Plastic Drawer Up-Do

I've probably mentioned this a thousand times here on my blog, but I have limited space in my apartment which can be tricky. Living in a studio apartment has really constrained me from bringing in unnecessary items or things that would take up way too much room. One of the biggest issues I faced was figuring out where I would store all of my clothes. Even though I have a decent sized closet, I have limited space on the bar to hang clothes and my jeans & sweatshirts take up all of the shelving. But what about those undergarments of mine? I debated on bringing my dresser with me, but I realized that it was too big & bulky, and I just didn't have the room for it. I finally figured out a convenient way to store my bras and panties: buying a plastic 3-drawer storage unit. It worked perfectly! I had a drawer for each of my undergarment pieces. However, I quickly found out that not only was it unappealing to guests to be able to see into the drawers but it made me a bit uncomfortable and self conscious. I could always close my closet doors, but I don't like doing that; It seems to make the room look smaller and bland. Since I am renting an apartment I can't exactly paint the walls or even the closet doors, so I have to settle with everything being white/cream. On the other hand, since everything is organized and put away nicely, having the doors open isn't an eye-sore, but instead gives the room a bit more to look at, and gives you a sneak-peak into my style/personality.

To fix this problem I took to Pinterest.. of course! And looked for different bits of inspiration. I had a couple ideas in mind but wanted to see how other people tackled this DIY. With some sense of direction, I took to the craft store and wandered up and down their scrapbook paper section. I found a nice 80 sheet paper pad that fit my color scheme and had some fun pattern play. I also picked up a small bottle of mod podge and I suggest picking up a sponge brush if you don't already own one. I forgot a brush and didn't feel like making the trip back into town, so I just used anything I could find in my apartment; q-tips, napkins, paper towel... although I eventually ended up using my fingers.. Hey, I had to improvise and it worked!

First, I measured the front of the drawer and cut out 3 rectangles to fit into place. I drew the line on the back of the paper with a pencil, so if I needed to erase I could do so without ruining the pretty side. Once they were cut out I had the option of leaving them as in and 'glueing' them in place, however, I thought it would be fun and a bit more unique to label each one. I picked out some metallic colors from my cup of assorted pens and sharpies. Since this unit was specifically for my undergarments, I labeled one "Panties", one "Bras", and the last one "Socks". That way I knew what was in each drawer. Then, to add a bit more character I drew little bras, panties, and socks, on each sign.

Lastly, I just needed to glue them in place. At first I tried spreading the mod podge over the paper, but soon found that it was quite difficult and I feared that it would ruin the design, writing, and/or the actual paper. So, for the other two, I applied the mod podge on the inner part of the drawer and then carefully laid the paper on top, making sure the words were facing outwards and right-side up. and smoothed out any bubbles with my hand. This method was easier and gave better results, in my opinion.

This was a super easy and fun DIY and quite inexpensive as well. I think the most expensive item was the pad of paper, but I can always use the other sheets for more crafts & projects. The thing about these storage units, is you can use them for ANYTHING, and there are so many different ways you can give them a facelift. You can use spray paint, duct tape, washi tape, construction paper, etc. Just have fun with it and customize it to fit your personality!

Much Love! Xx

Festive Room Decor

"It's the most wonderful time of the year"

Hello everybody! I've been in the festive mood lately, decorating my apartment and I wanted to share with you all of the bits and pieces. Not going to lie, this was super fun and made me even more excited for the holiday season! It's not much, but I'll be able to pick up more things throughout the years to come.

Christmas lights & new bed sheets/pillow cases.

My first very own Christmas tree! Went for a neutral cream color theme, with a couple matte black baubles and tiny red bells to add a bit of contrast/depth.

Little spread on the table: Advent calendar, candles, salt & pepper shakers, and a count down to Christmas chalk board!

"Merry Christmas" banner : an essential piece of decor.

Fairy garden filled with acorns, candles, and little fairy lights!

I am super pleased with how my Christmas tree turned out, however I'm super bummed that pictures just don't do it justice. Trust me and take my word when I say that it looks absolutely beautiful in real life. I wouldn't mind being a professional Christmas tree decorator!

Besides the tree, I'd have to say that my bedding is my second favorite bit; It was my first time buying bed sheets EVER, and they just had to be festive! I also adore the mix match pillow cases! And of course, I had to top off my bedding with my fuzzy gray throw. 

