love notes by lauryn

spread the love #2

2012-03-15T22:57:00.000-07:00

if you came last week to link up,

there was no party.

and you can likely tell from sparse posts

it has been a busy, crazy time for me.

so, please.

show me what you've been working on and,

spread the love!

spread the love is a weekend wrap up link party.

share with us ANYTHING you have been

working on, crushing on, making, baking etc. this week.

this party has NO RULES.

rules are too hard for me.

if you want to link up a URL, feel free!

however,

i would REALLY REALLY love it if you follow my blog in some manner.

check out ways to follow in the sidebar.

if you like the party, add a button or a link somewhere to your blog!

not required, just nice to do...help spread the love!

the party will last from friday morning to monday morning each week.

now, have fun and have a great weekend!

a little something to look at

2012-03-13T10:58:00.001-07:00

hello, hello!

thought i'd share these family blocks with you today.

i made these for my sis in law for christmas.

i used old earrings as embellishments.

not because i didn't like the earrings,

but because the other earring was lost!

so here's a good use to the cute earrings i could no longer wear:

hope things are going lovely!

just an announcement...

remember the back to december series?

well...

taylor swift round 2 is coming SOON!!!

so make sure you are stopping by

{love} lauryn

playing catch up

2012-03-11T14:56:00.002-07:00

i know i am not "supposed" to apologize when blogging.

but i do.

it's not fair to you all to expect a post and not get one!

so i am sorry!

let's catch up.

+i started up a link party last weekend.
it was fabulous!

this weekend i had midterm projects due, so...

the post for this weekend didn't make it up.

but the party will be here next weekend! promise.

so please come back and link up on friday!
in the mean time, check out the great linkups!

+the giveaway with the green berry shop has ended.
congratulations to
Rodaina

she won the scarf giveaway!
(you will be contacted soon!)

+because of all this school and work business,
i'm having a hard time keeping up with the blog.
so i am looking for guest posters with GREAT content.
click here to fill out a submission form.

have a wonderful day!
thanks so much for reading.
makes me SMILE!!

20 button diy's

2012-03-06T22:37:00.001-08:00

i love buttons.

there are SO many fun things to do with buttons,

i thought i would gather some in a list for easy reference!

so here you go,

1:button bobby pins

a homemaker's journal

2:button wall art/photo holder

cottage arts

3:button wreath on fabric
cherblashley

4:button magnets

big box detox

5:button paperclips

bella dia

6:button frame

all things heart and home

7:button shoes

stars for streetlights

8:button bouquet

flying buttresses

9:button belt

makenzi and madilyn designs

10:button bracelet
obstinate pursuit

11:button headband #1
crafted

12:button headband #2
stitch.craft.create

13:button ring
rubies and pearls

14:button tray
mel stampz

15:button flowers
freckled nest

16:button artwork
design*sponge

17:button monogram
living with punks

18:button coasters #1
thirdcoast digest

19:button coasters #2
craft stylish

20:button heart pillow
all about you

i love so many of these.
the button belt, button art...
i need to get to work!
how about you?
think you'll try any of these?

happy wednesday everyone!

two belts turned one

2012-03-04T22:57:00.000-08:00

first off,

i just want to give a HUGE thank you to all those who linked up this weekend!

the first spread the love link party was super successful!

and it's all thanks to you.

second,

if you haven't entered the green berry shop giveaway, you'll want to check it out!

the scarves she sells are seriously to die for. you will need one when you see them.

now do you want to see how i turned two belts into one?

these pictures were all taken on my cell phone. so they are not super fab.

but i think you'll get the idea :)

here's what the ensemble looked like together.

tunic:tuesday morning
necklace:ae
belts:christopher's
shoes:famous footwear

a better picture of the shoes.

a worse picture of my *clean* house.

and finally,

here's what we have been waiting for!

so all i did

was hook up the yellow belt to the brown closure

and the brown belt through the yellow closure.

the two belts do a little cross in the back.

