1. Holiday Branch Decor via Remodelista. A very simple way to spruce {get it??} up a corner of the house for the [...]]]> My Halloween DIY Roundup was pretty popular, so I thought I’d do one for the Holiday season, too. Here are some neat Holiday-inspired crafts & DIYs I’ve found around the Internet:

1. Holiday Branch Decor via Remodelista. A very simple way to spruce {get it??} up a corner of the house for the holidays. All you need is a tree branch {I believe the one pictured is birch} and a string of white lights.

2. Cozy Winter Felt Wreath via The Inspired Room. This wreath is made entirely from neutral-colored felt squares and it’s so pretty!

3. Twine/String Ball Ornaments via Simple Mom. These holiday-themed string balls are very easy to make and they can be used as ornaments or as additions to centerpieces.

4. Sparkly Pears via Pretty Shiny Sparkly. Okay, this isn’t technically a tutorial, but they’d be very easy to make: pears + glue + glitter. I would make these not more than a few days before you’re having a party because real pears will go bad. Alternately, you could use fake pears.

5. Ladder Tree via CB2. Don’t have a tree? Or maybe you’d rather not cut one down or buy a plastic one? Stringing lights up around a ladder is a really cool alternative. I wish we had a ladder…

6. Mini Present Garland via Oh Happy Day. I love how fun, colorful and kate-spade-esque this garland is! It’s made with crepe paper and cereal/raisin boxes. I may go out and get raisin boxes just to make this! {And, of course, to eat the raisins.}

7. The Sweater Stocking via made. Turn your old/too-big/too-small sweaters into stockings! Genius! For those of you who can make more than a pillow on a sewing machine {something I still haven’t quite accomplished yet…}, this is a wonderful way to make personalized stockings for friends, family, or yourself!

8. Glitter Globes via kirtsy. My niece loves snow globes, so I’m going to box up these instructions and supplies and give them to her as one of her gifts so we can make one together. I might get too excited and make a bunch for the apartment, too.

9. Paper Ornaments via Etsy. I love these ornaments because they’re so unique. I’ve never seen any like them! Plus, they’re also pretty easy to make.

10. Pom Garland by Hank & Hunt. I realize I have a garland problem. Also a pom-pom problem. Also a sparkle problem. So, this sparkly pom-pom garland makes a little crazy with happiness. I can’t wait to make a bajillion! Poor Stan.

11. Hand-Drawn Printable Gift Tags via Hey Look. These printable gift tags are so pretty and simple, and they’re perfectly paired with kraft/butcher paper giftwrap and twine. A great simplistic look for wrapping gifts.

There are so many great holiday decor tutorials circling around the web, but I had to limit my list otherwise it would have gone on forever. Check out my holiday decor diy pinterest board for more inspiration!

1. [...]]]> Halloween is 16 days away! Are you doing anything fun? I’m trying to convince Stan to go to Salem, but I’m not sure it’s in our budget. I’ve never been there for Halloween! Anyway, it’s Friday Faves time and here are some awesome Halloween-inspired crafts & DIYs I’ve found around the interwebs:

1. DIY Glitter Pumpkins via Posh Pixels Design Studio. I need to make these! Maybe I’ll pull a prank on Stan with them. He hates glitter… ;)

2. Hand Ice Cube in Punch via Real Simple. I wish we were hosting a Halloween party, because this is just too cool.

3. Glow Stick Lanterns via Lil Blue Boo. Cut glow stick. Pour in clean jar. Shake.

4. Candy Corn Manicure via The Beauty Department. Remember the easy mani/pedi Sani showed us? It involved the magic of tape. This one does, too.

5. Pumpkin Party Cooler via Martha Stewart. Wait, wait, you mean we can use pumpkins for practical purposes during Halloween? Yes, we can!

6. 20 Unique Pumpkin Ideas via c.r.a.f.t. For those of you who wish to stick to the traditional Halloween pumpkin usage and carve those suckers up, here are 20 interesting finished pumpkins to inspire you. My favorite is totally the puking one. Admittedly, this is partly because it is making my favorite emoticon: >_<

7. Halloween Apothecary Favor Bottles via Somewhere Splendid. Fill these with poison and hand them out like candy! No, I meant, fill these with candy and hand them out like poison! That still doesn’t sound right.

I can’t wait for Halloween Knights tomorrow at the Renaissance Faire! Happy weekend! xo

1. Yes to Carrots Nourishing Shampoo — the last time I dyed my hair, I really did a number to it because I stripped color and then added red over it. My hair was very angry at me, which is why I’m letting my roots grow out. I’ve been using paraben-, SLS-, and [...]]]>

1. Yes to Carrots Nourishing Shampoo — the last time I dyed my hair, I really did a number to it because I stripped color and then added red over it. My hair was very angry at me, which is why I’m letting my roots grow out. I’ve been using paraben-, SLS-, and petroleum-free Yes to Carrots Nourishing Shampoo and loving it for hydrating my hair and keeping the frizz at a minimum.