I also love my tiny display that I have on my table. Advent calendars are a must and the count down to Christmas is a nice addition and brings out the inner child inside of me. Don't even get me started with the salt & pepper shakers, because I am OBSESSED; They are so cute! Lastly, you can never have enough festive candles to burn throughout your home.. In fact, I went a bit overboard and bought a decent amount of candles and I even made a blog post to tell you about them, which if you'd like to check out here is the link to that post: Christmas Candle Overload.

Anyways, I hope this post brings you a bit of Christmas spirit and holiday cheer!

On a side note, I'd like to add that over on my youtube channel I'm thinking about doing Vlogmas, but it will only be the 12 days leading up to Christmas, with day #12 actually being Christmas Day. So if you'd like to watch what I do throughout the day's leading up until Christmas, subscribe to my youtube channel which you can do so by clicking here. 

Much Love! Xx

New Beginnings

I never liked the idea of change; It's a scary thought. Stepping outside of my comfort zone is intimidating and having anxiety doesn't help my cause. When a lot of things are going right I never want things to change. But how can you move forward when you're holding onto the past? I've unfortunately had a lot of hardships in my 19 years of living and I knew that college was the perfect opportunity to start over. My first year of college wasn't what I expected. During my senior year of high school I made the mistake of applying to only one college. I waited my entire senior year to find out that I was put on a wait list. Determined to go to college that fall I had no choice but to attend a local UW college. Long story short, I hated it; it didn't feel like college, it still felt like high school. I got extremely depressed and my anxiety flared up. For the first time in my life I failed classes. I knew I needed to change something with my life. It was a scary thought but I needed to take that leap of faith. So in a short couple of months I applied to Madison Area Technical College - got accepted, transferred jobs, and got an apartment 5 minutes from the UW campus and my brothers house.



A year ago a never would have imagined me being where I am today. I've had a lot of thoughts about backing out and going home but that would be too easy. I'm proud of myself for sticking with it and I am so blessed for everything I have in my life. In the past year I have gone from a college that held me back rather than going forward, to a place that has motivated me to do better and become a better person each and everyday. I always told myself that technical colleges were for those who slacked in high school and that I wouldn't fall down to that level. Boy was I wrong; MATC  is one of the best decisions of my life. Every thought that I put into my head about a technical college was false and I can't believe how ignorant I was being. Any thing that you choose to do in life is better than doing nothing at all. The first month of the semester has flown by so quickly and each time I exit those doors I pat myself on the back and smile because I am a step closer to where I want to be in life.


In the past year I have grown up so much, all thanks to those who I surround myself with. I am so blessed to have such amazing coworkers that support me and push me to do better. Without them I don't know where i'd be. My parents were also such a huge part in pushing me to do what is best for myself & my future. Each and every day I find out more about myself and how capable I am to complete goals if I set my mind to them. Moving on to another college was one step, but taking the leap of faith and moving to a whole new city, two hours away from my parents, and living on my own was a giant leap. But I don't regret it; It's life and we are here to live it. Owning my own place is extremely exciting but also a wake-up call. I've had to prioritize my time and money to keep up with the bills and the dishes. One thing I do regret is not taking the opportunities to cook with my mom in the kitchen. I quickly found out how much I know about preparing a meal: almost nothing. I literally thought it was a good idea to put bread in the microwave to make 'toast' (because I didn't have a toaster), you can probably guess what happened... Yeah, not the sharpest knife in the drawer. Regardless, I am ecstatic with how far I've come in the past couple of months; from living with my parents to living on my own. A giant step anyone and everyone should be proud of.



Recently I made the decision to change it up quite a bit; I decided to dye my hair. I looked at it as a new beginning, a way to close a chapter of my life in order to start a new one. A new life, a new look, a new me. A healthier me, with ambition to achieve, and motivation to keep moving forward. It was a big decision, but it was something I wanted to do for over a year now and I thought now was the best time to do it. I went from a medium brown that faded out at the ends from highlights, to a dark rich chocolate brown that is warm and has depth. I was so scared for this change since i've never done anything so drastic. I also got it cut just below my shoulders in order to get rid of all of my dead ends I accumulated over the years (A trip to the barber was a rare occasion for me). I did some research before getting my hair done because this was a big deal for me and I wanted to have complete trust in the person who would be doing it. I ended up in the hands of Ric, an amazing beautician who was professional but personable. I couldn't be more happy over my decision to wait and get my hair done at this salon. It was a much needed change and it turned out just how I imagined/hoped. They say that when you go through a big change in your life you tend to change your appearance. And when I say appearance, I mainly mean your hair.

After

Before

All in all I'm not exactly where I want to be, but I am where I need to be and that's all that matters. I'm a step in the right direction and each day I am getting closer; this is just the beginning.