I love changing up my room for the different seasons, and since spring is probably my favorite (I feel like I say that about all seasons once they come around…), I was super excited to do some DIY projects to spruce up my dorm room for spring!
All of these projects were so fun to make, and pretty easy and inexpensive! I had a lot of the items lying around the house and you probably will too!
Distressed Mason Jars
What You Will Need:
-Mason Jars
-Acrylic Craft Paint
-Paint Brush
-Rubbing Alcohol
-Cotton Rounds
-Sand Paper (not pictured)
1. Start off by cleaning the Mason Jars with Rubbing alcohol to make sure all of the oils are off of the glass and the paint will stick.
2. Begin painting the Mason Jars with a thin first coat. Let the first coat dry completely before you put on a second!!
3. Paint on a second coat once the first is completely dry.
4. If using a lighter color, paint on a third coat once the second coat is completely dry. I had to do this with the pink since it was so pale.
5. Let all of the coats dry over night. This is very important!
6. Once they have all dried completely over night, you can start to sand them to create a distressed look. I had a 120 grit sandpaper, which I found to work great! Just go around and sand wherever you want the paint to look old and distressed, and make sure to especially sand the words so they stand out.
The finished products!
 |
| I used them as vases when my friend got me flowers! |
This project isn’t difficult, you just have to make sure to wipe the jars down with rubbing alcohol or else the paint won’t stick well, and you have to let the coats dry really well!
Sea Glass Jars
What You Will Need:
-Cheap plastic cup
-Milk bottles (I got mine from Michael’s)
-Elmer’s glue
-Dawn Dish Soap (any dish soap will work just fine)
-Blue and green food coloring
-Paint brush
1. Add 2 tablespoons of Elmer’s glue to the cup, and 1 tablespoon of water (it’s a 2:1 ratio if you want to change up the amount). Mix until water is incorporated.
2. Add 3 drops of blue food coloring and 1 drop of green, as well as 1 drop of Dawn dish soap. Mix until the “paint” is a nice sea-foam green color.
3. Begin painting one, thin layer onto each milk bottle.
4. Once each milk bottle has a thin layer, you are done! Just let them dry overnight and they will look like the picture below! Don’t worry if they look streaky while drying, they will dry to be a nice opaque color! I was skeptical while I was watching mine dry but they turned out just fine.
 |
| The finished bottles! I put some fake peonies in them because I thought it looked so adorable. |
This project seems like it would be difficult, but it was actually really easy! I love how they turned out, and I’m so excited to change up the flowers in them!
Mini Flower Wreath
What You Will Need:
-Small grapevine wreath
-Little fake flowers on a “vine”
1. This project is really simple and self-explanatory; just take the “vines” of flowers and weave them through the wreath! Keep doing this until you are satisfied with how the wreath looks, at which point you are done.
I think it turned out so cute, and it’s the perfect way to add some color to your room!
Alright, well those are all of the projects! I basically went on a DIY frenzy over spring break which was so much fun. I think I’m going to do a lot over the summer when I have more time! So expect a lot more hehe. You can also check out the video I did on all of these projects to see a more in-depth explanation for each one!
Thank you so much for reading, and have a wonderful day! 🙂
I am now officially nineteen. What?! When I woke up yesterday it actually hit me that I’ll now reply “nineteen” to the question “How old are you?” Twenty will most likely be much more scary, but I think nineteen is significant because it means I have been an adult (okay, legally) for a whole year. It was also my very first birthday away from home, which was really strange! I ended up having a wonderful birthday, and got to go out with my two best friends during spring break a couple of weeks ago to celebrate with them as well.
 |
| My outfit that I wore! |
 |
| Good company meant lots of smiles! |
 |
| Look at how beautiful my risotto was. It tasted as good as it looked! |
 |
| They even put a candle on my creme brûlée! |
 |
| I would just like to point out the man in the top left corner… |
 |
| And again…. |
 |
| The exact moment my candle went out before I blew it out! |
I had such a wonderful evening with my two best friends, and I’m so glad I got to celebrate early with them. As you get older, you start to realize who is truly important in your life, and who really cares for you! And even though it gets more difficult, spending time with them is really the best thing in the world.