(i couldn't get a picture of this by myself)

isn't it cool!

a premature thank you for forgiving me for the tacky phone photos.

love you all!

spread the love #1 & green berry shop giveaway

2012-03-01T23:05:00.000-08:00

i decided i am finally ready for link parties again.

for those of you who don't know,

i used to host 'flashback fridays' on here.

flashback fridays was a place to link up archived posts, vintage finds, etc.

it didn't work out as well as i had hoped.

so i decided to bring back a new party:

once or twice a month, the party will also consist of a giveaway.

of course, we had to start of today's party with a FABULOUS giveaway from green berry shop.

sarah is the creator of green berry shop. she sells AMAZING and STYLISH scarves.

she also writes a blog called the winthrop chronicles. she is really just darling.

she graciously offered to do a giveaway from her shop.

you guys'll love it.

here is my favorite scarf:

and some other fabs:

wanna win one!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

now let's spread the love!

spread the love is a weekend wrap up party.

share with us ANYTHING you have been

working on, crushing on, making, baking etc. this week.

this party has NO RULES.

rules are too hard for me.

if you want to link up, feel free!

however,

i would REALLY REALLY love it if you follow my blog in some manner.

check out ways to follow in the sidebar.

if you like the party, add a button or a link somewhere to your blog!

not required, just nice to do...help spread the love!

the party will last from friday morning to monday morning each week.

now, have fun and have a great weekend!

march computer desktop

2012-02-29T18:12:00.000-08:00

crazy stuff happens in life guys.

i will leave it at that.

love the people you are around,

and be your best self.

as much as you can.

it's so important... and people will notice.

ready for march's desktop?

i would love for you to follow the blog in any way if you want to use the desktop.

here you are:

small

large

just right/double click the image and save as.

let me know if there are problems!

welcome march!

march decor table & link party coming again!

2012-02-28T12:35:00.000-08:00

my hubby and i live in my momma's basement.

i don't want to take over her house too much.

so i have a table at the base of our stairs where i go all out on decorating.

everywhere else in the basement i just have simple things.

so here is the base of the stairs table for march:

bought these at a boutique last year

bought two fabulous green glasswares at the thrift store
added an accordion paper flower and buttons to this one.

added paper flowers on cut hanger wire to this one

i got a bunch of wood chunks from my grandpa's camping lot last year.
i added a piece of paper and a ribbon.. giving march a little rustic feel!

what do you have for march decorations?

if you have great things, i want you to share them with me and all the love notes readers!

i've decided to start back up on the link party.

instead of being flashback fridays,

this time it will be sharing the LOVE!

so you can link up WHATEVER you want.

there will be NO RULES.

so be sure to check back on friday,

the link will be up with a GIVEAWAY!!!

{love} lauryn

seasonal chalkboard

2012-02-27T05:30:00.000-08:00

i made this chalkboard a little while ago as an item to sell in my craft booth over the summer.

unfortunately, like many items, it didn't sell.

so it is now a decoration in my home.

which i am kinda happy about because i like it :)

i have decided to make it a monthly/seasonal decor board.

i'm kind of excited to put something new on here every month!

here's for march:

my march "mantle" is coming up soon,

so be sure to come back and check it out!

love to you all.

diy laptop decal

2012-02-25T17:31:00.002-08:00

i'm back!

as you have likely noticed,

i have been doing some redesigning around here.

i can't tell you why i do it, i just love to create!

so here i am, back in posting action!

check out my latest!

i have seen some awesome computer decals on etsy lately that i love.

but i decided i just wanted to get it done and do it myself.

now, i don't have a machine (silhouette, cricket, etc.)

but i do have a sheet of vinyl i got from a craft store a while back.

i used it to make a calendar over the summer,

you can see the calendar post here.

so i used my handy scissors to cut out simple triangles and lines,

and here's what i came up with!

i was SUPER happy with it.

i was surprised that just a couple of shapes added some spice to my plain laptop!

have a fabulous night

blog swap jenelle from nelle creations

2012-02-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

hey everyone,

i am blog swapping today with jenelle from nelle creations.

go to her place to check out these nails:

and check out her shrug diy here!

thanks jenelle!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Hey everyone! My name is Jenelle and I blog DIY and all things fashion over at

http://nellecreations.blogspot.com

I love doing guest posts so, obviously I was very excited when Lauryn and I were going to do a swap. Hope you enjoy it!

