Kraft paper is the easiest way to wrap a gift and make it look fab. Kraft paper is cheap (I got a couple rolls from the dollar store) and you can do so much to it in a couple of minutes to make it look interesting and pretty. I wrapped half of my gifts in it this year and did something different to each one. Here are some really great ideas to make your kraft paper look super Christmasy this year:
2. DIY Network
7. AlisaBurke
8. MELK
One of my favorite crafts to do at this time of year is making homemade snow globes! They are super cute and are really great gift ideas for friends! Anthropologie has some cute snow globes for sale for about $18 and up. Here’s a DIY from The Sweetest Occasion to save you a bunch of money!
Okay, so… I was going through my mom’s recipe box today and came across a new cookie recipe. Chocolate chip. No biggie, right? WRONG. SO WRONG.
I asked her where she got the recipe from and she told me that it was the actual Mrs Field’s recipe, the one you have to pay to get. The recipe made 60 COOKIES! So, naturally, I cut it in half because even I cannot take on 60 cookies. Not alone, anyway. Let me just say, these cookies were amazing! They were thick and crunchy and the perfect amount of chocolate! Please, try them. They are terribly easy (if you have an electric mixer). If you don’t have one, please have a tremendous amount of upper body strength. My mom made the 60 cookie recipe and broke a wooden spoon in the process because the batter is so thick. Alright, enough jaw… here’s the recipe.
1. Christmas Letterpress Cards: I found these on Etsy in a shop called Pike Street Press! They have a variety of cute cards for the holiday season. Most come in sets of 10 for $24, which is worth the cost if you want quality letterpress cards to impress your friends.
2. Advent Calendars: My mom used to do advent calendars for my sister and I when we were young, and I cannot wait to do them for my kids someday! There are so many cute ideas all over that I really want to try, but I really don’t know what I’d do with one. Maybe for the boyfriend?? Who knows. I might just make one for fun!
3. Holiday Nails: I’m obsessed with nail polish and doing my nails for the holidays, especially Christmas. Pinterest has a lot of cute ideas this year!
4. Notre Dame football / Manti Te’o: Number 1 in the nation and going to the National Championship! This is my TEAM! And Manti Te’o is hot. Sooooo hot.
5. Paint Chip Mobiles: I have an ungodly amount of paint chips around my house. I’m a graphic design student so anything of color draws me in, especially FREE color. I had to design a color wheel for one of my classes and decided to do a paint chip mobile to display the colors. It came out so cute and is hanging in my room now!
November is finally coming to a close. I don’t know about you all, but November is my least favorite month. It’s the in-between month, when fall turns to winter, and Mother Nature can’t decide whether she wants to make it cold or warm, snowy or rainy… you know. December is almost here, which means that Christmas is officially like a month away! (YAY!) I always decorate like mad for December. Not usually Christmas-y stuff until 2 weeks before… but I love snowflakes and wreaths! This DIY from Hello Naomi is to make cute, and easy, snowflake garland!
1. Pottery Barn | 2. BHG | 3. Mochatini | 4. Splendid Willow | 5. Etsy | 6. Design Lines
Since Thanksgiving is now over, and baking has become fun again, I have been scouring the corners of the net for new recipes to try. This past week I made 2 cherry raspberry pies, pumpkin pie, pumpkin cheesecake, and a variety of cookies that I gave away (BOO!). Now that my grandma is gone and the stressful holiday weekend is done with, I’m looking to relieve my stresses by baking a cake for someone special. I visited Pastry Affair and found a couple of delicious looking recipes that I’m debating on trying:
(blueberry cream cheese cupcakes)
If any of you have ever bought Christmas presents for someone (which I’m guessing is EVERYONE) then you know how hard it is to find the PERFECT gift. My boyfriend and I have been together almost 14 months now and, last year, we went completely overboard with gifts! It was our first Christmas together and we spent around $500 each on one another, which is a LOT for working college students. We still want to make it special this year, but maybe limit our gifts to 3 or 4 each. I have a few ideas but can’t decide which ones to buy! Help?!
Apple TV | UGG Ascot Slippers | Fossil Watch | North Face Bionic Jacket | Knicks Hoodie | The Office Seasons on DVD | Rangers Tickets (if the lockout ever ends)
I recently went on a class trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan. I personally have never been here and was more than excited to finally have an excuse to go! They had a great exhibit called Regarding Warhol, 60 artists in 50 years. It’s a huge modern art exhibit through a bunch of rooms and, unfortunately, you can’t take pictures! (I got yelled at!) But I did see many famous works that I’ve admired over the years. It was a nice day!
The Plaza!
Make sure you have your coffee on the steps of the Met like Gossip Girl! :)
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