knit bow headband tutorial

Most of you probably know I'm really in to knitting/crocheting, and I've done a few tutorials for my craft blog (also for crafting magazines). Eve suggested I so some tutorials for jewelry on AOU (after my Luna necklace), and even though this isn't jewelry, I thought it would be fun. :-)

BOW

(size 7 needles)

co 13, k in seed st until piece measures 5  1/4 in.

BOW BAND

co 5, k in seed st until piece measures 2  1/2 in.

HEADBAND

(size 10 needles)

co 15, k every row for about 15 in (garter st stretches, but adjust to your head size)

                                        Seed stitch is one of my favorites! It's such a unique pattern with a very simple repeat. k, p, k, p, k, p...

                                      Fold the bow accordion style, sew through once to secure, then sew the band in the middle, leaving a tail.

Sew the two ends of the headband together.

                            
                                                                                  Sew the bow to the headband (over your seam) and you're done!

abby

DIY look books

Pencils, paper, textbooks... and clothes! It's back-to-school time already (can you believe it?), so my sister and I decided to make a look book with a few different outfits for the fall. This is a sample of our experiment. What do you think? You can make one yourself!

Here's what to do:

1. Brainstorm like crazy. Think of every possible crazy-cute outfit you can make from your wardrobe. Put together some options and lay them out.

2. Gather a few props to make it look like a real catalog, if you want. Props can be super fun-- things like cameras, school books, pencils and paper, nerd glasses, etc. They're all great.

3. Go outside (or inside) and snap away! Have fun with it and get creative.

4. Upload your photos and create collages on pixlr or pic monkey or whatever you use. Add little captions, outfit variations, stickers if you like.

5. Print out your collages and put them together in a book or hang them up in the back of your closet for when you get stumped. Viola!

xx.
Lindsey

a pre-summer list that includes playing in the bathtub.

there are atleast three things that your average person looks forward to. 1} their birthday, 2} Christmas, and 3} summer. so we're in the homestretch of the school year, and the world seems to be itching to get on that sunscreen and take off to the beach, but since we're not quite there yet {unless you go to a private college, in which case, i envy you} here's a pre-summer list of things to do to make the end of your school year just-plain-old-beastly. 

• read on the porch. i'm not exactly sure where all of you live, but if you live down south like me, the heat isn't always the best thing in the world. so, get a good book or a journal, and read or write in the morning. it tends to be cooler, and you can snap some pictures as well!
• make a motivational playlist. we've all got finals coming up, haven't we? {i don't, huzzah!} whether you know you've got it in the bag or you're totally scared of the outcome, you can still put on the rocky soundtrack get hyped. besides, who doesn't love rocky?
• have a party in your bathtub. i'm serious. if your neighborhood pool isn't open yet or the beach is far away, just get a bathing suit, some sunscreen, kool-aid and some rubber duckies and enter into your beachy paradise. let's not forget those sunglasses from tiffany's. 
• buy something new. i'm not one to shop often, but when i do, i always try to take something home with me. whether it be a hand or a headband or that new volume of kinfolk, indulge so you can show it off during the summer months. 
• try something different. i'm the type of girl who gets the exact same thing at a restaurant. so next time you go out to eat? try something new, and surprise the waiters! you never know what you'll like. 
• and lastly: eat a cupcake. that needs no explanation. 

xo,

jocee

Letter Writing Kit DIY

Well,  I figure that practically 99.96% of us love to write letters, so I'm giving you a little creative boost on how to dress up your stationery.

you will need:

First, let me say something: this DIY tutorial isn't really a tutorial. It's really just a bunch of pictures to get your creativity flowing, and to use as a guideline. You can copy the cards I made, but I'd encourage you to think up something creative, too! Just have fun with it!

part one: pencils

Cut a long strip from your newspaper, about 1/2 inch wide. Cover your pencil in glue and wrap the newspaper around the pencil in a spiral motion.

