Archives for November 2011

tissue paper pom-pom tutorial

My first tutorial.

Yeeee-haw.

I hope you’re ready for this. It IS pretty much the holiday season and all so you might want to make these soon.

Red and green?!

You definitely want to make these.

Yes, yes. You do. They are super easy and super cheap.

Let’s not forget SUPER Martha Stewart and insanely adorable.

Here’s what you need:

colored tissue paper (your preference)

scissors

a tape measurer

floral wire

First, make sure you have 8 pieces of tissue paper. Then, you want a reasonably sized width of paper to work with. I made mine around 13.5 inches. There is no significance in this number, I just wanted some different sized paper balls, so I made my widths random.

Length should be around 20 inches. Give or take.

After you get the width you want start to fold the paper accordion-style.

I made my creases about 1.5 inches. I though this length worked fairy well.

Fold that paper up real good.

Like that.

Fan yourself for a minute. The hard part is over.

(not really, but fan yourself anyways for fun.)

Find out where the halfway mark is and get your floral wire ready.

Place the wire around the middle.

The next bit I’m about to write here is optional.

Cut the ends of the paper so that it’s either round or pointed. Or don’t cut it at all. I did a variety and they all look pretty much the same. There is a slight variation, but nothing crazy.

It’s actually rather annoying to cut, so if you don’t want to get frustrated (which I did, I lied about the first part being the hardest) just forget this part.

If you do decide to trim the ends, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Then you spread open your fan. All the way so that it forms a circle shape.

Then comes the fun part.

Start separating the paper.

Careful! It rips easy!

Pull the paper up towards the floral wire.

Keep fluffing until it looks like this:

Sweet!

Awesome!

Terrific!

Now, start all over from the beginning and do exactly the same thing again.

For reals, every single step.

Because you need 2 fluff balls if you want the real deal.

After you’ve got 2 parts, cut some more wire. About a foot.

Then you’re going to want to push the two half-balls together and string some wire around the middle so they’re connected.

It’s tricky because there’s a lot of fluff happening.

But you can do it. I believe in you.

Last, but not least, you need to hang this beauty.

Cut some wire that’s about the length you want it to fall from the ceiling. First, connect one end to the center wire by twisting it on, then poke the other end into the ceiling with a push-pin.

Voila!

You’ve got yourself some fancy pants pom-pom balls.

Beautiful decoration on the cheap.

Happy crafting!

words have the power to change us

Aren’t books a blessing? I love it when when I can get lost in a book, lost in its words and its messages and its world. I love a good weekend morning with nothing to do where I can curl up in bed with one of these books. Pushing off the start to my day just a little bit longer. Just because I want to.

It’s rare for me to find a book I love this much. Usually I get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the school week, or sucked into the many blogs that I love to read. So it’s rare for me to pause for awhile with just a book. Especially because I’m so easily distracted by everything else that’s right at my fingertips.

I need to try and make more time for books because I do love them so. I love to get lost in them and find new friends. I love to imagine myself someplace different. In a different life, in a different country, with a different name. That’s the best thing about books. The way you can travel to the unknown, through the darkness and light and still come back to exactly where you were before. But changed somehow. Different.

Here is a list of books that have changed me. They are the ones I want to read again someday and the ones I always recommend to a friend.

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane

The Clan of the Cave Bear

Peace Like A River

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes

The Red Tent

The Kite Runner

The Art of Racing in the Rain

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

To Kill a Mockingbird

Water for Elephants

The Glass Castle

The Help

Harry Potter (the series)

The Time Traveler’s Wife

The History of Love

The Book Thief 

Unbroken

So, what are some of your favorite reads? The ones that made you stop and think? The ones that took your breath away as you read the last word? The ones where you smiled as you closed the back cover and thought to yourself, That was such a wonderful read. Wow.

Give me some book love! I want to hear your faves!

 

{image from the readables}

good times.

So my high school reunion was completely awesome.

I had no idea what a blast it would be, but that’s exactly what it was. An absolute blast.

10 years looks good on the class of 2001.

People are funny.

People are kind.

People are interesting.

We drank and laughed and talked and danced.

The night got crazy and it was perfect.

My only regret is not taking more pictures. I was too busy having fun.

My best girlfriends and I met up the day after to recap the night. We were laughing so hard my stomach hurt. And the consensus was clear:

WE ROCKED IT.

eat, drink, and be merry

Hope your day was filled with delicious food and many smiles. Happy extra long weekend! ♥