2.Dress Green Pure Hydration Facial Cream — my quest for the perfect, affordable facial cream seemed like an endless one. Because my face alternates between really dry and oily, I’ve had a hard time finding something that hydrates, but doesn’t make my skin oily. Solution: Dress Green’s Pure Hydration Facial Cream. Besides hydrating without being oily, the Pure Hydration Facial Cream is vegan, made with nutrient-rich Avocado Oil, Cocoa Butter, Rose Hip Oil, and other natural ingredients, plus it’s free of parabens and petroleum. I think I’m in love.

3. Earth Science Aloe Vera Complexion Toner & Freshener — While my homemade green tea toner is great for freshening up my face, it doesn’t remove makeup very well, and it’s hard to tell how well it removes dirt from my skin {because it appears yellow on a cotton ball}. Earth Science’s alcohol-free and non-drying Aloe Vera Complexion Toner & Freshener visibly removes makeup and dirt, plus the Aloe Vera, Hyaluronic Acid, and Sea Kelp ingredients moisturize the skin.

Aloe Vera 98% Moisturizing Gel by JASON Natural Products. Guess who got sunburn at the beach today? Me! :( I swear I used 50SPF sunscreen and applied it twice! Well, it’s inevitable with skin as pale as mine — I blame my mostly Scandinavian heritage. Anyway, I love JASON’s Aloe Vera Gel because [...]]]>

Aloe Vera 98% Moisturizing Gel by JASON Natural Products. Guess who got sunburn at the beach today? Me! :( I swear I used 50SPF sunscreen and applied it twice! Well, it’s inevitable with skin as pale as mine — I blame my mostly Scandinavian heritage. Anyway, I love JASON’s Aloe Vera Gel because it’s all-natural. It’s biodegradable, vegan, and free of parabens and other nasty chemicals they load in cosmetics to make them cheaper. It’s a bit more expensive, but worth every penny.

Last night, I dressed up in my Gryffindor costume and set out to join fellow fans to await the midnight release of the final movie in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. Some of you might laugh and call us nerds, and that’s okay. I’ve accepted that [...]]]>

Last night, I dressed up in my Gryffindor costume and set out to join fellow fans to await the midnight release of the final movie in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. Some of you might laugh and call us nerds, and that’s okay. I’ve accepted that the series is a part of me, even if others can’t quite understand it.

I was 11 — just like Harry — when Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone {the book} was released in the U.S. We read it in my 6th grade English class. My Nana — the most important person in my world — had just died. I was in so much pain, and I found comfort in Harry, who had also experienced great loss. I read each book as it was released, until Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix {book 5}, where I couldn’t get past the cleaning of No. 12 Grimmauld Place. Sorry, J.K. Rowling, but that was just super long.

I came back to the books in 2007, a few months before Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows {the book} was to be released. I was working at a major bookstore at the time and I knew I would be working during the midnight release party. I finished Order of the Phoenix and Half Blood Prince in a few weeks and attended the midnight premier of the Order of the Phoenix movie. The night of the Deathly Hallows book release, I dressed as Hermione. I finished Deathly Hallows in two days {I barely slept}.

That night, I remembered how much Harry Potter meant to me — how much the books helped me cope with the loss of my Nana. As much as I missed her, I was reminded again and again that she was always a part of me, always in my heart and mind. I threw myself back into Harry Potter fandom, saw the rest of the movies during midnight showings, and dressed up as Harry & Ginny with Stan for Halloween 2008.

Yesterday, Stan and I met Sarah, Kayla, and Jill for dinner before the movie. I love that Jill wore her tie as a belt. That gave me the idea of doing something nontraditional with my tie, so I wore it on my head like Seamus in the Prisoner of Azkaban movie. P.S. Have you seen Jill’s crazy awesome HP tattoo?

We were joined by Jill’s friend Andrea at the theater, and Sabrina came shortly after we got our seats. I had prepared a 133-question N.E.W.T. for everyone. One question {about horcruxes} was worth 28 points. The highest score on that one was Jill with 10.5. I was sorely disappointed. Haha, kidding! It was lots of fun though.

…Oh, the movie? I cried through most of it. I thought it went a bit fast, but it was still wonderful. I feel strange now that it’s all over, but it will always be in my heart, I think, like my Nana. And I’ll share it with my children, and my grandchildren.

xo