Part 2 of Setting Up Your Blogging Space- Decorating

by VioletLeBeaux | Dec 28, 2009 | Advert, Craft, Inspiration, Storage/Utility-Tutorials, Tutorial

I’ve had a lot of questions about the mechanics of blogging lately so I’ve decided to make a series of posts with tips on setting up a your blogging space ^_^

Before I get into today’s post I just want to let you all know that I’ve started a second Twitter account called Violet’s Cuties which will basically be me posting cute things that I’ve found along my internet travels. I’ll be posting pretty much anything I think is adorable from clothes to puppies to Hello Kitty shaped sushi makers. Click here to follow me if you’re interested 🙂

Part 1- Tutorial on making an inspiration board Part 2- Tutorial on decorating a mirror and lamp Part 3- Putting it all together and what else do you need?

So today is

Part 2- Decorating a Mirror and Lamp

Ok so now you’ve got an inspiration board to look at, you are going to need a few other things to reach optimum blogging potential 😛 I’ll show you the rest in the next post but today we’ll focus on 2 very important parts: 1. A cute mirror and 2. a really good, cute light source.

Let’s start with the mirror. You’re probably wondering why you need a mirror, well you want to look good for all the photos you’re going to be posting right? Well having one next in your blogging space is very handy when you’re doing a last minute post or twittering photos. Now you won’t have the problem of taking 109281 photos trying to get your hair right etc. Also useful for taking self portrait photos so you can see if you are in frame and watching tv in the reflection if your desk doesn’t face it!

Materials:

Glue gun
Cheap mirror (mine was $3 from a discount store)
2 kinds of lace
Ribbon is optional

My mirror has a thin plastic frame around it so I’m going to glue to that but if yours doesn’t then just glue straight to the glass. Ok starting with one end of your lace (the rufflier the better in my opinion) put a spot of glue in the middle of the bottom edge of the mirror frame. Don’t start at the corners otherwise you will have one corner that is slightly different from the others… and that would bother me.

Slowly continue gluing the lace until you reach a corner, glue right up to the edge like the picture below.

Now put a little dot of glue on top of the lace right on the corner.

While it’s still wet fold the lace over so it forms a right angle, it should look like below. Please be very careful when you do this, the glue is very hot and if you touch it it will burn you!

Keep going until you’ve done every side!

Now if you want you could leave it like this but I like over the top things so I want more lace! Flat lace works best for the next step. With this part it’s best to start at the corner because the pattern in the lace makes it easy to hide corners. Before deciding to start in the middle/corner check your own lace and see how it looks as some work better than others. You can use ribbon for this step if you prefer or put a strip of ribbon at the bottom etc. What are you waiting for? Be creative and get gluing!

Aaaaaand you’re done!

Time to test it out 😛

Now part 2 of this! Decorating a lamp!

This is what I ended up with:

Lighting is super important plain and simple. If you don’t have good lighting you can ruin your eyes trying to squint and read tiny fonts online. When you look for a lamp (as well as being cute) you should look for something with an easily replaceable bulb, variable brightnesses and the ability to adjust which way it’s facing. Being so adjustable means you can not only use it for reading online but also for different lighting effects in photos. A while ago I was sent this lamp from Buyster which was exactly what I was looking for (being very adjustable etc) but it was quite plain. So It was time to start decorating!

Materials:

Lace
Ribbon bows
Diamantes in various sizes
Fake flowers
Epoxy glue (make sure you check the packet for what temperature the glue is stable until as lamps can get very hot when left on for a long period of time)

Before you start test how hot your lamp gets when left on for a long time, if it get very hot in some places it’s best not to decorate there.

I decided to stick to a flowery theme and not go too over the top because James wanted to use the lamp too XD First roughly lay out what you want to do with your lamp, using epoxy glue means you only get one shot at the final product because once it’s stuck it’s not going anywhere. I decided to put lace around the bottom of the lamp.

After gluing my lace I added some large pink diamantes and pre-made ribbon bows.

Using a match stick with some old blue tack I dipped the back of each in glue and placed them. Be careful to hold them in place for a few minutes otherwise the glue will just run off and you’ll have a bunch of diamantes all over your lace.