On my actual birthday, one of my best friends and my floor mates in my dorm threw me a little surprise birthday party! I was so surprised, and super happy! Unfortunately, I didn’t get to take any pictures but it was caught on camera! If I end up putting it into a vlog I will definitely post it here. My parents also surprised me (and brought my dogs!) so that was so great as well.
Thank you as well to all of you who have wished me a happy birthday! I had a wonderful day overall, and I also got the CANON T5I!!!!! I cannot contain my excitement, so expect lots of pictures soon.
Also, if you would like to see it, I filmed a ‘Get Ready With Me’ for my birthday!
Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful day! 🙂
Here lately, I have been absolutely loving everything watercolor! I think it’s so pretty for spring and summer (or just anytime), and the pastel color combinations are so beautiful. Because of my newfound obsession, I decided to do DIY watercolor shoes that are “painted” with fabric dye!
I am so happy with how they turned out!! They are going to be so perfect for spring, and I can’t wait to wear them with all of my dresses and skirts! They are also so comfortable, so they’ll be a great everyday shoe.
Without further ado, let’s get into how I made these puppies!
For this project you will need:
-White canvas shoes (I got mine from Walmart for $5!)
-Fabric dye in whatever color you want
-Small plastic cups
-Painting sponges
Mix all of the dyes by filling the cups halfway with warm water. You really don’t need a lot of dye; just enough to make the water look dark! I ended up putting too much blue dye in the water, so I just watered it down a bit!
Here’s what my purple dye looked like.
And here’s how the pink looked! I did have to put quite a bit more pink in the water to color it just how I wanted.
Test out the dyes on a paper towel to make sure you are satisfied with the colors! This is very important because there is no turning back once you start to put the colors on the shoes.
Start out by making spots with the color that is the darkest (or the one you want to be the “main” color).
Make sure to make the dots all around the shoe, and don’t forget the laces!
Once you are satisfied with the number of spots, start putting the second darkest color next to the first. Repeat this process until all of the first spots have little buddies!
Using the lightest color, make spots on the other side of the darkest color. Repeat this process, and fill in with the other two colors as you feel necessary. I did leave some white space in the end, but the shoes are basically covered with color! I just repeated this process over and over until I was satisfied.
The finished shoes!
I am so happy with how they turned out – I have been wanting a pair of shoes like this for so long, and they were so much fun (and easy!) to make!
Here is my YouTube video on how to make them – it might be a little easier to follow since you can actually see how I made them!
Thank you so much for reading, and have a wonderful day! 🙂
I’ve been wanting to do a post and video about my everyday makeup routine since I really enjoy watching them myself! I also haven’t done a post about makeup and what I’ve been loving lately in a little while, so I thought it would be the perfect time to share my own makeup routine!
I first put on this BB cream from Boscia, and I have really been loving it lately! It’s great because it contains sunscreen (which you need even on cloudy days!) and it’s sheer but build-able, so it’s perfect for day or night!
Then I use my concealer from Tarte (my favorite makeup brand) to cover up any blemishes I have, and also my dark circles under my eyes. These are always bad even when I get ten hours of sleep!
Then I use this fluffy shadow brush and the Elf High Definition Powder to set the concealer underneath my eyes.
This powder is so amazing! It’s a great dupe for the Makeup Forever HD powder, and I just couldn’t be any happier with it.
I use the this Kabuki Face Brush and the High Definition powder to set the BB cream all over my face.
I move on to eyes after that, and line them with this white eyeliner from Wet ‘n Wild. This helps to brighten eyes and make them look bigger!
After that, I curl my eyelashes with this torture device.
Then I coat my lashes with the Gifted mascara from Tarte! This mascara is amazing, and is actually supposed to be good for your lashes as well!
I actually forgot to picture the highlight that I use, but it’s just a white eyeshadow that I put in the corner of my eyes with this large angled brush from Ecotools!