1. First measure your bust circumference (mine was 32) Your circle will be that number in diameter.

To get the best circle, find a piece of string, and cut it half of your bust circumference (mine was 16.) Using a pin hook the string to the middle of your fabric then using chalk hold or tie (if you tie make you’re your string is a bit longer) the chalk to the other side of the string and use that to help you make a circle.

2. You now have your circle.

3. Cut out your circle and measure your back width and armhole depth.

4. In the middle of your circle draw a line that is the length of your back width and 2 more lines using your armhole depth number

5. Cut a slit along the armhole lines.

Try the shrug on to make sure everything fits okay and hem the outside the circle and the armholes!

Thanks again for reading and I hope you can visit and follow me over at http://nellecreations.blogspot.com

the five minute headband

2012-02-19T18:32:00.000-08:00

i have been wanting to make a simple decorative headband for quite some time now.

i keep having a felt bow image in my head.

the above picture isn't quite how i had imagined it, but i actually really love how it turned out.

i am thinking i will be making a few more of these!

it seriously took five minutes to make,

if that!

here's the tutorial:

you will need:

a glue gun

a stretchy headband

a long felt piece with a triangle cut from each end

a short piece of felt

fold the long piece together matching up the ends

(it may be easier to cut the ends at this step instead of before so the ends match)

put hot glue on the inside of the fold where the arrow points below

when you unfold it, it should look like this.

stuck together by the glue on the inside.

put the felt piece on a flat surface.

add hot glue to secure the loose edges.

it should look like this:

take the short piece of felt.

wrap it around the center of the piece you have completed.

it will resemble a bow.

secure the piece in place with hot glue.

secure the piece to your headband with hot glue.

i cut my headband apart to make it a little larger.

you do not need to cut your headband!

OPTIONAL:

cover your gluey mess with an extra piece of felt.

and that's it!

(yes... i added an extra skinny piece around the center to give it a little pizazz)

****

today's lovelies: cherry pie & kitchen timers

2012-02-16T16:58:00.000-08:00

bestie and i went shopping the other day...

roaming around downtown slc.

we went to great shops like:

hip and humble

emilie jayne

the children's hour

here are some snaps from a lovely adventure:

incredible painting.

love the pattern.

love the design on this pie dish.

the edges are awesome and the text is fab.

want to diy this necklace.

i'm loving it.

decided i NEED a kitchen timer.

aren't these fabulous!

have a

lovely

day!

handmade leather cuffs

2012-02-12T21:49:00.000-08:00

sharing some awesome leather cuffs with you today:

pops & sissy made these sweet bracelets.

i have yet to meet up with them to do these leather crafts,

and i'm sad i haven't been able to make anything with them yet.

anybody have any fun leather accessories i should try?

blog update:

there is now page where you can look for giveaways going on in blogland!

click the giveaways button in the right sidebar >>>>>>>

to see recent giveaways on this blog,

and on blogs people have linked up.

and if you have a giveaway going on now, LINK IT UP!!

happy sunday evening folks

guest article by christina johnson: enjoying valentines day

2012-02-09T21:36:00.000-08:00

i know craft and fashion posts have been few this past little while.

i have so many great ones to COME,

but so many other things are happening too.

my hubby and i are going off to a getaway this weekend for v-day.

any fun plans for everyone else?

if not,

here are some ideas for anyone to have a stellar love day :)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

source

Enjoy Valentine’s Day whether you are Single or Not

Article submitted by Christina Johnson

With a little imagination, anyone can celebrate Valentine's Day even if he or she isn't in a relationship. The following are a few Valentine's Day celebration ideas for married couples and good friends to try.

Ideas for Friends on Valentine's Day

A group of friends doesn't have to spend Valentine's Day bemoaning a lack of romantic relationships. There are plenty of things to do together to enjoy the day.