I decided to cover where the neck and base meet with flowers. Because this part bends it’s not a good idea to use glue in this area so instead it’s better to thread a needle and sew the flowers in a circle around it.

Taadaa flowers…

As a bit of an after thought I added some diamantes to the top part. This part gets *very* hot if you leave it on for a while so my original idea of turning it into a gigantic hungry face of diamantes went out the window.

And there you have it, finished lamp! If you want to make one exactly like mine you can get this kind of lamp here.

Hope this was kind of helpful and stay tuned next time for Part 3- Putting it all together and what else do you need?

As always let me know if you have any tips for setting up your blogging space!

Part 1 of Setting Up Your Blogging Space- Inspiration – Day 6

by VioletLeBeaux | Dec 12, 2009 | Craft, Hime Gyaru, Storage/Utility-Tutorials, Tutorial

I’ve had a lot of questions about the mechanics of blogging lately so I’ve decided to make a series of posts with tips on setting up your blogging space ^_^

Part 1- Tutorial on making an inspiration board Part 2- Tutorial on decorating a mirror and lamp Part 3- Putting it all together and what else do you need?

So today is

Part 1- Making an Inspiration Board

What you need:

-An old cork board, I stole mine from James 😀 -Enough cute fabric to cover it -Lots of ribbon -Bows -Lots of different kinds of lace -Old brand bags (you know the ones that Lolita brands give out with cute designs?) -Glue gun -White paint -Scissors -Orange stick (optional)

So first thing’s first, gather all of your materials..

Cut out a rectangle of fabric big enough to cover the whole thing.

Take it outside and paint the frame white. If you use white acrylic like I did, you’ll probably need a couple of coats. Make sure it’s completely dry before you go on to the next step…

Now there are two ways to do this next step depending on how you plan on decorating the frame part. What you want to do is cover the cork part of the board with your fabric. If you think you’re going to cover the edge with lace the the easiest way is just to hot glue it in place along the edge. If you think that this part will be visible then grab your orange stick and start poking the fabric into the frame. It is probably quite a tight fit but if you use the pointy end of the stick you should be able to force your way around the edges.

You should end up with something like this…

Now get your ribbon and mark out diagonal point on the frame, make sure they are all even, use a ruler if you have to because if you’re anything like me, having uneven ribbons at the end will annoy you every time you look at it!

Do the same thing in the other direction. You should use your glue gun to stick each end to the edge of the fabric and poke the edges under.

Now get a bunch of little ribbon bows!

Glue them where the ribbons overlap and glue that point to the fabric too. Basically you create a kind of grid ^_^

Now time for lace 😀

It’s a good idea to lay out your lace before you glue it to make sure that you have enough and it look good. I decided to use ruffled cotton lace on the inside edge because it reminded me of a pretty shop window.

Now let’s fill it with things that inspire us! You know all of the plastic bags you get when you make a purchase from a Lolita brand, I’ve always thought that the designs were too pretty to throw away but I could never think of something to do with them. Until now I just stored them in a cupboard but that just seems like a waste!

So get all of your pretty bags and cut out the designs! You can find cute designs in the strangest places, this one was from some underwear store but it had flowers and actually said “Lolita” on it. I don’t know what your chances are for finding one that says “Hime Gyaru” though XD

You can decorate the bits you cut out too, I added some diamantes 😀

Now pop them in your frame! You can see here that when I was doing this I forgot to glue all the bows to the fabric, this is a problem because when you hang it up there is nothing to keep the pictures up! I fixed it up later so you can see the completely finished version in part 3 ^_^

So there you have it!

There will be lots more pictures in the next post of this series so check back again for the next installment and let me know if you all have any tips for setting up your blogging space!

Christmas Decorating on a Budget – Day 5

by VioletLeBeaux | Dec 11, 2009 | Craft, Hime Gyaru, Life, Storage/Utility-Tutorials, Tutorial

Today’s post is all about Christmas decorating on a budget, it’s so much fun finding new ways to make things pretty without spending a fortune ^_^

It’s getting quite close to Christmas now and I still haven’t bought any gifts! I think all the uni and school students are on holidays and the shops are packed!

