Guest Posting!

Hi everyone! Just popping in to let you know that I guest posted over at Shealynn's Faerie Shoppe today! She's doing a Lord of the Rings themed month of posts, and there have been SO many neat posts thus far! Actually, her whole blog is very awesome...so if you don't follow her already, be sure to check it out!

I posted about a little felt Frodo that I stitched up as a gift for my cousin...I'm pretty much in love with how he turned out! I'm awfully tempted to keep him.(;

Finally, Fall!

Tunic: Thrifted / Skinnies: Fred Meyer / Flats: Marshall's / Pocketwatch: eBay / Keyhole Necklace: Shabby Apple / Sweater: Thrifted

The air has definitely been cooling down to a nice, crisp temperature over the past couple weeks, and I must say, I'm thrilled. I love fall because it means long sleeves, layers, boots, hot cups of tea, autumn leaves, hours spent reading (or studying) under the covers, and often, falling asleep to the sound of rain outside my window. Still...we're not into fall yet--the weather's supposed to warm up to the upper 70s later this week!

For some reason, fall also feels more productive to me...in the summer, I always like to laze around and read in the sun, but in the fall, something about the cold weather makes me itch to be working. And I love that feeling.

Today my sister and I went out to the garden to pick the ripe vegetables and the last of the strawberries. We've been blessed with many tomatoes on our little bushes this year, and they're lovely for popping into salads and even just for snacks. We've also had quite a few peppers, and there are still more ripening. I do love a good green pepper...I like to eat them like apples.(:

What are your favorite things about fall?

Floating on the Breeze {What I Wore Sunday}

Lace Blouse: Thrifted / Dress: Gift (from JC Penny's) / Shoes: Maurices / Earrings: Gift / Purse: Thrifted

Life is getting busy again, and it makes me excited. I like to be doing things (as much as I enjoy reading and watching movies), and I really like the satisfaction that comes with being productive. This week I decided to deep clean my room, with the hope of it becoming at least slightly more organized, and...well, it's getting there, I suppose. Hopefully by the weekend, it will sparkle.(; Or at least, I hope to be able to see the floor again! I'm a very untidy person, but I can't work in a disorganized area since it drives me crazy! So long as it's clean before I start school next month, I'll be very happy. :P

I've also been watching the newest season of Doctor Who, and so far, so good! :P I finally made my sisters into fans of the show, so I finally can have my family understand my obscure references (and why I say "Ood" instead of "odd")! You don't know what a relief that is, haha.

I hope you're all having a wonderful week!

Lace Headband {Tutorial}

A few months ago, I got a sudden crafting craving, at a time when I was thoroughly stressed out by schoolwork and needed a bit of a break. So I decided to do a couple of quick, simple crafts, and one of the ideas I came up with was for a lace headband, just something super simple, but also very cute. And I actually photographed the steps so I could do a tutorial for y'all.(; It was my first time in a long while experimenting with indoor light, and while it's not perfect, it turned out pretty good.(:

You'll Need:

*you'll also need a pair of fabric scissors, and if you have it, modpodge would probably work better than craft glue--I just used what I had*

1. Start spreading glue across the headband, starting at the end of either side. I would squirt some from the bottle onto the headband, then spread it out with the paint brush. Once you've got a couple inches worth, align your lace and begin pressing it into the glue. This can be a little messy, but don'tbe afraid of getting your fingers sticky! you want the lace to adhere really well.

2. Keep spreading glue and applying the lace all across the headband until you reach the end.

3. Trim the edges.

4. Apply a topcoat of glue/modpodge to make sure everything holds. And you're finished! You can try experimenting with different kinds of lace, and if you like, try embellishing, or using different materials. There are really so many different ways to make this simple project your own!


Thank you to my lovely sister for agreeing to model the headband for me!

Shades of Gold and Silver {What I Wore Sunday}

Dress: Cotton On / Sweater: Target / Necklace: Claire's / Belt: Thrifted / Earrings: Fuego / Shoes: Cotton On

Vacations are always nice, but in the end, the best part of it for me is almost always coming home. I was completely exhausted when my family arrived home on Friday night, and definitely ready to get back to "normal" every day life. I will miss San Francisco, though. I didn't think I'd end up loving it quite as much as I did. It's a beautiful city, with so much history, beautiful architecture, interesting places, and good food (especially Bubba Gump's!)...and of course, the Golden Gate Bridge! I can't wait to go back...though not right away, since my feet have been so worn down by all the walking!

I was in an especially picky mood hen choosing my church outfit on Saturday night...I didn't like how tight the dress was in certain place, so I tried different layering methods to make it more comfortable for me, while keeping it cute. I also ended up doing I something I wouldn't usually do--I mixed the silver/gray tones with gold, and I actually really liked it. It's not the style I would usually wear, per se, but I do like how it came together!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

The Pirate Queen

Shirt: Borrowed from my mother / Elizabethan Corset: Made by me / Skirt: Made by me / Shoes: Claire's / Necklace: eBay / Fascinator: Made by me

The day of the Renaissance faire was one of the hottest of the summer. I was planning on wearing a heavy overskirt to match the corset, but with a weather forecast of 91* with high humidity, I decided to leave my ambitions of being a courtly lady behind me and become a sophisticated lady pirate instead. As I couldn't find a suitable blouse, I borrowed one from my mom (who told me I was not allowed to sweat in it!). I froze two water bottles in the freezer to carry around and keep cool while walking (I had given up on being completely period accurate as I tend to melt in anything over 80*). My little sister snuck in a spray bottle so we could mist ourselves, which was a life saver! I think the day's high was a whopping 96*...what saved me was probably my excitement--we saw jousts and pirate battles, petted camels, wandered booths filled with various oddities, and tapped our toes to a highland band (I do love the bagpipes!). I spent most of my time searching for a parasol. I had declared the night before that the first thing I wanted to do when I got there was to purchase a parasol, but I couldn't find any! In the end, I happened on a small stall with a handful of colorful parasols. I quickly selected a pretty blue one, to match my skirt. Unfortunately...we left soon after, so I hardly had any time to enjoy it at the fair! As you can see, though--I had plenty of fun with it at home!

The faire was good fun...I went with my aunt (our driver!), my youngest sister, and two friends--a gypsy and a fellow pirate (she looked much more bloodthirsty than I did!). I think we manage to have a good time despite the heat!

Have any of you ever been to a Ren faire? Did you dress up?