• A potluck at a friend's house is a fun activity for several friends to share. A variety of delicious foods on a buffet table has a way of making any party memorable. Spicy foods alongside sweet foods will satisfy everyone's tastes. Also, friends can get together beforehand to decide on a cheesy, romantic movie to watch at the party. It doesn't have to be a romantic movie, it can be any type of movie that everyone will get a kick out of.

• A couple of friends who are single on Valentine's Day may get together to make some delectables in the kitchen. Chocolate covered strawberries, fudge, and cupcakes with lots of colorful frosting are some delicious suggestions. Making these treats together can be a great way to talk, laugh, listen to music, and enjoy one another's company.

• Attending a comedy show with friends is another way to lighten the pressure of this romantic holiday. Watching a favorite comedian's act and laughing is a light-hearted memory that friends will share for years to come.

Ideas for Married Couples on Valentine's Day

• A married couple can recreate a memorable date they shared. For instance, a couple may go to the restaurant where they went on their first date and order the same dishes. Perhaps a married couple spent a date walking in a beautiful park with a fountain. That date can easily be recreated. Alternatively, if a couple experienced a date where everything seemed to go wrong, it would be romantic to try to recreate the date in order to right the wrongs!

• Another idea for a married couple to celebrate the holiday is to have dinner in a nearby town that they've always wanted to visit. Or maybe there's a restaurant that they've wanted to try for years. A romantic Valentine's Day dinner at a new restaurant can end up being a fun experience.

• Valentine's day presents an ideal opportunity for a married couple to get out of a rut. They may want to try an activity that is completely new. Some examples include signing up for a dance lesson, going roller-skating, taking a wall-climbing class, or participating in a cooking class together. An entertaining activity on Valentine's Day may open up the door to new interests for a couple to share.

Christina Johnson who works remotely for Elliman Prudential in the New York City Apartments and Rentals market. She is using her journalism major to combine what she loves most, writing and her career. Her specialties include home decor design and DIY home improvement projects.

featured blogger & shop: whit speaks

2012-02-08T04:00:00.000-08:00

hello

hope everyone is enjoying their day so far.

every day is worth being enjoyed.

so bring on the happy!

i wanted to introduce you to a darling blogger i met a little bit ago.

her blog is the epitome of happy.

i mean look at this cheerful welcome photo:

^^^^^

this here is whitney from whitspeaks.

she runs a sweet college lifestyle blog full of fun

here is one of my favorite posts of hers...

some of her favorite lovelies.

whitney recently announced the opening of her etsy shop

where she sells some AMAZING retro, doodle, henna inspired artwork.

i don't know about you, but i feel like i just NEED one of these in my home.

here's the best part.
each of these canvas prints
are ORIGINAL
are ONE OF A KIND
COST $10.50
&
HELP WHITNEY THROUGH COLLEGE!

i have a hard time deciding a favorite.
i would love to have all THREE of these canvas prints in a row above a mantle, or a sofa.

what do you think?
which canvas is your FAVORITE!?

go give whitney a shout out,
she deserves it... isn't she fabulous!

have a great day people.

love
love
love

BLOG MAKEOVER GIVEAWAY!!!

2012-02-07T10:03:00.000-08:00

so i have a secret.

fanning sisters for W magazine
source

sometimes as i am blog browsing,

looking for great new blogs to follow...

if the blog design is INCREDIBLE,

i just click follow.

and not just through GFC,

but

twitter

bloglovin'

etc.

yes. i know. i am shallow.

i judge books by their covers

(aka: blogs by their headers)

and not their content!

blog design makes a HUGE difference in the way ANY blog is percieved.

at least in my shallow opinion.

so it's time to evaluate.

is your blog worthy of shallow eyes like myself?

does your blog INVITE browsers to read your content, or drive people away?

think it's time for a redesign?

you're in luck.

because i am offering a free custom blog makeover over at life as twiggy!

blog design is some of my favorite stuff to do.

(as you can likely tell with how often my design changes!)

so i'm itchin' to create something amazing for YOU!

the contest is only open for

ONE WEEK!

so you've gotta act fast

if you want to win this awesome giveaway.

let's get your blog looking SPIFFY!

click here to enter at the life is twiggy blog.

