 per pair during their annual sale) you can get them to match any outfit. I also keep a few pairs of J. Crew flip flops on hand and of course some dressier sandals as well, but I love these for just running around during the day.

Long Wearing Foundation

The toughest thing about wearing makeup in the summer is heat. Get too hot or sweaty, and foundation will melt right off of your face. I recently bought Rimmel's Lasting Finish foundation to carry me into the warmer monthes, and I really like it so far. I haven't tested its claims to last for 25 hours, but it stays pretty well from morning until night. Also, I've gotten a dab on my arm a few times and its been hard to get off- I don't know if that's a good thing, but at least it lives up to its advertising, right?! Oh, and at about $7, the price can't be beat! (Can you tell I love a deal? :) )

Low Maitnence Hair

For the past few years, I've specifically made sure that I didn't have bangs during the summer. Between heat, swimming, and just more running around in general, a low maitnence cut definitely comes in handy. Something like the one above would be cute to style to go out with, but could just as easily be worn up or natural when it's too hot and humid to use heat on your hair.

Nail Polish

Put your plums and navys away, because summer is all about light, bright nail polish. Neons and sparkles are fun and carfree, and pastels like OPI's "Italian Love Affair" look fabulous against a tan!

Good Books

Nothing says summer more than laying on the beach or beside the pool with a great book. During the summer, I love reading chick lit, juicy memoirs, books about fashion and style, etc. One of my favorites that I read last summer was Tori Spelling's sTORI Telling. My initial desire to read it may have come from my fondness for a little show called Beverly Hills, 90210 (seriously, that obsession hobby could get its own entire post... and probably will.), but I ended up loving the book! Since then, I've read her two follow-ups, MommyWood and Uncharted TerriTORI, each one filled with just as many mishaps, hilarities, and hearfelt moments as the first.

Great Music

Every summer has its iconic song, and last year it was definitely "California Gurls", by Katy Perry. Summer is such a great time to just relax and have fun with friends, and great music just adds to the mood- definitely a must-have for summer!