5 tips for the weekend #2

November 24, 2012.Reading time 1 minute.

#1 book that’s absolutely worth reading

Special Topics in Calamity Physics – Marisha Pessl

A great novel I read a few years ago. It’s written in the style of the syllabus for an English Literature course and is despite of the cheesy-looking cover not a particular girly book. Basically, it’s a crime story and full of literary and cinematic references (which I really love), although some of them are made up. (Reminds me of House of Leaves, but that one deserves a post of its own.)

#2 movie you shouldn’t miss

Ink (2009) – “A dark, wondrous, poetic tale”.

An amazing indie film that deserves to be much more popular! It tells a beautiful story about the forces controlling good dreams and nightmares, and will blow your mind with one or another twist. Oh, and the soundtrack is just enchanting!

#3 craft idea

I fell in love with this dinnerware idea. Brooklynlimestone.com has a short tutorial.

#4 recipe to try on the weekend

Recipe found here. Looks delicous.

#5 do you know about trashion?

“Trashion (a portmanteau of “trash” and “fashion”) is a term for art, jewelry, fashion and objects for the home created from used, thrown-out, found and repurposed elements.”

I found a really good blog about trashion that’s worth checking out. Do you still have some old shirts or other clothes that could need some upcycling over the weekend?

This Pinterest page has some fun ideas!

the flickering light of the candles [candle DIY]

November 24, 2012.Reading time 2 minutes.

I often keep old empty glass tins, they come in handy for storing buttons, beads and so on. A few days ago I found a wick while looking for some candles which gave me the idea of making a candle out of one of the creme tins. Here is how I did this:

I spread the gold glitter with a wet brush, it’s fairly sticky so you won’t need glue (which would leave stains). Then I painted the inside of the tin with glass paint. (I guess acrylic paint would work as well).

Put the wick inside and glue it on (or use candle wax as I did). Melt white candle wax and fill the tin. Leave the tip of the wick (1cm) uncovered. I put some glitter on the wax before it firmed up to make it look more christmassy. (One could also wrap some golden wire or ribbon around the rim.)

And you’re done!
Here’s another one I made from an empty pesto jar and book pages.

“Sitting in the flickering light of the candles on this kerchief of sand, on this village square, we waited in the night. We were waiting for the rescuing dawn – or for the Moors. Something, I know not what, lent this night a savor of Christmas. We told stories, we joked, we sang songs. In the air there was that slight fever that reigns over a gaily prepared feast. And yet we were infinitely poor. Wind, sand, and stars. The austerity of Trappists. But on this badly lighted cloth, a handful of men who possessed nothing in the world but their memories were sharing invisible riches. “

— Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (Wind, Sand, and Stars)

10 things i love: DIYs to try before christmas

November 21, 2012.Reading time 1 minute.

#1 Hot Chocolate paper cups

Hot Chocolate paper cups – Adorable!

#2 Felt pine cones

Just follow the link for pattern and instructions!

#3 DIY Button Christmas card

So simple and adorable!

#4 year-round ornaments

Why not try making these posh-looking ornaments?

#5 Easy made advent calendar

Very minimalistic yet beautiful. I love the idea! Made by A Few Things From My Life.

#6 Oranges and cloves

Classic orange and cloves Christmas decor!

#7 Hand-made Christmas tree

Found this here.

#8 Hot chocolate dippers

thinkgarnish has a short decription of how to make those! Yummy!

#9 Paper snow flakes!

I found a cute little and fairly simple tutorial.
And here are patterns for more advanced snow flake cutting.

If you’re really enthusiastic and patient it could end up like this:

#10 Cute knitted/crocheted mug cozies

I couldn’t find the original link, just a link to etsy, but lizspinspiration blogged about this and tried making some herself. I think I have to go find some wool…

the brightest star in the sky [3D paper star tutorial]

November 18, 2012.Reading time 3 minutes.

I promised to post some low budget christmas decor tutorials. Here’s the first:

How to make a 3D paper star:

But one of my ‘by the way’s first. If you’re looking for a book to read or christmas gift, Marian Keyes novel “The Brightest Star in the Sky” might be worth checking out. I ‘accidentally’ bought it at the airport and read it. Normally it’s not a book I’d grab, but I rather liked it. The characters are pretty awesome and so is the story for the most part. But I hated the end. It ruined the whole thing. So if you’re someone who never finishes the book they started reading, it’s perfect.

Back to the paper star.
First, you need 30 sheets cut into squares. I used pages from an old book (side length 4,5”/ 12cm).The whole star is about 8”/20cm in diameter. So if you want your star to be bigger or smaller, adjust the size of your paper squares. But don’t make them too tiny, it might get to hard to fold the paper.

Now start folding your 30 sheets of paper like shown in the pictures. It’s important that you always fold the lower right corner in the second step.

Now comes the fun part. After following the instructions you should have a pyramid put together from 3 pieces of paper. Starting from one of the pyramid’s corners you now build a second one.

Open one of the folds as done before. With two new pieces you build the second pyramid.

Go on like that until you’ve got five pyramids/spikes. Make sure that it looks like it does in the picture. If you only have four spikes, something went wrong. In that case it’s way faster to start again from the first pyramid than trying to figure out what went wrong.

From whatever angle you look at the star, there should always be 5 spikes that go together. Each folded paper square is part of two spikes if that helps figuring it out.

Once you finish your first star, it gets way easier and the second star won’t even take half as long. They look best in a group of different sizes or hanging from ceiling lights. You could also use a single one as topper for your christmas tree. Have fun!!

5 tips for the weekend #1

November 16, 2012.Reading time 1 minute.

#1 movie that’s totally worth seeing

Benny and Joon (1993) is one of my favorite movies. It’s hilarious, sad and with Johnny Depp. I think I don’t have to say more.

#2 book you won’t regret reading

Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Truman Capote) is a pretty good read. It’s only a hundred pages and therefore perfect for a Sunday afternoon. And it’s so much better than the movie – seriously!

#3 fun craft idea

I love the fun chalkboard projects from this blog. Especially these painted wine bottles. Chalkpaint spray isn’t that expensive and you can turn basically everything into a chalkboard within minutes.

#4 dish you should try

This braided cinnamon roll recipe just looks delicous.

#5 last but not least

Use the weekend for an autumn walk! Don’t wait for the weather to get better. It won’t.