To contour my face, I use this large angled brush and the Tarte bronzer pictured below.
Surprise, surprise, another Tarte product! I’m telling you guys, I’m obsessed. I love this bronzer because it’s the perfect shade for me, and I can use it year round!
I blend in the bronzer with this large face brush, just to make sure there are no harsh lines!
Alright, those are all of the products I use for my Everyday Makeup Routine! This was really fun to film and write about – I think I’ll start doing some more makeup looks once finals are over and I have more time! I put the YouTube video I posted about my routine below, so if you want to see how I actually put on all of those products, take a look! 🙂
What are your go-to products for your everyday makeup routine?
Thank you so much for reading (and watching!), and have a great day! 🙂
I came across a company called WeWork, a coworking company, which basically provides space and a community for creators! They have a really cool concept, so that inspired me to do a post about my own work space! I also recently did a dorm room tour on my YouTube channel, so I’ll link that at the end, too! 🙂
So this is what my desk looks like as a whole! I do my homework here, and a lot of my writing for blog posts here as well!
Here’s a closer view of underneath the shelf.
Here’s my little fox plant holder! Sadly, there is no plant in it anymore because it died…
I absolutely adore my little pencil and pen holder!
Another closer look underneath the shelf!
My little desk shelf is also home to my beta fish, Khaleesi! She is a “dragon scale beta,” so for all of you Game of Throne fans out there, you get the reference!
This calendar is on the wall adjacent to my desk, so I can keep track of important dates!
This is a quote that’s also on the wall next to my desk! I got it as a graduation present from my parents, and I love it so much! It’s a great reminder to keep working hard at the things I love 🙂
This quote is on the wall as well! Haha it was actually a graduation from my gift from my parents as well…
This little cozy corner is my bed! I actually end up doing a lot of my homework on my bed when it’s been a long day, and I just need to curl up with my Pooh Bear pillow pet 🙂 I also edit a lot of my YouTube videos on my bed!
Here’s a closer look at “the wall,” as my friends call it haha.
My little cozy corner 🙂
Alright, there you have it – my work space and dorm room tour! 🙂 I’m really proud of how my dorm room turned out this year, so I hope you guys like it too!
What’s your favorite part of your room?
Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you have a great day! 🙂
I cannot believe January is over, and February is already here! 2015 is already flying by, but January was actually a really good month for me, so I’m excited to see what the new month will bring!
Below is my January Favorites video, so I hope you guys enjoy! 🙂
What were your January favorites?
Have a great day! 🙂
Fall is quickly approaching, and I definitely have mixed feelings! I am sad to say goodbye to summer, but I love the fall as well so I’m excited for comfy sweaters and pumpkin everything. I think I have started to like the fall more as I’ve gotten older, and since I’m starting college this year, I’m not dreading the back-to-school season as much.
Throughout the summer – mainly in July and August – I have been getting clothes for the fall, especially at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. I actually really liked getting my fall clothes this way so it wasn’t such a big and stressful event getting clothes for school. So today I thought it would be fun to show you guys what all I got since I’m pretty much done!
 |
| Nordstrom |
I love the look of this sweater, and thought the blue roses were really pretty. I also don’t have a lot of blue clothes, so I really liked the color of this. It’s the perfect touch of old lady chic.
The back is also super gorgeous! I love the little cut out in the back and the lace detail. I think it’s the perfect sweater to wear with a top knot!
 |
| Nordstrom |
I love this one! The color is so beautiful and it’s on the longer side so it will be perfect to wear with leggings and boots. It’s also thin so it will be easily layered upon.
The detail on the side is really cool!
 |
| Nordstrom |
I think this sweater is the perfect basic – it will go with a lot, and it will also be nice to layer. Whether I put a jacket on top, or a collared shirt underneath it, I think I will get a lot of use out of it! I think the solid and more transparent stripes give it a little something other than being beige.
 |
| Nordstrom |
I know this shirt is pretty similar to the longer maroon shirt, but it is cropped and a totally different shape. I think I’ll wear this shirt with skirts and high-waisted pants, or maybe even over a chambray shirt.
