Tag Archives: tutorial

Hello, faithful readers!  How’s everyone’s Christmas shopping going?  I still have quite a bit left to do and not a whole lot of time to do it!  If you’re like me, I’m always looking for new easy and inexpensive ideas.  If holiday shopping and DIY gift-making is your plan this week, I’ve got a special treat for you today!

I’m sure many of you remember the DIY Beard Hat Pattern I shared earlier this year.  I made this beard hat for Daniel as a Christmas gift last year.  He loved it so much, I wanted to share it with all of you, since I know I had a hard time finding the perfect pattern.  I had no idea so many of you would love it too!

Knitting a beard hat for someone is a great DIY Christmas gift on its own, but if you know someone that wants to learn to knit, there’s an even better way to present this gift.  A knitting kit!

I had a very sweet and talented reader contact me with this great idea.  She’s a graphic designer from Spain, and she created a wonderful printed tutorial based on my beard hat pattern.  She originally created it for her sister-in-law to include in a knitting kit for her, but she generously wants to share it with all of you as well!

You can download the Beard Hat Pattern tutorial here, and then simply print out the guide on standard letter sized paper.  You’ll notice there are small black lines on each corner.  Those are just guide lines for cutting each side, as the graphic is smaller than the paper.

She also included this handy guide on how to fold the printed tutorial.

Here’s how I followed the guide:

1. With the blank side of the paper facing up, and the Knit Beard Pattern cover closest to me.  Fold the cover side up.  You will now have steps 7-16 facing up and upside down.  This is Step 2 on the graphic.
2. Fold over the right side of the tutorial, you will now have steps 3-6 facing up (upside down).  This is Step 3 on the graphic.  This is just to create a crease, so then you will unfold the right side of the tutorial.
3. I then flipped the tutorial over, so steps 1-6 were facing up.  Then following Step 4 on the graphic, I folded both the left side and right side of the tutorial to the crease I just made.  You will now see the Knit Beard Pattern cover and steps 7-10 facing up.
4. I then folded the right side of the tutorial back (steps 7-10).  You should now be left with a little accordion booklet, with the cover facing up at you.  You can flip through to make sure all the steps are in order.

Here’s the finished Beard Hat Pattern printed tutorial!  Super cute, right?

This is such a great idea to include with a knitting kit, and a really easy, fast and inexpensive DIY Christmas gift!

If you’re not sure what to include in a knitting kit, you could always buy a pre-made kit.  This is actually the one I got as a kid, and how I taught myself to knit.  I still use a lot of the tools that came with it!

Here are a few more options for those that like to comparative shop:  Red Heart Knitting Made Easy Kit and the Learn Knitting! Kit.

I want to say a BIG thank you to Laia for her awesome idea for a printed tutorial and knitting kit.  And especially for being so kind and sharing her wonderful tutorial.  Be sure to head over to her website and check out more of her work!

Hey guys, so I know it’s been forever since I posted my first Highlight and Contour results, BUT I have been continuing to add highlighting and contouring into my makeup routine.  I’ve also continued taking pictures, so when I finally kicked my butt to make another post I’d already have the photos ready to go!

I’m still mostly following the techniques I’ve learned from Maskcara, but in this second round of photos I’ve also implemented a blush technique I learned while watching videos by The Makeup Chair.  Basically the technique is to apply blush straight out toward your ear, instead of following the natural curve of your cheekbone.  This will help anyone who has a long face.  What do you think, can you notice a difference between my before and afters?

[Sorry for the bad lighting in these photos!  I still haven’t been able to find the best lighting to take makeup photos in my new apartment.  Hopefully I’ll be able to create better lighting next time!]

In this photo, I’m not only showing a before and after of HAC, but also a before and after of filling in my eyebrows.

Not sure if I notice much of a difference in the set above, but I think my face definitely looks a bit more wide than long in the set below.

In this next set, I see a general difference in bone structure between the before and after shot (even though I’m completely washed out).  My features are definitely more defined and my face looks thinner.

I’m still deciding whether or not HAC makes much of a difference in the long run.  I can’t seem to exclude it from my makeup routine anymore, but I’m not entirely sure if it’s worth the extra time.  There is a fine line of:  if you don’t do enough, there isn’t a noticeable difference.  Yet if you want a big difference, you can easily do way too much and look like a clown.  I guess we’ll see as time goes on and I continue to become better at this technique!  I will also be trying to experiment with different products more in the future.

I’m still using the highlight and contour products I mentioned in my original post, which are the L’Oreal Paris True Match Foundation Powder in Deep Cool and Maybelline New York Dream Lumi Touch Highlighting Concealer in Nude.  While they still work pretty well, I am on the lookout for a better bronzer for my complexion, and a concealer with better coverage (but still inexpensive).  If any of you have any suggestions, please leave them in the comments section below!

Bonus!  I’m including this photo because I managed to capture the eye shadow pretty darn well.  So I wanted to share this awesome 60-second smokey eye by Maskcara, which is seen in the photo below!  It’s become my go-to whenever I want to do something extra with my eyes, but don’t want to spend too much time on them.  The only difference is that I used the Sephora Collection Pro Lesson Palette for Brown Eyes.

In case you’re interested, here’s a list of some of the other makeup products I used in these photos:

• Clinique Superbalanced Makeup Foundation in Ivory
• Clinique Superbalanced Powder Makeup in Natural 2
• L’Oreal Paris Voluminous Million Lashes Waterproof Mascara in Blackest Black
• CoverGirl Perfect Blend Eye Pencil in Mink
• Burt’s Bees Lip Shimmer in Raisin
• Ben Nye Eyeliner Pencil in Black

Valentine’s Day is almost here, and I know a lot of you out there are probably searching for gifts for your boyfriend/husband or girlfriend/wife.  I always say this, but I think homemade gifts are such a wonderful way to express your love for someone.  So much thought, energy, and love goes into the gift that that’s almost a gift on its own!

I had come across the 52 Reasons Why I Love You DIY a while ago, and knew I wanted to make it at some point for a special occasion.  After pinning it, I was a little intimidated by the DIY… I’m what I like to call an “uncrafty crafter.”  This project looked slightly beyond my capabilities, so I passed on it more than a few times.

Finally, last year for Valentine’s Day I decided to take on the challenge and make it for Daniel.  This DIY is all over Pinterest and everyone has their own take on it.  After looking at a bunch of examples, I knew how I was going personalize it for Daniel and myself.  And now I’d like to share it with you all, so here’s my DIY of the 52 Reasons Why I Love You gift! Read more »