WELCOME

Hello! I'm Suzannah, a serious DIYer and mom of two little ones. Follow along with my DIY fixer upper house renovations, sewing and crafty projects, real food recipes, and de-stressing goals.
I believe you can love your home just the way it is, AND have the power to design and make big changes to make it better.
I'm also the author of DIY Wardrobe Makeovers!

10.16.2012

In which I pretend to be a painter. DIY zigzag ikat wall art!

I pretended to be a painter for this DIY project... cuz I needed to! I was really hoping for a super large art piece to put above our couch, but didn't know what or what colors or where I would find it... so I decided I'd paint my own. But large canvases are pretty expensive, so when I found this very odd but HUGE painting at Goodwill (half off!), I picked it up and remade it.

Before/after!

It was great to be able to pick the colors--although that was pretty hard, too. There's nothing else in the room to dictate the colors, so I could have picked anything! Aack, pressure! I did have the curtain fabric picked out, though (pics to come!)... but was also trying to make it less girly and more husband-friendly. I showed him some pictures of abstract art and pretty paintings, and he didn't like the really abstract ones; he liked the ones that had clear patterns or were clearly supposed to be something. So I did sort of a zigzag ikat-ey thing.

Here it is above our couch.

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10.15.2012

Bloggers need a night out, too...

Saturday night was the Bloggers' Night Out event with the Portland Bloggers crew--what a fun event!! Rather than a strictly educational or structured event, this one was just a mixer, like a girls' night out but for the guys, too, of course. We met at BridgePort Brewpub in the Pearl District and took up three big tables, then everyone headed out to Salt and Straw fresh-made ice cream shop.

Just a few of us...
 Jenni of A Well Crafted Party, Me

For those of us who work during the week and then come home and either blog or work on stuff to blog about, it's great to take some time off and have a night out! Lots of bloggers brought significant others, and everyone relaxed, met new people, and had a good time--talking some about blogs and some about other things.

If you have a local group of bloggers in your city, I totally encourage you to join! And if you don't, it's great to just get a few fellow bloggers together for coffee or a drink!

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10.12.2012

DIY-er beauty: HAIR! And skin.

For those of us who like to sew and make our own chocolate and knock off Anthropologie lamps... that is, the thrifty DIYers... we may have some beauty favorites in common, too. Some of you very sweet readers have asked me before about how I do my hair, and and about my skin and why I choose to stay so super pale all the time (guilty as charged...). I've never done a hair tutorial because I do NOT feel qualified ;), but I do manage to get my hair looking presentable most of the time, using a few quick methods I've developed, and I do have a skin ritual that's important to me for keeping my healthy (but super pale) skin.

First about the hair. For most of my life I did nothing to my hair other than wash it every other day or so, and I normally had it cut with layers so it would curl into waves naturally without any styling. In fact, when I brush it, it just turns into a first-year Hermione-esque puffball. A few years ago I got tired of the layers and have it all the same length around the face, which is great for wearing it up but means I have to guide it more into the nice curls, with the extra weight it has on the top layer. But I am still lazy and like the shortcuts, and don't want to pay a lot for products or haircuts. I've actually started having my mom trim the ends of my hair again--only a few times a year, which is probably not great, but... I'm busy! Aaack!

As for skin... yes, I am pale. I've never tanned well even when I tried a few times when I was 15 and had bad self-esteem and wanted to look like Jennifer Aniston, and then after that I decided I would fake tan my legs during the summer, which was a pain and smelled bad. I've had spray tans a couple times before, which is sorta fun but I do turn out pretty different-looking, and then when I go swimming it comes off, and the whole point was to look less blindingly white in a swimsuit, so... sorta counter productive. But nowadays it's really important to me to protect my skin from the sun and future sun damage. And there are lots of good fair-skinned role models on TV and in movies now, so I hope the pale-skinned teenage girls of the future will be more comfortable with their natural complexions!

Annnnnyway, my fave DIY/thrifty/health conscious products!!

one two three four five

For hair--

1. I don't know anything about the best hairspray so I am perfectly content with the White Rain I bought at Dollar Tree. Literally, for a dollar at Dollar Tree. I've had other brands before but sometimes the scents are just icky, and I don't care about max hold versus super max hold versus... I have a softer hold one I sometimes use, but just a liiiiiight spritz of this stuff and I'm good.

2. I am in love with my beautiful 1" curling iron that I treated myself to on Amazon a while back. Hot Tools gets really good reviews and this thing is definitely better quality than any of the Revlon or whatever ones I've had before.

3. When I curl my hair with my curling wand, I can seriously do my entire big head of hair in 8 minutes. It takes such big sections of hair at a time, it's amazing. And it stays for DAYS. I can go 3 days on a curl job from this thing--also an Amazon treat, by Remington.

