It's been over a year!/Natural hair!

Wow!  So I haven't posted anything on the blog in over a year!  Things have been pretty busy but have been going really well!  Refering to an earlier post about natural hair and me going natural, here is a recent photo of me (taken today) with completely natural hair (it has finally grown out long enough to where I feel comfortable not wearing it restrained/pulled back):

ASHEVILLE IDIOTAROD and FLASH MOB!!!

Today I participated in a most fun event called the "Asheville Idiotarod" (http://www.raceforawesomeness.com/). It is basically a fun event modeled after the Iditarod (epic trail sled dog race, http://www.iditarod.com/), where a team of participants push a shopping cart while running a 5k.

Participants wear crazy outfits and have to go throw obstacles as well as complete community service projects on the 5k course, ultimately all in the name of charity. All proceeds (entry fees) and sponsorships went to support the Manna Food Bank. After the race, there was an impromptu "Thriller" flash mob! Although I didn't participate in the race, I did participate in the flash mob and it was AWESOME!

West Coast Swing

So I'm really into dancing/ballroom and West Coast Swing (WCS) is one of my faves!

(for those not familiar with it, check out this video of Ben Morris and Jessica Cox (btw Ben is soooo great! he has such a swagger and looks so smooth and cool)

That being said, at Bosco's Sports Bar (now known as Throttles) in Arden, they are offering FREE West Coast Swing Lessons! I attended the lesson this past Monday and rest assured, these people know what they are doing!

The class is taught by Roger Carr and partner and they provide an hour lesson of basics followed by a more advanced lesson (for the more advanced dancers) and then there is a social dance following the lessons!

The teacher is a great WCS dancer and is very clear and concise with his direction!

I had a wonderful time and definitely plan on attending for future Monday's to come and hope to see some of those who may read this there as well!

Publish Post

HAIR!

So hair has been a hot topic lately amongst women of color. A lot of women are deciding to go natural which refers to wearing your hair in its natural state (curly, kinky, fro, etc.) vs. traditional methods of hair care amongst women of color such as relaxers and other chemical methods of styling the hair.

I too have decided to go NATURAL! In the past, I have tex-laxed my hair (which is relaxing hair by mixing a base such as oil or conditioner with the relaxer so that hair will not be overprocessed). Currently I am in the transitioning phase (transitioning refers to making the transition from relaxed hair to natural hair without chopping all of the chemically processed hair off) and it has been about 8 months since I texlaxed my hair. I have been having a very frustrating time transitioning because the two different textures of hair (my natural hair and the chemically processed hair) require very different methods of care. To deal with transition and to make it easier on me, I am thinking about getting a braided protective style of some sort. Here are some I'm considering (Senegalese Twists):

(none of the above photos are my property, I just found them on the internet and thought the hairstyles looked nice)

Felt Lapel Pin :)

When I go shopping (especially during the fall), I always notice these cute flower brooches that I've seen a lot of people wear on blazers, hats or bags. I always wanted to purchase one of these pin's but wasn't willing to pay $10+ dollars for it. I looked around online and found some instructions here: Blue Cricket Design, on how to make them! Check out some of the pics below to follow where I've documented my process! Enjoy, and let me know what you think!  

Here's a photo of some of the supplies I used: Scissors, Thread, Sewing Pencil, 3 pieces of felt

Not pictured: Stencils (I created out of card stock to make the petals of the flower), Needle, Pin (to attach flower to in order to pin to anything you like)

Here are a couple of pictures of the "petal" stencil I created from cardstock, as well as me tracing the stencil onto  the felt and cutting out my petals to make the flower brooch. 

Cut out petals!

In order to create the brooch or flower pin, you need to cut out petals and sew them together in a circular pattern (see picture). You will repeat this for two additional layers and then will sew all three layers together (for more detailed instructions check out Blue Cricket Designs at the link above).

To create the core of the flower, you will cut an inch-inch and a half strip of felt. You will then cut evenly spaced slits in the felt strip and roll it from end to end until the slits for a sort of bouquet. Stitch the "stem" end of the bouquet together and then insert into the center of your flower. Stitch the bouquet to the flower on the backside and you should get something that looks like the photo below!

And this is what your finished product will look like :)! To attach the pin part of the brooch, purchase some craft pins from a crafts store like Michael's or AC Moore, and hot glue onto the back of your brooch (I reinforced my pin with a needle and thread!) See Photos Below.

Pin glued and sewn onto brooch!

It's Been Awhile

Well, its been several months since I last posted something YET I have completed several new creations! Before the end of this month I hope to have my blog caught up with all of the cool new projects I've created! :)

Dresser Mirror

So, over the past couple of weeks, I've done a few projects! I originally intended to work on one project a week/weekend and post but sometimes things work out differently! I purchased a mirror from Roses back around Christmas time for about $25 (a steal!) to match my bedroom furniture and go over my dresser. The mirror was originally wood toned (sorry, I don't have a before picture) with gold beads running around the edge of the mirror. I painted the mirror white and hung it, and it fits in quite nicely :) (see photos)

Shaving the paint off of the mirror

 Finished mirror hanging on the wall!! :)