July Favorites

July 2013 Favorites by alovelylittlethought-1 featuring maybelline concealer

Moving to College by Airplane

As I am going to college abroad, driving is not an option. This can be pretty stressful. As I am currently in the process of packing up to move to my university in Germany, I thought I might share a few tips for those moving to college by plane.
1. Check your airline's baggage policy 

Although most airlines have similar baggage policies it is best to look online and see what the specifics are for your flight. Since over weight and extra baggage is often quite pricey, it is best to come prepared and to weigh you luggage at home so you don't get a nasty surprise.
2. Prioritize
Decide what you really need to take with you and what can stay behind. In most cases you really don't need to bring your whole life with you. Also think about what you really need versus what you would like to bring. This way you can start by packing the necessities and take the slightly less important things where there is still space. Also remember that shipping is pretty expensive, so it really is best to take what you can in your luggage. If you are going to a different country think about your electronics too; sometimes it is better to plan to buy a new one upon arrival. What comes to my mind is my flat iron, since it needs replacing anyway there is no reason to bring it and get an adapter. 

3. Think long and short term

If you know you are coming home for thanksgiving, you don't need to bring all your winter clothes with you. Instead you can leave them at home and switch out the bulk of your wardrobe when you visit. This is probably most important with winter clothes because they tend to be bulkiest, but the same idea goes for your spring clothes if you know you will be home for spring break. 

If you know you will not be coming home until next summer, you want to remember to pack for all seasons. But as your space will probably be limited, remember to pack versatile pieces and items that layer well. 

Best of luck! Remember that if you do forget something vital there are probably shops around for you to buy them.                                                                                                                                                          

What to do with Old Jeans and "Scraps' from DIY Cut-offs?

If you are like me and you like to make your own denim cut offs because you know how long you want your  shorts to be and the shops never seem to get them quite right, not to mention that your local thrift store has great jeans that are even cheaper than most new clothes and still in great shape. Now, that's all well and good except that every time you cut long pants into shorts, most of the fabric is now "scrap". And I cannot stand to throw that fabric away, mostly be use they are pretty big pieces, which would suggest you could make something out of them. But if you keep cutting shorts and saving jeans you grew out of or that ripped in awkward places etc. you end up with tons if jean in varying shades, and they continue to pile up. I found this blog post (http://pinoyinoz.blogspot.com/2008/07/tutorial-city-backpack.html) last summer and happened to have some light canvass-y material that was great for lining and embellishment. On the left is a potion of what was my collection of old unwearable denim.

I want to give credit where credit is due. So I won't do a tutorial or go through the details because I feel like that is not fair to her. Instead I recommend you go check out the post by Heart of Mary for full instructions. I just wanted to show what I made with just a few alterations, and maybe give some inspiration to those of you out there with leftover denim because in many cases it is strong enough to make a little bag like this one that is not meant to carry anything particularly heavy. Good luck if you decide to try this project too.

A little DIY in the spirit of reducing clutter and volume

First things first: I know I am not the first to do something like this. I am not trying to steel an idea. I just did this project myself because I am trying to shrink everything I own, including my make up collection which has gotten quite extensive lately.

First you will need:
Palettes or single pans that have been or are about to be depoted ( I have here an e.l.f. Palette where I chose to only depot the shades I liked because I fou d some of them to be pretty bad quality or too similar to another, better, eyeshadow I also owned)
Magnet strips ( you can find these at office supply or craft stores as stickers that are messs free , no glue, and easy to cut into shape if needed. )
Some other container for your new palette. I have an e.l.f. Bronzes that I stopped using along time ago for a plethora of reasons. I have taken the pan of bronzes out of its packaging and placed a piece of magnet sticker on the bottom. If you have something like a metal pencil box or something that is already magnetic you will not need to put down a layer of magnet stickers.

So essentially you want to pop the pans out of their packaging. I do this with my swiss army knife, you just need something you can slip under the pan and pop it out. This may be easier or harder depending on the pan and the old casing. Sometimes the glue is stronger but this usually just takes some conviction to get around. The bigger problem I've had is that some pans will bend and this causes the eyeshadow to crack and get all over the place. I also don't know any good tricks other than repressing the eye shadows into better pans. If you know how to get around this please let me know.
Then some pans are already magnetic and can simply be placed into your magnetic box or repurposed compact, others will need a little piece of magnet sticker on the back. Voila!
What you use for this project and how you embellish it is totally up to you. I have used other containers for palettes before and they are great for storage at home, but I have to say the bennifit of a compact is that they are a great size for taking in your purse and this one has a wonderful big mirror already in it.  Happy D.I.Y.ing everybody!

Amazing How Big Things Creep Up On Me

Four weeks and six days until my plane takes off! I feel like I am so close, yet I have barely started moving prep. I happen to know that there are also quite a few limiting factors in my move.

1. I get 1 suit case that fits that Lufthansa weight and size limits plus one carry on. 

2. Once landing in dresden I won't be able to move straight into my new room. Instead I will have a few weeks living with friends and visiting multiple cities as my family has a ton of people to visit ever time we go back to Germany. 

Keeping these in mind I know that everything I take with me will have to be just the bare essentials. Anything that I can easily buy new or repurchase regularly anyway will not be traveling with me. So my prep begins with a fight agains my pack rat side, by slowly getting rid of excessive things I can reduce my things to a much smaller mount that will be sorted In the final days before leaving.  I can only hope that those last few days are not a complete chaos, but by starting to think long term now and begin to limit the amount of stuff I own I can Imagine it will be a little easier.