4. I don't straighten my hair much, but for the longest time I had some crappy old cheap straightener that hardly did anything to my bushy hair. Then the Hana Air people sent me this Misikko flat iron, which is quite luxurious. I think it's similar to this on Amazon, but I bet the Remington one one would also do the trick.

5. New fave find--"shine spray." The girl who did my friend's hair for her wedding used some and I'd never heard of it before. Was hard to find at the drug store--think I went to three or four before finding this Tresemme one. I use it before curling my hair, particularly near the top and back, since my hair gets so crazy and frizzy sometimes. I think of it as anti-frizz, like leave-in conditioner is, except it doesn't make your hair greasy and heavy!
Those are my faves for hair, although one other fave I just remembered--spiral pins. I use them for top buns and I only need TWO! For all my hair! The Goody ones are kinda spendy (small and large) but I bought a bunch of cheapo ones for like $1 on eBay. Have you tried spiral pins before?! Aren't they AMAZING?!!

For skin--

6. I've recently been really adamant about not using harsh chemicals on my face or in our home, as much as possible, and so I love some of the natural products that I've found for the shower and my face. I use this crazy olive oil soap by Kiss My Face, which smells pretty crazy (no flowery scents added) but feels amaaaazing.

7. Kiss My Face also makes castille soap, you know, like Dr. Bronner's--good soap for any purpose at all. I use this mint one mixed with some water in a foaming soap dispenser and it lasts a long time and gives you just the right amount for washing hands or body wash. And it smells SO good! They also have an acai pomegranate one I looove and actually have the foaming pump of.

8. And I LOVE the Sonic Dermabrasion brush thing I got myself last Christmas when I wanted the super fancy Clarisonic but couldn't justify it. So I got the knockoff for only $25 and it rocks!! Cleans my face instead of a washcloth and is gentler and more effective.

9. Moisturizer. I didn't used to moisturize every day but now I do... getting closer to 60 every day, you know, gotta prevent those wrinkles, or something. Plus it feels good to moisturize, and keeps my skin from drying out in the winter or breaking out from being too harsh. And I decided a couple years ago that I ABsolutely want to protect my skin from the sun every single day--that means wearing SPF every day. It's hard to remember, unless it's just part of the routine, so now I put on my new fave SPF 15 moisturizer before my makeup every morning. Of course I put on more if I'm going outside in the middle of the day for a long period, but this keeps me for a few hours with normal sun exposure. For a while I used any old store brand SPF moisturizer, but then I read in a magazine talking about which products to prioritize buying organic, the most important products to get without harsh chemicals are the ones that go closest to your skin. I was like, DUH!! So the stuff that goes under the makeup should be natural even if I can't afford all natural makeup right now. So I shopped around at Whole Foods and our local version of Whole Foods, New Seasons, and tried out several choices... the all-natural ones are hard to find with SPF since it's normally made with artificial products. But I found this Say Yes to Carrots one that was affordable (less than $10 on sale or online!) and smells nice. Some of the others smelled weird. ;) I love how it feels!

10. Serious sunscreen. During the summer I wore this Neutrogena SPF 55 stuff on my collarbone area when I wore shirts with a neckline that exposed it. This part of the body ages first, on a lot of people, and the skin can get dark or enlarged pores, and I want to prevent that. I also have the SPF 45, and I love this Neutrogena Ultra Sheer stuff since it's truly sheer--completely non-greasy and super light, and doesn't smell awful.

PHEW, that was a lot of beauty talk!! My main point--I've figured out where to save and where to spend, and I love finding little shortcuts like I have! What are your time- and money-saving beauty tips for hair and skin??!?

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10.11.2012

House project update--Painting.

Well, the housewarming party is over, the pressure's off, and I'm taking a little break from nonstop house projects to blog about the house projects we've already done. Phew!

It's been a pretty loooooong list, so... how about I combine? Wanted to share the wall-painting projects we've done, since I think this will be it for a while painting-wise--I have a few other loose ideas but am not totally sure what will be painted what outside of these.

1. Half bathroom.
First, I painted the top half of the downstairs half bathroom this deep brown color, inspired by several pretty bathrooms I've pinned. Didn't want to overpower the room, so we painted the bottom half shiny white and put up a chair railing, sort of getting at the paneling look of wainscoting or bead board, but without actually buying and installing it. ;)

Before/after! (Update: See my stencil of the wall here!)

And here you can see my attempt at hanging art. Gosh, it is so hard to do in a new house. The pink and red in the Andy Warhol lips print really want to be picked up with another color somewhere else in the room... little rug maybe, or... I'm looking for a cute soap dispenser--preferably one that won't fall off the sink and break. Also desperately looking for a small cabinet thing to go in the corner across from the toilet to hold toilet paper and maybe a very, very small laundry basket for the kitchen towels and rags. Would love to have something bright in there. Oh, and it's hard to see since it's reflecting dark... but there's a lovely pretty round mirror there on the wall. MUCH better than the huuuuge framed thing that was in there before--way too big. The builder picked it out.