(trust me. it's easy!)

happy tuesday people!

love the life you live printable

2012-02-04T18:56:00.000-08:00

wow seriously.

time has completely ESCAPED me!

i didn't realize i haven't blogged since tuesday.

and it's saturday. night.

if you came here looking for a new post, i apologize.

i'm putting a new print up on etsy,

but thought it would be fun to offer the print to the readers for free.

thanks for reading and following!

double/right click. save to computer. that's it!

hope your weekend has been fabulous.

love. love.

february desktop background

2012-01-31T21:55:00.000-08:00

i decided to go with a little more simple design this month for the desktop.

i actually really like the way it turned out... helps my desktop feel clean!

to set desktop background:

right/double click the image

click save as

open up the document and set as desktop background

for larger desktops

for smaller desktops

here's to a wonderful february!

if you are using the desktops PLEASE let me know.

i love to make them, but if no one is using them i will discontinue...

let me know in an email or in the comment section!

thanks so much

{love} lauryn

how to use mac pigment

2012-01-30T20:26:00.000-08:00

i've been pretty excited about this post.

i'm going to show you 4 different ways to use pigment

if you don't know what pigment is,

pigment is a coloring system for make up.

basically, you can use one pot of pigment for ALL your makeup.

and a little goes a long way!

i have a lot of mac pigment so that's what i will use to show.

mac makeup is what i use most often, so i am a little partial to it :)

but there are also a lot of other pigments

loreal has a pigment pot called hip.

check your local beauty supplier, ask if they have pigment pots

and they can probably show you a few different brands.

here are the materials you will need for makeup:

vaseline

lotion

a shadow brush

a cheek brush

cotton swabs

when using pigment to color cheeks,

just dip the brush in the pigment... that's it

and apply to your cheeks like blush.

the pigment i use is yellowish in color and goes on a shimmery pink.

when using pigment to color lips,

dip a cotton swab in vaseline

then dip the cotton swab in the pigment color of your choice.

apply on lips

when using pigment as eyeshadow

first apply lotion to the lid,

dip the shadow brush in the loose powder

apply on eyes to create an intense LASTING color

using pigment as shadow is my favorite way to use pigment.

in the picture below, i have used two colors...

and it lasts ALL DAY...with seriously NO WEARING!!

when using pigment as fingernail polish,

dump out a little clear polish and pigment on a plate,

stir the mixture together and it creates a fabulous colored polish!

long story short:

pigment is the GREATEST!

it lasts for such a long time.

i have had one pot since JUNIOR HIGH!

and it still works like a charm :)

comment/email me if you have any questions about using pigment

and i will do my best to help!

easy peasy glitter phone

2012-01-29T21:14:00.000-08:00

so do you remember my men's shirt refashion

that the sissy sewed for me?

well,

we decided we would do an exchange that day.

i would make her a glitter phone case if she sewed my shirt.

she's way better at sewing.

and i'm a decent crafter.

she came up with the glitter phone case tutorial on her own.

i just made it :)

you will need:

mod podge (i'm sure elmer's glue would work too)

an existing phone case (ours was plastic)

fine powder glitter (martha stewart is our favorite!)

and a sponge brush.

here's what to do

mod podge the phone case:

dump the glitter all over the mod podge.

you might want to use a piece of paper to catch all the glitter!

shake off the loose glitter

let the glue/glitter dry.

cover the phone case with a thin layer of mod podge.

this will cause some glitter to lift.

but it's okay!
create a little pile of glitter/mod podge mixture to fix up all the glitterless spots.

and you'll get this:

super easy huh!

sissy has been using her glitter phone for the past couple of weeks-ish

and says it is holding up great, just lost a tiny bit of glitter!

ready to bring on a new week?

here we go, let's make it a great one!
{love} lauryn

top knot, slouchy belt, & some polka dots

2012-01-26T23:18:00.000-08:00

i figure it is about due time for an outfit post.

so behold:

here's the lowdown:

earrings: target

bracelets: urban outfitters

necklace/scarf: handmade

dress: ume boutique (a gift from the sissy)

belt: thrifted

leggings: hue

socks: target

boots: madden girl (a gift from the hubby)

baby trixie was such a sweetheart.

she loves to follow right by our feet constantly.

and she's so little we are always worried we are going to squish the little baby!

i couldn't help but allow her in the mini little photo shoot.

i mean,

look at this darling picture!

kisses!!

