Pearl Sleeve DIY

Today we have fun tutorial from my contributor, Brittany! She is constantly coming up with great projects on her blog, brittanyMakes. Her latest DIY project will turn any basic sweater into a piece of art! 

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Hey friends! I'm so happy to share this tutorial with you today. I love coming up with easy ways to glam up my wardrobe. I just may or may not have a closet full of bedazzled sweaters, but I sleep well at night knowing jeweled sweaters are currently demanded by the masses this season. While we're in the spirit of glitz and glam I thought it would be fun to create a little DIY version using a casual closet staple - the crew neck sweater. Grab your collection of Forever 21 pearls - let's do this! Here's what you need for this project: sweater of your choice, beading needle, thread, patience, scissors, and a good 2-hour chick flick.

First, I recommend propping yourself up in front of the TV. This bad boy will take a couple hours, but the results are pretty incredible. Keep your loose pearls contained by pouring them into a little bowl.

Thread your needle, tie a knot at the end of the thread, and sew a base knot onto the sweater sleeve. Loop the needle through the bead, back through the fabric, and back through the bead again. I found it easiest to make the finishing knot underneath the top of the sweater right under the bead (rather than turning the sweater inside out and knotting on the inside). If you choose thread the same color as the sweater, the knot under the bead blends in so well it's practically invisible.

It helps to be as random as possible, don't over-think the placing of the beads, just make sure you don't poke your fingers during the meet-cute scene in that chick flick you're watching ;)

Ta-da! And now you have yourself a super cute sweater, my friends.

Like what you see? Find more tutorials by brittanyMakes here.

Hi! I'm Brittany from the blog brittanyMakes, where I journal my adventures in DIY projects ranging from everyday home decor to handmade jewelry, from tips in photography to stories of bulldogs, and everything else in-between.   I am a fierce accountant by day and a zealous DIYer by night.  I spend my time balancing my love for home decor and design with the everyday responsibilities of my corporate day job.  My main mission is to inspire my readers to do what they love, take risks, and above all, to exercise their creative muscles!

Memorial Day Sales

I hope you are all enjoying your weekend. I just wanted to let you all know about some of the best Memorial Day Sales going on around the web this weekend. So much good stuff! 

ASOS is one of my favorite stores to shop at. If you follow me on Pinterest you've probably seen me pinning their stuff all day long. 

Take 20% off everything with code TAKE20

Gap has some amazing graphic prints going on right now. 

Through Tuesday, receive 20% off your Gap purchase with code GAPGIFT

I've been eying this maxi dress from Piperlime for awhile now. 

Now might be the perfect time to get it since you can Get up to 40% off at their designer sale. 

Who doesn't love J.Crew? Their new stuff is killing me with amazing-ness. 

Save up to $75 off your purchase at J.Crew using code SHOPNOW

You can find amazing deals at the J.Crew Factory right now. 

 Through Monday, enjoy 40% off everything 

Madewell is offering  take 20% off Tees, Tanks & Shorts with code SUMMERNOW

I love C Wonder for their preppy accessories. 

Spend $100, receive 25% off. Through the end of May, save an extra 50% off sale items with code SALE50

Now is the perfect time to shop at Nordstrom because they are having their HALF YEARLY SALE for women + kids through June 2nd. Shop select items for fall and save up to 40%

West Elm has a ton of great stuff right now and I love it when their Sale stuff goes on an even bigger sale! 

Extra 15% off sale items now at West Elm till 5/27 using code MEMDAY15

I'm constantly finding great home accessories at Anthropologie. These striped baskets would be amazing in a kids' room. 

Through Monday, enjoy free shipping on all orders $150+ with code LONGWEEKEND 

Furbish is my favorite place to shop for one-of-a-kind pieces like this amazing chair! 

15% off everything on the site till 5/27 using code LONGWEEKEND

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend. I'll be spending Memorial Day with my family. Keep up with me on instagram @kirstenkrason

What I Packed On My Cruise

 Our cruise was a blast! But I have to admit, with all the bad press cruises have gotten recently, I was a little nervous. Did any of you watch this? I'm not gonna lie it freaked me out a little. But just in case we were to get stranded out to sea I made sure to pack some fun stuff.