I love the maroon and gray shirts – they remind me of Harry Potter haha!
 |
| Pacsun, but it’s from the Brandy Melville line they carry. |
This shirt may look like nothing special, but ohmygoodness is it soft. There are no words to describe how great this material feels. I want to just live in the shirt. And I probably will be doing just that in college.
 |
| Nordstrom |
I love sweaters like these so much! They are perfect for throwing over basically anything, and are great for days with cooler mornings but warmer afternoons. I think the tri-color look is so pretty and all of the different ways the stripes are going is really cool.
 |
| Forever 21 |
Again, I think this shirt will be really great for layering. It’s the perfect fall color, and the material is really soft as well. It also fits really nicely!
 |
| Pacsun, but from the Brandy Melville line as well. |
This. Shirt.
I mean, as soon as I saw it I knew I was buying it. This is the purrfect shirt for me (see what I did there….*insert cringe face*) because I love animals, and of course, cats. I have a black kitty named Angel, so this shirt was just all around meant for me. I’ve also been looking for a “classier” cat shirt, instead of just a shirt with a picture of a cat on it.
You can also see this shirt in action here, where I wore it with an outfit the other day.
 |
| Nordstrom. |
Okay, this sweater was kind of hard to photograph. I promise it looks more normal in person, haha. I love this color and I think it will be great to wear in the fall when I need a pop of color.
I love the lace detail on the bottom!
 |
| Nordstrom |
I think I may have an addiction to this color – it’s just so gorgeous! I couldn’t resist this dress, and I think it will be so nice to wear in the fall and winter. It’ll just be a great dress to have in case there are Christmas parties to go to, or any other formal events, but I think it will easily be dressed down as well.
 |
| Nordstrom |
This dress is super versatile! I actually wore it during the summer, and it was the perfect sundress, but I think it will look adorable with some tights and boots and a big chunky sweater over it. I love the color and the lace at the bottom, and I think I will get a lot of use out of it!
 |
| Pacsun, but the Brandy Melville line. |
This dress may look more summer-y, but I think it’ll be great for the fall. Again, I’ll probably pair it with some tights and a sweater to give it a fall feel. The print is blue roses, so I think it will be really pretty for the winter time as well.
 |
| Forever 21 |
This skirt reminds me of a pumpkin patch, and I don’t really know why. Haha I think it’s all of the reds and oranges. But this skirt will be really nice to add some color to my darker fall outfits, and the material is really cool! It’s that stretchy, polyester type material I think (the tag didn’t specify what kind of material it is).
 |
| Pacsun, from the Kendall and Kylie line. |
This skirt was difficult to photograph as well, but I FINALLY GOT A MAXI SKIRT IN THIS COLOR. If you have read my maxi skirt obsession post here, then you will know that I have been wanting a maxi skirt like this for a while. And, might I add, I got this for a much cheaper price than the Urban Outfitters one, which I am very happy about.
This picture is more true to the actual color of the skirt.
 |
| Nordstrom |
I have been wanting a pair of green army pants for a long time, and I think these are perfect! They fit really nicely and can be worn as is, or cuffed at the bottom, which is probably what I will be doing most of the time.
 |
| American Eagle |
I haven’t gotten a pair of ripped jeans in a long time, but I think these are really nice! I love the color and fit as they are actually high wasted, so I will probably be wearing these a lot!
 |
| Nordstrom |
These are more of a boyfriend-style pair of jeans, and I absolutely love them! I love the cuff at the bottom (it is sewn in) and the color as well. I have a lot of dark wash pants, so I really like this lighter wash.
 |
| Nordstrom |
I have never gotten a skirt like this one before, but I really love it! It fits so nicely, and I promise it does not look promiscuous on haha! This will be the perfect skirt for parties, but it is also easily softened up with a pretty sweater.
Check out my video of this haul!