I’m not huge on Christmas, to be honest if I didn’t have family obligations I probably wouldn’t celebrate it… but it is fun to decorate things and I don’t exactly say no to the presents XD

But the problem this year is that with saving for our own house I am on a super strict budget and decorating isn’t really a part of that.

All of my decorations are packed up, the only thing I could find was my tree…

What to do? What to do? Time to improvise!

Get some fabric scraps…

And cover that ugly plastic base!

Much better 😀

Hmm…

Where can I find supplies? I know! The bathroom! It’s time to raid my jewelery supplies and hair accessories 😀

Perfect for decorating: bracelets, necklaces, hair roses and more pearls!

And a gigantic Angelic Pretty hair bow!

Add the bow to the base…

Take some of your pearls and start clipping them from branch to branch.

Add more and more necklaces and then bracelets to the other branches.

Keep adding until you run out of jewelery!

If you have hair roses, clip them to the ends of the branches so they sit on the ends like they are growing out of the tree ^_^

Almost finished but…

The finishing touch… it needs a star!

Add a hair bow and you’re done!

Didn’t cost a cent and all of the pretty jewelery you’ve been collecting for years is displayed beautifully for the holidays.

Now if you want it to be even more pretty and you have some shiny beads (or a couple of dollars to buy these ones from Borders) then you can add even more…

I love these jewels, I think once Christmas is over I’ll make a bracelet with them!

I also found some pink baubles at a discount store for $2.

After lots of decorating it all comes together in the end…

Voila!

Of course it will look different depending on what kind of jewelery you have but the possibilities are endless 🙂

And it’s a fun way to spend an afternoon, especially if you can do it with someone you love like a very handsome photographer!

Do you all have special holiday traditions?

Happy holidays everyone! Let me know if you have any tips for christmas decorating on a budget!

How To Store Headbands Cutely – Day 1

by VioletLeBeaux | Dec 7, 2009 | Beauty, Craft, Hair, Hime Gyaru, Storage/Utility-Tutorials, Tutorial

Why aren’t there more options for headband storage?

If you are anything like me you have a billion alice bands/head bands/what ever you call a bow on a rigid frame that goes on your head… and as adorable as they look they are really annoying to store!

They get tangled and if you just throw them in a drawer it’s hard to see which is which! So here is my solution, I’m going to make a gigantic roll shaped like a cute piece of candy to hold them all 😀

This is what it’s going to look like at the end:

So first thing’s first, get all the materials. I’m doing a no-sewing version because my machine is packed up but if you replace the glue gun with sewing it will work just as well.

What you need to make my version of headband storage:

-Fabric -Foam for the inside (I am just going to recycle an old yoga mat but you can buy proper foam) -Ribbon or wool -Lace and flowers to decorate -Glue gun or sewing machine

Now if you’re doing a no-sew version like me you’ll need tape too. You can double your tape as a stylish accessory 😛

Ok let’s get started! Lay out your yoga mat (ignore these steps if you’re using foam for the middle) and start rolling.

You should make sure that the size you’ve rolled will actually fit the headbands so test one out to be safe ^_^

Once you get the right size it’s time to tape it in place.

Now you should measure and cut the fabric out. You need a large rectangle which is long enough to wrap around the mat and wide enough so that it hangs off the end like the wrapper of a piece of candy. Make sure to leave a few inches extra for hems etc.

You should be able to mock it up like this:

Now after you’ve cut out your fabric it’s time to decorate the ends on the candy piece. I like frilly things so I used some frilly cotton lace.

Use your hot glue gun to fix it in place. If you want you can hem the edges but because they are going to be covered with lace (and I don’t have my sewing machine out) it doesn’t really matter.

Taadaa lacy edged 🙂

Ok now let’s make it up. Lay the mat on the fabric, make sure it’s straight and tape it in place.

Roll that baby up!

Fold the ends over and glue/sew it in place.

Now you should grab the end with your hand…

…and give it a good twist. Just like making a real candy ^_^

Grab the wool/ribbon and tie it in place.

This is what you should have now.