2. Guest bathroom.
Next was the tricky upstairs bathroom. It was so blah before. No windows, and the lightbulbs originally were really yellow... I changed them to cooler ones, but still not the same as natural light. And when I just put up a shower curtain, it was such an ugly room--plain except for a shower curtain that had no relation to anything else. I didn't know what to do in there to make it look better! My mom described it as "so suburban" and then as "mundane"--very accurate descriptions, Mom.

Before...


After!

My only idea for this room was grey stripes, like I've admired before in bathrooms, hallways, and dining rooms. I bought a shade of grey from the same Sherwin Williams paint card of the "Snowfall" paint that's in the whole house, SW 6000, and in the same eggshell finish. SW 6003, Proper Grey. I used a yardstick and wide sewing ruler to measure the stripes--9.25" apart, except the top one which is a teeny bit larger. Just picked a size that fit well on the wall. I marked every 5-10 inches, going along the wall horizontally, and then taped a line with masking tape.

These stripes were the hit of the housewarming party! Everyone loved them! I also had THE hardest time picking out towels for that bathroom. Seriously could not decide. All I like is grey and white, and that grey would have been super hard to match--the shower curtain isn't a perfect match but I want to add some embellishment of some kind to it which will hopefully distract. Also need a bath rug!! And I just threw those art pieces up there, but the red and pink in them make me thing a nice bold contrasting tomato red would look good as an accent somewhere in there. And would love something cute to go on the counter. Canisters for cotton balls or something...

3. Guest room.
The only other room I was sure needed painting was the guest room. I went back and forth but kept loving navy for this room--but of course you can't do too much navy without a lot of good lighting or space without looking cave-like. So my sweet husband painted one accent wall for us, and that's all it needs, I think. It's amazing what a change it made!

Before (well, yeah--practically empty):

After (paint and a lot of other decorating!!):

More on the rest of the pieces later!! We've been busy re-doing furniture too!

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10.10.2012

How to Wear DIY: A loooong vest...

Finally another How to Wear DIY to share with you. It's been a busy few weeks... haven't had a lot of time for outfit photos! But I'm glad I got a chance to snap some photos of this outfit--featuring this long vest that I made last winter and was a little puzzled on how to combine with other pieces.

My style is always changing, of course... and something just clicked this fall that inspired me to wear this vest in a cool new way. I'm really liking the loose top look, like with wedges and skinnies, has a very cool Lauren Conrad-esque feel to it... this silhouette:


Or...


So I was thinking that shape would look good with the long vest over it! Like it does with these blazers...



I have a hard time with the super loose-on-top look--I worry it makes me look out of proportion, or too flat-chested, or too round... but I think I just needed to find the right pieces to wear with! And, judging by the images above... looks like all you need to pill it off is interesting skinny jeans, great heels or wedges, and a bold accessory around the neck!

Well, this outfit has two of the three. Here's the vest!
Blouse: Lux (Urban Outfitters) via Goodwill. Jeans: Mystery brand, via Goodwill (similar/similar).
Shoes: Mystery brand, via Goodwill (similar). Watch: Forever 21. Earrings: ?? Vest: DIY!

I've also been digging my black skinny jeans--after not having worn black in about three years, I'm finally accepting it as a possible trendy option... but still not too edgy. The other cool thing about this outfit? I wore it to work on Friday with black flats, then changed to the wedges for date night! Easily dressed up/down.

Do you have any other tips for wearing blousy things on top?? I love the fresh look but am still getting used to it!

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10.09.2012

Sewing Circle: Fancy skirt pockets!


Speaking of skirts for fall... today's Sewing Circle question is from Sara, about how to make a super cool skirt pocket. Sara's question...

Q: I'm trying to make this skirt...

It's a simple A-line skirt, but how on earth do you make those pockets? I don't even know if there's a name for pockets like that. I imagine it's some sort of welt pocket concoction? I'm at a loss here and I'd really appreciate it if you and your readers could help.


A: Hello Sara,
Great question!! I hope I can help you with that cute skirt, although I haven’t seen a pattern for the exact thing. Unfortunately I don’t know the name for that kind of pocket, either. It could be constructed sort of like a welt pocket but without the pieces surrounding the opening. I’m sure you could figure it out if you played around with it a little, and then also the top stitching on the pocket shape.

I’d say start with a pattern like this but don't cut it with the pleat...

...or maybe this...

...and add the top stitching for where the pocket is inside or cut the pocket shape separately and pice it like a quilt top, very carefully clipping in at the corners, of course! I recommend checking out the Viking Husquvarna “Sewing Room"--they have great visuals for simple and more complicated sewing concepts. Click “Sewing Techniques” and look at some of the pockets and maybe even buttonholes.