What are you most excited for this fall?
Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you have a great day! 🙂
Fall is quickly approaching, and I definitely have mixed feelings! I am sad to say goodbye to summer, but I love the fall as well so I’m excited for comfy sweaters and pumpkin everything. I think I have started to like the fall more as I’ve gotten older, and since I’m starting college this year, I’m not dreading the back-to-school season as much.
Throughout the summer – mainly in July and August – I have been getting clothes for the fall, especially at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. I actually really liked getting my fall clothes this way so it wasn’t such a big and stressful event getting clothes for school. So today I thought it would be fun to show you guys what all I got since I’m pretty much done!
|
| Nordstrom |
I love the look of this sweater, and thought the blue roses were really pretty. I also don’t have a lot of blue clothes, so I really liked the color of this. It’s the perfect touch of old lady chic.
The back is also super gorgeous! I love the little cut out in the back and the lace detail. I think it’s the perfect sweater to wear with a top knot!
|
| Nordstrom |
I love this one! The color is so beautiful and it’s on the longer side so it will be perfect to wear with leggings and boots. It’s also thin so it will be easily layered upon.
The detail on the side is really cool!
|
| Nordstrom |
I think this sweater is the perfect basic – it will go with a lot, and it will also be nice to layer. Whether I put a jacket on top, or a collared shirt underneath it, I think I will get a lot of use out of it! I think the solid and more transparent stripes give it a little something other than being beige.
|
| Nordstrom |
I know this shirt is pretty similar to the longer maroon shirt, but it is cropped and a totally different shape. I think I’ll wear this shirt with skirts and high-waisted pants, or maybe even over a chambray shirt.
I love the maroon and gray shirts – they remind me of Harry Potter haha!
|
| Pacsun, but it’s from the Brandy Melville line they carry. |
This shirt may look like nothing special, but ohmygoodness is it soft. There are no words to describe how great this material feels. I want to just live in the shirt. And I probably will be doing just that in college.
|
| Nordstrom |
I love sweaters like these so much! They are perfect for throwing over basically anything, and are great for days with cooler mornings but warmer afternoons. I think the tri-color look is so pretty and all of the different ways the stripes are going is really cool.
|
| Forever 21 |
Again, I think this shirt will be really great for layering. It’s the perfect fall color, and the material is really soft as well. It also fits really nicely!
|
| Pacsun, but from the Brandy Melville line as well. |
This. Shirt.
I mean, as soon as I saw it I knew I was buying it. This is the purrfect shirt for me (see what I did there….*insert cringe face*) because I love animals, and of course, cats. I have a black kitty named Angel, so this shirt was just all around meant for me. I’ve also been looking for a “classier” cat shirt, instead of just a shirt with a picture of a cat on it.
You can also see this shirt in action here, where I wore it with an outfit the other day.
|
| Nordstrom. |
Okay, this sweater was kind of hard to photograph. I promise it looks more normal in person, haha. I love this color and I think it will be great to wear in the fall when I need a pop of color.
I love the lace detail on the bottom!
|
| Nordstrom |
I think I may have an addiction to this color – it’s just so gorgeous! I couldn’t resist this dress, and I think it will be so nice to wear in the fall and winter. It’ll just be a great dress to have in case there are Christmas parties to go to, or any other formal events, but I think it will easily be dressed down as well.
|
| Nordstrom |
This dress is super versatile! I actually wore it during the summer, and it was the perfect sundress, but I think it will look adorable with some tights and boots and a big chunky sweater over it. I love the color and the lace at the bottom, and I think I will get a lot of use out of it!
|
| Pacsun, but the Brandy Melville line. |
This dress may look more summer-y, but I think it’ll be great for the fall. Again, I’ll probably pair it with some tights and a sweater to give it a fall feel. The print is blue roses, so I think it will be really pretty for the winter time as well.
|
| Forever 21 |
This skirt reminds me of a pumpkin patch, and I don’t really know why. Haha I think it’s all of the reds and oranges. But this skirt will be really nice to add some color to my darker fall outfits, and the material is really cool! It’s that stretchy, polyester type material I think (the tag didn’t specify what kind of material it is).
|
| Pacsun, from the Kendall and Kylie line. |
This skirt was difficult to photograph as well, but I FINALLY GOT A MAXI SKIRT IN THIS COLOR. If you have read my maxi skirt obsession post here, then you will know that I have been wanting a maxi skirt like this for a while. And, might I add, I got this for a much cheaper price than the Urban Outfitters one, which I am very happy about.