It kind of looks like candy but I think it needs a nice candy stripe 😀 So grab some eyelet lace and glue it to the wool/ribbon.

Roll it around in a nice spiral and glue it to the other end ^_^

I hid the ugly ends by gluing a cute flower over the top, of course that’s optional.

So this is it!

Now you just need to add all your headbands and you’re done 😀

Tadaa! Candy head band holder 😀 What do you think? Nice and easy to store and they are all displayed nicely.

How do you guys store your headbands? Am I nuts for needing something this big? XD The sad part is that this one is full now and I think I need another one >_< Let me know your headband storage ideas!

Hime Gyaru Tutorial – Sewing A Shopping Bag

by VioletLeBeaux | Aug 31, 2009 | Craft, Hime Gyaru, Storage/Utility-Tutorials, Tutorial

Today I’ve got a quick and easy tutorial for you, a hime gyaru shopping bag.

Well even with the best laid intentions I didn’t have a particularly awesome weekend. In fact I would go so far as to say it sucked. I’m not going to get in to everything here but the one thing I will mention is my horrible hair dye mishap. I had been planning to give you all 2 hair tutorials this week but after the hair incident (which left me a strange ashy blonde with completely different coloured roots) you’ll have to wait for my hair to rest for a few days so I can dye it again hopefully back to normal.

So anyway instead of a hair tutorial I’m going to show you how to make a pretty shopping bag. I believe that as many aspects of my life as possible should be filled with beautiful things. It follows fairly easily that I don’t like plain old grey shopping bags. After reading THIStutorial on Craftster I was inspired to make my own portable, reusable, beautiful bag ^_^ Mine is quite different than the original because I wasn’t reading the pattern as I was going so it folds differently.

Let’s get started then! Here is what you will need for the shopping bag:

-Fabric for the bag (and lining fabric if you decide to use it, I didn’t and it’s perfectly sturdy) -Plastic bag for pattern -Lace, pearls or other decorations

Cut the seams off the plastic bag at the top and bottom.

Unfold it so it looks like this:

You now need to use this as a pattern to cut two pieces like this out. If you are using lining cut some of that out too.

I had some spare pink lace that I decided to decorate mine with. I laid out the lace in several layers to get the effect I wanted. Then I sewed it all down.

I sewed a layer of lace flowers across the top of the lace. Now you should cut out a piece of fabric for the pocket, I decided to put a lace bow on there so I cut that out too.

Now sew the pocket onto one side!

Next it’s time to overlock all the loose seams and overlock the sides and tops of the handles together.

Now it’s time to put those origami skillz to good use! On the sides you should fold them in on themselves like the original plastic bag was. The handles should fold in on themselves too. Do it on both sides and then overlock the bottom seam. I then covered the bottom seam with lace flowers to match the top.

The few last steps are very simple. Sew the seams around the top and handles so they are neat. Then if you included the lace bow on the pocket, gather it in a piece of ribbon. Lastly I added a string of pearls which will double as a handle when it’s all folded up.

Here is an animation of how it folds up! 1. Fold the bottom underneath 2. Fold the side in 3. Fold the other side in 4. Fold the handles backwards 5. Fold it under on it’s self and push it into the pocket. 6. TADAA!

If you don’t want to put it in your purse you can carry it in with the pearls until you need to fill it with groceries etc

Time to take it for a test drive!

When you buy something then unfold it and tadaa!

Sorry that wasn’t my best tutorial, I wasn’t expecting to use these photos as a tutorial. I was very crafty on the weekend, I’ll show you what else I made next time! Let me know if any of you make a hime gyaru shopping bag too!

How to kill an afternoon…

by VioletLeBeaux | May 25, 2009 | Craft, Storage/Utility-Tutorials, Tutorial

Step one take a computer tray table thingy. Btw this is one of the best things I’ve ever bought! Now I can write and work from in front of the tv 😛

Add a bunch of pink fabric and lace.

Use a glue gun to have some fun. If you still have lace left over at the end, you haven’t done a good enough job.

Taadaa, you have successfully wasted an afternoon in which you probably should have been working or doing something productive.

Super cute though right?