If you follow me on instagram (@kirstenkrason) you got a peak into my suitcase a couple of weeks ago.

The stores are starting to carry a few select summer/spring items but not a ton so it was somewhat difficult getting ready for our trip. Plus since I was hugely pregnant last summer my "warm-weather" wardrobe is severely suffering. Here are a few of the pretties I managed to get for our cruise.

First of all I love these peep toe neon jelly shoes from Forever 21. They are super comfy and oh so bright. 

I usually take my diaper bag as my carry-on but since this was a "kids-free" trip I didn't have it. I bought this duffel bag at Forever 21 two weeks ago and I LOVE it. It's such a great size. I wish I'd bought it years ago. 

I saw this cute shirt on Brickyard Buffalo a few weeks ago and I snatched it up. I know neon was the big thing last spring but I'm hoping it's around for at least another season. 

Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a swim cover up this time of year? Let me tell you I had to do some searching. I finally grabbed this ruffle maxi cover up from Target. It's really lightweight and I feel like the navy and white stripes are very "cruise" fitting. 

I bought this lightweight scarf at Forever 21. I didn't have room to pack a ton of outfits so this scarf enabled me to change up my look pretty easily. 

Cruises are wonderful because you are completely unplugged from the world. I used that as an excuse to catch up on some reading. I've been wanting to read the book,Blog, Inc. for awhile now so I bought it just for the trip!  

I also read,The Fault in Our Stars by John Green which was a great read! Have any of you read it? 

Our trip was fun but I'm so glad to be back. I just need to get through the mounds of laundry that are waiting for me and SO much unpacking still to do...

DISCLOSURE: COMPENSATED AFFILIATE LINKS USED

What I Wore to Alt 2013

I had quite a few emails yesterday about some of the pieces I wore to Alt so I thought I'd write up a little post about each outfit. 

*Disclaimer :: You probably have never known anyone that feels as awkward as I do posing for pictures. I hate it. These are pretty much as good as it gets as far as my modeling career is concerned. 

Shirt: Target || Skirt: J.C. Penny - from a few years ago 

Target is seriously like the only store I shop at these days. It's not easy going to the mall with two kids let me tell you that. Luckily Target has an amazing selection of clothes. This floral shirt is my new favorite shirt. It goes with almost anything! 

Shirt: Anthropologie || Green Skinnies: Target || Shoes: Soel Boutique 

I got this shirt at Anthropologie on sale after Christmas. It's super comfortable and oh so silky. 

Dress, Jacket & Shoes: F21 || Necklace: Bijou Market || Earrings: Anthropologie 

The Clue party outfit was really difficult for me to pull together. I finally, in a last ditch effort, took a trip to Forever 21 two days before Alt. I found my whole outfit there on sale. The shoes, jacket and dress together cost me less than $30! 

Blazer: F21 || Blue Shirt: F21 || Black Skinnies: Target || Boots:  Target 

In case you don't believe how awkward I am at taking pictures of myself feast your eyes on these outtakes. 

see I told you...

Etsy Friendship Bracelet Roundup

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter weekend! Ours was wonderful. I now have more candy than I know what to do with. 

Today I've put together a fun Etsy Roundup for you. 

Friendship bracelets are a hot trend for Spring. Etsy has a ton of fabulous options! 

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16.

The Amazing Lace Skirt

A few weeks ago Monica and Whitney asked me to participate in their newest blogger series, The Amazing Lace Skirt. They are sending their lace skirt traveling all over the country to different bloggers to see how they would style it. 

I was sporting a tiny baby bump and it was snowing outside so this is the best picture I could get of  me in the skirt. Plus I feel like a complete idiot trying to model in a picture. 

Just take a look at how these cute ladies have modeled this great skirt. 

I could only wish to look as chic. 

Hope you are all having a great weekend! I'm up in Bear Lake hanging with my family and enjoying LDS General Conference.