The end with the eraser will probably be uneven, so you can cut a strip from a magazine to cover up the mess and add a bit of color.

If you don't want to use newspaper, or even if you do, you can use your fabric scraps to give your pencils a nice little bow tie. :)

part two: cards

For this part you will need to go crazy with your scissors and cut out a bunch of random pieces of magazine page. circles, hearts, amoebas... whatever. 

Then get creative! Glue 'em on however you want and doodle a little note...

... or cut out some newspaper letters to say 'hello' for you...

... or doodle something else (just make your character look better than my 30 second sketch :).

 part three: little notes

Lastly, take out your 3x5 cards and mix some more stuff together and glue it on... haha, can you tell I'm tired? Well, I'm tired. :)

(please pardon the over-exposure of this photo)

There you have it! Your very own letter writing kit! Now you can use it up or give it away.

xo.

Lindsey

On Inspiration

Getting inspired can sometimes be quite hard. One second you're overflowing with ideas, and the next you're completely dry. Being a writer, blogger, photographer, and artist, getting inspired is a enormous part of what I do daily. I've struggled with finding inspiration quite a bit over the past few years. I still do -- all the time. Whenever I've lost all my inspiration, I have a few ways that I find it again, or even discover a new bit of it. I've compiled a list of the things I to do get inspired. Maybe they can help you, too!

1. BRAINSTORM.

Choose a topic. (it could be a photo shoot, novel idea, blog post, art project...) Start with a page. Write down any and all ideas you have. You can stay organized, or not. (I like to just go all over the place with different boxes, symbols, and font styles.) Get the ideas flowing. Think about what you want to accomplish and how you might get there. Write everything down. You can even try brainstorming with a friend. You can use flowcharts, word webs, or whatever other way you'd like. Get creative with your brainstorming!

2. JOURNAL.

Journaling is a great way to get ideas coming. Often, ideas for blog posts come from journaling. Writing down recent thoughts, describing what's been going on in life. You can add creativity to your journaling by pasting photographs and doing sketches. You can write down any ideas in your journal, too. You never know when you might need them!

3. INSPIRATION BOOKS.

I have a couple of inspiration books. I fill them with ideas for different subjects. I have an AOU one. A writing one. A blog one. And just a general thoughts one. They're scattered all across the room, on shelves, beside my bed, and on my desk. These books are some of my favorites because they hold so many ideas and I go to them when I need inspiration for certain things. Just grab a notebook and start writing ideas, thoughts, photographs, drawings, and whatever else you'd like to add. [CHECK OUT THE POST I DID ON MY BLOG A WHILE AGO ABOUT AN INSPIRATION BOOK I MADE /// HERE]

4. INSPIRATION BOARDS.

me on pinterest.

my writing inspiration board /// here

my artsy/typography board /// here

I may or may not have a small obsession with pinterest. Incase you aren't familiar with this website, it's basically virtual pin board. You can have all sorts of different boards for different subjects/categories. You pin photographs you like from different websites and they show up on your board. You can also repin things other pinteresters have pined. It is truly brilliant. I have lots of different board to help me get inspired. Try creating your own boards! [YOU CAN ALSO CHECK OUT THE AOU PINTEREREST BOARD /// HERE]

5. MUSIC.

Create a playlist of your favorite songs/songs that complement what you're working on. I have a few different playlists for different things I do. One for just songs to listen to while doing things on the internet, another one when I'm writing, and a third for when I'm doing schoolwork. Music can be very inspirational. A FUN THING TO TRY: write down thoughts/things that come to mind while listening to a song. We did this in a writing class I was in this summer. It may spark an idea that you'll love! [CHECK OUT THE AOU PLAYLISTS /// HERE]

6. TAKE A BREAK.
Sometimes, when Inspiration isn't coming, it simply means: It's break time. Do something fun to get your mind off whatever it is you're desperately wanting inspiration for. Just wait awhile. Inspiration won't be gone forever!


How do you get inspired?
xo. megan kristine