XoXoXo

i love your guts printable

2012-01-24T23:55:00.000-08:00

i figured it was more than due time for a printable.

this is a lauryn quote.

i say this to my hubby all the time.

i love his guts! what can i say!

so feel free to take the printable, i just ask that you browse around the blog a little..

if you are interested follow, if not don't

the printable is free regardless :)

{please make sure to give me proper credit if you use this image on your site... thanks}

just right/double click the image and click save to your computer.

you should be able to print it from your computer.

let me know if you have any troubles and i will be happy to email the document to you.

and tell me if you download this,

if you like it,

if you want to see more...

i LOVE feedback.

love love peeps.

felt wreath tutorial

2012-01-22T12:40:00.000-08:00

BEFORE YOU READ THE TUTORIAL YOU MUST KNOW,

well..if you want.

these pictures are pretty bad.

here are my excuses:

1. awful lighting.

2. this is how tutorial/blogging photography usually works for me:

take one thousand pictures of the same thing over and over

shoot, the lighting is still not right.

take a thousand more pictures.

what? it's been half an hour? i need to just choose a picture.

hmm..that one has a sock in the background,

that one is blurry.

oh, this one too.

maybe i will just take one more.

take a thousand more pictures.

finally got one!

put it on the computer.

wow. that looked a lot better on my itty bitty camera screen.

well, i will just edit it.

ha! no one will ever know.

(right??)

so needless to say... i just skipped all that and went with the first picture i took.

seriously.

i know it's hard to believe, but the camera only clicked ONCE for each of the pics below.

no second tries for this poor tutorial.

another thing:

this tutorial is a little bit interesting..it kinda has double instructions.

you get what you get with my busy life

but it is a tutorial none the less!

let's hope i didn't just scare everyone away from the blog.

love you guys.

thanks for not minding

(i hope!)

continuing:

a fabulous friend of mine and i got together a little bit ago to make some felt wreaths.

i had a TON of extra felt lying around.

i ended up with a valentines day wreath.

here's mine:

and here's the tutorial

start with a wreath form:

i used a pool noodle i had cut and sealed off with duct tape.

i also wrapped the duct tape around the whole noodle to cover that blue.

no one can know i used a pool noodle,

shhh!

next trace & cut circles.

use something round to trace the circles.

make sure the circles are all the same size.

pinch/fold/bend the circles.

hot glue to the wreath form:

go around the entire wreath form,

fill in all empty spots with more circles.

i used both fabric and felt for mine and it turned out just great!
i am not sure quite how many circles i used,
but i found out a little goes a long way!
i thought i would need a lot more than i actually ended up using.

easy and fast!
my holiday decorations keep growing!
(yaay for the newly-ish wed!)

happy day
{love} lauryn

guest post: sherri from sherriamour

2012-01-20T04:00:00.000-08:00

Hey ya'll! I'm Sherri from over here. I'm a thrift hunter from the land of Canada. I love to dance, sew, eat, and hang with the fam and friends. SHERRIAMOUR is my personal style blog and photo dairy that I started summer of 2011. Here is a little blurb of what kinds of trinkets you'll find on the blog....

OOTD (outfits of the day) by yours truly...

Streetstyle shots from my hometown (sometimes nerve racking to do)...

'Style File' guestposts by my friends and favorite bloggers...

'Tuesday Pinterest' (inspiration from my boards)...

Photo journal of my daily life...

I got to shop in the 'Oh So Lovely Vintage' girls mobile shop!

and everything else in between...

Thanks so much for having me :)

If ya like what you see, please come over and say hi!

xo sherri