This picture is more true to the actual color of the skirt.
|
| Nordstrom |
I have been wanting a pair of green army pants for a long time, and I think these are perfect! They fit really nicely and can be worn as is, or cuffed at the bottom, which is probably what I will be doing most of the time.
|
| American Eagle |
I haven’t gotten a pair of ripped jeans in a long time, but I think these are really nice! I love the color and fit as they are actually high wasted, so I will probably be wearing these a lot!
|
| Nordstrom |
These are more of a boyfriend-style pair of jeans, and I absolutely love them! I love the cuff at the bottom (it is sewn in) and the color as well. I have a lot of dark wash pants, so I really like this lighter wash.
|
| Nordstrom |
I have never gotten a skirt like this one before, but I really love it! It fits so nicely, and I promise it does not look promiscuous on haha! This will be the perfect skirt for parties, but it is also easily softened up with a pretty sweater.
Check out my video of this haul!
What are you most excited for this fall?
Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you have a great day! 🙂
This seems so crazy to be typing, but I have started my YouTube channel, Stnkrbug! I have been wanting to start my channel for so long, so I finally did! I’ve been watching YouTube for a while and I remember when I put up little videos with my friends when I was 12 and I thought “Wow this is actually kind of fun!” but I never got into it since I was busy with other things. Now, however, since I have been blogging for a year, I decided it would be the perfect time to start my channel, especially since I’ll be starting college soon. I thought it would be really great to have these memories forever, and I have found that I really love making and editing videos!
And a quick note on the name of my channel – I have said before in some of my very first posts that my nickname from my family is “Stinkerbug” so that’s why I called my blog “It’s a Bug’s Life”, but I thought that was too long of a channel name, so I just used “Stnkrbug” instead. Yes, I know it is spelled wrong, but I have always spelled my usernames like that because “Stinkerbug” wasn’t available for my very first email, so I had to forgo a couple of letters, and it just kind of stuck throughout the years, and that’s how I spell all of my usernames. Plus, it usually is never taken so I don’t have to worry about adding any crazy letters or numbers at the end. I know, unnecessary information but I wanted to explain haha.
So, without further ado, here is my very first YouTube video!
Thank you so much for reading and watching, and I hope you have a great day! 🙂
This seems so crazy to be typing, but I have started my YouTube channel, Stnkrbug! I have been wanting to start my channel for so long, so I finally did! I’ve been watching YouTube for a while and I remember when I put up little videos with my friends when I was 12 and I thought “Wow this is actually kind of fun!” but I never got into it since I was busy with other things. Now, however, since I have been blogging for a year, I decided it would be the perfect time to start my channel, especially since I’ll be starting college soon. I thought it would be really great to have these memories forever, and I have found that I really love making and editing videos!
And a quick note on the name of my channel – I have said before in some of my very first posts that my nickname from my family is “Stinkerbug” so that’s why I called my blog “It’s a Bug’s Life”, but I thought that was too long of a channel name, so I just used “Stnkrbug” instead. Yes, I know it is spelled wrong, but I have always spelled my usernames like that because “Stinkerbug” wasn’t available for my very first email, so I had to forgo a couple of letters, and it just kind of stuck throughout the years, and that’s how I spell all of my usernames. Plus, it usually is never taken so I don’t have to worry about adding any crazy letters or numbers at the end. I know, unnecessary information but I wanted to explain haha.
So, without further ado, here is my very first YouTube video!
Thank you so much for reading and watching, and I hope you have a great day! 🙂