You also could look for a pants pattern with similar pockets, sort of like this one, and modify it using a miniskirt pattern or just measurements to get the skirt shape right, and again top stitch to show the inner pocket shape.

Wish I could be more help!! Readers, do you have any ideas???

How would you make such a skirt? (Maybe a refashion, even!?)

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10.08.2012

Summer weather, fall colors... New stripey ikat skirt

This is such a tough time of year to dress for. Especially this year--we're still having summer weather, temps in the 80's a lot, but the leaves are starting to turn, and I would just feel ridiculous walking around in flip flops and shorts! Plus, I'm getting a little tired of summer brights and pastels, and am ready to sport some fall colors! But, most of the fall colors I have are sweaters... so I can't wear them much yet.

SO, when I found this fun ikat stripe fabric at JoAnn on clearance (it's the Lisette brand, one of their cute new designer lines), I bought half a yard and figured, it would be a cute pillow if it works in any of our rooms, or I could make it a skirt. ;)

It's printed on a cotton canvas weave, so it's heavy enough for a skirt or some home dec items, and I decided I wanted something longer than a miniskirt. It's a lot of color to wear on the bottom half... but, I figured, I love bright skirts!! Even for early fall. In fact, here are some inspirations...






I can make it work, right??

I used an old favorite mid-length pencil skirt I had from J.Crew for the pattern on this one, and gave it a simple yoked waistband and invisible side zipper.

Voila!

I can put together some fun looks for early fall in this, right???

What are you wearing this time of year??

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Get ready, Portlanders... Bloggers' Night Out!

Get ready, Portlanders... Bloggers' Night Out!

Portland and Oregon bloggers, you're invited! The next Portland Bloggers event is a festive "night out" party for chatting and networking with other bloggers--since we all deserve a night out. ;) It'll be held at a great local brewing company in the Pearl District, and spouses/significant others are welcome. Next Saturday, October 13!

I'll definitely be there, so if you're a Portland-area blogger, please come say hi!! RSVP here, although the event is free--but you'll probably want to buy some delish happy hour treats or craft beer. =)

Portland Bloggers events are open to ALL KINDS of bloggers, both men and women, regardless of what your blog's about! Check out the big list of Portland bloggers and submit your blog if you haven't already!

See you then!!

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This weekend's inspiration: Finally, fall fashion

10.05.2012

This weekend's inspiration: Finally, fall fashion

After weeks of focusing on the house... I've finally had some time to dig into my fall magazines--and after the past month of still-summery weather (in the 80's earlier this week!) I may have had sufficient summer time--I've been in denial that cold weather is coming. So with that, and the insane busy-ness of the new house and getting ready for the housewarming party... I had way too many fall fashion magazines piled up! I wasn't crazy about the September issues of my Lucky, InStyle, and PeopleStyleWatch, but after the October issues, I had a good list of fall/winter fashion ideas and lots of inspiration!!  So, this week's weekend inspiration is about fashion, not home dec for a change!

Of course, my inspiration was in the paper magazines... but I'll do my best to recreate my concepts online. ;) I get inspired when I shop to make or thrift similar looks, so most of these I plan to get the thrifty way or DIY!

Fall fashion inspiration!!:
  • Great elegant blazers for more casual wear--maybe in colors, maybe not...
Source: kendieveryday.com via Suzannah on Pinterest

Source: brooklynblonde.com via Suzannah on Pinterest

  • Full-skirted midi skirts with natural waists (DIY!) Would be pretty in fall colors!
Source: simplyme091909.blogspot.com via Suzannah on Pinterest
  • Baseball tee
Source: washingtonian.com via Suzannah on Pinterest
  • Raglan sleeve sweater or sweatshirt
  • A loose sheer blouse or two in pretty colors--all kinds of options...
Source: omyheartkate.com via Suzannah on Pinterest
Source: kendieveryday.com via Suzannah on Pinterest
  • Chunky oatmeal or fisherman's sweater
  • Colored cords--burgundy? Or is that too last year?
  • Slightly waist-defined shift dress. Several in Lucky mag that I can't find online. Will definitely DIY!!!
  • Motorcycle jacket--would love a colored one! So cute over girly dresses.
Source: instyle.com via Suzannah on Pinterest
Source: upscalehype.com via Suzannah on Pinterest
  • *Tasteful* print jeans (DIY!) I want dark denim, I think, but a little pattern like this...
Source: classicnoise.blogspot.ca via Suzannah on Pinterest
  • Pointy-toed pumps (Some of my fave style bloggers wear them so well!) 
Source: seejaneworkplaylive.blogspot.com via Suzannah on Pinterest
  • Monogram necklace
  • Perfect cute and interesting stud earrings!
So what did I miss??  Have you made a fall wardrobe wishlist yet? What's inspiring you this time of year??!
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